1. Kerala, flanked on the west by the Arabian Sea and on the east by the Western Ghats, is bestowed with enviable natural resources. It has 44 rivers spanning its lush green landscape and rainfall that averages as high as 3,000 mm a year. 2. River Management Fund remains underutilised :- C P Sajit - Express News Service, 13th August 2017. 3. No action taken to protect the river banks or stop illegal sand mining; a meeting to be held to decide on the fund utilisation 4. Despite high rainfall and numerous water sources, why Kerala suffers from lowest per capita share of water -Aarti Kelkar-Khambete. 5. Kerala has the highest levels of chemical and bacterial contamination of drinking water.
Opinion
19/08/2018
1363
Sub :-
1. Kerala, flanked on the west by the Arabian Sea and on the east by the Western Ghats, is bestowed with enviable natural resources. It has 44 rivers spanning its lush green landscape and rainfall that averages as high as 3,000 mm a year.
2. River Management Fund remains underutilised :-
C P Sajit - Express News Service, 13th August 2017.
3. No action taken to protect the river banks or stop illegal sand mining; a meeting to be held to decide on the fund utilisation
4. Despite high rainfall and numerous water sources, why Kerala suffers from lowest per capita share of water -Aarti Kelkar-Khambete.
5. Kerala has the highest levels of chemical and bacterial contamination of drinking water.
Ref : - 1. THE PRESENT KERALA FLOODS :-
THRISSUR: Even while several river banks are being encroached upon not to mention the very many instances of illegal land occupation across the state, the corpus provided under the River Management Fund remains largely underutilised in all the districts.The information gleaned through RTI said as on July 2017, `137.07 crore remains unused with the administration as River Management Fund.
Curiously in Thrissur,Palakkad and Malappuram through which the Bharathapuza and several smaller rivers pass,the total amount remaining unspent comes to `86.27 crore, with the break-up being `20.92 crore, `14.43 crore and `50.91 crore,respectively Among all districts, Malappuram has the biggest allocation under the River Management while Alappuzha with `1.29 crore has the lowest.
The allocation for other districts is as follows :-
Thiruvananthapuram(`20.62 crore), Kollam(`11.86 crore),Pathanamthitta(`5.9 crore), Idukki(`5.11 crore), Kottayam `3,20 crore), Kasargod(`1,72 crore), Ernakulam(`7,83 crore, Kozhikode(`9,63 crore) and Wayanad (`3.75 crore).Green campaigner K K Devdas told Express it is unfortunate despite having such a corpus the district administration did not initiate any steps to clear the encroachments or even protect the river banks.
He said the money allocated under the River Management Fund is generated mainly from sand mining carried out legally. A portion of the amount collected for the sand through issuing of passes goes to the River Fund. “We have brought the issue of growing number of violations and illegal activities which has taken place in Thrissur to the District Collector’s attention. However, not enough has been done to protect the river banks or stop illegal sand mining. “In Cheruthurty over 2 km of river bank has been encroached upon and it has been brought to the attention of Collector who was unaware of the same despite his office having replied to the RTI related to it,” Devdas said.
Kusumam Joseph, social activist and coordinator of National Alliance for People’s Movement, said even the local bodies which are supposed to protect rivers are destroying them.
Citing the example of Annamanada panchayat, she said they had constructed a park and community hall by encroaching upon the Chalakkudi river. K Rajan, secretary, Kerala River Protection Council, said the violations are continuing unchecked across the state and there has been no step to protect the rivers.
The River Management Fund is being misused and diverted for purchasing staff vehicles, he said.
In Kozhikode the fund was used to purchase the vehicle and when we asked them how it could be used they said the vehicle was needed to check illegal activities.
Tinku Biswal, Secretary, Water Resources Department, said there are sufficient funds, but they do no have a say in their utilisation. It is the Revenue Department which has to sanction the funds to the Irrigation Department. Revenue Principal Secretary P H Kurian said the fund had been used by the previous government to construct bridges. However, a decision on how to utilise the funds will be decided at the meeting to be chaired by the Revenue Minister on August 28.There is a proposal to utilise the fund through Haritha Keralam mission, he said.
Sorry state of affairs :-
1. The river bank violations continue unchecked across the state
2. The fund is being misused and diverted for purchasing staff vehicles
3. The fund was also used to construct bridges
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3. Despite high rainfall and numerous water sources, why Kerala suffers from lowest per capita share of water
Aarti Kelkar-Khambete
Aarti Kelkar-Khambete writes for India Water Portal, a website that shares knowledge and builds communities around water and related issues in India. Managed by Arghyam, the portal is a valuable archive of resources, working papers, reports, data, articles, news, events, opportunities and discussions on water.
Kerala has the highest levels of chemical and bacterial contamination of drinking water.
1.
Kerala, flanked on the west by the Arabian Sea and on the east by the Western Ghats, is bestowed with enviable natural resources. It has 44 rivers spanning its lush green landscape and rainfall that averages as high as 3,000 mm a year. As one of the most densely populated states in the country, it has high indicators of health and social development, and its model for development has been hailed as an important indicator for other states to follow.
However, recent evidence shows that high population density, industrialisation, urbanisation, mismanagement of water resources, and vagaries of climate change have taken their toll on the water resources in the state. The graphs below explain the situation of water resources in the state.
2.Declining availability of freshwater resources :-
The water situation is marked by contrasts – the state has abundant water resources in the form of rivers, lakes, ponds, and two monsoons, but it is water stressed with the lowest per capita share of freshwater resources. Evidence shows that this availability of freshwater sources has been declining over the years amidst growing demand for water due to high population density and changing water use habits.
# Graph Percapita water avilability over a century
3. Changing rainfall patterns :-
Its entire water supply depends on rainfall, which shows seasonal and regional variations that lead to occasional floods and droughts. Rainfall is also the main source of groundwater recharge and is found to influence the water levels in the subsurface and deeper aquifers. There is a large variation in rainfall between districts, and recent evidence shows that there has been a decline, especially in the north, over the years along with changes in the form and timing of the rains. Experts attribute this change in rainfall patterns to climate change and changes in land use patterns and forest cover. The monsoon, which has been deficient throughout the country this year, has also shown a 26 percent deficiency in Kerala.
4. Declining groundwater levels :-
Groundwater is important for meeting the domestic needs of more than 80 percent of rural and 50 percent of urban population in Kerala besides fulfilling the needs of around 50 percent of irrigated agriculture. However, recent years have shown declining groundwater levels. A study by CGWB in 2013 that analysed 10,219 wells across the country found that 5,699 wells reported a decline in water levels during that period. Kerala was the third state showing a decline in groundwater levels in the country after Tamil Nadu and Punjab.
# Graph states showing fall in well water levels
Source: The Times of India, July 27, 2014
5. High density of wells, high dependence on groundwater :-
As high as 62 percent of the households in Kerala depend on well water to meet their water needs and the state has a very high density of open wells with 250 open wells/km2. The decline in groundwater levels has been attributed to the high dependence on groundwater.
6. High density of wells, high dependence on groundwater :-
As high as 62 percent of the households in Kerala depend on well water to meet their water needs and the state has a very high density of open wells with 250 open wells/km2. The decline in groundwater levels has been attributed to the high dependence on groundwater.
# Graph coverage of house hold drinking water supply
Source: Census (2011)
7. Lowest proportion of improved drinking water coverage as compared to other bigger states :-
Kerala is the worst performer in terms of availability of improved drinking water sources. Improved sources of drinking water according to NSSO (2012) include piped water, public tap/standpipe, tube well/borehole, protected well, bottled water, protected spring, and rainwater collection. In rural Kerala, only 29.5 percent of households get drinking water from an improved source while the proportion is as high as 80 percent or more for most of the other bigger states. In urban areas of most of the bigger states, more than 90 percent of households get drinking water from improved sources while it is only 56.8 percent in Kerala.
The Kerala Water Authority (KWA) provides piped water supply to the state, but the water supply is characterised by poor planning in terms of sustainability, technology choice, and design optimisation resulting in source and system failures. The operation and maintenance of the schemes are very poor and there is a very little chance for improvement due to lack of will and poor cost recovery.
Available decentralised water supply schemes also do not yield satisfactory results as they often follow a project mode. An assessment of decentralised community managed systems shows that the regularity of water supply varies drastically under the different schemes.
# Graph Extent of water contamination in southern states
Source: Economic Review, Kerala (2012)
8. Highest water contamination of groundwater :-
Evidence also shows a very high degree of contamination of groundwater with a high number of wells contaminated with coliform bacteria due to the mixing of sewage with groundwater. A study by the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Government of India (2012), found that Kerala had the highest chemical /bacterial contaminated drinking water among the 28 tested states in the country. Out of the total 1,02,900 tested sources from Kerala, nearly 34 percent were identified with contamination of iron, fluoride, salinity, nitrate, arsenic, and bacteria.
District wise, Kozhikode had the highest chemical/bacterial contaminated water. As high as 54 percent of the 10,803 tested sources were found to be contaminated. Thiruvananthapuram, Kannur, Kasaragod, Ernakulam, and Palakkad were the other vulnerable districts in terms of poor access to safe drinking water.
# Graph top six districts with high water contamination
Source: Economic Review, Kerala (2012)
9. Poor development of surface water resources :-
The short length of the rivers and the height difference between the high and low lands leads to quick flow of water collected from the river basin to the sea. The state has thus far not been able to utilise river water sources to a major extent. High levels of bacteriological pollution, as well as pollution due to industrial, domestic wastes, pesticides, and fertilisers have rendered most of the water from the rivers unfit for drinking.
Apart from rivers and wells, sources like tanks, ponds, springs, and surangams have also been used traditionally in Kerala to provide water for drinking as well as irrigation. Natural springs also occur in the highland regions and these can also be developed as good sources for drinking water supply and small scale irrigation. However, many of these resources continue to be underutilised, ill maintained, and neglected.
# Graph kerala fresh water bodies and rivers
Source: Chakrapani (2014)
10. Can scarcity be turned into plenty?
Experts argue that the increasing water demand leading to over exploitation of groundwater resources and deterioration in the traditions of water conservation have exacerbated the water crisis in Kerala. Thus, changing the state's water situation will require a multipronged approach with a focus on:
*Adopting an integrated water resources management (IWRM) approach through developing the understanding of water as a common resource.
*Managing supply through protecting forests, wetlands, and ecologically fragile areas; encouraging recycling and reuse of water; focusing on reviving traditional water conservation structures; encouraging groundwater recharge through adoption of rainwater harvesting; and adopting community-based watershed management.
*Demand management – focus on generating awareness among the community on reducing demand and wastage, and sustainable use of water.
*Regular monitoring of demand and supply of water resources.
Disclaimer: This article, authored by Aarti Kelkar - Khambete, was first published in India Water Portal.
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OPINION :-
1. KERALAM IS MALANADU;
2. HAS PLENTY OF RAINS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR;
3. HAS MANY RIVERS, RESERVOIRS, DAMS;
4. HAS MANY LAKES TOO;
5. KERALAM IS NATURE, OTHERWISE GOD'S PRESENCE / MANIFESTATION AS NATURE;
6. JALAM IS MOST POWERFUL IN PANCH-BOOTHAM;
7. SO THE DHARMAM OF CITIZENS TO PROTECT THIS, AND NOT TO POLLUTE;
8. KEEPING THE PURITY OF WATER, AIR, EARTH, SPACE AND RESPECT AGNI IS VERY ESSENTIAL;
9. GOVERNMENTS ( LDF OR UDF ) SHOULD SHED THE PARTY COLOURS, AND SINCERELY IMPLEMENT, THE CENTRAL GOVERNMENTS SRI MADHAV AND SRI KASTURIRANGAN REPORTS;
10. THIS LAND IS NATURE, NO INDUSTRIES SUITED THIS EARTH, OR OMIT THE TENDENCY OF THINKING THIS EARTH AS MONEY, CHANGE YOUR MIND AND THINK THIS EARTH IS OUR MOTHER, PROTECT, PRESERVE THE NATURE, DO NOT POLLUTE ..
JAIHIND
VANDEMATHARAM
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