5 ms·

I live in Bangalore, one of the cities which is primed for water depletion. In fact, there are areas where there is no drinking water supply at all and water is

I live in Bangalore, one of the cities which is primed for water depletion. In fact, there are areas where there is no drinking water supply at all and water is ferried by trucks (locally called water tankers). Now these trucks ferry water from God knows where but most likely a fresh water source or a borewell. Most of the neighbourhoods in my city are fed by these borewells some going as deep as 1000ft. Some neighbourhoods don't find water even at those depths and they have to depend on these water trucks. Now I'm not talking about a few hundred or thousand people I am talking about hundreds of thousands of people who live like this. The prime IT areas are all water depleted already. There is this notion amongst us Indians that things will improve somehow and we will get by. What they don't realise is that the politicians won't give a damn, when water depletion hits critical levels. In fact these water trucks are run mostly by politicians and their local goons. The ground reality in a city like Bangalore at the very fundamental liveable parameters is horrible and getting worse day by day. This year rains have been below average so we are staring at a water shortage next year even in areas that get fresh water from the regular water supply.

anshumankmr 3y ago
I live in Indiranagar and this is a sad reality of life here. These issues remind of this scene in Margin Call where two character talk about the impending 2008 crisis https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOYi4NzxlhE&ab_channel=Movieclips https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOYi4NzxlhE&ab_channel=Movie.... There are many major issues in India's growth story, and I feel the music is gonna stop really soon.
- toomuchtodo 3y ago
  All you can do is make sure you have a seat when the music stops. Nobody is coming to save us.
adrianN 3y ago
It is my understand that once an aquifer is depleted, there is no going back. The relevant strata collapse and become unable to carry water. So there is probably no way the situation can improve.
- anonuser123456 3y ago
  For some aquifers this is true, but not all.
mortureb 3y ago
Honestly India already has a solution for this that is not being implemented fast enough. The monsoons every year provide more than enough water to supply India for years every season, most of it just ends up in the oceans. India has to massively invest in catchment. There is some of this happening but it needs to be on a much larger scale.
- no_wizard 3y ago
  Though monsoon patterns may change with climate change too. There are some forecasts that have India much much drier by 2040 where the water is needed most[0] [0]: https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2013/06/19/india-climate-change-impacts https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2013/06/19/india-c...
  - Dig1t 3y ago
    These models are notoriously bad, there were tons of predictions that California would be under water by now.
- xhkkffbf 3y ago
  Yes, I've seen some good articles about how just some basic terraforming can make a huge difference of how much ends up in the aquifer. A bit more could really help.
- deepGem 3y ago
  Rain water harvesting and catchment - while in theory this is a solution, it has not been implemented in any major city at a large scale. For instance in Bangalore, around 200,000 households have implemented rain water harvesting. Why is this ? Implementation problems - The process and procedure is not as straightforward as 'dig a hole, put some gravel and you are done'. In fact, if you don't follow the correct protocol, you will screw up the ground water table. Lack of standards - I am yet to come across a protocol and standard for implementing RWH. Every RWH expert has their own protocol. In fact, someone as famous as Aamir Khan touted a revolutionary process of RWH, which proved to be disastrous for the water table. The consumer need or want - This is the most impactful reason in my opinion. The water crisis is not in your face, it is not an impending problem. Also, having your own source of water or implementing RWH is not something you can flaunt and show off. Perhaps why people spend so much on the apartment/house and so little on RWH. Had there been a consumer need, private enterprises would have swung to action. We probably would have a Swiggy'ish startup solving RWH here. Corruption, let's not forget the politician driven agendas for not enabling self sufficiency in water supply. If the water problem goes away, that tool is no longer available for elections. Yes, water crisis is a political tool and is a pretty big one. The farming community almost always is driven by this tool to decide whom they vote. So, yeah while in theory everyone should implement RWH and the water crisis will be solved, this theory does not hold any water in practice. We need a herculean effort driven either by the govt or a non-profit to bring about the awareness in people. Once the consumer need is established, private enterprises will take care of the rest.
sateesh 3y ago
What is all the more tragic is, Bangalore gets ample rainfall and stricter implementation of rain water harvesting is one remedial solution. Though local authorities mandate compulsory rainwater harvesting for newer residential construction the implementation is quite lackluster in practice. During house construction people spend fortune on interior decoration, but loathe to spend money towards water conservation and harvesting efforts.
throw_pm23 3y ago
The main problem is the overall density on the subcontinent of 481 ppl/km². (Compare with the density in Europe of 34 ppl/km².) You can't have the quality of life of the latter at population densities of the former.
- atleastoptimal 3y ago
  South Korea has a higher population density and a high quality of life. Infrastructure, climate, and natural resources play a big factor
  - throw_pm23 3y ago
    Yes, but they are still 50M overall. They maintain that quality of life by supplying the rest of the world with much of its cars, electronics, phones, and other crap (including pop music and movies). You can't do it at a size 30 times as large, or you'd need an entire solar system as your market.
    - atleastoptimal 3y ago
      You're implying that humanity net overall has a fixed output and the only way a country can do well for itself is at the expense of others. Technological, infrastructure and agricultural improvements, and more efficient use of resources make the whole "pie" bigger for everyone, and don't require being a top 10 economy relying on a resource rich 3rd world.
  - ipnon 3y ago
    The geography of South Korea seems to help. Typhoons collect into snow on the rocky mountains, that melt throughout the year into clearly defined rivers without much penetration into soil. There is an ecological buffer that some parts of India don't have to maintain levels of drinking water throughout the year.

anshumankmr 3y ago

I live in Indiranagar and this is a sad reality of life here. These issues remind of this scene in Margin Call where two character talk about the impending 2008 crisis https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOYi4NzxlhE&ab_channel=Movieclips https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOYi4NzxlhE&ab_channel=Movie.... There are many major issues in India's growth story, and I feel the music is gonna stop really soon.

toomuchtodo 3y ago
All you can do is make sure you have a seat when the music stops. Nobody is coming to save us.

adrianN 3y ago

It is my understand that once an aquifer is depleted, there is no going back. The relevant strata collapse and become unable to carry water. So there is probably no way the situation can improve.

anonuser123456 3y ago
For some aquifers this is true, but not all.

mortureb 3y ago

Honestly India already has a solution for this that is not being implemented fast enough. The monsoons every year provide more than enough water to supply India for years every season, most of it just ends up in the oceans. India has to massively invest in catchment. There is some of this happening but it needs to be on a much larger scale.

no_wizard 3y ago
Though monsoon patterns may change with climate change too. There are some forecasts that have India much much drier by 2040 where the water is needed most[0] [0]: https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2013/06/19/india-climate-change-impacts https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2013/06/19/india-c...
- Dig1t 3y ago
  These models are notoriously bad, there were tons of predictions that California would be under water by now.
xhkkffbf 3y ago
Yes, I've seen some good articles about how just some basic terraforming can make a huge difference of how much ends up in the aquifer. A bit more could really help.
deepGem 3y ago
Rain water harvesting and catchment - while in theory this is a solution, it has not been implemented in any major city at a large scale. For instance in Bangalore, around 200,000 households have implemented rain water harvesting. Why is this ? Implementation problems - The process and procedure is not as straightforward as 'dig a hole, put some gravel and you are done'. In fact, if you don't follow the correct protocol, you will screw up the ground water table. Lack of standards - I am yet to come across a protocol and standard for implementing RWH. Every RWH expert has their own protocol. In fact, someone as famous as Aamir Khan touted a revolutionary process of RWH, which proved to be disastrous for the water table. The consumer need or want - This is the most impactful reason in my opinion. The water crisis is not in your face, it is not an impending problem. Also, having your own source of water or implementing RWH is not something you can flaunt and show off. Perhaps why people spend so much on the apartment/house and so little on RWH. Had there been a consumer need, private enterprises would have swung to action. We probably would have a Swiggy'ish startup solving RWH here. Corruption, let's not forget the politician driven agendas for not enabling self sufficiency in water supply. If the water problem goes away, that tool is no longer available for elections. Yes, water crisis is a political tool and is a pretty big one. The farming community almost always is driven by this tool to decide whom they vote. So, yeah while in theory everyone should implement RWH and the water crisis will be solved, this theory does not hold any water in practice. We need a herculean effort driven either by the govt or a non-profit to bring about the awareness in people. Once the consumer need is established, private enterprises will take care of the rest.

sateesh 3y ago

What is all the more tragic is, Bangalore gets ample rainfall and stricter implementation of rain water harvesting is one remedial solution. Though local authorities mandate compulsory rainwater harvesting for newer residential construction the implementation is quite lackluster in practice. During house construction people spend fortune on interior decoration, but loathe to spend money towards water conservation and harvesting efforts.

throw_pm23 3y ago

The main problem is the overall density on the subcontinent of 481 ppl/km². (Compare with the density in Europe of 34 ppl/km².) You can't have the quality of life of the latter at population densities of the former.

atleastoptimal 3y ago
South Korea has a higher population density and a high quality of life. Infrastructure, climate, and natural resources play a big factor
- throw_pm23 3y ago
  Yes, but they are still 50M overall. They maintain that quality of life by supplying the rest of the world with much of its cars, electronics, phones, and other crap (including pop music and movies). You can't do it at a size 30 times as large, or you'd need an entire solar system as your market.
  - atleastoptimal 3y ago
    You're implying that humanity net overall has a fixed output and the only way a country can do well for itself is at the expense of others. Technological, infrastructure and agricultural improvements, and more efficient use of resources make the whole "pie" bigger for everyone, and don't require being a top 10 economy relying on a resource rich 3rd world.
- ipnon 3y ago
  The geography of South Korea seems to help. Typhoons collect into snow on the rocky mountains, that melt throughout the year into clearly defined rivers without much penetration into soil. There is an ecological buffer that some parts of India don't have to maintain levels of drinking water throughout the year.