Arresting
Rain
Despite
pretensions, artistic accomplishments and sophistication, man owes
his existence to a six-inch layer of top soil and the rains, reiterates
Dr Venkatesh Tagat
As
the month of June approaches, all eyes are turned upward watching
for the dark clouds to hover overhead and bring rain which is a great
relief from the suffocating heat during the summer to combat water
shortages. A lot depends on the monsoon. The whole situation is best
captured by the importance given to the announcements made by meteorologists
regarding the arrival and behaviour of the monsoons which is the
only source of water for majority of the Indian States and their population.
Traditionally,
village communities have been known to harvest rain water and store
it in efficient ways for using it later for irrigation or drinking
purposes. Depending on the regions, communities have designed effective
and efficient methods of storing rainwater. This is seen as more prominent
in dry regions or areas where dependence on rainfall was very high
as compared to the river valleys. Problems arose not only when population
pressure on land increased rapidly but also when the state took ownership
and control over the natural resources like forests, tanks and lakes.
The
community ownership and interest to maintain the systems were reduced
to mere beneficiaries and decision making passed on to bureaucrats.
At this point, the rapid exploitation of groundwater, urbanization
and poor planning led to greater pressures on all traditional systems
of water conservation and management. Irrigation was also seen as
an option for overcoming water shortages and bringing about the Green
Revolution. Demands for big dams and irrigation canals carrying water
over large distances became associated with progress in rural areas.
To
the above scenario, if you add the perennial problem of erratic rainfall
many a times leading to drought or drought like situations, the results
or impact on humans, livestock and agriculture are catastrophic. Maharashtra
is a good example where the drought of 1972 broke the backs of the
rural communities. Their search for water led them to drilling borewells,
lift irrigation schemes, building percolation tanks and trying to
artificially recharge ground water. It was later that they discovered
the answer to their problem lies in catching the rain water as it
falls, allowing it to percolate and then manage its uses properly
which would not only help to conserve rain water but also ensure a
fair amount of equitable distribution.
Another
key to the success is the ownership issue – as long as the village
communities are involved in planning, implementing and supervising
and maintaining these systems, their interests and contributions are
sustainable.
What
is the source of all water?
River
water, water in lakes, ponds and wells, water that seeps into the
ground, collecting in the belly of the earth tap water even bottled
water now! the source of all water is rain. In India, the monsoon
is brief. Flash floods churn up dry river-beds. Dry wells come to
life; lakes and ponds brim with water.We get about 100 hours of rain
in a year. It is this 100-hour bounty that must be caught, stored,
and used over the other 8,660 hours that make up a year. Let us apply
this understanding, in order to meet the ever increasing demand, what
we actually need to do is harvest the rain. Not dam a rivers, and
block its flow. Not boost water out of the ground, and suck the earth
dry. Not build canals, lay kilometers of pipes. But merely harvest
the rain.
Extend
the fruits of the monsoon
The
simple basis of rain water harvesting is to catch rain where it falls.
The water harvesting method builds systems that enable such an extension,
and creates a structure to manage it. These structures are and should
be region specific in nature. The water harvesting experience is largely
born of local wisdom it’s scientific and still in use.The system is
participatory and has it’s basis in the mobilization of people; the
best way to a non-scarce future. But, what is the potential of rainwater
harvesting? We must understand the arithmetic of water. The source
of all water on earth is not the river, is not the underground aquifer,
is not the lake, well or stream. Rain is the source of all water.
We
have enough water to meet our water needs, provide food security and
eradicate rural poverty. A condition that holds true only if we recognise
that rainwater needs to be harvested through its capturing, storing
and recharging and later using it during prolonged parched periods.
The key component of water management is ‘storage’. Michael Evenari,
an Israeli scientist’s study clearly demonstrates that ten dams with
a per head catchment area of one hectare will store more water than
a dam spread over ten hectares. Several other studies conducted by
the Central Soil and Water Conservation Research Institute in different
parts of the country revealed similar results.
Any
land can be used to harvest rainwater. In tune with the terrain, with
nothing imposed. It is just a matter of using material locally abundant
– stones, mud, bamboo and others. Synergies exist between rainfall,
human population density and land availability which can be intelligently
harnessed and utilised.
Potential
Nabard
has been involved in the soil and water conservation programme from
the late eighties working with select state governments and NGOs to
mobilize communities for planning and implementing watershed projects.
The initial programme was funded by KfW, a German Development Bank
under the aegis of the Indo-German Watershed Development Programme
(IGWDP) in Maharashtra involving NGOs. This programme is nearly a
decade old and encompasses more than 120 watershed projects covering
approximately an area of one lakh hectares. Village communities and
NGOs in 21 districts of Maharashtra have been instrumental in their
construction.
Strategies
adopted
The
approach adopted by the IGWDP in Maharashtra can be outlined as under:
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contd...
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