Regional Management of Water Resources (Proceedings of a symposium held during the Sixth IAHS Scientific Assembly at Maastricht, The Netherlands, July 2001). IAHS Publ. no. 268, 2001. 25

Sustainable regional water management in the Yamuna River basin: case study of the region ()

R. B. SINGH Department of Geography, Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi, Delhi-110007, India e-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]

Abstract Considering the importance of water resources in the Delhi region of the Yamuna River basin (India), this paper highlights the multi-dimensional nature of the region and recognizes it as an integral part of the basin's ecosystem. An action plan should ensure the sustainability of the water environment for multiple uses, because policies, investments and regulations in one part of a river basin or in one sector affect activities throughout the basin. A comprehensive framework for regional water management requires incorporation of inter-regional, cross-sectoral and environmental consi­ derations in the design of policies and investments. The general water condition in the rural-urban fringe of Delhi is going from bad to worse because extraction of groundwater for both irrigation and drinking purposes, far exceeds the recharge. The Yamuna basin authority, an institutional, legal and regulatory framework, will facilitate cross-sectoral and cross- governmental participation while delegating responsibility to local governments and people.

Keywords drinking water; human response; irrigation; urban fringe of Delhi; Yamuna River

INTRODUCTION

Water is essential for human life, economic development, social welfare and environ­ mental sustainability. Rapid urbanization and industrialization is placing an unprecedented pressure on water quality and demand. There are numerous other constraints such as inefficient infrastructure, ill-designed urban regulations, weak municipal institutions, inadequate financial services and arrangements for urban development. These factors together induce low productivity, an increase in the number of the poor, and deterioration in environmental quality. Currently, more than one billion people live in cities where the effect of air, water, land and other pollutants on their health is very alarming (Singh, 1999, 2000; Hardoy et al, 1992). The water need in rural Delhi is mainly confined to drinking water supply for its growing population. The water supply in the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi is under severe pressure because the population size as well as industrial activities are multiplying at an increasing rate. The unabated immigration of more people has magnified these problems, resulting in flouting of land-use regulations and deterioration of the green cover. The water supply situation in Delhi provides an ideal subject for study. The average per capita consumption, officially estimated to be 250 litres per household per day, can be compared to consumption levels of developed countries. Most studies in Delhi (urban and rural) report problems related to water 26 R. B. Singh supply in various localities of the city. If one look into the reasons for Delhi's water distribution problems, one may find that the problem lies more in inefficient management of the supply network rather than in scarcity of water resources. Secondly, contrary to most other Indian cities, a larger part of Delhi's population gets water around the clock. So far, studies on the consequences of unreliable water supply have been conducted in cities where the unreliability has affected the entire population. The present study has been based on a comparison of behavioural patterns between households with a regular water supply and households with intermittent and irregular supply (Misra, 1998; Druijven & Singh, 1996; Gurumukhi, 1992).

STUDY AREA AND METHODOLOGY

As per the 1991 census, the population of Delhi was 9.4 million, and is projected to reach 14.1 million in 2001. An additional floating population of 0.3 to 0.4 million per day is a recurring feature in Delhi. According to a recent survey, more than 50% of Delhi's population live in about 1304 unauthorized colonies, 1080 Jhuggi Jhonpari (slums) clusters, 44 resettlement colonies and 209 rural villages (Fig. 1). From the administrative point of view, the NCT is divided into two districts: Delhi and Mehrauli with 209 villages, 3 statutory towns and 29 census towns. The Delhi NCT comprises both urban and rural population, yet the Delhi urban agglomeration does not include all the urban population of the Delhi NCT. Delhi is one of the largest urban agglomerations in the world with an estimated population of approximately 11 million in 1997. There are 22 census towns and three statutory towns. The urban area consists of the Delhi Municipal Corporation (MCD), the New Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) and the Delhi Cantonment Board (DCB) (Druijven & Singh, 1998). In order to understand the implications of a changing water status on the society, four sample villages were chosen from the Alipur and Development Blocks of rural Delhi. Four villages are selected from the Alipur Block: Qadipur, Hiranki, Bankauli and Sanoth; and another four villages were chosen from the Najafgarh Block: Dichoan Kalan, Kair, Ujwa and Dhansa. A 10% sample of households was taken from each of the selected villages, reflecting the social composition of the local society. The sample population was interviewed on the basis of a pre-printed questionnaire containing questions about the social placement of an individual, literacy, and income levels, and of course the amount and means of water supplied, storage, quality etc. The feudal/traditional caste segregation is still inherent to the areas surrounding the metropolitan Delhi. In a typical Delhi village, Jats and Brahmins are the most dominant castes along with Rajputs, although the Scheduled Castes have significant presence. Water quality has been considered on the basis of household perception.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Access to water concept

"Access to water", explained as "access to potable water" varies from region to region. For a rural household, access to water means that a member of the family does not Sustainable regional water management in the Yamuna River basin: Delhi region case study 27

Fig. 1 Map of the study area of rural Delhi. have to spend a disproportionate amount of time for collecting water. This definition, however, lacks clarity as the problem lies more in the cost of the accessibility. From various official sources, the percentage of population with access to potable water was taken into account and was considered a relevant measure to evaluate the level of services available. Though this indicator makes international comparisons possible, the importance to the quality of service provided is not taken into account. This binary approach poses two-fold problems. Firstly, it presumes that there are households with access to water compared to those without water, even though the hurdle is more in the cost of access. Secondly, there exist quantitative approaches, which assume that once the accessibility of water is established, there is hardly any difference between the method of supply and the level of services. Yet, the level of users satisfaction differ according to the mode of supply (individual 28 R. B. Singh connection or collective sources). So, most village surveys usually cover only households supplied by collective sources, thereby neglecting households connected to a network and presumed to benefit from a higher level of services. The reality, however, is more complex. Even for households with an in-house municipal connection, water is not supplied round the clock.

Sources of water

The total annual rainfall in the NCT of Delhi is 611.5 mm. The amount of rainfall increases from southwest to northeast; about 81 % of the annual rainfall is received as winter rains and as cyclonic rain during pre- and post-monsoon months. There are large variations in rainfall from year to year. In Delhi, the major source of supplied surface water is from the River Yamuna. Delhi is largely dependent upon its neighbours, especially during the summer. Groundwater represents only approximately 11% of Delhi's water resources. Delhi water board has now become Delhi Jal Board. In 1996, the optimum production was assessed as 2728 x 106lday_1 with a daily average of 2634 x lf/lday"1. The fi gures remained the same in 1999. The board made a determined effort to increase the availability of water. Since 1961, water production has multiplied six fold, and despite the growth in population there has been an increase in the average per capita consumption, i.e. 166, 221 and 248 litres per person per day in 1961, 1981 and 1996, respectively. As far as surface water is concerned, Delhi can use only a share released by from the Tajewala dam situated 250 km upstream from Wazirabad. The construction of three new dams (Tehri, Kishan and Renuka) aimed to augment water resources are either underway or envisaged in the long term, and today Delhi has to depend on neighbouring states to get a higher allocation of water from the Yamuna. Groundwater resources are limited and diminishing. The Central Ground Water Board conducted studies in Delhi, which revealed that subsurface water has become polluted. Moreover, the water table level decreased by 2 to 4 m between 1983 and 1994. Groundwater represent another important source of water for Delhi. In order to increase its production the DJB has planned to increase the number and the yield of its running wells. These studies showed that there is an urgent need to develop a policy for protecting the groundwater resources. It is rather difficult to estimate the annual quantity of pumped groundwater, because of the large number of private tube wells dug by households and the industrial sector for their own supply. Similarly, many tanker and bottled water companies are using and selling groundwater. The lack of regulation related to private or individual extraction of groundwater aggravates this situation.

Mode of access to water

A number of municipal connections, as well as hand pumps, water tankers, wells, tube well, public water taps and other sources are available in the fringe area of Delhi. Bankauli village, with a high concentration of well-off households, has benefited from a better supply, obtaining 77% of its water from municipal connections in comparison to Sanoth (68%), Dichaon Kalan (63%), Kair (51%), Ujwa (49%), Hiranki (43%), Sustainable regional water management in the Yamuna River basin: Delhi region case study 29

Qadipur (33%) and Dhansa (25%). The surveyed villages have received water from all seven source types. Water tanker supply contributed 19% to Kair and Dhansa, while water tanker supply to the other five villages is below 10%o. Hand-pump source supply was: Dhansa 41%, Qadipur 33%, Hiranki 24%, Ujwa 23%, Kair 21%, Sanoth 11%, and Dichaon Kalan 11%, respectively. Tube well supply was: Hiranki 22%o, Dichaon Kalan 15%, Dhansa 12%, and in the other five villages below 10% (Table 1). The main source of urban water supply is governmental, and far exceeds the private and other sources. Out of the eight villages, Sanoth received most water from private sources (Table 2).

Table 1 Source of water (%).

Villages Municipal Water Hand Well Tube well Public Others supply line tanker pump water tap Qadipur 32.73 30.91 32.73 - 1.82 1.82 - Hiranki 43.08 9.23 24.62 - 21.54 1.54 - Bankauli 77.08 6.25 10.42 - 2.08 2.08 2.08 Sanoth 68.15 2.96 11.11 - 6.67 11.11 - Dichaon Kalan 63.30 8.51 10.64 0.53 14.89 1.60 0.53 Kair 51.33 18.58 21.24 2.65 4.42 0.88 0.88 Ujwa 49.00 7.00 23.00 - 10.00 11.00 - Dhansa 24.74 18.56 40.72 2.06 11.86 2.06 - Source: Primary survey.

Table 2 Source of water supply system (%).

Villages Govern­ Private Owned by Illegal NGO Local body Others ment others provided provided Hiranki 49.21 31.75 19.05 - - - - Qadipur 52.00 30.00 10.00 - 4.00 4.00 - Bankauli 88.10 9.52 2.38 - - - - Sanoth 55.00 40.83 4.17 - - - - Dichaon Kalan 68.07 22.29 6.63 0.60 1.20 0.60 0.60 Kair 44.90 30.61 19.39 - - - 5.10 Ujwa 63.77 23.19 5.80 - - 7.25 - Dhansa 32.89 34.21 28.95 0.66 0.66 1.97 0.66 Sources: Primary survey.

Quality of water

A number of households found the supplied water unfit for consumption and therefore felt the need for water treatment, even though this is more a matter of perception. The household perception varies from village to village. But more than 50% of the households treated water daily, and approximately 30% when they anticipated risk (either during the monsoon or when a member of their family had fallen ill). The study reveals that out of eight surveyed villages, a large fraction of the households in six villages considered the water potable: Qadipur (100%), Kair (95%), Dichaon Kalan (70%), Sanoth (67%), Hiranki (59%), Ujwa (57%), respectively (Table 3). 30 R. B. Singh

Table 3 Perception of water quality.

Villages Potable: Water quality: Yes No Unusable Moderate Good Hiranki 59.38 40.63 31.25 50.00 18.75 Qadipur 100.00 - - 53.57 46.43 Bankauli 33.33 66.67 7.69 74.36 17.95 Sanoth 66.67 33.33 - 58.59 41.41 Dichaon Kalan 70.25 29.75 4.20 65.55 30.25 Kair 94.74 5.26 3.70 35.19 61.11 Ujwa 56.86 43.14 17.31 53.85 28.85 Dhansa 44.06 6.29 2.80 78.87 15.49 Source: Primary survey.

A fraction of household responses fall in the categories of moderate and good water quality, while a very low percentage of responses fall under water unusable. The household responses to good quality of water are as follows: Kair (61%), Qadipur (46%), Sanoth (41%), Dichaon Kalan (30%) and Ujwa (29%), respectively, while the remaining three villages are below 20%. The above analysis reveals that at least one third of the households had some doubts about the quality of the supplied water.

Groundwater status

In Delhi's rural periphery, the status of groundwater availability is dictated by the distance from the Yamuna as well as from the urban centre. Alipur Block, which lies on the eastern boundary of the River Yamuna, has a water table with an average depth of 6-9 m, which has fallen from the earlier depth of 3-4.5 m. Najafgarh Block, which is situated away from the Yamuna, has a water table averaging 13.5 m depth, much lower than the level of 6-10.5 m, about 10 years ago. The main cause of this fall in water table has been the increasing population pressure and the rise in the number of tube wells. An ever-increasing influx of population from outside Delhi has stretched the rural infrastructure to the maximum. In the absence of proper civic supply of drinking water, it is the groundwater sources that are facing the brunt of the population pressure. Increasing mechanization of the groundwater extraction process has badly disturbed the local water cycle, and has also contributed to the change of fertile agricultural land into wasteland. Due to lowering of the water table, the water has not remained usable. In the villages of Najafgarh, the water has become intensely salinated, so much so that there are many tube wells of saline water, and sweet water is found only in a few pockets. Although, the water found at depth is supposed to have gone through a natural filtration process making it pure enough for human consumption; a greater lowering of the water table forces the water to mix with the salts and alkalis found near the bed rock, making the extracted water now intensely saline and totally unfit for human consumption. Sustainable regional water management in the Yamuna River basin: Delhi region case study 31

CONCLUSIONS

Water quality and availability plays an important role in modifying the attitudes, awareness and means of livelihood in the rural urban fringe of Delhi. As is apparent through the data, the importance of agriculture as a means of livelihood declines in areas where water is scarce and of poor quality, as in the case of Najafgarh Block. Here, land becomes a means of earning short-term gains, like leasing out to brick kilns, warehouses, industries etc. or selling it for the same purpose. Thus, water pollution, availability and groundwater level have an indirect bearing on the society. Agenda 21 indicates an existing will to act, but we are still failing to implement sustainable solutions. A major initiative is required to bring about the changes needed and to mobilize public opinion: a freshwater revolution. It can also play a role in the conservation of the groundwater at a time when its depletion is accelerating and threatening the sustainability of the region. A better quality of service, which would reduce individual usage of wells is, however, not enough. Legislative changes on rights to groundwater are necessary. They are envisaged but they should be part of a larger effort on changes, of institutional structures and on the possibility of better coordinated infrastructure policies. We have to treat water as an economic resource. A group of low value users are allowed to consume large quantities of water, forcing high value users to invest high costs in securing water from long distances. So we are getting waste, depletion and ecological disasters. Water pollution in the Yamuna River makes water a life and death issue for millions of people, particularly the poor. It is important to recognize that the poor are victims of bad water management decisions and policies and therefore suffer the most in terms of health hazards and loss of economic opportunities. The key is to generate public awareness, and from it, behavioural change and the political will to create a better future for water resources in the Delhi region. It is suggested that the following measures will improve the situation: - Reduction of excessive reliance on government for water services. - Minimizing fragmented decision-making and overlapping responsibilities. - Involvement of the private sector and water users in water management leading to significant gains in productivity. - There is a need for water zoning and constraints on water usage in the metropolitan region and the economic activities should be regulated in accordance with such zoning. - Discontinuation of groundwater quality depletion as a negative consequence of haphazard development in catchment areas of urban and rural Delhi. - Groundwater recharge projects should be initiated for augmenting available supplies with abstractions regulated to ensure that they do not exceed recharge possibilities. - Making the treatment of effluent cost-effective by imposing user charges. - Integration of water management by linking the private sector, local communities and NGOs to ensure an effective and efficient allocation and use of water for all economic, environmental and social needs.

Acknowledgement I express my thanks and acknowledgements to ICSSR-LDPAD for their financial support. 32 R. B. Singh

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