Water resources:

Water resources are natural resources of water that are potentially useful as a source of water

supply. 97% of the water on the Earth is salt water and only three percent is fresh water; slightly
over two thirds of this is frozen in glaciers and polar ice caps.[1] The remaining unfrozen freshwater is
found mainly as groundwater, with only a small fraction present above ground or in the air.[2] Natural
sources of fresh water include surface water, under river flow, groundwater and frozen water.
Artificial sources of fresh water can include treated wastewater (reclaimed water) and desalinated
seawater.

Uses of water resources:

Following is a brief account of how water is used in different sectors.
1. Agricultural Use
Agriculture accounts for 69 percent of all water consumption basically in agricultural
economies like India. Agriculture, therefore, is the largest consumer of the Earth’s available
freshwater.
By 2050, the global water demand of agriculture is estimated to increase by a further 19%
due to irrigational needs. Expanding irrigation needs are likely to put undue pressure on
water storage. It is still inconclusive whether further expansion of irrigation, as well as
additional water withdrawals from rivers and groundwater, will be possible in future.
2. Industrial Use
Water is the lifeblood of the industry. It is used as a raw material coolant, a solvent, a
transport agent, and as a source of energy. Manufacturing industries account for a
considerable share in the total industrial water consumption. Besides, paper and allied
products, chemicals and primary metals are major industrial users of water.
Worldwide, the industry accounts for 19 percent of total consumption. In industrialized
countries, however, industries use more than half of the water available for human use.
3. Domestic Use
It includes drinking, cleaning, personal hygiene, garden care, cooking, washing of clothes,
dishes, vehicles, etc. Since the end of World War II there has been a trend of people moving
out of the countryside to the ever-expanding cities. This trend has important implications on
our water resources.
Government and communities have had to start building large water-supply systems to
deliver water to new populations and industries. Of all water consumption in the world,
domestic use accounts for about 12 percent.
 4. Use for Hydropower Generation
Electricity produced from water is hydropower. Hydropower is the leading renewable
source of electricity in the world. It accounts for about 16 percent of total electricity
generation globally. There are many opportunities for hydropower development throughout
the world.
Today, the leading hydropower generating countries are China, the US, Brazil, Canada, India,
and Russia.
5. Use for Navigation and Recreation
Navigable waterways are defined as watercourses that have been or may be used for
transport of interstate or foreign commerce. Agricultural and commercial goods are moved
on water on a large scale in a number of regions in the world.
Water is also used for recreational purposes such as boating, swimming, and sporting
activities. These uses affect the quality of water and pollute it. Highest priority should be
given to public health and drinking water quality while permitting such activities in
reservoirs, lakes, and rivers.

Over exploitation of ground water:

Groundwater is the largest source of usable, fresh water in the
world. In many parts of the world, especially where surface water
supplies are not available, domestic, agricultural, and industrial
water needs can only be met by using the water beneath the ground.

The U.S. Geological Survey compares the water stored in the ground
to money kept in a bank account. If the money is withdrawn at a
faster rate than new money is deposited, there will eventually be
account-supply problems. Pumping water out of the ground at a
faster rate than it is replenished over the long-term causes similar
problems.
Groundwater depletion is primarily caused by sustained
groundwater pumping. Some of the negative effects of groundwater
depletion:

 Lowering of the Water Table

Excessive pumping can lower the groundwater table, and cause wells to
no longer be able to reach groundwater.

 Increased Costs
As the water table lowers, the water must be pumped farther to reach the
surface, using more energy. In extreme cases, using such a well can be
cost prohibitive.

 Reduced Surface Water Supplies

Groundwater and surface water are connected. When groundwater is
overused, the lakes, streams, and rivers connected to groundwater can
also have their supply diminished.

 Land Subsidence
Land subsidence occurs when there is a loss of support below ground.
This is most often caused by human activities, mainly from the overuse of
groundwater, when the soil collapses, compacts, and drops.

 Water Quality Concerns

Excessive pumping in coastal areas can cause saltwater to move inland
and upward, resulting in saltwater contamination of the water supply

A special case of Indonesia

A trading post for Dutch colonialists starting in the 1600s,
Jakarta is now home to 10 million residents — 30 million if
you include the suburbs. It’s a heaving environmental mess
with some of the worst air pollution and traffic congestion in
the world. More troubling, parts of the metropolis are sinking
more than 7 inches each year because of the depletion of
underground water wells. The city is largely located below sea
level and the government is racing to build walls to hold back
the ocean. Flooding is common during the rainy months,
adding to the misery of an overcrowded city on pace to
become the world’s largest by 2030.

A case of Bangladesh

Historically, people in Bangladesh had worked around

seasonal flooding; farming for part of the year and retreating
when water levels rose, or seeking work in the cities as land
became unusable.
By the end of the century, however, sea levels are expected to
rise along the Bangladesh coastline by up to 1.5m. And that
will come with more extreme seasonal fluctuations in sea
levels. Disastrous storms and unusually high tides currently
occur once each decade, but could become as regular as three
to 15 times each year by 2100.
As a result, rural Bangladeshis face a stark choice; change
their way or life or seek employment and a home elsewhere.
A major issue: Floods
Climate change has played an important role in causing large-scale
floods across central India, including the Mumbai floods of 2006 and
2017. During 1901-2015, there has been a three-fold rise in
widespread extreme rainfall events, across central and northern
India – Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh,
Telangana, Odisha, Jharkhand, Assam and parts of Western Ghats –
Goa, north Karnataka and South Kerala.[13] The rising number of
extreme rain events are attributed to an increase in the fluctuations
of the monsoon westerly winds, due to increased warming in the
Arabian Sea. This results in occasional surges of moisture transport
from the Arabian Sea to the subcontinent, resulting in heavy rains
lasting for 2–3 days, and spread over a region large enough to cause
floods
India has a large history of floods. Some of them are:
 In October 1943, Madras (now Chennai) saw the worst flood to
hit the city. Flood occurred due to excessive rains that lasted for
6 days and overflowed Coovum and the Adyar rivers. Damage
caused to life and property was immense however estimate
figure is unknown. the flood left thousands of people homeless.
[1]

 On 11 August 1979, the Machchu-2 dam situated on

the Machchhu River burst, thus flooding the town of Morbi in
 the Rajkot district of Gujarat.[2] Exact figure of loss of lives is
unknown, but it is estimated between 1800 and 2500 people.[3][4]
[5]

 In 1987, Bihar state of India witnessed one of its worst

floods till then. Flood occurred due to overflow of the Koshi
river; which claimed lives of 1,399 humans, 302 animals and
public property worth INR ₹68 billion (US$950 million).
 In 1988, Punjab experienced its first flood when all the rivers in
Punjab overflowed.
 In July 1993, flash floods killed 530 people across the seven to
eight states of India.
 August 2018 Kerala Flood: Following high rain in late August
2018 and heavy Monsoon rainfall from August 8, 2018, severe
flooding affected the Indian state of Kerala resulting over 445
deaths.
 August 2019 Indian floods including 2019 Kerala floods:
Following high rain in late July and early August 2019, series of
floods that affected over nine states in India. The states of
Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Gujarat
were the most severely affected.
 Brahmaputra floods
 2020 Assam floods
 2020 Hyderabad floods, flash flood in Hyderabad in October
2020 that caused 98 fatalities, a part of the 2020 North Indian
Ocean cyclone season
 2021 Uttarakhand flood, flood in Uttarakhand in February 2021
caused by an avalanche from Ronti peak
International conflicts over water:
1.India -Pak dispute
According to Global trends report 2040 there are high chances that
India and Pakistan may stumble into large scale war over water
dispute
The report includes forecasts by the United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) that Pakistan could face absolute water scarcity
by 2025, given a combination of poor water conservation practices,
rising temperatures, and decreased rainfall.

The report notes that previous extreme weather events, such as the
1970 cyclone in the Bay of Bengal, contributed to state failure in
then-East Pakistan and the creation of Bangladesh the next year. It
warns that future events could also prompt a regional crisis with
enormous humanitarian, political, and security implications to which
external powers probably would try to respond.

2.China-India: The Brahmaputra River

The Brahmaputra River is a 2,900 km river that originates in Tibet
and flows through India’s Arunachal Pradesh state before merging
with the Ganges and draining into the Bay of Bengal in Bangladesh. It
is considered an important resource in all three countries that it flows
through: for energy-hungry China, it provides hydroelectricity; and
for India and Bangladesh, a key agricultural lifeline in otherwise
overpopulated and arid region.
The Brahmaputra River is particularly important to the agricultural
industry in India’s Assam plains, and worries have arisen recently
regarding a series of hydroelectric plants that China is in various
stages of construction on its Tibetan plateau. Some experts believe
that these projects will reduce the flow of the Brahmaputra in India,
compounding an already tenuous water situation in the affected areas.
While there is no comprehensive bilateral treaty in place for the
sustainable management of the Brahmaputra River, some steps have
been taken recently by both the governments, mainly in the form of an
information sharing agreement for hydrological data. But until
cooperation becomes more entrenched, the Brahmaputra River
remains a potential source of friction between these two countries.