Priya Desai

To many in the water sector, K. J. Joy needs no introduction. An activist at heart, Joy is known for his untiring rights based work in mobilising communities in rural Maharashtra, and for his research work on water and water related conflicts including inter-state riparian water conflicts.

The Water Future Conference in Bangalore last week, saw many from the scientific community, academia, research, civil society and the media come together to discuss the state of water resources across the world and in India, as well as future pathways and scenarios, and different technological and institutional solutions to accelerate the implementation of the water SDGs and the 2030 Agenda targets, leaving no one behind.

At a workshop on Water Ethics leading up to the Water Future Conference in Bangalore in September 2019, the idea of, and the need for an ethical framework for water management and legislation was discussed. In a country as diverse and complex as India, ethics play an important role in how we view water, and thus manage it.

Chikkaballapur is a district in the state of Karnataka, just north of the capital Bengaluru. A peri-urban area that was once an agricultural centre for this region, today Chikkaballapur is facing a unique problem. 

Decreasing rainfall has meant increasing periods of drought for this area, which in turn has caused residents to dig deeper and deeper in search of water. In this pursuit for groundwater, they have found water… but it is contaminated with fluoride.

GoI allocations for the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation is Rs. 22,357 crores

For the first time in the last four years, the allocation for the sanitation programme Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) has gone down from Rs 19,248 (RE 2017-18) to Rs 17, 843 crore (2018-2019).

The problem of Bengaluru’s water is well known. The demand for water tankers skyrockets during the summer months, when municipal and borewell water supplies run dry, and many of the city’s lakes, actually man-made tanks, lie neglected and polluted.

With a total population of 1200, Sonnahallipura village in Hoskote taluk of Bangalore Rural district has 250 homes. This village was chosen by the Rotary Club of Bangalore, Indiranagar to start a micro-credit programme for 10 women’s self-help groups (SHG) and a low-cost sanitary napkin manufacturing unit.  

Hirehandigola village in Gadag district of North Karnataka is an unsurprising picture of rural India. Hot, dry and dusty, it is populated by a largely lingayat community.

Jakkur Lake sits nestled behind the bustling Hebbal Highway that leads to Devanahalli International Airport. A pristine, quiet spot of nature in the midst of Bangalore, this lake stands testimony to the potential that exists to manage urban water sustainably, and in an integrated manner.

Sarakki Lake is one of the bigger stand-alone lakes in Bangalore, and was once a great year-round recharge area for Sarakki, Jaraganahalli, Puttenahalli, Chunchagatta and Kothanur. It is now a cesspool of sewage, and is polluting the air, water and land around it. India Water Portal volunteer Sucheta Ramprakash covered the pathetic plight of Sarakki Lake in Bangalore more than a year ago. Sadly, the situation has not changed much even today.