Water Problems In Delhi: Causes, Consequences, And Solutions

Global Health: Water Problems in Delhi in India

Population

Discuss about the Global Health for Water Problems in Delhi in India.

Delhi is India’s Capital. Water shortage in Delhi is spreading in different parts of the city. Residents living in western and southern area of Delhi are not receiving a reliable and regular supply of water for months. Delhi is the world’s most populated city and the problem of water shortage become permanent for the residents in Delhi. If the person is travelling to Delhi between the months of June-September, they will have to face the problem of water-blocked roads and mismanage drainage system. The City is still facing the water shortage. The southwestern parts of the city are facing flooding problem. Rainwater harvesting is important for controlling the water shortage problems in the city. Yamuna River is an important source of drinking water for the residents in Delhi (Maps of India , 2018).

Population:  Air pollution in Delhi is the major cause of water pollution in Delhi. Industries in Delhi deposit their waste in the water bodies of Delhi and leave the water polluted for the drinking and farming purposes. It creates the problem of drinking water for the residents in Delhi.

Agriculture: Farmers in Delhi are also facing the problem of water pollution.  Some rich farmers in Delhi use excess of water for the irrigation process due to which rest of the farmers have to face the shortage of water. Disposing of heavy metals and industrial effluents in water by the factories makes the water unfit for the production of crops.

Transport policies: Water pollution is the major consequences of the transport policies. Road construction, highways, fuel and storage facilities damaged the water supplies, lakes, trees and ponds these all are affected by the transportation policies. The population in Delhi keeps on increasing results in the construction of broader roads, which will destroy the trees and damage the water supplies.  This results in the water pollution in Delhi (Transportation Benefit-Cost Analysis, 2018).

Chlorofluorocarbons: these are used in the refrigerators, air conditioner, in manufacturing electronics and manufacturing of industrial solvents. These chemicals are not soluble in water and pollute the water up to a great extent. In Delhi there are many big industries and offices and all are releasing CFCs in the water bodies of Delhi and makes the water polluted for drinking, this in turn creating acute shortage of water in Delhi (Times of India, 2018).

Agriculture

Greenhouse gases: Greenhouse gases are majorly responsible for the global warming. Carbon dioxide, methane, chlorofluorocarbons and nitrous oxide are the gases liable for the greenhouse effect. These gases are responsible for increasing the overall temperature, which results in the melting of ice and glaciers resulting in increasing sea levels and flooding. In India, Delhi is the most polluted city, which is responsible for increasing the global warming in India.

Long-term climate change: the relation between agriculture, water, climate and energy is important one, which have an effect on the climate. Temperature of the Earth is rising continuously having a negative impact on the resources and fresh water. Rising temperature results in the melting of Glaciers, which results in the shortage of fresh water. As these melted glaciers cannot be restored. The climate change requires upgrading water supplies, which requires the use of more energy, as it is generated by natural gases, fossil fuels, oil and by burning coal. This will lead to the depletion of natural resources, as our resources are limited. There is a need to use other sources for controlling change in climate, reducing emissions and protecting freshwater sources. Preserving water and other resources is necessary for reducing the use of limited resources (SkyMetWaether, 2015).

Flooding: The water pollution in Delhi results in flooding in the City. The government of Delhi has made compulsory for the people to preserve rainwater but they are not taking this seriously results in the flooding in Delhi. People in Delhi should subsidize funds for the development of technology for preserving rainwater (RAMP, 2018).

Food quality and Availability:  water problems in Delhi are also affecting the food availability and quality in Delhi. Due to excessive rain and poor drainage system in Delhi, the city is facing the problem of transportation. Grocers in Delhi are not able to get the fruits and vegetable supply according to the requirement of people, which in turn forces them to increase the prices of their product. These are the reason behind the non-availability of food products in the Ciy (The Indian Express, 2018).

Water problems in Delhi is also affecting the health of the people, as many big industries  located in Delhi dispose of their wastes in the water bodies, which makes the water polluted. The consumption of this water spread diseases like hypertension, stomach cancer, respiratory diseases, and allergic problems among the people of Delhi. Water problems in Delhi are creating hazardous effects on the health of people (Kullabas, 2018). 

Transport Policies

Water policies: Delhi Government has adopted serious measures for controlling the problem of water scarcity in the parts of Delhi. The drainage system in Delhi is so weak that major percentage of its water is leaked. This policy focuses on the reuse, conservation, and treatment of the sources of water supply (Simsbury, 2018).

Yamuna Mission: The government in Delhi focuses their attention on decreasing the air, water and land pollution. The government plans of protecting Yamuna from the untreated sewage. The policy of controlling the construction activities, encroachments and industrial discharge has been undertaken (Maps of India, 2014).

Current Management of Water Pollution in Delhi:

Growing population in the city is the major cause of the water, air and land pollution in Delhi. These pollutions are affecting the health of the people in Delhi. The government has to manage the pollution in Delhi to protect the health of the residents of Delhi.

• The quality of the fuel supplied in Delhi has been improved by restricting the sale of leaded petrol, introducing diesel of low sulphur and many more ways. These ways help in improving the quality of water.
• The government focuses on day-to-day replacement of dustbins, giving employment to more sweepers to improve the drainage system in Delhi. Serious steps have been taken for converting the garbage in compost by developing the sewage system in Delhi (FirstPost, 2018).
• The Government for keeping check on the quality of water sets up monitoring network. Efficient online Monitoring System is installed in the rivers for checking the discharge in the rivers by the industries. 

• More and more trees should be planted in Delhi for controlling the air and water pollution.
• Water pollution in Delhi should be controlled by lowering the use of pesticides, fertilizers, chemicals, herbicides and cleaning agent in the industries and in the production of crops.
• Government of Delhi should prepare proper action plan for water quality restoration and sewage management system (APEC WATER, 2018).
• Awareness campaign should be conducted by the government to educate the people about the importance and the scarcity of Water in Delhi. They educate people to not wastewater; use it according to their requirement and to not dump their wastes in the rivers, as these rivers are the only source of the fresh water (Business Standard, 2016).

These organizations play an important role in preserving the water resources like lakes, ponds and rivers. They spread awareness among the communities about the benefits of controlling water pollution. They support people through their initiatives like supplying fresh water for drinking, aquaculture, availability of water for agriculture and restoring and recharging the ground water. In the slum areas of Delhi the scarcity of Water is not getting much attention. These NGO’s ensures the availability of water in those areas.

DPSEEA FRAMEWORK

Conclusion 

This can be concluded that India’s Capital Delhi is facing major problem of the scarcity of water. There is no proper arrangement of the preservation of water in Delhi. Residents in Delhi are not getting the regular supply of water. Diving Forces like population, agriculture and transportation in Delhi are affected by the water problems. Dumping of the industrial solid wastes in the water bodies by the big industries and the factories presents in the Delhi pollutes our fresh water resources. Residents in Delhi are facing the problem of water-blocked roads, as the drainage system in Delhi is not properly constructed. Government in Delhi has invented many policies and measures for controlling the water pollution. Delhi Government has conducted various awareness campaigns for educating the people about the proper use of water. They focus on the treatment of sewage system in Delhi. This polluted water spreads deadly diseases like respiratory problems, diarrhea, stomach cancer and allergic problems among the people living in Delhi.

References 

APEC WATER (2018). Water Quality. Retrieved from: https://www.freedrinkingwater.com/water_quality/quality2/j-19-08-key-factors-influencing-water-quality-page2.htm.

Business Standard (2016). Government has taken Series of Steps to Address Pollution-related Issues: Environment Minister. Retrieved from: https://www.business-standard.com/article/government-press-release/government-has-taken-series-of-steps-to-address-pollution-related-issues-116071901137_1.html.

FirstPost (2018). Delhi’s water shortage is a crisis borne out of Haryana’s refusal to abide by legal commitments. Retrieved from: https://www.firstpost.com/india/delhis-water-shortage-is-a-crisis-borne-out-of-haryanas-refusal-to-abide-by-legal-commitments-4504583.html.

Kullabas (2018). Note on Water Pollution and Greenhouse Effects. Retrieved from: https://www.kullabs.com/classes/subjects/units/lessons/notes/note-detail/5047.

Maps of India (2014). Water Problems in Delhi- Causes and Solutions. Retrieved from: https://www.mapsofindia.com/my-india/society/water-problem-in-delhi-causes-and-solutions.

Maps of India (2018). Pollution in Delhi: How can it be controlled?. Retrieved from: https://www.mapsofindia.com/my-india/cities/delhi-tops-in-pollution-how-can-it-be-controlled.

RAMP (2018). Factors affecting Water and Sediment Quality: Pollution. Retrieved from: https://www.ramp-alberta.org/river/water+sediment+quality/factors/pollution.aspx.

Simsbury (2018). Ten Things you can do to Reduce Water Pollution. Retrieved from: https://www.simsbury-ct.gov/water-pollution-control/pages/ten-things-you-can-do-to-reduce-water-pollution.

Skymetweather (2015). 6 Major Eco-Friendly Steps taken by Arvind kejriwal Government in Delhi. Retrieved from: https://www.skymetweather.com/content/weather-news-and-analysis/6-major-eco-friendly-steps-taken-by-arvind-kejriwal-government-in-delhi/.

The Indian Express (2018). Hardlook- Water scarcity in Delhi is playing out in many ways this year. Retrieved from: https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/hardlook-dry-days-summer-delhi-haryana-legal-dispute-water-crisis-scarcity-drying-river-5202688/.

Times of India (2018). Why Delhi is staring at a water crisis. Retrieved from: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/why-delhi-is-staring-at-a-water-crisis/articleshow/64228440.cms.

Transportation Benefit-Cost Analysis (2018). Habitat and Water Quality. Retrieved from: https://bca.transportationeconomics.org/benefits/habitat-and-water-quality.