 "Gujarat water crisis: Dams and reservoirs go dry as state races against time")
Gujarat might be headed for a water crisis. Already, 65 per cent of the 500 dams and reservoirs in the state are either empty or about to go empty, say government officials.
According to the Narmada‚ Water Resources‚ Water Supply and Kalpsar department, the state has 202 dams, of which 40 per cent are empty, while 102 have water level of below 30 per cent. There are 17 major dams in Gujarat with gross storage capacity of 12,942 million cubic metres (mcm), whereas the existing water level is 3,577 mcm or 27.64 per cent of the total capacity.
Read more from our special coverage on "DROUGHT"
The department’s data show that the gross storage capacity of these dams coupled with Narmada water stands at 742,660.32 mcm. Of this, the available water stock is only 39.32 per cent.
Efforts are being made to tackle the drought and water crisis by the state government which has formed a group of ministers (GoM) led by education minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama to oversee the situation.
So far, the GoM has led supply of drinking water through tankers to 317 villages across 14 districts mainly in Saurashtra and Kutch regions, which received very little rainfall in the last monsoon. Also, around 1,000 villages in 10 districts have been declared as drought-affected, with more villages likely to be announced in the coming days.
“The government has been taking measures to address the drought situation and water crisis. We would be increasing water supply from the Narmada canal network depending on the situation,” said Chudasama.
“Our first priority is to supply drinking water. Once the government has assured sufficient drinking water supply, then, water for irrigation and industry from available storage would be considered. For drinking water, we’ll increase supply at the water scarcity areas through tankers and also release more water from the Narmada dam to canals,” said Vijay Rupani, minister of water supply.
In preparation of a worsening water crisis, the Gujarat government is planning to supply water to 468 more villages in the coming days, even as the GoM continues to review the situation in its meeting every Wednesday.
Despite these efforts, the water situation might go from bad to worse, according to officials. Rajkot, Jamnagar, Bhavnagar, Kutch, Porbandar and Amreli districts, which have been getting drinking water for only half an hour a day, are set to see a reduction in the same to 30 minutes every alternate days.
“Water storage in dams and reservoirs are not enough, especially for villages in Saurashtra and Kutch regions. North Gujarat, too, does not have enough water,” said an official.
To counter the dependency of regions such as Saurashtra and Kutch on rain water, the Gujarat government has been counting on expanding the Narmada canal network. Of the 12,000 km of Narmada canal network, work on 5,000 km is yet to be completed.
Summer sowing, which has fallen 27 per cent this year, has already been impacted. According to agriculture department data, as on April 18, total summer sowing was taken place across 727,900 hectares (ha) area against one million ha last year in the corresponding period.
“Summer sowing in Saurashtra and Kutch region have declined as farms continue to lack water. Sowing of crops such as sesame seed and sugarcane have seen a drastic fall,” said an agriculture department official.
For cattle, the state government is distributing fodder at a discount to farmers. To avoid fodder shortage, the Gujarat government recently increased power supply to 14 hours a day in Anand and Kheda districts from the present level of eight hours a day.
