Page 2 - Water Shortage

Haryana CM said water being provided to Delhi as per allocated share: L-G

Delhi Lt Governor V K Saxena on Tuesday said he has spoken to Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini who informed him that water was being provided to the national capital as per its allocated share. The ruling AAP dispensation has during the past fortnight repeatedly accused the BJP-ruled Haryana of stopping Delhi's share of water. The national capital has been experiencing severe water shortage amid the unprecedented summer heat. The L-G met Delhi ministers Atishi and Saurabh Bharadwaj on Monday and assured them that he would take up the water supply issue with the Haryana government. He advised them not to indulge in a "blame game" and resolve issues amicably. "Spoke to Hon'ble CM, Haryana, Shri Nayab Saini ji yesterday. He reiterated that water was being provided to Delhi as per allocated share and assured of all possible help, despite the state's own constraints due to the ongoing heat wave," Saxena said in a post on X on Tuesday.

Delhi govt plea for water: SC says meeting of UYRB to be held on June 5

The Supreme Court said Monday an emergent meeting of the Upper Yamuna River Board (UYRB) be held on June 5 so that the problem of water scarcity in Delhi is properly addressed. The apex court was hearing a Delhi government plea seeking a direction to Haryana to release the surplus water provided by Himachal Pradesh to the national capital to mitigate its ongoing water crisis. A vacation bench of Justices P K Mishra and K V Viswanathan noted that the advocates appearing for the Centre and the governments of Delhi, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh have agreed that a meeting of the UYRB be held to address the issue of scarcity of water in the national capital. "In the course of hearing, all the parties agreed that there should be a non-adversarial approach to the problem of scarcity of water faced by the citizens of Delhi," the bench said. It said the lawyers have "agreed that there shall be an emergent meeting of the Upper Yamuna River Board on June 5 to address the issues agitated in th

Decoding Delhi's water crisis: Causes, impact, and sustainable solutions

Delhi is grappling with water crisis which has impacted the citizens' life severely. The govt's response has been too little, too late. Explore the root causes, impacts, and solutions to the crisis

News updates: Delhi records maximum temperature at 45.6 degrees Celsius

LIVE news updates: As Delhi reels under extreme heatwave, fire dept receives over 220 calls in a day. Catch all the latest updates from across the globe here

Heatwave crisis: How many Indians are succumbing to the high temperatures?

India is grappling with unusually high temperatures this summer, with IMD predicting 'heat wave to severe heat wave' conditions to persist in several regions

LS polls: Water shortage, drainage, traffic jams key issues in South Delhi

Sitting in the hot summer sun with two empty jerry cans, 26-year-old Rajneesh Kumar waits for a water tanker to arrive due to the erratic water supply at his house in south Delhi's Sangam Vihar -- a crisis that has become a part of life for the last 12 years. Apart from water scarcity, traffic snarls, lack of parking space and poor drainage system are among the other issues plaguing the South Delhi constituency, according to local residents. Voting will be held on May 25 for all the seven Lok Sabha seats in the national capital. While political parties are seeking votes on issues like Ram temple, corruption, unemployment and inflation, the locals said the candidates should instead focus on ensuring basic amenities and addressing civic issues. "My father bought this house 25 years ago. When I was a child, there was no water shortage but as I grew, water crisis became a part of our life," Kumar, a resident of F Block in Sangam Vihar said. "For the last 10 years, we have been depende

LS polls: India's Silicon Valley to vote amid searing heat, water shortages

About 10 mn citizens will cast their ballot in Bengaluru, which is home to the country's $194 billion IT services industry and houses the biggest office of Goldman Sachs Group Inc. outside New York

'If B'luru stops saying yuck to treated wastewater, it'll never go thirsty'

Back in 2016, Centre for Ecological Sciences (CES) of Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, figured a way for the IT hub to stay water surplus. On an average, 20.05 TMC (thousand million cubic feet) of water is required every year for domestic purposes, CES's technical report established. Of which about 16.04 TMC, about 80 percent, could be met just by treating sewage water, suggested the report. Add to this, the rain yield, which is about 14.80TMC a year and Bengaluru could easily meet its water needs, the report stated. Cut to 2023. Some apartment owners of Emmanuel Heights in Hosa Road, Sarjapur, proposed setting up a sewage treatment plant in October. Little did they know that it would take them almost six months to convince the others. They all agreed only after the firm setting up the sewage treatment equipment put it in the agreement that they will buy all the treated water. Many people were adamant that not a drop of the treated water should be used inside the complex. ...

Water supply to breweries might be curtailed in Marathwada region

With parts of Marathwada region in Maharashtra facing water shortage due to inadequate rainfall, water supply to breweries in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district might be curtailed if necessary, an official said. The Jayakwadi dam's Nath Sagar reservoir supplies water to residential and industrial areas of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and neighbouring Jalna district. Twelve companies are involved in making liquor and beer in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. In the 2023-24 financial year, these companies manufactured 761.53 lakh bulk litres of liquor and 3,778.28 bulk litres of beer, an excise official said. They generated a revenue of Rs 5,455.70 crore for the state government, which was Rs 347.14 crore more than the previous year (2022-2023) year, the official said. Amid scarcity, 443 water tankers have been operating in the district as of April 4. As of now, 269 villages and 48 hamlets are dependent on tanker water supply, a revenue official said. Asked about the water availability and it

Worrying that Bengaluru suffers from water-related issues: Sitharaman

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday hit out at the Siddaramaiah government over the water crisis in Bengaluru and alleged that many irrigation and water-related projects and initiatives were halted by the Congress when it came to power in Karnataka last year. She also criticised the Congress government for the deteriorating law and order in the state. Addressing a press conference here, the Union Minister said it is very worrying and sad that the city suffers from water-related problems. "Just water not being available is a problem. Since yesterday reports of unfortunately cholera possibly spreading in the town is also a very big concern...It is sort of a worry but I think it is also somewhat because people don't have enough water available, contaminated water also reaches people and as a result they are put to difficulties," she said. Blaming the state government for halting irrigation and water-related projects, Sitharaman said various steps that have been taken

Against the flow

Urban water crisis demands alternative management

Taps run dry across S Africa's Johannesburg in unprecedented water crisis

For two weeks, Tsholofelo Moloi has been among thousands of South Africans lining up for water as the country's largest city, Johannesburg, confronts an unprecedented collapse of its water system affecting millions of people. Residents rich and poor have never seen a shortage of this severity. While hot weather has shrunk reservoirs, crumbling infrastructure after decades of neglect is also largely to blame. The public's frustration is a danger sign for the ruling African National Congress, whose comfortable hold on power since the end of apartheid in the 1990s faces its most serious challenge in an election this year. A country already famous for its hours long electricity shortages is now adopting a term called water-shedding the practice of going without water, from the term load-shedding, or the practice of going without power. Moloi, a resident of Soweto on the outskirts of Johannesburg, isn't sure she or her neighbours can take much more. They and others across South Africa'

Bengaluru real estate developers cast a green lifeline amid water crisis

Incorporating the latest sustainability technologies does cost more, but most customers are increasingly willing to invest extra for these advanced features

Tech hub Bengaluru faces severe water shortages as summer approaches

About 7,000 borewells have dried but authorities are making other arrangements, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar said last week, adding there is no crisis

Water availability in state's dams at 44%, down from 61% in 2023: Fadnavis

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday said water availability in dams in the state is just 44 per cent as compared to 61 per cent last year. Speaking in the Legislative Council, Fadnavis said the condition in drought-prone Marathwada region was a matter of concern in view of the approaching summer. "The condition in Marathwada division is a matter of concern. Last year, (this time around) Marathwada had 47 per cent water in its dams. This year the storage is just 24 per cent. The region needs special prioritisation (with regards to water management)," the deputy CM said. Nagpur division has 54 per cent water storage as against 55 per cent last year, while Amravati has 66 per cent, up from 57 per cent, which will suffice in summers, he added. "Last time around the water storage in dams was 61 per cent, but this year it is 44 per cent. It is necessary to effectively manage water. Water will be first prioritised for drinking, then agriculture, followed by ...

Delhi may face severe water shortage over Jal Board fund crisis: Atishi

Delhi Water Minister Atishi on Tuesday said there could be a severe water crisis in the national capital since funds have not been released to the DJB. She requested LG V K Saxena to intervene in the matter. The minister alleged that despite written directions from her, who also holds the finance portfolio, funds were not released to the Delhi Jal Board (DJB). "There could be a severe water crisis in the national capital. There are no funds to carry out routine work and paying salaries. The contractors have refused to carry out work. This could lead to a severe water crisis in Delhi, overflowing sewers and dirty water," she said. She also claimed that funds were not released by the Finance Department on the directions of Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar. There was no immediate reaction from the chief secretary's office or the Finance Department.

Odisha floods: Shortage of drinking water as inundated roads halt tankers

People affected by Odisha floods said they were facing an acute shortage of potable water and many were forced to drink floodwater after boiling it, while others feared consumption of it may cause water-borne diseases. The government, on the other hand, said it was sending water tankers to the flood-hit areas but those affected said the vehicles were not able to reach them as roads have been inundated in the deluge. Though the water levels in major rivers have come down, 75 more villages came under the grip of the deluge. A total of 6.24 lakh people have been affected in 11 districts, according to an official report on Sunday. The affected people have taken shelter in nearby schools which are surrounded by floodwaters. "My house and tube wells in our area remain submerged in floodwaters. We do not have access to potable drinking water. We are boiling floodwater and drinking it," said 68-year-old Kalandi Barik of Santhapada village in Rajnagar block of Kendrapara district. Like Ba

Yamuna level stabilises; Delhi likely to face drinking water shortage

Roads turned into rivers and water gushed into houses, crematoriums and shelter homes, impairing daily life in the national capital, even as the Yamuna's water level stabilised after reaching 208.62 metres, smashing the all-time record set 45 years ago by a significant margin. As the Yamuna waters inundated more areas of Delhi and rescue efforts intensified, the city stared at a drinking water shortage. The Delhi government has decided to cut down supply by 25 per cent following the closure of three water treatment plants -- Wazirabad, Chandrawal and Okhla. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who visited the Wazirabad water treatment plant, warned of rationalising water supply to deal with "acute shortage". He, however, said the water treatment plants will be resumed as soon as the situation turns to normal. Central Water Commission (CWC) Director Sharad Chandra said the rate of water flow rate at the Hathnikund barrage in Haryana dropped to 80,000 cusecs at 4 pm. "The water level has

CM Kejriwal warns of rationalising supply as Delhi stares at water shortage

The national capital is staring at a drinking water shortage as the Delhi government decided to cut down supply by 25 per cent following the closure of three water treatment plants due to the rising level of the Yamuna. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who visited the Wazirabad water treatment plant, warned of rationalising water supply to deal with "acute shortage". "Due to an increase in the Yamuna water level, many water treatment plants had to be closed. I visited the Wazirabad plant on the banks of the Yamuna. We will start it as soon as the situation turns to normalcy," he tweeted. In an earlier tweet, Kejriwal announced the closure of the Wazirabad, Chandrawal and Okhla water treatment plants due to the rising Yamuna level. "The water treatment plants at Wazirabad, Chandrawal and Okhla are being shut due to the rising Yamuna water level. "Due to this, there will be a problem of water supply in some areas. These plants will start functioning as soon as the Yamuna water recede

Crematoriums shut, medical facility evacuated as Yamuna keeps rising

Roads turned into rivers and water gushed into houses, medical facilities, crematoriums and shelter homes, impairing normal life and causing immense hardship for the people in the national capital as the Yamuna river water level rose to record high. Amid the flooding, the city is staring at drinking water shortage as the Delhi government decided to cut down supply by 25 per cent following the closure of three water treatment plants -- Wazirabad, Chandrawal and Okhla -- due to the rising level of the Yamuna. The river swelled to a staggering 208.62 metres at 1 pm on Thursday, smashing the previous all-time record of 207.49 metres set 45 years ago by a significant margin. Several key areas in Delhi, including the secretariat which houses the offices of the chief minister as well as his cabinet colleagues, were flooded on Thursday as authorities scrambled to lead rescue and relief efforts. Waterlogging at the Kashmere Gate bus terminal forced the Delhi Transport Department to terminat