Water Crisis
On a Global scale the consumption of water is doubling every 20 years, a rate which is twice the rate of population growth rate. More than 97% of the world's reserves are salty water from oceans. Whereas out of the remaining 3% of fresh water sources on earth's surface, only 0.4% of the sources are accessible. Globally more than 1 billion people lack access to safe drinking water. Currently nearly 1/3rd of the world's population lives in water stressed areas and this is expected to increase to 2/3rd by 2025.
One-in-six people in the world lack safe drinking water and water-related illnesses are the leading cause of human sickness and death. Approximately 2.2 million people in developing countries, most of them children, die every year from diseases associated with lack of access to safe drinking water, inadequate sanitation and poor hygiene. Half of the world's hospital beds are filled with people suffering from water related illnesses. 80 percent of diseases in the developing world are caused by contaminated water. Waterborne diseases (the consequence of a combination of lack of clean water supply and inadequate sanitation) cost the Indian economy 73 million working days per year. In China, India and Indonesia, twice the number of people die of diarrhea as that of AIDS/HIV.
In the Indian Scenario, the demand for drinking water is divided between the urban and rural populations, and comprises about 4-6% of total water demand. Due to the amenities of typical urban life, such as flush toilets and washing machines, people living in cities tend to lead more water intensive lives. The urban population has doubled over the past 30 years, now representing 30% of India’s total population and is expected to reach 50% of the total population by 2025.
The average distance that women in Africa and Asia walk to collect water is six kilometers. Tens of millions of children cannot go to school as they must fetch water every day.
Currently 30% of the rural population lack access to drinking water, and of the 35 states in India, only 7 have full availability of drinking water for rural inhabitants. Most people who live in rural areas demand less water for day-to-day living than people living in cities, and the majority of their water demand comes from agricultural need.
Population growth is going to accelerate the water crisis in India, especially as more and more people move into the cities and become part of the middle class. Because the rivers are too polluted to drink and the government is unable to consistently deliver freshwater to the cities, many urban dwellers are turning to groundwater, which is greatly contributing to the depletion of underground aquifers. Rural citizens face a similar crisis.
