Bangalore: By 2050, India will be consuming 1,447 billion cubic metres of water — more than twice the amount of water used annually now — primarily for irrigation, and to fulfil multi-sectoral demands. "The availability of water can meet the current demands, but it will not be adequate for future scenarios," said S.K. Das, chairman, Central Water Commission, speaking at an International Workshop on Integrated Water Resource Management here on Monday. The workshop was organised by the Karnataka Environment Research Foundation.

In anticipation of this projected demand, Mr. Das spoke of the need for appropriate management strategies. "The problem of water is not one of scarcity, but of management," he said. "India possesses 4 per cent of the world's water resources, but we must prepare for the future. For instance, in less than a decade from now, it is anticipated that the number of people without access to potable water will double," he said.

Mr. Das spoke of rainwater harvesting, participatory irrigation management, pricing of water, dams and the interlinking of rivers as possible solutions. "But," he said, "no integrated development of water resources is possible without cooperation between States and nations."

Speaking of inter-State water disputes, Mr. Das referred to legislation dealing with conflicts between States over river water. The National Water Policy, revised in 2002, which stresses on the need for integrated water resource planning, must be considered a "bible" for the utilisation and management of water, he said.

But while inter-State cooperation was necessary, there were bound to be challenges in resolving river basin dilemmas, Mr. Das said. For instance, any decisions about the Ganga Basin could only be reached through consensus among 13 States.

The Inter-State Water Disputes Act, 1956, which has provisions for setting up tribunals where negotiations have failed, had, therefore, not always been successful. There were presentations by representatives from the Indian Institute of Science, National Law Schools of India University, National Geophysical Research Institute and National Water Development Agency, among others, at the workshop.

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