According to unpublished reports several areas of Dimapur is experiencing drop in water levels and many households are complaining of ring wells going completely dry. This is not at all surprising given the fact that the demand for water is growing in urban centers like Dimapur and Kohima. All of us are aware of the official statistics of the rapid urbanization and the increasing migration from the rural areas to Dimapur and Kohima. A decade or so ago there was self sufficiency in meeting our water needs. With the growing population, it would mean that our groundwater source is being extracted by more and more people. Perhaps we do not want to be alarmed into thinking that there is a water crisis. However, the warning signs are already visible and greater priority must be given to managing our water sources. In the development context, it is usually the case that water issue or concern remains at the bottom of our priority list. The government, civil society, tribal hohos and even the Church must do more and perhaps we need to go back to doing the simple things first—rain water harvesting. Some years ago there was quite a lot of awareness programmes on taking up rainwater harvesting projects. Perhaps we need to take a relook at them.
To start off with, we can get some useful insights from the notable work undertaken by the Centre for Science and Environment’s (CSE) campaign. For instance, in order to spread awareness about community based rainwater harvesting techniques, the centre has identified sixteen model projects in Delhi. CSE has helped in the process of implementation of these and has been monitoring their impact on a regular basis. These Sixteen model projects have been constructed by enterprising citizens who sought CSE's help to setup rainwater harvesting structures in their colonies and institutions. They also feature different forms of rainwater harvesting - rooftop harvesting and surface water harvesting. According to the CSE it has been constantly monitoring changes in the water levels in its 11 model projects in Delhi and Gurgaon (Haryana). The CSE in its website states that the impact of rainwater harvesting on the quality and quantity of groundwater in the location has been remarkable, proving beyond doubt that rainwater harvesting is one of the most effective tools to arrest the rapidly depleting groundwater reserves.
Given that in densely habited places like Dimapur the fall of ground water levels is assuming alarming proportions, the government and concern public should take the initiative to put in place simple yet sustainable water management practice such as rain water harvesting. All this makes sense because we get sufficient rain during the monsoon season and we need to save and store for future use. We will also be able to restore supplies from the aquifers depleted due to over exploitation and improve supplies from aquifers lacking adequate recharge. Besides reducing storm water runoff and soil erosion, it will also improve the quality of ground water. Then perhaps we need to rehabilitate the existing traditional water harvesting structures like village ponds, lakes or tanks rather than filling them up to build concrete structures. The other benefits for a place like Dimapur is it will help in reducing the yearly flood menace that we witness and also mitigate the effects of drought. So why waste rain water this monsoon?
