The Indian rivers interlinking project is a proposed large-scale civil engineering project that aims to effectively manage water resources in India by linking rivers using a network of reservoirs and canals to enhance irrigation and groundwater recharge and reduce persistent floods in some parts and water shortages in other parts of the country.Jayanta Bandyopadhyay and Shama Perveen (2003), The Interlinking of Indian Rivers: Some Questions on the Scientific, Economic and Environmental Dimensions of the Proposal IIM Calcutta, IISWBM, Kolkata India accounts for 18% of global population and about 4% of the world's water resources. One of the solutions to solve the country's water woes is to link its rivers and lakes.
The interlinking project has been split into three parts: a northern Himalayan rivers interlink component, a southern peninsular component, and starting in 2005, an intrastate river-linking component. The project is being managed by India's National Water Development Agency, which is part of the Ministry of Jal Shakti. NWDA has studied and prepared reports on 14 interlink projects for the Himalayan component, 16 for the peninsular component, and 37 intrastate river-linking projects.
Average rainfall in India is about 4,000 billion cubic metres, but most of the country's rainfall falls over a 4-month period—June through September. Furthermore, rain across the large nation is not uniform, with the east and north getting most rainfall and the west and south getting less. India also sees years of excess monsoons and floods, followed by below-average or late monsoons accompanied by droughts. This geographical and time variance in availability of natural water versus year-round demand for irrigation, drinking, and industrial water creates a demand–supply gap that has been worsening with India's rising population.
Proponents of the river interlinking projects claim the answer to India's water problem is to conserve the abundant monsoon water bounty, store it in reservoirs, and deliver this water—using the planned project—to areas and over times when water becomes scarce. Beyond water security, the project is also seen to offer potential benefits to transport infrastructure through navigation and hydro power as well as broadening income sources in rural areas through fish farming. Opponents are concerned about well-known environmental, ecological, and social displacement impacts as well as unknown risks associated with tinkering with nature. Others are concerned that some projects may have international impacts.
The History
The British colonial era A proposal regarding the interlinking of rivers in India has a long history. During the British colonial rule, for example, the 19th century engineer Arthur Cotton proposed the plan to interlink major Indian rivers in order to hasten import and export of goods from its colony in indian subcontinent, South Asia, as well as to address water shortages and droughts in southeastern India, now Andhra Pradesh and Odisha.Elizabeth Hope and William Digby,
The Post independence In the 1970s, Dr. K.L. Rao, a dams designer and former irrigation minister proposed "National Water Grid". He was concerned about the severe shortages of water in the South and repetitive flooding in the North every year. He suggested that the Brahmaputra and Ganga basins are water surplus areas, and central and south India as water deficit areas. He proposed that surplus water be diverted to areas of deficit. When Rao made the proposal, several inter-basin transfer projects had already been successfully implemented in India, and Rao suggested that the success be scaled up.A.K. Singh (2003), Interlinking of Rivers in India: A Preliminary Assessment, New Delhi
In 1980, India's then Ministry of Water Resources came out with a report entitled "National Perspectives for Water Resources Development". This report split the water development project in two parts – the Himalayan and Peninsular components. The Congress Party came to power and it abandoned the plan. In 1982, India financed and set up a committee of nominated experts, through National Water Development Agency (NWDA) to complete detailed studies, surveys and investigations in respect of reservoirs, canals and all aspects of feasibility of interlinking peninsular rivers and related water resource management. NWDA has produced many reports over 30 years, from 1982 through 2013.National Water Development Agency Ministry of Water Resources, Govt of India (2014) However, the projects were not pursued.
The river inter-linking idea was revived in 1999, after the National Democratic Alliance formed the Government of India, but this time with a major strategic shift. The proposal was modified to intra-basin development as opposed to inter-basin water transfer.Sharon Gourdji, Carrie Knowlton and Kobi Platt, Indian Inter-linking of Rivers: A Preliminary Evaluation M.S. Thesis, University of Michigan (May 2005)
How it was in the 21st century
By 2004, the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) led by the Congress Party was in power, and it resurrected its opposition to the project concept and plans. Social activists campaigned that the project may be disastrous in terms of cost, potential environmental and ecological damage, water table and the dangers inherent with tinkering with nature. The central government of India, from 2005 through 2013, instituted a number of committees, rejected a number of reports, and financed a series of feasibility and impact studies, each with changing environmental law and standards.Koshy & Kanekal, SC revives NDA dream to interlink rivers LiveMint & The Wall Street Journal (28 February 2012)
In February 2012, while disposing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) lodged in the year 2002, the Supreme Court (SC) refused to give any direction for implementation of the Rivers Interlinking Project. SC stated that it involves policy decisions which are part of legislative competence of state and central governments. However, SC directed the Ministry of Water Resources to constitute an experts committee, the 'Special Committee on ILR' (SC ILR), to pursue the matter with the governments as no party had pleaded against the implementation of the Rivers Interlinking Project."Paras 62 to 64, WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) NO. 668 OF 2002", The Supreme Court of India, Civil Original Jurisdiction, Government of India (2002)
The need
Drought, floods and shortage of drinking water India receives about 4,000 cubic kilometers of rain annually, or about 1 million gallons of fresh water per person every year. However, the precipitation pattern in India varies dramatically across distance and over calendar months. Much of the precipitation in India, about 85%, is received during summer months through monsoons in the Himalayan catchments of the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna (GBM) basin. The northeastern region of the country receives heavy precipitation, in comparison with the northwestern, western and southern parts. The uncertainty of the start date of the monsoons, sometimes marked by prolonged dry spells and fluctuations in seasonal and annual rainfall is a serious problem for the country. The nation sees cycles of drought years and flood years, with large parts of the west and south experiencing more deficits and large variations, resulting in immense hardship, particularly for the poorest farmers and rural populations. Lack of irrigation water regionally leads to crop failures and farmer suicides. Despite abundant rains during July–September, some regions in other seasons see shortages of drinking water. Some years, the problem temporarily becomes too much rainfall and weeks of havoc from floods. This excess-scarcity, regional disparity and flood-drought cycles have created the need for water resources management. Rivers inter-linking is one proposal to address that need. Due to global warming, fossil fuels use is discouraged and carbon neutral, clean, and renewable energy sources like solar and wind power are encouraged which are intermittent and variable types of electricity generation. Pumped storage hydroelectric power plants are needed to store the surplus electricity generated during daylight time by the solar power plants and supply the required electricity during the night hours. Water security, energy security, and food security can be achieved by interlinking rivers by envisaging multipurpose freshwater coastal reservoirs.
Population and food security Population increase in India is the other driver of the need for river inter-linking. India's population growth rate has been falling but still continues to increase by about 10 to 15 million people every year. The resulting demand for food must be satisfied with higher yields and better crop security, both of which require adequate irrigation of about 140 million hectares of land. Alt URL Currently, just a fraction of that land is irrigated, and most irrigation relies on monsoon. River interlinking is claimed to be a possible means of assured and better irrigation for more farmers, and thus better food security for a growing population. In a tropical country like India with high evapotranspiration, food security can be achieved with water security which in turn is achieved with energy security to pump water to uplands from water surplus lower elevation river points up to sea level.
Salt export needs When sufficient salt export is not taking place from a river basin to the sea in an attempt to harness the river water fully, it leads to river basin closure, and the available water in the downstream area of the river basin closer to the sea becomes saline and/ or alkaline water. Land irrigated with saline or alkaline water gradually turns into saline or alkali soils. The water percolation in alkali soils is very poor leading to waterlogging problems. Proliferation of alkali soils would compel the farmers to cultivate rice or grasses only as the soil productivity is poor with other crops and tree plantations. Cotton is the preferred crop in saline soils compared to many other crops. Interlinking water surplus rivers with water deficit rivers is needed for the long-term sustainable productivity of the river basins and for mitigating the anthropogenic influences on the rivers by allowing adequate salt export to the sea in the form of environmental flows.
Navigation India needs infrastructure for logistics and the movement of freight. Using connected rivers as navigation is a cleaner, low carbon footprint form of transport infrastructure, particularly for ores and food grains.
Current reserves and loss in groundwater level India currently stores only 30 days of rainfall, while developed nations strategically store 900 days worth of water demand in arid areas river basins, and reservoirs. India's dam reservoirs store only 200 cubic meters per person. India also relies excessively on groundwater, which accounts for over 50 percent of the irrigated area with 20 million tube wells installed. About 15 percent of India's food is being produced using rapidly depleting groundwater. The end of the era of massive expansion in groundwater use is going to demand greater reliance on surface water supply systems. Proponents of the project suggest India's water situation is already critical, and it needs sustainable development and management of surface water and groundwater usage. Some proponents feel that India is not running out of water but water is running out of India.
Discussion
Costs The rivers inter-linking feasibility reports completed by 2013, suggest the following investment needs and potential economic impact: