Bengaluru is running dry, and it is a reality

The year 2020 might have meant a landmark year to realise great visions in the mind of the former Indian President, APJ Abdul Kalam, but it might just spell doomsday for Bengaluru. Predictions from many international bodies and scientific experts state that the city will run short of water by 2020, and this is turning out to be true. A look at the water crisis in Chennai has led the Karnataka government to rethink its infrastructural growth plan and consider putting the brakes on construction of large apartment and commercial complexes for five years.Is this a knee-jerk reaction that is being implemented too late? Experts do not want to comment on that, but they are happy that the authorities are trying to bridge the gap between rapid urbanisation and the dwindling infrastructure to create a balance.

Professor TV Ramachandra, of the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), had said in a study long back that Bengaluru could be ‘a dead city’ by 2020 if it isn’t decongested immediately. In his study, Ramachandra had pointed out that Bengaluru has degenerated in an unbelievable pace over the past five decades. “We have mapped the satellite images since 1973 to see the extent of urbanisation that the city has seen, and how the green cover and vegetation have been lost. The findings are alarming, as we have urbanised senselessly. The city is currently on the throes of deterioration, with only tragedy staring it in the face,” explains Ramachandra.
The study adds, “Urbanisation from 1973 to 2016, with 1005% concretisation or increase in paved surface, has a telling influence on the natural resources, such as 88% decline in vegetation, 79% loss in wetlands, higher levels of air pollutions and a sharp downfall in groundwater table. Quantification of the number of trees in the region using remote sensing data with field census reveals that there are only 1.5 million trees to support Bengaluru’s population of 9.5 million, indicating one tree for every seven people in the city. This is insufficient even to sequester respiratory carbon (that ranges from 540-900 g per person per day). Geo-visualisation of likely land uses in 2020 through multi-criteria, decision-making techniques reveal a calamitous picture of 93% of Bengaluru landscape filled with paved surfaces (urban cover) and drastic reduction in open spaces and green cover. This would make the region greenhouse gas-rich, water scarce, non-resilient and unliveable, depriving city-dwellers of clean air, water and a safe environment.”

Professor AR Shivakumar – also from IISc, who is considered to be one of the biggest experts in rainwater harvesting in India – says, “If one were to think about Bengaluru in terms of the long-term sustenance, we cannot encourage other facilities, like housing, unless the basic infrastructure is put in place. There will not be a balance. Water, electricity, cooking gas and transport are lagging far behind. But real estate is surging in top gear. This is not a healthy development. What we are losing in the bargain is the environment. The natural resources are abused. No one gets the full benefit of any of the amenities.”
Citing examples of problems being faced already, Shivakumar says, “Ground water is polluted. Resources have been abused. One only has to think in the larger perspective to understand the damage being made. We may have all the necessities at our disposal, but we cannot utilise them in the right way. We need to curtail our activities to ensure that the gaps are filled.”
He also adds that solutions like rainwater harvesting are there but never implemented well. “Unfortunately, the kind of interest and finance the government and authorities put in for building mega projects, like Yettinahole, is not seen in the implementation of the already existing rainwater harvesting laws. Even 10% of the push towards green initiatives like rainwater harvesting, planting trees and developing parks in a scientific manner will bring in change. If we do not change, nature will push us towards change.”

Activist Tara Krishnaswamy says, “Bengaluru was built on the assumption that water catchment will serve the purpose of drinking and other water usages in the city. In fact, most of the lakes are not natural. They are tanks that were built to catch the natural, copious rain. Bengaluru gets enough rain to support the needs of at least 2/3 of the population, but that will come in handy only if it is stored effectively. If you encroach the lakes and the storm water drains, how are you going to recharge the ground water levels? Concretisation has become so bad that not only apartment complexes, but independent houses also have cemented areas surrounding them, leaving no way for rainwater to permeate into the ground. It flows away, and more often than not, ends in the sewage line, as storm water drains are either encroached or not cleaned.”
Tara explains how the replenishment of the lakes has become a big problem. “Normally during peak summer or when rains fail, lakes dry up because, rain water is supposed to be their only source of replenishment. But if you do see lakes with water, it is because there is sewage flowing into them. Over time, sewage clogs the pores of the ground and water does not seep into the ground water table. The government and citizens should realise that rainwater should serve its purpose and add to the water table. In fact, government agencies are taking pride in allocating infrastructure project sanctions in record time and cutting trees in the process, with no thought given to the impact on the environment. When you cut trees, you are removing areas that could have helped allow water to seep in.”

Tara Krishnaswamy says, “Golden rule of water usage is reuse, recharge, recycle. All sewage networks should connect to a treatment plant line for effective reuse. Right now, there is an issue of capacity, and not more than 40% sewage is being treated. In the process, sewage is being allowed into lakes. The government needs to overhaul the entire sewage network. To recharge the ground water table, illegal constructions on storm water drains has to stop and the remaining ones have to cleaned regularly to facilitate flow into the lakes. BBMP could look at constructing open wells for catchment of rain water in parks and other areas. Make it mandatory to use only recycled water for construction purposes, regardless of the water crisis.”