Water resources in India

Water resources in India include information on precipitation surface and groundwater storage and hydropower
potential. India experiences an average precipitation of 1,170 millimeters (46 in) per year, or about 4,000 cubic
kilometers (960 cu mi) of rains annually or about 1,720 cubic meters (61,000 cu ft) of fresh water per person every
year. India accounts for 18% of the world population and about 4% of the world’s water resources. One of the
solutions to solve the country’s water woes is to create Indian Rivers Inter-link Some 80 percent of its area
experiences rains of 750 millimeters (30 in) or more a year. However, this rain is not uniform in time or geography.
Most of the rains occur during its monsoon seasons (June to September), with the north east and north receiving far
more rains than India's west and south. Other than rains, the melting of snow over the Himalayas after winter season
feeds the northern rivers to varying degrees. The southern rivers however experience more flow variability over the
year. For the Himalayan basin, this leads to flooding in some months and water scarcity in others. Despite extensive
river system, safe clean drinking water as well as irrigation water supplies for sustainable agriculture is in shortage
across India, in part because it has, as yet, harnessed a small fraction of its available and recoverable surface water
resource. India harnessed 761 cubic kilometers (183 cu mi) (20 percent) of its water resources in 2010, part of which
came from unsustainable use of groundwater.[3] Of the water it withdrew from its rivers and groundwater wells,
India dedicated about 688 cubic kilometers (165 cu mi) to irrigation, 56 cubic kilometers (13 cu mi) to municipal
and drinking water applications and 17 cubic kilometers (4.1 cu mi) to industry.

Every Indian Wastes Up to 45 liters of Water per Day We use about 27% of water for bathing and toilet use.
Approximately, a leaking faucet can waste 4,000 drops of water, which is equal to a liter of water. A flush of the
toilet uses six and a half gallons of water. On an average one person wastes about 0-45 liters water per day. To
understand it better, it is 30% of water requirement per person per day. 125 million liters of water wasted daily.
Bottom-line remains – it does not mean if we can afford it we have a right to waste it too. Did you know that,
approximately 163 Million Indians don’t have access to clean drinking water? 21% of the communicable diseases
are linked to unsafe drinking water. Every day 500 children die because of diarrhea in India. Unfortunately, more
than half the rivers are polluted and considered unsafe by modern standards. The main water bodies of India-Gaga,
Yamuna and Sabarmati have a deadly mix of pollutants, which are both organic and hazardous. You’ll be shocked to
hear that Kolkata wastes 50% of the water that it receives. Bangalore, which is the third most populous city in the
country, comes a close second at 49%. Water wastage figures in New Delhi, Chennai and Mumbai stand at 26%,
20%, and 18% respectively. While these numbers can make us feel sad, that’s not enough. We have to act now to
save the future. Change can begin with small measures such as turning off the tap while brushing your teeth, fixing
leaks, using low discharge toilets and faucets, running dish and laundry cleaners on full load, etc.
Dam, structure built across a stream, a river, or an estuary to retain water. Dams are built to provide water for
human consumption, for irrigating arid and semiarid lands, or for use in industrial processes. They are used to
increase the amount of water available for generating hydroelectric power, to reduce peak discharge of floodwater
created by large storms or heavy snowmelt, or to increase the depth of water in a river in order to improve
navigation and allow barges and ships to travel more easily. Dams can also provide a lake for recreational activities
such as swimming, boating, and fishing. Many dams are built for more than one purpose; for example, water in a
single reservoir can be used for fishing, to generate hydroelectric power, and to support an irrigation system. Water-
control structures of this type are often designated multipurpose dams. A dam can be a central structure in a
multipurpose scheme designed to conserve water resources on a regional basis. Multipurpose dams can hold special
importance in developing countries, where a single dam may bring significant benefits related to hydroelectric
power production, agricultural development, and industrial growth. At the base, it is an amazing 660 feet thick and
at the top it is 45 feet thick. The water on the lake side is more than 500 feet deep, and the lake holds a total of 10
trillion or so gallons of water -- enough water to cover a state like Connecticut 10 feet deep. The standard norm
for domestic water usage in India is 135 liters per capita per day, prescribed by the Central Public Health and
Environmental Engineering Organization. According to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) of India, about 500
billion cubic meter water out of the total available fresh water is used in industries annually. Out of this, about 10
billion cubic meters water is used by processing industries and 30 billion cubic meters is used for
refrigeration purposes. India has 18% of world population, having 4% of world's fresh water, out of which 80%
is used in agriculture. India receives an average of 4,000 billion cubic meters of precipitation every year. However,
only 48% of it is used in India's surface and groundwater bodies...

A dam failure or dam burst is a catastrophic type of failure characterized by the sudden, rapid, and uncontrolled
release of impounded water or the likelihood of such an uncontrolled release. [1] Between the years 2000 and 2009
more than 200 notable dam failures happened worldwide.
A dam is a barrier across flowing water that obstructs, that directs or slows down the flow, often creating
a reservoir, lake or impoundments. Most dams have a section called a spillway or weir over or through which water
flows, either intermittently or continuously, and some have hydroelectric power generation systems installed.
Dams are considered "installations containing dangerous forces" the massive impact of a possible destruction on the
civilian population and the environment. Dam failures are comparatively rare, but can cause immense damage and
loss of life when they occur. In 1975 the failure of the Banqiao Reservoir Dam and other dams in Henan Province,
China caused more casualties than any other dam failure in history. The disaster killed an estimated 171,000 people
and 11 million people lost their homes.
The Somasila Dam is a dam constructed across the Penna River near Somasila, Nellore district, Andhra Pradesh,
India. The reservoir impounded by the dam has a surface area of 212.28 km2 (52,456 acres) with live storage
capacity of 1.994 km3 (1,616,562 acre ft) or 75 tmcft. One of the main canals is the Kavali Canal. Ayacut of this
canal is wet ayacut was 25,000 acres and id ayacut was 50,000. Also developed the canal right and left sides UN
authorized ayacut was nearly 25,000 acres developed. Kavali canal is feeding to the 52 tanks under system of tanks.
It will be covered dagadarthi mandal, sangham mandal, jaladanki mandal and kavali mandal. The total length of the
canal is 67.619 km. Kavali Canal is the main source of drinking to Kavali municipality of nearly 1.2 lakh
population.Somasila dam receives record level of water. Somasila reservoir has received a record level of 77.78
tmc water against the Full Reservoir Level of 78 tmc for the first time in the last 30 years after its construction.

THE NEW INDIAN EXPRESS: Heavy rains in the parched Rayalaseema region, more particularly in Anantapur
and Kadapa districts, over the past few days filled River Kundu and other projects downstream to the brim. The
water level in Somasila reservoir has reached 74 tmcft against the Full Reservoir Level (FRL) of 78 tmcft. With the
Somasila reservoir receiving an inflow of 32,389 cusecs, there is enough water for irrigation. Project officials are
releasing 23,000 cusecs of water from 6th and 7th crest gates of the reservoir to River Penna, which passes through
Nellore rural, Indukurpet, Kovur, and Vidavalur mandals, known as Penna Delta. Water being released from
Somasila Reservoir will be diverted to Kanigiri, Sarvepalli, Nellore, Aluru and Chinnakraka balancing reservoirs
and local irrigation tanks in the region. There are around 1,750 minor irrigation tanks in the district with a capacity
of around 25,000 million cubic feet.

THE HINDU: In an extremely heartening development for the Telugu States of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana,
the Srisailam dam is close to its full reservoir capacity and four of its crest gates have been lifted to release water to
downstream Nagarjunasagar dam. These two major reservoirs bring cheer to not only the farmers, people as they
meet drinking water requirement but also to the Government as they ease out pressure on the administration
facilitating both hydel power generation as also ensuring water supplies. Due to heavy rains in the Krishna river
catchment areas on Maharashtra and Karnataka, two of the major reservoirs in Karnataka Almatti and Narayanpur
have filled up and releasing more than 3,60,000 cusecs of water into Jurala. Jurala in turn has lifted all its crest gates
and releasing the entire inflow into Srisailam while also generating power from its hydel power stations. With
Srisailam reservoir achieving a water level of 879 feet as against full reservoir level of 885 feet, it has opened four
crest gates today and releasing more than 1,00,000 cusecs of water into the Nagarjunasagr dam. Along side, it has
also begun to generate power from the dam power houses. The Nagarjunasgar dam, whose full reservoir level is at
590 feet has water level at 516 feet. If the current inflows continue with water release from Karnataka dams and later
from Srisailam, it is also likely to get huge inflows.