Water Management

in
Meghalaya
Ayush Dharnidharaka -2018PGP011
Kodaru Sai Rahul - 2018PGP020
Sachin Agarwal -2018PGP040
Shalu Chauhan -2018PGP046
Shruti -2018PGP051
Yash Choudhary -2018PGP058
 Contents
• Introduction
• Scope
• Objectives
• Findings and Analysis
• Suggestions
• Results

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 Let’s Understand
• Meghalaya is one of the highest rainfall receiving area
in the world
• Cherapunjee the worlds wettest place is receiving
lesser rainfall every year by up to 20%
• The cities face acute water shortage despite their being
above average rainfall
• All of this points to the general problems of unplanned
urbanisation
• So, the report shall analyse the problem and come up
with the problem statement
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 Scope Statement
The scope of the research work is to analyze the water
scarcity in the state of Meghalaya, which is abundant in
rain water and also get familiarized with the whole
Water Management process in the state. We have
considered 3 main cities in the state of Meghalaya
which are geographically in different parts of the state.
Cherrapunjee, Shillong and Tura have been analyzed
for the research. We have also formulated the results
of the study and suggested recommendations for the
same.

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 Objectives

The problem of water crisis in the state is ever on the

rise. It is high time that we find the various causes for
the water shortage and come up with possible
solutions to deliver a better and sustainable standard
of living to not only the urban population, but also
rural population of Meghalaya. The objective of the
project is to find the root cause of the problem and to
suggest further implementations for the same.

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 Findings & Analysis
Shillong

• Shillong is on the elevated plane so despite it being the

largest precipitating zone most of the water just slides
off
• The vegetation is able to absorb only a little percentage
of water
• The rivers close to the mining areas and cement plants
have acquired a blue color which was due to the high
acidity in water

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Continued ....
• The scorching heat and burning of forest (for jhum
cultivation) also contributes to water scarcity
• The local people are compelled to buy water at
exorbitant prices after the complete stoppage of water
supply

Tura
• Prevalent water crisis has led to significant lack of
drinking water
• the shortage still prevails due to low voltage in
evening hours
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Continued ....
• The non-maintenance of supply lines has led to
leakages worsening the road conditions along with
exacerbating the shortage of supply.
• Depletion of catchment areas has led to drying up of
streams. Concrete steps needed to solve the problem
• People can still be seen lining up on the streets
wherever they can find water sources
• Repair work of reservoirs has led to the damage to
supply lines and subsequent water shortage

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Continued ....
Cherrapunjee
• Though drenched by incessant monsoon over the past
few months, the town of Sohra is thirsting for portable
drinking water with most of the pipelines damaged by
rain
• But the town is getting drier due to erratic rain since
the beginning of the decade
• immediate effect is a water shortage in the world’s
wettest area, especially during winters.
• environmentalists fear the waterfalls around
Cherrapunjee, a major tourist attraction, may start to
dry up. 9
 Results
• Water treatment plants:
• Clear water transmission system
• Service reservoir
• Distribution System
• Sterilization and Chlorination
• UFW Reduction programme:
1) Water auditing in Production System
2) Water auditing in Distribution System

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 Suggestions
• To boost the availability of water in streams, intensive
afforestation should be carried out in the catchment
areas
• The practice of water harvesting will help augmenting
the current supply of water
• The municipal supply water has to be treated
scientifically before distribution to overhead tanks in
different localities
• The urbanization process needs to be regulated near
the catchment areas of water sources
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• The Meghalaya Protection of Catchment Areas Act
1990 needs to be implemented. The act prohibits
deforestation, clearance of bushes and any vegetative
cover, excavation of earth and all other activities that
are likely to damage springs, streams or water sources
in the area
• Metering of water distribution system with proper
pricing policy in place in regard to the water supply to
households can help inefficient management of water
supply and wanton usage of water
• One household One water connection policy should be
implemented to avoid misuse at household level

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