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Bengaluru on the verge of facing severe Groundwater crisis in coming years
November 14, 2019

Bengaluru on the verge of facing severe Groundwater crisis in coming years

Bengaluru, which is getting ruptured at the joint due to its soaring accidental development, is chasing towards a groundwater crisis.

Bengaluru is among 12 cities where groundwater is quickly exhausting. The city will encounter a deficiency of 217 million cubic meters (2,17,000 mld) of water in 2021, with the scarcity expected to balloon aggressively to 518 million cubic meters (5,18,000 mld) by 2041, an expert committee has notified the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in New Delhi.

Currently, the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) is providing 1450 mld/day for the city, whose population has grown to 1.25 crore. According to the WHO, 135 liters of water is required each day per person to make sure necessary requirements are met. That figure cannot be met with the present water accessibility.

The NGT had requested a report from an expert panel including members of the Central Pollution Control Board, Ministry of Environment and Forests and Bureau of Indian Standard (BIS) about the status of groundwater in 24 cities, including Bengaluru, where groundwater extraction is quite at its peak.

According to the report, Bengaluru is among 12 cities where the level of groundwater extraction is more than 100%. With drawing rate of 141% of water, the city is in 12th place while Jalandhar in Punjab occupied the top slot with 472%. As a result of quick consumption of groundwater, Bengaluru has to root out 94% of its water from surface water by 2021, warned the report.

“The dependency of the cities on surface water is increasing and dependency on groundwater decreasing due to very high extraction of groundwater,” said the report.

The NGT asked the expert panel's report while Niti Aayog raised alarm over the fast reduction of groundwater in its Composite Water Management Index released in 2018.

The Niti Aayog had previously said the groundwater supply in the IT city will reduce from 146 billion liters (146 million cubic meters) in 2018 to 36 billion liters (million cubic meters) in 2041 due to excessive utilization.

Mr. Jeevan K Raj, the founder of Genex Utility Management Services (GUMS) strongly believes that the serious condition of groundwater deficiency in Bangalore, needs to be attended now, otherwise it would be too late. This scarcity of water level and its quality can only be controlled by adopting of integrated recycling and waste water management methods that will largely help sustaining of survival opportunities which is necessary for the city's growth. Mr Jeevan K Raj, the founder of Genex Utility Management Services (GUMS) strongly believes that the serious condition of groundwater deficiency in Bangalore, needs to be attended now, otherwise it would be too late. This scarcity of water level and its quality can only be controlled by adopting of integrated recycling and waste water management methods that will largely help sustaining of survival opportunities which is necessary for the city's growth.