By Prof. Dr. P. K. Jena in Bhubaneswar May 29, 2018: Odisha is endowed with various natural resources including water. With abundant of fertile coastal lands, huge amounts of different types of minerals, vast forests, large number of rivers and other wet lands the state is supposed and achieve rapid developments in agricultural and industrial sectors. But the man-made water crisis has been largely responsible in retarding the progress in these sectors. Presently in agricultural, industrial and domestic sectors the water requirements are about 70%, 20% and 10% respectively. But all the sectors are now facing huge water crisis.

Odisha to its credit has 14 rivers besides large tracts of wet lands. But in winter and summer months, most of these get dried up. More than 50% of the water in the rivers goes back to the Bay of Bengal. One of the major reasons for the shortage of water in the rivers is the loss of large amounts of forests and trees which were in the catchment areas as well as both sides of the rivers. As a result, the heavy soil erosion in these areas has resulted in silting of rivers and cutting down drastically in their water containing capacities.

Besides, most of the rivers have been polluted by letting out the untreated industrial effluents and urban sewage water in to these rivers making their water highly polluted and quite unsuitable for drinking and other domestic purposes.

Political parties in the state have unanimously expressed serious concern about the drying of Mahanadi, because of the construction of a number of barrages and small dams in the upper part of the river in Chhattisgarh. Certainly, we all are equally concerned about it.

But, who stops us to build such water reserves in the lower parts of the river Mahanadi as well as in the upper and in the lower parts of other rivers of Odisha? As a matter of fact, our state has got 14 rivers out of which 11 originate in the state and seven revers flow through other states. There is a great scope to build large numbers of barrages and small dams in upstream as well as in downstream of these.

But so far we have done very little in this regard leading to artificial water crisis. It is high time that at suitable sites the construction of a number of barrages and small dams in the upstream of the 11 rivers as well as in the downstream of all the rivers including Mahanadi should be taken up and completed in record time.

Besides, a large scale plantation in the catchment areas and also in both sides of each of the rivers should be undertaken to avoid soil erosion and thus increase the water containing capacity of these. It may be mentioned here that, both the projects should also help to increase the potential ground water resources in the state substantially.

In addition to the above programmes as most of our rivers in the state are getting polluted at a very fast rate due to the release of large amounts of domestic and industrial effluents into these, necessary steps should be taken urgently to treat the industrial effluents and urban sewage before letting out their water into the rivers.

It is heartening to note that the Odisha government now plans to develop the water resources in the state in a big way during the next few years. It is highly desirable that the above mentioned projects particularly constructing barrages and dams at suitable sites of all the rivers and undertaking massive plantation of fast growing and economic trees in the catchment areas as well as both the sides of the rivers should be taken up on priority.

By keeping the rivers free from pollutions it would be possible to provide sufficient amount of clean water throughout the year from the 14 rivers of Odisha for drinking and other domestic purposes. Thus, by supplying sufficient amount of clean water for agricultural, domestic and industrial purposes it will help to materialize our dream of “Prosperous Odisha”.

(Former Director General, Council of Scientific & Industrial Research, India)