
The news about shrinking and melting Himalayan glaciers has not come in limelight first time. We all know that our river could dry up if necessary actions are not taken to save them. According to latest report of Earth Policy Institute, the Chinese and Indian rivers like the Ganga and the Yangtze can transformed into seasonal rivers and probably could dry up fully in summers. What will happen when this supply of freshwater stops? In the country like India and Chine where grain prices are already high and millions of people are bound to satisfy themselves in one meal a day, water shortage could not only affect villages but also the cities that depend on these rivers for water supply.
In the report,the President of the Earth Policy Institute, Lester Brown said,
India’s Gangetic plain faded the prospect of losing the double cropping that allowed it to harvest wheat in winter and rice in summer. Water tables were also dropping rapidly in both India and China and were dangerously low in many places. Both countries have lost momentum in the effort to raise grain production. In both countries stocks are down to minimal levels and both are wrestling with serious food price inflation.
The holy Ganga and Yamuna and so many rivers will slowly become barren if people does not take essential precautions to sustain the water content and continuity of flow through out its natural route. Especially Indian philosophy and Vedic culture advocate worshiping all natural energy resources including rivers like Ganga, Yamuna. It would not be wrong if I say, anti-environmental life styles of the people have resulted in the feared threat of drying up rivers and draught conditions.
If the report is unbiased then it is high time for Indian and Chinese leaders have to understand the ground realities related to usage of these river, nationalize the rivers, construct more lakes and reservoirs and allocate the water resources, improve agriculture and promote research in production and food preservation technologies.
Apart form it, the people who are very much depended on these rivers need to make extra efforts to keep it clean and safe. Don’t expect much from our leaders, let’s do something that can set example for the whole world!






Comments
I think we have well passed the threshold of may or may not. Now the question is as when would the catastrophy strike? The irreparable damage which human kind has done to nature is bound to strike back. And when nature shows its fury then there is no place to save one’s skin. To make the matter worse we are still exhausting nature’s resources with utmost impunity. May be we will learn our lesson when some disastrous occur. But by then it would be too late to react. I am sure that one of the many sci-fis on global warming would soon become a reality.
Mandira, Its good thinking to orgnaize some drastic action to stop the abuse of our river systems.
The slow disappearance of our rivers is not just going to adversely affect the agricultural output but it will result in gradual desertification of land, an acute crisis that many of the African countries are now facing.
It is not just our lifestyle that needs to change but an active part from us citizens to preserve what is left of the rivers.
We seriously need to remind ourselves the proverb- As you sow so shall you reap. Its a topic that demands pondering over continuously and asks for some drastic precautionary measures with some effective tackling strategy. The consequences are gonna be equally devastating as to lead to the need of another Green Revolution.
I don’t know about others but I have started saving WATER. And I also encourage others to do so.. !