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‘Serious water woes’ in 20 yrs
KATHMANDU, JUL 03 -
Himalayan river basins in China, Bangladesh, India and Nepal will face massive water depletion in the next 20 years, leading to mass exodus and decline in food, according to a report.
During the Singapore International Water Week (SIWW) 2010 held from June 28 to July 2, a report published by Strategic Foresight Group of India stated that due to natural causes like glacial melting, the four countries including Nepal would lose almost 275 billion cubic meters of annual renewable water in the next two decades, more than the total amount of available water in Nepal at present.
Themed “Sustainable Cities: Clean and Affordable Water”, the SIWW focused on the need for efficiency and cost effective solutions to address water problems in a constantly changing environment.
Irrigation Minister Bal Krishna Khand was one of the 12,000 participants including policymakers, industry leaders, experts, and practitioners to address challenges, showcase technologies, discover opportunities and celebrate achievements in the water world.
The report states that water scarcity and effects like desertification and soil erosion would reduce rice and wheat yields in China and India by as much as 50 percent by 2050.
“This will create havoc in the global food market due to soaring prices. Water depletion in the river basins would displace millions of people in the four countries by 2050,” mentioned the report.
The basins of the rivers, including Yellow River and the Yangtze in China and the Ganges in India, are home to 1.3 billion people.
There is a need of cooperation among the four nations in the management of river basins, said Khand.
Posted on: 2010-07-04 08:14
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