Causes Of The Drinking Water Crisis In India

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Drinking Water Crisis in India Water is vital for life, and without it, countless people can and already have lost their lives. Water is necessary for life just as air, but what happens when that water is contaminated? In India, the population growth is on a rapid rise and is often recognized as one of the most populated countries in the world. As of now, the population of India is 1.2 billion, and about 30% live in poverty, which means they have limited or no access to clean water (Water.org). As the population grows, resources for acquiring clean water are becoming scarce. A few causes that have led India to this crisis include poor management, government corruption, and industrial and human waste. Other factors that worsen the purity …show more content…

To name a few cholera, fluorosis, and diarrhoea are responsible for affecting millions of people that have to drink contaminated water. Some factors such as sewage waste can be controlled by humans while others like runoff from agricultural lands are hard to identify. "The untreated waste dumped into rivers seeps into groundwater, thereby creating a ticking health bomb in India”(The Huffington Post). Chemical spills from industries contribute in contaminating the water. These unwanted residues from chemicals is what causes the rise of sediments in water pipes. Furthermore, most of the water in India that is contaminated is supplied from groundwater. Groundwater is rain water or water from other surface bodies like lakes and rivers that soaks into the soil. In this groundwater comes natural contaminants and harmful chemicals. This harmful water is then pumped out of the ground so it can be used for agriculture or drinking. Drinking this water sickens children, adults, and seniors, yet no action is taken to make groundwater …show more content…

As an Indian living in America, visiting India is a trip I anxiously wait for. But when my family arrives there, we are forbidden to drink tap water that the majority of the local people drink. We have to make special arrangements for ourselves by acquiring bottled or mineral water. At times, when my family visits relatives, they boil water to make sure to kill germs and harmful bacteria before serving it to us. I am repeatedly cautioned to boil the water even if it’s a small glass of water. When I visited India a few years ago, women were acquiring water by walking to a local water tap and filling their buckets with water. From there they walked the distance back with their limited supply of water. Some people that live near rivers like the Ganges river use the resource for their daily needs, not considering how they are dirtying the water. They use it for basic needs like washing their clothes, bathing, and throwing ashes of their loved ones in the sacred water. People have to resort to using natural resources like rivers for their basic needs, but this human behavior can prove costly in the time

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