Water scarcity
Also called: Water crisis · Topic: Water Resources of India: Availability, Use and Conservation · NCERT: Class 6, Ch 2 "Oceans and Continents"; Class 10, Ch 3 "Water Resources"
Meaning
Water scarcity means there is less usable water than people need. Class 10 NCERT stresses that it is caused less by low rainfall than by over-exploitation (taking out too much), excessive use and unequal access among social groups. A large and growing population needs water for homes and for growing food. Dry-season irrigation from wells and tubewells, water-hungry industry, and city housing societies pumping their own groundwater all add to the pressure. Scarcity can also be about quality: water may be plentiful but too polluted to use.
Example
Shillong in Meghalaya is short of water, even though Cherrapunji and Mawsynram, about 55 km away, get the world's highest rainfall. This shows that a high-rainfall region can still face water scarcity.
Don't confuse with
- Water stress: on the Falkenmark indicator, stress means below 1,700 cubic metres per person a year. Scarcity is the more severe stage, below 1,000.