India: Drying rivers of Madhya Pradesh: Narmada on the cusp of extinction with six big dams, sand-mining, pollution threatening its survival
By Manish Chandra Mishra
[...]
One of the largest rivers of the peninsula, Narmada rises near the Amarkantak range of mountains in Madhya Pradesh. The biggest water source for Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, it is the fifth largest river in India and the largest one in Madhya Pradesh.
[...]
Water expert Vinod Sharma, who works on the conservation of Narmada river, raises his concern over the scarcity of water. "Narmada has never faced this kind of situation. Around 29 cities get water supply from the Narmada and almost every part of Madhya Pradesh gets irrigated from the river. I saw the condition of the river near its source Dindori which is just 85 km away from Amarkantak. Dindori is facing a water crisis and the city does not get water every day. The situation will worsen in May-June this year. The river contains only 2 percent of water flow during summer which is an indication of the alarming situation.”
He is disappointed with the unscientific approach of sand miners and governments. "Dams are not good for rivers but we are still not demanding demolition the dams. It is important for development but what about river conservation? Sand mining is affecting the Narmada the most but the government is still allowing miners to use machines to dig near river banks,” argues the activist.
Vinod is disappointed over illegal deforestation. "The Narmada is not a glacier river, but the source of the river is a forest. A large chunk of the green area store rainwater and release it in the Narmada. Deforestation ruins its source and as a result, the crisis is here in front of everyone,” he adds.
[...]