The City of Oranges and its water woes

Water shortages, wastewater disposal, unequal distribution of water within the city, leakage and thefts are some of many water related issues the city of Nagpur has been facing since the past few years. This implies that there is a need to think of new ways to tackle these issues which should not only be sustainable but inclusive and reliable. 

In Nagpur, an average sized household can harvest up to 1 lakh litres of  rainwater annually, considering the area of terrace to be 1200-1400 sq ft  and average annual rainfall to be 1064 mm. Which is quiet enough to cater yearly drinking water needs for a family of four. Adding to this, if we consider the idea of recharging the open wells which are in dire state in the city, the amount of water harvested would be a supplement, not only for household purposes but for groundwater recharge. 

The idea of harvesting rainwater is not new… the city’s law mandates all the structures  having an area of certain sq.m, and above, to have their own rainwater harvesting systems. The tax incentives are also given to the citizens in the form of some concession on property tax. But the enthusiasm of citizens and the city's corporation remains passive towards it. One reason for this could be the decision of Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) to involve private players in the city’s water supply system, as promoting such sustainable ways of saving up water could impact their revenue. 

Water & Nagpur, the present  

Nagpur gets  maximum of its supplied water from Pench reservoir with Kanhan river contributing for certain requirements. The city requires 670 MLD of water and creates 550 MLD of waste water. NMC is responsible for the city's water supply. It roped in Orange city waters (OCW) a private player to handle the water supply in 2011 making it a Public Private Partnership (PPP)  venture. Nagpur was one of the first cities in India to have a PPP to handle the city's overall water supply. Various politicians and bureaucrats pushed for this idea of privatisation, but some experts, like journalist Nivedita Khandekar who writes extensively on environment related issues, condemned the idea of privatising a public good like water.

City’s wastewater is discharged into the Nag river, which has become an open sewer and a source of various kinds of pollution. Not to mention this is the same river the city was named after – when the river enabled this area to urbanise. NMC is also planning to involve private players in the Wastewater treatment system of the city. Presently the water treated by public Sewage Treatment Plants (STP) is sold to Thermal Power Plants (TPPs) around the city at a minuscule price. This idea was finalised by keeping a nexus approach in plan where one industry's waste becomes another industry’s raw material. But the fly ash generated from these TPPs is being discharged into Kanhan river, polluting the same source it is indirectly getting its water from, this, along with the already discharged untreated wastewater from Nag river, makes the water from Kanhan unfit for downstream users.

Water pollution is an issue the city has been facing, where TPPs, dumping yards and untreated wastewater flowing through open sewerages  contribute majorly towards both surface water and groundwater pollution. Urban Sprawl has reduced the distance between residential areas, dumping yards, and TPPs. People are getting more vulnerable towards health diseases caused by pollution. The untreated wastewater which is being discharged into the Kanhan river is used by the downstream farmers for irrigation purposes. According to architect Pradyumna Sahasrabhojanee who is working on sustainable architecture, though use of the city's wastewater by the farmers for irrigation was part of Nagpur's master plans, its safety aspects if considered today, are under question - as the toxins may enter the farm produce and human bodies consuming it.  

Water & Nagpur, issues involved… 

The water needs of the city have been increasing since decades, taking up irrigation allocations from the Pench Irrigation Project. The present capacity of Sewage Treatment Plants is way less than required. There are a plethora of issues and we need a sustainable way out before the situation worsens. All the issues are interlinked, hence the solutions should be collaborative and inclusive. Water is one of the components which decide a city's growth – social and economic. Some ways of ensuring sustainability, especially in an urban setting are Rainwater Harvesting  and Treatment of wastewater. 

Learning from the case study mentioned above, it can be stated that if rainwater is collected and utilised properly by the citizens as well as the authorities, it has a tremendous potential to be an asset – considering that Nagpur receives an adequate amount of rainfall. Decentralisation of wastewater treatment plants is another solution: which involves establishing STPs on block level or household level so that the water reaching the main sewer will always be clean. The idea is also sought after by experts to improve the quality of water flowing in the sewers, this water can be reused for purposes like watering public parks, fire stations, public toilets etc. This in turn would reduce the chances of groundwater pollution caused by wastewater flowing through sewers and would also add recreational value to Nag river and its other tributaries which have lost their glory with increasing urbanisation. 

Leakage in pipeline to city

There are issues and there are solutions – and these are right in front of us. They aren't complicated or hard to implement, still they face various political and bureaucratic hurdles. Understanding sustainable alternatives isn't Rocket Science. It all begins with a change – behavioural or policy. Which are often easy, yet difficult to bring in.

Water theft - taking water from the underground supply line

CASE STUDY 

The following numbers reflect my experience with the exercise I did during last summer, calculating the area of  my roof top and well and finding out the amount of rainwater we could be harvesting annually through our terrace and open well, considering the average annual rainfall to be 1064 mm.  The result says the average amount of water harvested by these two structures could be around 1 lakh litres per year and total annual water needs (including drinking and domestic) of my family of four is around 3 lakh litres as per the calculations. 

This study helped me  realise that 1/3rd of my family’s  water needs can be catered from the annual rainwater we receive. This idea is not only going to be a kind of economic substitute for the way we use our resources to fetch water but an excellent ecological initiative.

Vrushali Gaurkar, Nagpur