PIL to draft Solutions on Water Scarcity while considering the best practices of all developed countries and international conventions

WRIT PETITION UNDER ARTICLE 32 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA FOR ENFORCEMENT OF PUBLIC INTEREST IN THE FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS GUARANTEED UNDER PART-III OF THE CONSTITUTION.

THE HON’BLE CHIEF JUSTICE AND

HIS COMPANION JUSTICES OF THE

HON’BLE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

THE HUMBLE PETITION OF THE PETITIONER ABOVE NAMED

MOST RESPECTFULLY SHEWETH

This Writ Petition is filed in public interest by Advocate, Mr. …………………. under Article 32 of the Constitution of India in furtherance of the rights of citizens and the general public and more particularly in furtherance of right to water which is a pre-requisite to their fundamental right guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution of India.
ARRAY OF PARTIES
The Petitioner is a citizen of India and is a practicing Advocate before various Courts of India. That Petitioner is interested in safeguarding the interest of public at large and ventilating the grievances of public regarding the issues of public importance, in the exercise of his duty in terms of Article 51 A (g) of the Constitution and with a view to promote the Rule of Law, has preferred the instant Writ Petition under Article 32 of the Constitution of India in Public Interest. He has a special interest for preservation and conservation of Environment. The Respondent is Ministry of Jal Shakti which was formed in May 2019. This was formed by merging of two ministries Ministry of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation and Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation who is the necessary and proper parties to decide the issues.
Expert report says, India is facing the worst water crisis in its history, With nearly 600 million Indians facing high-to-extreme water stress where more than 40 percent of the annually available surface water is used every year and about 200,000 people dying every year due to inadequate access to safe water, the situation is likely to worsen as the demand for water will exceed the supply by next decades. India holds about four percent of global freshwater and 16 percent of its population. Water-intensive agricultural practices and growing water demand for industrial, energy production and domestic purposes are significantly stressing India’s limited water resource.
The Petitioner seeks a writ of mandamus from this Hon’ble Court for relief prayed in the prayer clauses and also directions for constituting a Judicial Commission or a High Level Expert Committee, to draft Guidelines, while considering the best practices of all developed countries and international conventions on Water Scarcity and also on Rooftop Rain Water Harvesting as court intervention is required for action on immediate and national importance impacting the public at large. This Writ Petition is filed as Pro Bono for enforcement of the public interest, to advance the rule of law.

That This Hon’ble Court in numerous matters elaborated the scope of Article 21 of the constitution of India to receive safe drinking water (potable water) is part of the right to life under Article 21. As early as in 1984 in Bandhua Mukti Morcha vs. Union of India, 1984 SCR (2) 67 case this Hon’ble Court derived the concept of right to ‘healthy environment’ as part of the ‘right to life’ under Article 21. That in case of A.P. Pollution Control Board II v. Prof. M.V. Nayudu (2001) 2 SCC 62, the AP government had granted an exemption to a polluting industry and allowed it to be set up near two main reservoirs in Andhra Pradesh – the Himayat Sagar Lake and the Osman Sagar lake, in violation of the Environment Protection Act 1986, that this Hon’ble court struck down such exemption and held that the “Environment Protection Act and The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1974 did not enable to the State to grant exemption to a particular industry within the area prohibited for location of polluting industries.” That ‘the right to access to clean drinking water is fundamental to life and there is a duty on the state under Article 21 to provide clean drinking water to its citizens’. The State is duty bound not only to provide adequate drinking water but also to protect water sources from pollution and encroachment. Any act of the State that allows pollution of water body ‘must be treated as arbitrary and contrary to public interest and in violation of the right to clean water under Article 21.
Petitioner has not filed any other petition either in this Hon’ble Court or in any other Indian Court seeking same or similar directions.
Petitioner has no personal interests, individual gain, private motive or oblique reasons in filing this petition. It is not guided by the gain of any other individual, institution or body.
There is no civil, criminal or revenue litigation, involving the Petitioner, which has or could have legal nexus, with the issue involved in this petition. It is totally bona-fide.

FACTS THAT CONSTITUTE CAUSE OF ACTION

Water is one of the necessities of every living being for their survival. Out of the total water available on the planet, only 3% is fresh and can be used for drinking purposes. However, the available fresh water is distributed very unevenly, rendering serious implications on the steady supply across the India. Moreover, with increasing population, increasing urbanization, expanding agriculture, and rising standards of living, the water demand has now touched a new arena, where it is getting difficult to meet even the essentialities. That an effective mandatory guideline on water management is very essential for the growth and development of any country. Unless water problem is adequately addressed with sufficient planning and care, life on earth itself could be threatened in the years to come. That every drop of water should be judiciously utilized to increase productivity and its wastage must be minimized and also effective strategies should be made to harvest water.
Expert report says water shortage is one of the most difficult problems being faced in present time. Rainfall is quite erratic and non-uniform across the length and breadth of the India. Every year almost 90 districts become drought affected and 40 million hectares in 83 districts get flooded. Indian states like, Maharashtra and Punjab are the examples where the water table is going down with a speedy rate. However, even in such a water scarce society, water has been the most indiscriminately used resource, especially since the advent of industrial revolution. It has resulted into the pollution of nearly all the existing lakes, ponds, and rivers of the country. The biggest sufferer of this is the metropolitan cities where there is acute shortage of safe drinking water.
Expert have found that, on average, more than 80% of the available ground water had been withdrawn and some 70% of it was used for agriculture. India is in the grip of acute water scarcity by other measures as well. Large parts of the country have already faced a crippling drought this year, more than 500 million people living in at least 10 states were reportedly affected. And India's sixth largest city Chennai in the south ran out of water. In fact, the report counts the crisis in Chennai among the world's many urban water crises in recent years. Many national and international media has cover the issues on Chennai and posted a warning for many cities across India.
A Niti Aayog report released in 2018 predicts Day Zero for 21 Indian cities in coming years. Day Zero refers to the day when a place is likely to have no drinking water of its own. The world’s second-most populous country is running out of water. India is facing one of its major and most serious water crisis. According to the Composite Water Management Index (CWMI) released by the NITI Aayog in 2018, 21 major cities (Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad and others) are racing to reach zero groundwater levels affecting access for 100 million people. However, 12% of India’s population is already living the ‘Day Zero’ scenario. The CWMI report also states that by 2030, the country’s water demand is projected to be twice the available supply, implying severe water scarcity for hundreds of millions of people and an eventual 6% loss in the country’s GDP. A water crisis generally means the insufficient availability of drinking water, lack of sufficient available water resources to meet the demands of water usage within a region. A water crisis is a situation where the available potable, unpolluted water within a region is less than that region’s demand. According to the NITI Aayog report, India’s water crisis is more dire than imagined and some of them includes 600 million people are dealing with high to extreme water shortage. An average of 200,000 Indian lives is lost every year due to inadequate supply or contamination of water. About 75% of households do not have drinking water at home, 84% rural households do not have piped water access, and 70% of India’s water is contaminated, with the country currently ranked 120 among 122 in the water quality index, India is the world’s biggest groundwater extractor. 40% of our citizens will have no access to drinking water by 2030.
It further says Droughts are becoming more frequent, creating severe problems, especially because approx 53% of agriculture in India is rainfed. India holds about 4% of global freshwater and 16% of its population. The NITI Aayog database says 54% of wells in India are declining in level due to unsustainable withdrawals for irrigation. Overall, 50 per cent of urban water requirement and 85 per cent of rural domestic water need are fulfilled by groundwater. This kind of use has caused a reduction in groundwater levels in India by 61 per cent between 2007 and 2017, according to report by Central Ground Water Board (CGWB). The report prepared under the ministry of water resources cited rising population, rapid urbanisation, industrialisation and inadequate rainfall as reasons for sharp decline in groundwater volume in the country.
According to study by a team from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur, and Athabasca University of Canada, Indians use an estimated 230 km3 of groundwater per year - over a quarter of the global total. Based on their study of 3,907 wells across states, they found that northern India lost more groundwater than eastern parts during 2005-13 (8.5 km3/year to 5 km3/year). It is estimated that while 81 per cent of all households have access to 40 litres of water per day through some source, about 18 to 20 per cent of rural households in India have connections for piped water supply. This has created mismatch in water availability and supply. According to the Composite Water Management Index of the Niti Aayog, 75 per cent of households do not have drinking water on premise and about 84 per cent rural households do not have piped water access. The World Health Organisation prescribes 25 litres of water for one person a day to meet all basic hygiene and food needs. Extra available water, according to the WHO estimates, is used for non-potable purposes like mopping and cleaning.
According to the World Economic Forum, in 2019, water scarcity is one of the largest global risks. We are already witnessing a water deficit in our daily lives. We read in newspapers about how Chennai, Maharashtra, the capital city Delhi and Rajasthan are facing the problem of acute water shortage. Women in Rajasthan travel miles to get water in the scorching heat, across the sandy desert. Water scarcity occurs due to poor water management, water degradation owing to pollution, and depletion of the groundwater table due to very less rainfall. The failure to preserve natural aquifers and catchments is most evident in the rate of groundwater depletion, which is the only fallback. “There has been an alarming decrease in the groundwater levels in the northern region in the last two decades. By 2009, the region was losing groundwater at a rate of 54 billion cubic metre per year, which is roughly equivalent to all the water stored in the Alaskan glaciers.
Reports says on an average, India receives annual rainfall of about 1186.2 millimeter and the average annual precipitation is about 4000 billion cubic meters (BCM). As per the assessment done by Central Water Commission, the average annual water availability in the country is 1869 BCM. It is estimated that owing to topographic, hydrological and other constraints, the utilizable water is 1123 BCM which comprises of 690 BCM of surface water and 433BCM of replenishable ground water resources. As per the assessment made by Central Water Commission (CWC) and the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) in the year 2009 and 2011, of about 450 BCM of surface water and 245 BCM of groundwater was being utilized out of 1123 BCM of total utilizable water. The balance water could be considered to be flowing down to sea.
As a part of immediate mitigation steps, conservation of fresh water and rainwater harvesting can be done for sustainable development. The traditional modes of water capturing in ponds have been lost to the demands of rising population and liberal implementation of town planning rules. India has been also poor in treatment and re-use of household wastewater. About 80 per cent of the water reaching households in India are drained out as waste flow through sewage to pollute other water bodies including rivers and also land. More strict law is not required to address all issues. Countries like New Zealand where there is a strict water quality standard set by its Ministry of Health. China too has established a legal framework for water management which includes water licensing, evaluating water resources and monitoring polluted water discharge into rivers. On the other side of the spectrum is Israel, a country that is located in desert and has learnt to deal with water crisis situation. Israel treats 100 per cent of its used water and recycles 94 per cent of it back to households. More than half of irrigation in Israel is done using reused water.
Urban centers in India are more prone to water shortage. During the rainy seasons, it is often seen that roads get flooded while during the summers, acute water shortage is faced by the dwellers. Although the cities receive good amount of rainfall, still the problem of flooding during monsoon and droughts during summers has become a very common phenomenon. Delhi, although being the capital of the country, is facing serious issues of drinking water supply and to cater the need of ever increasing population, the capital demands water from the nearby states. Moreover, faulty water supply lines are also a major cause of a large amount of water wastage. In such a situation, it is necessary to save each and every drop of water through various means. It is the utmost requirement that rainwater should not go in vain and it is to be collected efficiently. This is because of the fact that the rainfall usually occurs for short duration but with high intensity. Such conditions result in the heavy flow of water leaving very little amount for the recharge of groundwater. Thus, groundwater does not get chance to replenish.
In Indian perspective, water shortage is one of the most difficult problems being faced in present time. Rainfall is quite erratic and non-uniform across the length and breadth of the country. India many states water table is going down with a speedy rate. However, even in such a water scarce society, water has been the most indiscriminately used resource, especially since the advent of industrial revolution. Urban centres in India are more prone to water shortage. The rainfall occurrence in the country is monsoon dependent and in large part of the country rain fall is limited to about three months period ranging from around 20 to 30 days. The natural recharge to ground water reservoir is restricted to this period only.
Considering this situation, the rainwater harvesting (RWH) technique has emerged as a boon. Rainwater harvesting is a process of collecting, conveying, and storing the rainfall in an area for the beneficial purposes. The collected rainwater can either be stored or it can be used for recharging the ground water depending on the needs and other factors. The collection of rains can be done from rooftops, land surface, catchments/watersheds etc. using a number of methods. According to an estimate, for an average rainfall of 1000 mm, approximately 4 million liters of rainwater can be collected in a year from an acre of land (i.e. 4046 m2). Therefore, in a country like India which receives an appreciable amount of rainfall, adoption of RWH technique may prove to be a saviour. Rainwater harvesting (RWH) is a process of collecting, conveying, and storing the rainfall in an area for the beneficial purposes. Considering the problems of severe water scarcity, pollution in existing surface water bodies, and floods during rainy seasons in India; the adoption of rainwater harvesting practices is quite necessary and need of the hour. Rainwater harvesting does not only improve the water usage practices, rather it is also helpful in the groundwater recharge. Considering the depletion of groundwater resources due to excessive pumping of water, and its pollution from the leachate of waste dumping sites and agricultural lands, replenishment of groundwater resources is also necessary.
We can't ignore the urgency of Rooftop Rain Water Harvesting in India. Scarcity of water at major cities is a major problem in India, which needs to be addressed. This crisis has been further aggravated due to surging populations. Rainwater can provide some of the cleanest naturally occurring water and can hold a great potential in dealing with the current challenge of acute water scarcity in many parts of India. Installation of Rooftop Rain Water Harvesting showed that not only the quality of harvested rainwater is good but also the amount of water is enough for a 4-membered household to meet its domestic use throughout the year. The collected rainwater may be stored, utilised in different ways and surpass water is used for recharge purposes.
Experts says With depleting groundwater levels and fluctuating climate conditions, Rooftop Rain Water Harvesting can go a long way to help mitigate these effects. Capturing the rainwater can help recharge local aquifers, reduce urban flooding and most importantly ensure water availability in water-scarce zones. Rooftop Rain Water Harvesting decreases the demand for water from wells, enabling groundwater levels to be further sustained rather than depleted. Rain Water Can be Harvested at all places be it construction of houses, modification of houses, existing houses, Government buildings, institutions, hospitals, hotels, shopping malls From rooftop and open areas, On farmlands, public parks, playground, Paved and unpaved areas of a layouts, cities, towns and villages. Natural replenishment of ground water reservoir is slow and is unable to keep pace with the excessive continued exploitation of ground water resources in various parts of the country. This has resulted in declining ground water levels and depleted ground water resources in large areas of the country. The National Water Policy (2012) has been formulated by Ministry of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation which, inter-alia advocates rain water harvesting and conservation of water and highlights the need for augmenting the availability of water through direct use of rainfall. Several steps for efficient management of rainwater harvesting and artificial recharge of ground water are being undertaken by the State Governments.
in 2002, To reduce the dependence on the reservoirs, the municipal corporation of Mumbai made rainwater harvesting mandatory for all new building constructions in Mumbai covering more than 1,000 square metres. In 2007, the rule was made even more stringent: all new constructions covering more than 300 square metres were required to have in-built rainwater harvesting facilities, without which buildings would not be given occupational certificates. The rule aimed to ensure that buildings would store enough water during the monsoon for non-essential purposes for the rest of the year. But in the 17 years since the rule came into force, rainwater harvesting has been poorly implemented across Mumbai. Same is the situation with other cities/ states where serious implementation is not followed. That time has came for a Central law or Guidelines to have provisions for mandatory rooftop rainwater harvesting and related subjects. Many residential and commercial buildings where there is no provision of rainwater harvesting till date needs a holistic approach considering all the even – odds of the technology.
Many countries including China, Argentina and Brazil promotes rooftop rainwater harvesting which uses for main sources, livestock, water for small irrigation, and a way to replenish groundwater levels. Gansu province in China and semiarid northeast Brazil have the largest rooftop rainwater harvesting projects going on. Frankfurt Airport has the biggest rainwater harvesting system in Germany. The system helps save approximately 1 million cubic meters of water per year. Rainwater harvesting was adopted at The Velodrome – The London Olympic Park, in order to increase the sustainability of the facility. A 73% decrease in potable water demand by the park was estimated.
Experts says Rainwater harvesting has several advantages which includes In areas where there is inadequate groundwater supply or surface resources are either lacking or insufficient, rainwater harvesting offers an ideal solution, Rainwater is bacteriologically pure, It is free from organic matter and soft in nature., It will help in reducing the flood hazard, It improves the quality of existing ground water and helps to replenish it. It reduces the cost for pumping of ground water, It helps to meet the needs of already water scarce society. It also reduces soil erosion in urban areas. No land gets wasted for RWH and hence there is no issue of population displacement, Rainwater may be harnessed at place of need and utilized at the time of need, The structures required are simple, economical, and eco-friendly, The technique does not require rigorous manpower, It helps in utilizing the primary source of water and prevents the runoff from going into sewer or storm drains, thereby reducing the unnecessary load on treatment plants.
In the city of Tokyo and many other Japanese cities, rainwater is harvested to manage the regional hydrological cycle and also to meet the water demands during emergencies. With a total area of only 18274 km2, Fizi is a small island country in South Pacific. Surrounded by ocean, Fizi is lacking any freshwater resource. Therefore, capture of rainwater is the only source of fresh water other than technical removal of salt from ocean water (desalination). Fizians collect rainwater from rooftops (such as school and government buildings) and large hard surfaces (e.g. an airport runway). Thailand, being in the tropical belt of the world, receives rainfall during May – October from south-west monsoon. It is a traditional practice in the region that people collect rainwater to use it for drinking and cooking purposes. People prefer rainwater over groundwater due to its pleasant taste. In less than 5 years (in the 1980s), more than 10 million concrete tanks having capacity of 2m3 for rainwater storage were constructed in Thailand. Apart from these countries, there are many others where rainwater harvesting is a very common practice such as USA, Sri Lanka, United Kingdom, South Africa, Israel etc.
That time has came for an active involvement from all citizen of India to recognize and combat water scarcity and hence a Central Regulations or Guidelines by Respondent is required towards the Rooftop Rain Water Harvesting including the Regulating on the construction, operation, permitting and closure of injection wells that place fluids underground for storage or disposal and other water related law. Expert says People are great at rising to the occasion in an emergency. Already people are dying and ecosystems are being destroyed. We must face up to climate facts, go into emergency mode, and throw everything we’ve got at restoring a safe climate. That the Petitioner has submitted a representation to the Respondent via email on dated 29/11/2019 which is annexed as Annexure-P1 (Pg. 23). There is no further requirement to move concerned authority for relief sought in this writ petition again.
The instant Writ is not barred by the doctrine of estoppel res judicata.
The Petitioner states that the Petitioner has no other efficacious alternative remedy than to prefer the instant Writ Petition under Article 32 of the Constitution of India.
That the Petitioner crave leave to add, amend or alter any of the foregoing grounds with the permission of this Hon’ble Court.
The petitioner has not filed any other petition, appeal or application other than the one mentioned in this petition, before this Hon’ble Court or any other High Court seeking similar reliefs as are sought in this Writ Petition.

PRAYERS

It is, therefore, most respectfully prayed that this Hon’ble Court may graciously be pleased to:

Issue a writ of mandamus or other appropriate writ, order or direction to the Respondent to constitute a Judicial Commission or a High Level Expert Committee to draft a Solutions on Water Scarcity while considering the best practices of all developed countries and international conventions followed by an effective implementation of the Solutions.
Order to Respondent for Mobilization Effort to constitute a uniform procedure and also for prescribing a format as well as proper design for Rooftop Rain Water Harvesting across all sectors of the economy and put resources in it to by the Respondent;
Issue a writ of mandamus or other appropriate writ order or direction directing the Respondent and the concerned authorities under them to constitute Rooftop Rain Water Harvesting Board and also to develop and enforce such procedures and mechanisms to introduce special models on water saving, conservation and utilization across all sectors in India.
Issue such other appropriate writ or direction that may be deemed to be just and equitable in the facts and circumstances of the case and in the interest of justice.

AND FOR THIS ACT OF KINDNESS THE PETITIONER AS IN DUTY BOUND SHALL EVER PRAY:

DRAWN BY:: FILED BY::

PIL to draft Solutions on Water Scarcity while considering the best practices of all developed countries and international conventions

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