While India boasts almost 18 per cent of the world’s population, it has access to only four per cent of the global water resources, making water one of our most precious resources
One in every five murders in India between 2019 and 2021 was due to conflict over property or land or access to water, according to the UN Global Study on Homicide Report 2023. Commissioned by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the report was released on December 12, 2023.
According to the study, about 0.5 per cent or 300 of the murders recorded in India in 2019-21 were due to water-related conflicts. Moreover, data from the Pacific Institute showed that the number of incidents of violence associated with water resources has risen substantially since 2015 — mostly in South Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and Central America.
While India boasts almost 18 per cent of the world’s population, it has access to only four per cent of the global water resources, making water one of our most precious resources.
The new report showed that disputes over access to water in India are a prominent driver of interpersonal homicide outside the family. These disputes worsen with population growth, economic expansion, and climate change.
“Despite consistent stability in the global count of homicides over the two decades that just passed by, with the number of such cases found to be approximately between 0.4 and 0.45 million victims annually in the period, the year 2021 stood out as exceptionally lethal,” the report stated.
According to the National Crime Records Bureau in 2020, water-related crimes recorded in India had doubled in 2018, in comparison to 2017 with more than 232 Indians losing their lives in conflicts related to water in 2017-19.
The media across the country has reported several cases of fighting over water. On November 7, 2022, a 46-year-old Dalit man was beaten to death for accessing water from a tubewell in Rajasthan’s Jodhpur. Similar incidents have been reported in other parts of India as well.
As India’s annual rainy season is projected to become increasingly erratic in coming years because of climate change, the conflict for water is expected to grow over state boundaries with disputes over the rivers Cauvery, Krishna, Mandovi and many others remaining unresolved.
Effective management of irrigation water, crop diversification towards less water-consuming crops, rainwater harvesting, and greater public awareness on collection and conservation are needed to ensure all our citizens have equal access to our water resources.
We are a voice to you; you have been a support to us. Together we build journalism that is independent, credible and fearless. You can further help us by making a donation. This will mean a lot for our ability to bring you news, perspectives and analysis from the ground so that we can make change together.
.png)
Comments are moderated and will be published only after the site moderator’s approval. Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name. Selected comments may also be used in the ‘Letters’ section of the Down To Earth print edition.