Dr. Nater Singh
Department of Public Health Kathua compelled me to pen down something about conservation of water .PHE engineers were digging the streets infront of my gate to provide new water connection in our locality, where 98 percent house holds are already tapping ground water directly with electric water pumps. There is dire need to save every drop of water to ensure the availability of pure drinking water to one and all as a large number of people die of diseases caused by drinking contaminated water.
There is no denying the fact that water makes most important of all the ingredients which help sustain the lives of the Homo sapiens as well as flora and fauna on the earth . It is also the root of the existence of all the moral ethical, aesthetical and spiritual values and the engine of the sustainability of the world culture and conservation.
In district Kathua total Geographical area is 2651 sq.km . Out of total Geographical area 127245 hectares area is cultivable. Agriculture is the main stay of district economy with a total population of 540084 persons. The major river draining the district are Ravi, Ujh and Sewa with some seasonal streams khads). Kathua experiences three types of climate viz. Sub Tropical in foothill plains (Pied mount plain) Intermediate to sub temperate in mid hills (Shiwaliks) zone and temperate in the upper reaches (middle Himalaya) of the district.
The surface and ground water resources are very poor in the district. The irrigation water is very scare input and has become a major hurdle in the growth of agriculture and drinking water .The major source of irrigation is tube wells.Thereby ground water has been over exploited during recent year.
Large number of existing water storage system i,e tanks /ponds exist in the kandi area and plain area of the district Kathua which have been fallen to misuse due to accumulation of silt and dumping of waste and other material. But unfortunately, there is no strategy which will exploit ground water to threshhold level and stop lowering water table.
Lower part of district Kathua was called the gift of river Ravi. Geomorphology of River Ravi reveals that river basin has a large number of terraces between Dhauladhar and Pir Panjal ranges attributed to the truly Himalayan characteristics of the river reflecting the cis- Himalayan tectonic , structural, litho logical and climatic conditions. The major multipurpose project Ranjit Sagar Dam was built on river Ravi which has changed the ecology of the region . The average discharge of the river was 9450 c/ft/s with the total length of 720ms.Near village Thein Ranjit Sagar Dam left bank is in Punjab and right bank is in J&K (Kathua district) . It is located on an Anticline structural controlled (Mastagarh Anticline) loop of river Ravi about 24 kms upstream of Madhopur head works . Ranjit Sagar Dam was constructed in the tectonically active region which has already experienced Chamba and Basholi earthquakes in 1905 at the Rector scale of more than 6.5 . This region falls under seismic zone 4th and 5th seismic, experts have not ruled out the possibility of earthquake of magnitude 8 and to struck this region in future .
Hydro – geomorphologically and geologically district kathua can be divided into three zones .First hard consolidated structural controlled formation. Secondly semi- consolidated Shivalik formation and third unconsolidated piedmont and southern plain formation. (Area mostly down slope of National Highway NHI.)
First hard consolidated structural controlled formation comprises of igneous and metamorphic rock belongs to Panjal traps and Granitic intrusive .The second zone consists of Alluvium of Quaternary and Tertiary age (plio-pleistocene) .The Third zone of outer plains consists of boulders pebbles, cobbles and coarse sand forms. The kandi belt near the Shiwalik foot hills fine to coarse sands with occasional beds of gravel pebbles and intervening clayey and silty layer constitutes the unconsolidated belt .This formation sustains water supply in the area. Artesian condition is prevalent all over this unconsolidated zone as well as in transition zone between kandi and Sirowal zone or terai formation.
The northern most part of hilly terrain, the hilly dissected to properly steep slopes and impervious nature of rocks (covering geographical area of tehsil Bani, Basholi and Billawar ) collectively result into more surface runoff than downward percolation .Here ground water movement is restricted to inter mountain valley. It is observed that due to deforestation and unscientific land use the traditional water sources like springs and small aquifers are at the verge of drying and created drinking water scarcity. The consolidated formations are ground water unworthy. The second zone of foothills of northern hilly terrain consists of Quaternary and Tertiary group of rocks. Shiwalik and Murree formation comprises of semi-consolidated porosity i,e fissures and fractures. These formations are mainly fine grained in nature.
The southern plain or Anthar area(Local name) comprises of unconsolidated formation which is full of loose material having plenty of primary intergranular porosity. Boulders pebbles cobbles and course sand associated with clay constitute kandi formation . Sirowal formations are fine grained in nature. In deeper depths its strata consists of fine to coarse sands with occasional beds of gravel, pebbles and intervening clayey and silty layer.
The declining water level in district Kathua is an alarming condition for future growth of the region .
Central Ground Water Board (GOI) has constructed exploratory tube wells in said geomorphic zones of Kathua and revealed that in the consolidated zone water levels range between free flow conditions to 24m bgl with in the depth range of 130 m bgl. In semi- consolidated kandi formation the water level ranges from 78 m bgl and 71.25 m bgl. In the Anthar or Sirowal unconsolidated formation, the depth range of wells varies between 80 to 450 m with water level ranging between free flow to 15m.
Scientific study of CGWB pointed out that the pre-monsoon depth of water level varies from 1.56m bgl to 30.20m bgl in Kootha area. In general the water level is with in 10 m bgl in most part of the outer plain. About 759sq km of area the depth of the water level is with in 5m bgl. Along the river Taranah nala and Hiranagar area depth of water level is between 5 to 10m bgl. Kootha, Bhagwal – Bhaktha area and Mahi – Chak area depth of the water level was between 10 to 30 m bgl. In Dun valley along Udhampur – Dhar Defence road, the deepest water level is 25.83 m bgl (Dewal) and the shallowest water level was 3.25m bgl along river Ujh (Mandli).
Central Ground Water Board has established many National Network of Hydrograph (NNH) in the outer plain area of the district. The long term water level data 1986-2009 reveals that the water levels in major part of the district are declining @0.05m/year.
In the (Teari) Anthar part of Kathua town and adjoining area of the district the water table is declining drastically. Probable reason is large scale mining in the river Ravi Basin . Kathua town is located at the tarraces of river Ravi. Uncontrolled digging of Ravi bed and use of unlimited Earth Remover and Crushers have changed the hydrology and ecology of district Kathua. There is no regulatory body for monitoring the digging of river Ravi bed and installation of water pumps. The impact of water crises on the various segments of the economy , ecology and environment of district Kathua are becoming visible day by day. We need to make a serious soul searching and ask very thought provoking questions:
Where do we need to find faults which have led us to the vortex of water crisis? And most importantly we need to ask our selves another equally significant question: How and when will we wake up to take initiatives to correct the critical multi headed- hydra like water crisis situation which have over stretched to the extent of jeopardizing the lives of not only the present generation but also the lives of the generations to come?.
(The author is former Principal)
feedbackexcelsior@gmail.com
Follow our WhatsApp channel