Water is essential but scarce due to unequal distribution and increased demand from population growth, agriculture, and industry. To manage water resources and ensure supply, various techniques have been used in ancient and modern India, including dams, rainwater harvesting, and other structures. While dams provide electricity, irrigation, and other benefits, they can negatively impact the environment and local communities. More sustainable methods of conserving water involve harvesting rainwater, floodwater, and groundwater through traditional techniques still used in parts of India today.

1. BY TSERING CHOKEYI

2. Water: Some facts and figures

3. Uses of water
• Drinking
• Washing
• Cooking
• Bathing
• Gardening
• Irrigation
• Etc.

4. Water as renewable resources
• 1% of fresh usable water we have is renewed
through hydrological cycle.

5. • If water is renewable, than the questions are:
• Why we talk about water scarcity?
• Why should we conserve water?
• Why water management is important?

6. Reason for water Scarcity

7. Unequal distribution of water

8. 2. Growth of population:
• For domestic use
• Production of food
• Other purposes

9. 3. Commercialization of agriculture
• Expansion of irrigated
areas and dry-season
agriculture.
• Construction of tube-
wells by farmers.
LEAD TO FALL OF GROUND
WATER LEVEL

10. Industrial and Urbanisation
Hydroelectric power to Industries
Discharge of industrial waste
Water pollution due to chemical

12. NEED TO CONSERVE AND
MANAGE WATER RESOURCES
BUT HOW ?

13. Archaeological and historical record
• Water management and conservation has
been started since from ancient time.
• During the time canals and dams were also
constructed.

14. Hydraulic structure in Ancient India
• In the first century B.C. at sringaverapur
water harvesting system was existed
using the flood water from Ganga river.
• During the time of Chandragupta
Maurya, dams lakes etc.were built.
• Irrigation system was found in Kalinga,
NagarjunaKonda, Bennur and Kohlapur.
• In the 11th Century, Bhopal lake was built.
• In the 14th Century, Lltush constructed a
tank in HousKhas(Delhi).

15. Water Harvesting in
Ancient India
Water Conservation

16. • Continuation of traditional way in Modern
India by building dams in the most of the river
basin.

17. Dams or Multi-purpose projects
• Traditionally built to impound water and rain
harvest that could use later to irrigate
agricultural field.
• At present, dams are built for multi-purpose
usage therefore it is also known as multi-
purpose project.

18. What is Dam?
• It is a barrier across flowing water that
obstructs, directs the flow, often creating a
reservoir, lake or impoundment.

19. Classification of Dams:
• Dams are classified according to structure,
intended purpose or height.
• Based on structure and the material used.
• According to the height, dams can be
categorised as large dams and major dams or
alternatively as low dams, mediums height
dams and high dams.

20. Dam Hydral Power

21. Uses of Multipurpose project/Dam
1. Electricity generation
2. Flood control
3. Water supply
4. Irrigation
5. Help to promote tourism
After India’s Independence, Dam is considered
as the one which lead the nation to
development and progress.

22. Some dams of India
• The Bhakra-Nangal project on Sutluj basin
uses both for hydel power production and
irrigation.
• The Hirakud project on Mahanadi basin
integrates conservation of water with flood
control.

23. • Jawaharlal Nehru proudly proclaimed the
dams as the ‘temples of modern India’.
• Reason:
In integrate the development of
agriculture and the village economy with
rapid industrialization and growth of the
urban economy.

24. Drawbacks of Dams
1. Affect the natural flow of rivers
Mountain River
Reservoir
Dam Wall
Downstream Area

25. 2. Dam also fragment rivers making difficult for
aquatic fauna to migrate, especially for spawning.
3. Degradation of forest and soils due to
submergence during floods.
4. Irrigation pattern have changed. Cropping
pattern has changed from subsistence farming
to intensive farming which has resulted in
ecological imbalance, and salination of the soil.
Dams have of the soil.
5. It also cause earthquakes, water born diseases
and pest and pollution resulting from excessive
use of water.

26. 6.Dams have created conflicts among the people
who want different uses of the water available
from the projects.
Two examples are:
• Narmada Bachao Andolan
• Tehri Dam Andolan

28. Water Harvesting
• Another way to manage water is to harvest
1. Rain water
2. Groundwater
3. River water
4. Flood water

29. Rainwater Harvesting
• Rainwater harvesting is the accumulation and
storage of rainwater for reuse on-site, rather
than allowing it to run off.
• Rainwater harvesting techniques are more
environmental friendly as compared to
multipurpose river project.

30. Rain water harvesting animation

31. Water harvest method
• In hills and mountainous regions, people built
diversion channels like the ‘guls’ or ‘kuls’ of
the Western Himalayas for agriculture.
• In flood plain Bengal, people build inundation
channels to irrigate their fields.
• Roof top rainwater harvesting was commonly
practised to store drinking water particularly
in Rajasthan.

32. • In arid and semi-arid regions, agriculture fields
were converted into rain fed storage
structures that allowed the water to stagnant
and moisten the soil like “Khadins” in
Jaisalmer and the “johads” in other parts of
Rajasthan.

33. Palar parli
• The rainwater which is stored in underground
tanks is potable water. It is reliable source of
drinking water.
• It is the main source of water when all the
other sources have dried up.
• It is considered the purest form of drinking
water.

34. Tanks or Tankas of Rajathan
• It is the main source of drinking water.
• Clean up before the monsoon.
• Protect it from pollution.

35. Bamboo Drip Irrigation System
• In Meghalaya, a 200-year-old system of
tapping stream and spring water by using
bamboo pipes, is prevalent.
• About 18-20 litres of water transported over
hundreds of meters.

36. Advantages
• Increasing crop yield with less water
• Makes use of the natural and local material
• Does not need fuel or power.
• Maintain sustainable irrigation system
• Soil erosion is controlled
• Saves water by allowing water to drip slowly,
directly to the base of the plant

37. Interesting Fact
• Tamil Nadu is the first state in India which has
made roof top rainwater harvesting sttructure
compulsory to all the houses across the state.
There are legal provisions to punish the
defaulters.