India is the largest global freshwater user despite being highly water scarce. Agriculture is largest consumer of water and is most affected by water scarcity. Water scarcity is a persistent ...challenge in India, due to a gap in science and policy spheres. Virtual Water (VW) flows concept to mitigate water scarcity is at the science‐policy interface. The paper aims to address the gap in VW research in India by first analyzing the interstate VW‐flows embedded in food grains, and then linking these VW‐flows with the water scarcity situation in the states, and elements of state and national water policies for the postreforms, and recovery periods of India's agriculture. There were net water savings (WS) of 207.5 PL during 1996–2014, indicating sustainable flows at the national level. WS increased from 11.2 TL/yr (1996–2005) to 25931.7 TL/yr (2005–2014), with the increase in interstate movement of food grains, and yield. However, unsustainable flows are seen at subnational scale, as VW‐flows are from highly water‐scarce states in North to highly water‐scarce states in West and South. These flows are causing a concentration of water scarcity in water‐scarce zones/states. Net VW imports were found to be driven by larger population and net VW exports by arable land. Further, the absence of state water policy cripples water management. Therefore, the paper argues that there is a need to rethink policy decisions on agriculture at the national and state level by internalizing water as a factor of production, through VW research.
Plain Language Summary
Water scarcity has been a persistent challenge in India. Agriculture is most affected by it as agriculture is the largest water user in India. The challenge has not been resolved because there is a gap between the knowledge and governance on water scarcity. This research aims to address the gap by first analyzing the water flows embodied (virtual/hidden) in agriculture products moving between states of India to create the knowledge on the flows. Second, by linking it with the water scarcity situation, and some elements of water policy to understand the gaps in knowledge and governance to mitigate water scarcity. The research is unique because it demonstrates the importance of bridging the knowledge governance gap to mitigate water scarcity through virtual water (VW) flows assessment. Some VW‐flows between the states were found to be unsustainable as they are from highly to other highly water scarce zones/states and are leading to concentration of water scarcity in already highly water scarce zones/states. In contrast, sustainable flows, i.e., from low to high water scarcity zones/states lead to distribution of water scarcity. Absence of well‐informed water policy reflect the knowledge governance gap, which leads to unsustainable VW flows hence water scarcity
Key Points
Interstate virtual water flows are unsustainable in India as water scarcity is being concentrated in already highly water scarce states
Absence of state‐specific water policies cripples water governance and management
Creating policy relevant knowledge is crucial to support well‐informed policies to bridge the knowledge‐governance gap
Indian Himalayan Region (IHR) is highly vulnerable to climate change and its variability. The present study employs an indicator-based approach to assess the district-level (132 districts) ...vulnerability of the IHR, based on a modified risk assessment framework proposed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC-AR5). Based on Moron's I and Local Geary, the study also carries out a geospatial analysis to identify the vulnerability hotspots. The Composite Vulnerability Indices (CVI) developed in this study, based on a set of 14 common indicators, suggest that Assam (in the eastern IHR), and Jammu and Kashmir (in the western IHR) are highly vulnerable states as the majority of their districts fall in the “highly vulnerable” cohort. The CVI ranges from 0.75 (for Goalpara in Assam) to 0.35 (for Kolasib in Mizoram). The hotspots are also found to be located in the hazard-prone regions of Jammu and Kashmir and the ‘char’ belt of the Brahmaputra River basin in Assam. These districts are economically poor with fragile agro-based livelihoods, and limited institutional and infrastructural provisions. The outcome of the study has significant potential to assist targeted policy interventions in the most vulnerable locations and rational allocation of adaptation resources through identification of vulnerability hotspots and the drivers of vulnerability.
•The article provides an outline of the current issues in the Brahmaputra Basin.•Illustrates the need for multi-stakeholder and multi-track water diplomacy.•Water diplomacy has to be an inclusive, ...open and transparent process.•Interactions involving multiple actors facilitate sustainable water cooperation.
The Yarlung Zangbo-Brahmaputra – Jamuna river basin (further referred to as Brahmaputra River Basin) is one of the most important river systems in South Asia. It originates on the Tibetan Plateau and links Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, and India. Despite being an important river system of South Asia, with an immense potential for regional development, very little progress has been made so far at regional level to manage this transboundary river. Apart from stereotypical upstream-downstream syndromes, a lack of trust, an atmosphere of hostility, and an asymmetric information and power situation as also the absence of regional principles or frameworks make transboundary interaction between the Brahmaputra riparian countries complex and challenging. The lack of information and knowledge regarding the river itself makes decision-making further complicated. Negotiation for a basin-wide treaty on cooperation in the absence of trust is a non-starter for the Brahmaputra basin, for it may result in asymmetric cooperation, opening up ground for future conflicts. To avoid such asymmetric cooperation, information-rich, multilateral informal dialogues need to take place to develop an accepted definition of cooperation, which meets the needs of all riparian states.
The article provides an outline of the current issues in the Brahmaputra river basin and illustrates the need for multitrack and multi-stakeholder dialogues in the Brahmaputra region. The paper is inspired by the ‘Brahmaputra Dialogue’ project initiated in 2013, that demonstrates that water diplomacy has to be an inclusive, open, and transparent process involving multiple actors, because such interaction facilitates sustainable water cooperation, not only between riparian countries but also between riparian communities.
Abstract
Hydrodiplomacy in South Asia is in a nascent stage, primarily focusing on data exchange and limited state-to-state interactions, leaving aside an array of organic approaches to understand ...the facets of water diplomacy and governance. This perspective piece is based on a series of webinars to identify ways to bridge these gaps in hydrodiplomacy in South Asia, highlighting the merit of multi-track diplomacy for embracing the plurality of interests and decision-making. The piece concludes that it is pertinent to build capacities for improving science-media communication, acknowledging and strategizing power asymmetry, and implementing international water law to guide water diplomacy.
For a water-secure present and future, there is a need for a transition from water scarcity towards water security. This transition necessitates a look at the complex relationships, and ...interdependencies, between water and other resources, and the institutions governing them. Nexus approach encompasses these interdependencies. This paper focused on the water–food nexus through the lens of the virtual water (VW) flows concept with the aim to explore the role of the VW flows concept in governing the transition towards water security in a water-scarce economy like India. The key findings of the paper suggests that the highest VW outflows are from highly water-scarce states of India, such as Punjab and Andhra Pradesh, and the moderate to highly water-scarce state West Bengal from 1996–2014. Major VW outflows from these states are to other highly water-scarce states, resulting in the concentration of water scarcity. The main priorities for the governance of the water–food nexus in these states emerge from policies and action plans. These priorities are groundwater overexploitation, water and soil pollution, and uncertainty in rainfall and are linked to agricultural intensification. The water footprint-based VW flow analysis has important insights for sustainable intensification of agriculture, and rectification of the unsustainable VW flow patterns. The study concludes that the VW flows concept embodies the water–food nexus and is particularly relevant for the sustainable future of developing and emerging economies, such as India, grappling with water scarcity and challenges of fragmented environmental governance systems.
China and India are the world's largest developing economies and also two of the most populous countries. China, which now has more than 1.3 billion people, is expected to grow to more than 1.4 ...billion by 2050, and India with a population of 1 billion will overtake China to be the most populous country with about 1.6 billion population. These two countries are home to 37% of the world's population today. In addition, China and India have achieved notable success in their economic development characterised by a high rate of gross domestic product (GDP) growth in the last two decades. Together the two countries account already for almost a fifth of world GDP.
The most direct and significant result of economic growth in India and China is the amazing improvement in quality of life (or at least spending power) for an increasing share of the population. The populations of both the countries have experienced a transition from ‘poverty’ to ‘adequate food and clothing’; today growing parts of the population are getting closer to ‘well to do lifestyles’. These segments of the society are not satisfied any more with enough food and clothes, but are also eager to obtain a quality life of high nutrient food, comfortable living, health care and other quality services.
The theme of this paper is to analyse how the major drivers contributed to the environmental consequences in the past, and to take a forward look at the environmental impacts of these driving forces in China and India. The paper identifies population, affluence and technology to be the major driving forces in environmental pollution for these two countries then applies the simple equation of
Impact=
Population×
Affluence×
Technology, or
I=
PAT to evaluate the effects of changes in these drivers on CO
2 emissions.
Abstract
Countries sharing the Brahmaputra River have for decades deliberated on formulating and implementing cooperative strategies to develop the potential of the basin. Yet, little progress has ...been made so far at the government-to-government track 1 level in achieving regional cooperation due to the diverse national interests of the riparian countries. This has led to tension and friction among co-riparian nations and mistrust at political level. Drawing from the Brahmaputra Dialogue, this paper aims to highlight the merit of multi-track and multilateral dialogue processes for building trust and confidence between the riparian countries – paving a way towards transboundary cooperation. The paper concludes that given the geo-politics and the national interests of each riparian nation, negotiation for a treaty for cooperation through track 1 diplomacy, in the Brahmaputra River Basin (BRB), is a non-starter. Multi-track and multilateral dialogues can provide a platform to pursue positive interactions and can be viewed as an extension to existing state-diplomacy in BRB, to bring about sustainable change in the basin management.
Abstract
India is the largest global freshwater user despite being highly water scarce. Agriculture is largest consumer of water and is most affected by water scarcity. Water scarcity is a persistent ...challenge in India, due to a gap in science and policy spheres. Virtual Water (VW) flows concept to mitigate water scarcity is at the science‐policy interface. The paper aims to address the gap in VW research in India by first analyzing the interstate VW‐flows embedded in food grains, and then linking these VW‐flows with the water scarcity situation in the states, and elements of state and national water policies for the postreforms, and recovery periods of India's agriculture. There were net water savings (WS) of 207.5 PL during 1996–2014, indicating sustainable flows at the national level. WS increased from 11.2 TL/yr (1996–2005) to 25931.7 TL/yr (2005–2014), with the increase in interstate movement of food grains, and yield. However, unsustainable flows are seen at subnational scale, as VW‐flows are from highly water‐scarce states in North to highly water‐scarce states in West and South. These flows are causing a concentration of water scarcity in water‐scarce zones/states. Net VW imports were found to be driven by larger population and net VW exports by arable land. Further, the absence of state water policy cripples water management. Therefore, the paper argues that there is a need to rethink policy decisions on agriculture at the national and state level by internalizing water as a factor of production, through VW research.
Plain Language Summary
Water scarcity has been a persistent challenge in India. Agriculture is most affected by it as agriculture is the largest water user in India. The challenge has not been resolved because there is a gap between the knowledge and governance on water scarcity. This research aims to address the gap by first analyzing the water flows embodied (virtual/hidden) in agriculture products moving between states of India to create the knowledge on the flows. Second, by linking it with the water scarcity situation, and some elements of water policy to understand the gaps in knowledge and governance to mitigate water scarcity. The research is unique because it demonstrates the importance of bridging the knowledge governance gap to mitigate water scarcity through virtual water (VW) flows assessment. Some VW‐flows between the states were found to be unsustainable as they are from highly to other highly water scarce zones/states and are leading to concentration of water scarcity in already highly water scarce zones/states. In contrast, sustainable flows, i.e., from low to high water scarcity zones/states lead to distribution of water scarcity. Absence of well‐informed water policy reflect the knowledge governance gap, which leads to unsustainable VW flows hence water scarcity
Key Points
Interstate virtual water flows are unsustainable in India as water scarcity is being concentrated in already highly water scarce states
Absence of state‐specific water policies cripples water governance and management
Creating policy relevant knowledge is crucial to support well‐informed policies to bridge the knowledge‐governance gap
How can science regarding water scarcity be reflected in informative indices to advance evidence-based water policies? Our research aimed to explore this by linking the water scarcity and virtual ...water (VW) flows assessments with the water policies in India. The novel contribution of the research is establishing the link between the hydrologic-economic use-institutions aspect of water scarcity. On a national scale, the assessment revealed an increase in net VW-imports embodied in food grains from 89,235 × 109 L, i.e., GL (1996–2005) to 207,452,974 GL (2005–2014). There was a shift from net VW-exports (−2124 GL) to net VW-imports (84,504 GL) embodied in oilseeds. Zooming into the sub-national scale we found that water scarcity is being concentrated in highly water-scarce zones due to their VW-exports to other highly water-scarce zones. A concerning finding was that states with highest net VW-exports lack governance of scarce water resources through a state-specific water policy, e.g. Punjab, Haryana. Our research concludes that the virtual nature of embodied water necessitates water policies to be reflective of the visible evidences of unsustainable VW-flows. It also points out an urgent need to rethink current water policies in the context of a science-policy interface, to inform decisions and actions on the mitigation of water scarcity.
•Lack of assessment on differential water scarcity to support policy decisions.•Assessed inter-state virtual water flows to gauge concentration of water scarcity.•Identified highest outflows from highly water-scarce Punjab, India (−5.982 PL/yr).•Current water policies lack science-policy interface to mitigate water scarcity.•Scope for informing sub-national water policy responses through virtual water flows.
This study is aimed at studying long–term historical and future (1950–2099) trends for the RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5 on approximately 30-year timescale at annual and seasonal for precipitation and at ...annual, seasonal, monthly, and diurnal temperature ranges (DTR) for temperature maximum (T_max), temperature minimum (T_min) variations using statistical trend analysis techniques—Mann–Kendall test (MK) and Sen’s slope estimator (S) and the homogeneity test using Pettitt’s test. The study is carried out in three spatial points across the Tawang Chu in the district of Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh. The summer mean precipitation for RCP 4.5 (2006–2065) shows a positive trend with
Z
= 0.126 (2006–2035),
Z
= 0.205 (2036–2065) for point 1;
Z
= 0.080 (2006–2035),
Z
= 0.200 (2036–2065) at point 2 and
Z
= 0.048 (2006–2035),
Z
= 0.205 (2036–2065) at point 3, with a rise in precipitation between 1.56 and 9.94 mm in all the study points. The mean annual precipitation statistics for all the points show an increase for RCP 4.5 in 2006–2052 and 2053–2099 timescale. During the study, all points in both RCPs 4.5 and 8.5 display a uniform rise in mean annual T_min (
Z
= 0.260 to 0.738) and T_max (
Z
= 0.329 to 0.674). Still, the inter-decadal temperature statistical analysis shows that the increase in mean annual T_min is greater than the increase in T_max, indicating a decreasing trend in DTR. It is anticipated that this study’s outcomes will contribute to a better understanding of the relationship between change in climate and the regional hydrological behaviour. It can benefit the society to develop a regional strategy for water resource management and can serve as a resource for climate impact research scope- assessments, adaptation, mitigation, and disaster management strategies for India’s north-eastern region.
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