WATER RESOURCESVery Short Answer Questions of 1 mark each. i. How much water is present on the earth’s surface? Ans. Three-fourth of the earth’s surface is covered with water but only 3.5% of the total volume of earth’s water is available as freshwater. ii. How the freshwater can be obtained? Ans. The freshwater can be obtained directly from precipitation, surface runoff and ground water. iii. Explain how the water is being over-exploited in agriculture. Ans. To facilitate higher food-grain production, to expand irrigated areas and dryseason agriculture the water resources are being over-exploited in India. iv. State the effects of over-exploitation of water resource through tube wells. Ans. It may lead to falling groundwater levels, adversely affecting water availability and food security of the people. v. Mention the reasons water pollution in India. Ans. The bad quality of water is due to pollution by domestic and industrial wastes, chemicals, pesticides and fertilizers used in agriculture. vi. Name important hydraulic structures of ancient India. Ans. important hydraulic structures built in ancient India are: a. In the first century B.C., Sringaverapura near Allahabad had sophisticated water harvesting system channelling the flood water of the river Ganga. b. During the time of Chandragupta Maurya, dams, lakes and irrigation systems were extensively built. c. Evidences of sophisticated irrigation works have also been found in Kalinga, (Orissa), Nagarjunakonda (Andhra Pradesh), Bennur (Karnataka), Kolhapur (Maharashtra), etc. d. In the 11th Century, Bhopal Lake, one of the largest artificial lakes of its time was built. e. In the 14th Century, the tank in Hauz Khas, Delhi was constructed by Iltutmish for supplying water to Siri Fort area. For what the Narmada Bachao Andolan is famous for? Ans. Narmada Bachao Andolan is a Non Governmental Organisation (NGO) that mobilised tribal people, farmers, environmentalists and human rights activists against the Sardar Sarovar Dam being built across the Narmada river in Gujarat. It originally focused on the environmental issues related to trees that would be submerged under the dam water. Recently it has re-focused the aim to enable poor citizens, especially the oustees (displaced people) to get full rehabilitation facilities from the government. viii. What is rainwater harvesting? Ans. Rainwater harvesting is a technique for capturing and storing rainwater through hydro-structures such as recharge through hand pumps and abandoned dug well. The technique is: “Roof top rain water is collected using a PVC pipe. Rainwater is filtered using sand and bricks. Underground pipe takes water to sump for immediate usage. Excess water from the sump is taken to the well. Water from the well recharges the underground. People can take water from the well (later)” vii. Important Question and Answers Created by Suryaveer Singh Page 1 of 4 exploitation of water resources. Unequal access to water among different social groups. From ancient times we have been constructing sophisticated hydraulic structures like dams built of stone rubble. pesticides and fertilizers used in agriculture. Continuation of our livelihoods and productive activities iv.4 What may be the effects of over-exploitation and excessive use of water resources? Ans. Excessive use of water for domestic and irrigational uses. Deplete water resource. They also require power to run them which comes from hydroelectric power.7 Why dams are now referred to as multi-purpose projects? Created by Suryaveer Singh Page 2 of 4 .2 Mention the important causes of water scarcity in regions of the world. This has resulted in over-exploitation and depletion of water resources. Water scarcity is caused by over. reservoirs or lakes.1 Ans. Water is renewable resource because all water moves within the hydrological cycle and it is recharged and renewed by the hydrological cycle. ii. thus.5 Why conservation and management of water resource is necessary? Ans. Q. ii. Safeguarding ourselves from health hazards. v. mainly due to the variations in seasonal and annual precipitation. Q. Conservation and management of water resource is necessary for: i. Over-utilization and mismanagement of water resources may cause: i. Shortage of availability of food which may adversely effect food security in the country. Bad quality of water: much of water resources may be polluted by domestic and industrial wastes. Degradation of our natural ecosystems.3 Why many of our regions/cities faces water scarcity although they have ample water resources? Ans. Ensuring food security. Ans. Q. ii. Our livelihoods and productive activities may be affected. This may lead to falling groundwater levels and adversely affecting water availability. over-exploit water resources. embankments and canals for irrigation. iii. iii.Q. Large and growing population in a region/city. Q. Having large population means greater demands for water for domestic uses. Farmers expand irrigated areas and cultivate crops in dry-season.6 Mention how in ancient times we have been conserving and managing the water resource? Ans. Water scarcities in some of the regions of the world are caused by: i. Serious health hazards ii. Most of the urban housing societies or colonies have their own groundwater pumping devices to meet their water needs. iv. Intensive industrialization: Large industrial units require large amount of water of processing of raw materials. making it hazardous for human use. chemicals. Preventing degradation of our natural ecosystems. iii. iv. High demand for food-grain production: farmers in order to produce more. Water scarcity in such regions is due to: i. iii. Describe the water as a renewable resource. Multiplying urban centres: Cities with large and dense populations and their urban lifestyles require large amount of water. Q. iv. Q. v. The distribution and availability of water resources is unequal in space and time. a. c. inland navigation and fish breeding. This results in poor sediment flow and excessive sedimentation at the bottom of the reservoir. The flood plains are deprived of silt. ii. In Gujarat. The big dams have been unsuccessful in controlling floods at the time of excessive rainfall. It was also observed that the multi-purpose projects induced earthquakes. viii. the Bhakra – Nangal project. Inter-state water disputes are also becoming common with regard to sharing the costs and benefits of the multi-purpose project. iv. Stream beds get rockier. b. b. a natural fertilizer. For example. c. a. In multi-purpose projects many uses of the impounded water are integrated with one another. especially for spawning. it was thought that they would lead the nation to development and progress. Hence. recreation. vi. Q. The dams create conflicts between people. c.9 Why the construction of multi-purpose projects and large dams is opposed by many people? Ans. The reservoirs that are created on the floodplains also submerge the existing vegetation and soil leading to its decomposition over a period of time. i. Multi-purpose projects were built for integrated water resources management. water supply for domestic and industrial uses. Dams displace local communities living in the area. This has great ecological consequences like salinisation of the soil. multi-purpose projects and large dams have come under great scrutiny and opposition for a variety of reasons. iii. Regulating and damming of rivers affect their natural flow. Dams have triggered floods due to sedimentation in the reservoir. a. Failure to achieve the purposes of controlling floods. conservation of water with flood control. Dams are built not just for irrigation but for hydel power generation. b. Dams also fragment rivers making it difficult for aquatic fauna to migrate. Q. a. caused waterborne diseases and pests and pollution resulting from excessive use of water. dams are now referred to as multi-purpose projects.8 Why the multi-purpose projects were called as the temples of modern India? Ans. ix. Destroys the habitat of the rivers’ aquatic life. vii. Many farmers are shifting to water intensive and commercial crops. particularly during droughts.10 Why many new social movements are resisting the construction of multipurpose projects and large dams? Created by Suryaveer Singh Page 3 of 4 . coming along with the free river. the Hirakud project. Irrigation through dams has also changed the cropping pattern. It has increased the social gap between the richer landowners and the landless poor. In recent years. Q. The floods caused extensive soil erosion. it would integrate development of agriculture and the village economy with rapid industrialisation and growth of the urban economy.Ans. v. The problem of land degradation has increased by sedimentation. It has transformed the social landscape. the Sabarmatibasin farmers were agitated and almost caused a riot over the higher priority given to water supply in urban areas. Rain falling on the rooftops would travel down the pipe and was stored in these underground ‘tankas’ till the next rainfall. ii. iv. In arid and semi-arid regions. i. industrialists and few urban centres are getting all benefits.11 Describe how the rainwater harvesting was carried out in different parts of India. In the flood plains of Bengal. Local people often had to give up their land and livelihood iii. in western Rajasthan. iv. Today. They built tanks as large as a big room and were built inside the main house. people developed inundation channels to irrigate their fields. Q. particularly in Rajasthan. In ancient India there existed an extraordinary tradition of water-harvesting system. Ans. iii.Ans.12 Describe how the rainwater harvesting is carried out in semi-arid and arid parts of Rajasthan. iii.13 Why the practice of rooftop rainwater harvesting is on decline in Rajasthan? Ans. Resistance to these projects has primarily been due to: i. Ans. iv. agricultural fields were converted into rain fed storage structures that allowed the water to stand and moisten the soil. particularly in the summers. the practice of rooftop rainwater harvesting is on the decline because i. People developed wide ranging techniques to harvest rainwater. i. In the semi-arid and arid regions of Rajasthan almost all the houses traditionally had underground tanks or tankas for storing drinking water. In hill and mountainous regions. The tankas were part of the well-developed rooftop rainwater harvesting system. Q. ii. They became an extremely reliable source of drinking water when all other sources are dried up. Created by Suryaveer Singh Page 4 of 4 . Local people are not benefiting from such projects but the landowners and large farmers. people built diversion channels like the ‘guls’ or ‘kuls’ of the Western Himalayas for agriculture. ‘Rooftop rain water harvesting’ was commonly practised to store drinking water. Q. The large-scale displacement of local communities. Plenty of water is available due to the perennial Rajasthan Canal. ii. They have to give up their available resources for the greater good of the nation. Multi-purpose projects and large dams have caused many new social movements like the ‘Narmada Bachao Andolan’ and the ‘Tehri Dam Andolan’ etc. v. Like the ‘khadins’ in Jaisalmer and ‘Johads’ in other parts of Rajasthan. They were connected to the sloping roofs of the houses through a pipe.