Sainath, Founder-editor, People's Archive of Rural India called for a rethinking on water crisis, not restricting it to just irrigation or drinking water problem. Water is a social, cultural, political, economic and environmental issue and has to be addressed from all these angles. India’s per capita availability of water is down from 5177 cubic metre in 1957 to 1514 cu m in 2011. Borewell bankruptcies are linked to farmer suicides. With water table receding rapidly, it is increasingly difficult to reach the ground water.Water is an explosive social, cultural, economic, political and caste issue. If we choose to look at it as a matter of efficiency, then it is not the right approach. Water should also be declared a basic right as the planet is shared by humans as well as flora and fauna. He called for prioritisation of water uses and restrict the transfer of the infinite resource from agriculture to industry, from food to cash crop, from rural to urban areas, from the poor to the rich and from livelihood to lifestyle uses. Since water wars have been fought over the last 2000 years, it was important to discuss the issue as it cannot be evaded now. @pari.network @india.today @psainath_pari #water #watercrisis #drought #indiatodayconclave https://www.instagram.com/p/B2uBo1FA3jL/?igshid=hrltqfqj60c
