Resources are an essential index to measure a country’s potential for growth and development. However, when resources availability and consumption rate are not in equilibrium, the possibility of a crisis looms large. This crisis invariably transforms into conflict. African countries support this argument, where conflict for basic resources has frequently escalated intra-regional and inter-state strife. Mis-governance, inter-state conflict, intra-regional issues, civil war, climate change or topographical factors can be accounted as causal variables for this. It is argued that future wars will not be for territorial expansion rather for acquisition of basic resources such as food security and drinking water.  

Paucity of drinking water is an established fact in Jammu and Kashmir. However, merely focusing on the fact and not on its consequences brings out an incomplete picture. A study found that nearly half of the schools and 30% of villages in Jammu and Kashmir, which is known for its glaciers, freshwater lakes, and streams, are being fed with contaminated drinking water. According to the assessment study conducted by the National Level Monitoring agency, nearly two-thirds of the villagers do not have enough potable water in their homes. Drinking water has been linked to an increased risk of cancer and other diseases. According to a report published in the Indian Journal of Medical and Pediatric Oncology in October 2010, 389 of 432 cases of primary malignant brain tumors (excluding metastatic lesions) were reported to be those of orchard farm workers. Obtaining water for the locals requires a significant amount of time, energy and effort. As a consequence of difficulty in obtaining potable water, high dropout rates were also observed.

In this context, it is imperative to situate Kashmir’s drinking water crisis and find sustainable mitigation techniques to resolve the drinking water scarcity. To understand scarcity of drinking water, we need to first figure out availability of drinking water for assessing and evaluating the situation better.

Availability of drinking water 

The total numbers of households in Jammu and Kashmir were 15, 51,768 in 2001 which skyrocketed to 20, 15,088 in 2011. According to Census report 2011, the total percentage of households having availability of water in Jammu and Kashmir: 

1. within the premises: 48.2 %
2. near the premises: 28.7 %
3. away from the premises:  23.1 %

In the J&K’s countryside the proportion of households receiving water supply is as follows:

1. within the premises is 35.5 %
2.  near the premises is 35.1 %
3.  away from the premises is 29.4 %

 However, in urban and suburban areas, the chunks of households that draw continuous water supply are illustrated below: 

1. Within the premises is 84.7 %
2.  near the premises is 10.2 % 
3. away from the premises is 5.1 % 

The graph illustrated below shows a comparison of households using different sources of water in 2001 and 2011. 

Source of data: Census Report, 2011

The maps situated underneath depicts the percentage share of households possessing treated and untreated water as the main source of drinking water in 2011. 

      

Source link: http://censusindia.gov.in/2011census/hlo/Data_sheet/J&K/Main%20Source_%20Drinking_Water.pdf

The following maps indicate the percentage share of households having tape water as the main source of drinking water in 2001 and 2011. 

 

       

Source link: http://censusindia.gov.in/2011census/hlo/Data_sheet/J&K/Main%20Source_%20Drinking_Water.pdf

The map below shows the comparison in percentage share of households having hand pump/tube well as the main source of drinking water in 2001 and 2011. 

 

Source link: http://censusindia.gov.in/2011census/hlo/Data_sheet/J&K/Main%20Source_%20Drinking_Water.pdf

The supply of drinking water should be accessible, equitable and inclusive transcending intra-regional disparities within the valley. However, the assessment of the below data depicts lack of access and uneven distribution of water supply coupled with regional disparity. Urban centers such as Srinagar has both the highest tap water connection as well as the highest treated tap water connection to the households. The rural areas experience inaccessibility of tap water connection and treated tap water connection with Bandipora (54.6%) registering the least tap water connection and Kulgam (7.4%) the least treated tap water connection to the households. These statistical data shows how drinking water supplies are skewed and favor the core while peripheral areas remains outside the spectrum of such basic amenities. 

State/ District	Total households	Tap water	Well water	Handpump/ tube well water	other source of water	New Question in 2011
	2011	2011	2011	2011	2011	Tap Treated	Tap Untreated	Well Covered	Well Uncovered
Jammu and Kashmir	14,97,920	55.7	8.3	14.4	21.6	22.3	33.4	2.3	6.1
Anantnag	1,09,465	67.1	1.8	9.5	21.6	19.5	47.6	0.9	0.9
Bandipore	47,620	54.6	3.4	4.1	37.9	14.7	39.9	1.9	1.5
Baramulla	1,19,791	75.7	4.4	3.6	16.3	31	44.7	2.4	2
Badgam	86,083	71.8	1.5	10.3	16.4	26.2	45.6	0.7	0.8
Ganderbal	36,626	81.9	0.6	2.6	14.9	51.3	30.5	0.3	0.3
Kulgam	56,316	66.5	1.4	6	26	7.4	59.1	0.8	0.6
Kupwara	10,040	65	13.1	6.4	15.5	11.8	33.5	5	10.7
Pulwama	71,063	68.3	1.4	16.6	13.6	25.2	43.1	1.1	0.3
Shopian	39,486	72.2	1.6	8.7	17.5	21.4	50.8	1.1	0.5
Srinagar	2,690	88.1	0.6	0.8	10.5	82.8	15.6	0.2	0

Major insights of the table

• Maximum households with tap water connection are in Srinagar (88.1%) whereas minimum households with tap water connection are in Bandipora (54.6%).

• Maximum households using well water as main source of drinking water are in Kupwara (13.1%) whereas minimum households using well water as main source of drinking water are in Srinagar (0.6%) and Ganderbal (0.6%).

• 16.6% households in Pulwama use hand pump/tube well water as the main source of drinking water. 0.8% households in Srinagar use hand pump/tube well water as the main source of drinking water. 
• Maximum households that use sources of water other than tap water, well water, and hand-pump/tube well are in Bandipora 37.9%). While as minimum households are in Srinagar (10.5%). 

• Maximum households that use treated tap water are in Srinagar (82.8%)
• Maximum households that use untreated tap water are in Kulgam (59.1%)
• Maximum households that use water from covered wells are in Kupwara (5%)
• Maximum households that use water from uncovered wells are in Kupwara (10.7%).

Jal Jeevan Mission Initiative

Jal Jeevan Mission is a flagship programme under the department of Drinking Water and Sanitation  Ministry of Jal Shakti. This designated ministry in its report ‘National Compilation on Dynamic Ground Water Resources of India, 2020’, stated that the ground water resources of Jammu and Kashmir have been assessed for valley areas and outer plains in all 20 districts. All the assessment units have been categorized as ‘safe’ by the report.

The findings of the report are shown in the table below:

	2017	2020	Increase/decrease
Total annual groundwater recharge	2.78 bcm	4.68 bcm	Increase
Extractable groundwater resources	2.50 bcm	4.22 bcm	Increase
Annual groundwater extraction	0.74 bcm	0.89 bcm	Increase
Stage of groundwater extraction	30.8%	21.03%	Decrease

The Jal Shakti Department reported that 1077 villages have been provided with Functional Household Tap Water Connections (FHTC) whereas in 1056 villages every household gets clean drinking water from the tap since  August, 2021. The report mentions that in Kashmir division 593 villages have been provided with 100 % tap water connection. It includes 37 villages in Anantnag, 5 in Bandipora, 129 in Baramulla, 68 villages in Budgam, 147 in Ganderbal, 19 in Kulgam, 34 in Kupwara, 66 in Pulwama, 29 in Srinagar and 59 in Shopian. 

 Jal Shakti Departments data earmarks that out of 18.35 Lakh rural households, 5.75 Lakh (31.36%) were connected with piped water connection at the start of the mission i.e., 15th August 2019. Jammu and Kashmir has covered 10.37 Lacs (56.51%) households with tap water connection till date and out of which 2.22 lakh tap water connections have been provided during the year 2020-21. Thus, The total of 57.30% HH of J&K now has FHTC which was merely 31.36% in August 2019. Under the Jal Jeevan Mission, J&K has achieved the target of providing tap water to all 22,422 schools and 23,926 anganwadi centers ahead of time. After Andaman and Nicobar Island, Jammu and Kashmir becomes the second Union Territory to provide tap water in 100% of its schools and anganwadi centers.

Only two districts  Srinagar and Ganderbal have achieved 100% tap water connections as of 2022 while eight districts still face problems with the availability of tap water connections. As far as villages are concerned, only 1109 villages have 100% FHTC. There are still 4076 villages that have less than 70% FHTC. 

State	No. of villages with PWS
	No. of villages with (100% FHTC)	No. of villages with >= 90 to < 100% FHTC	No. of villages with >= 80 to < 90% FHTC	No. of villages with >= 70 to < 80% FHTC	No. of villages with >= 60 to < 70% FHTC
Jammu and Kashmir	1109	580	573	538	4076

Any sustainable development goal is bound to be exclusionary in case it benefits some regions at the cost of others. Inter-regional and intra-regional parity in resource distribution and acquisition is the fundamental goal of SDG’s. Also, any public policy predicated on core-peripheral divide rather than equitable supply of adequate water is bound to be pre-juridical and exclusive. A holistic accessibility of drinking water is the most essential function of the state. Ensuring accessibility and connectivity of treated tap water facilities to the rural households should guide the policy parameters. Hence, Jammu and Kashmir has to tackle its water challenges with a deep understanding of the water scarcity challenge and a robust commitment to research and development to solve it.

Source links: 

1. https://censusindia.gov.in/2011census/hlo/Data_sheet/J&K/Main%20Source_%20Drinking_Water.pdf
2. https://kashmirobserver.net/2021/11/13/study-estimates-use-of-underground-water-well-within-safe-limits-in-jk/
3. https://thekashmirimages.com/2022/02/28/57k-water-connections-provided-in-aspirational-districts-of-bla-kup-under-jjm/
4. https://www.risingkashmir.com/-Over-1000-villages-in-J-K-get-tap-water-connection-in-2022-98667
5. https://www.risingkashmir.com/J-K-provides-4-62-lakh-functional-water-connections-in-two-years-under-Jal-Jeevan-Mission-96381
6. https://www.dailyexcelsior.com/tap-water-reaches-100-schools-and-anganwadi-centers-in-jammu-and-kashmir/
7. https://ejalshakti.gov.in/IMISReports/Reports/basicinformation/rpt_VillageWiseFHTCCoverage.aspx?Rep=0