Vol. 4                                      No. 3                          June 2002

Maps on water

The groundwater maps for six Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan have been prepared by the National Remote Sensing Agency, Hyderabad. The Rajiv Gandhi National Drinking Water Mission funded this project to locate the drinking water sources and sites. These maps provide comprehensive information based on the satellite imagery and ground level research.

Based on geographic information systems, the government of Karnataka is planning to prepare maps on water quality to assess the availability of safe drinking water in the state.

HLL enter water dispenser sector
Hindustan Lever limited (HLL) is planning to tap the purified water dispensers market by targeting the household sector. While ruling out their entry into bottled purified water, Dalip Sehgal, executive director of HLL, informed "This market is estimated around Rs200 crores per annum." He said, "The equipment would make available purified water at a much lower cost to the domestic consumers as compared to bottled water."

Water quality ensured
To ensure the quality of water, 385 villages in Kolar district, have formed quality assurance teams (QAT). They have appointed a ‘water person’, to ensure an uninterrupted distribution of water. These institutions have succeeded, because villagers have contributed five per cent of the operational cost thus, giving them a sense of ownership over the system.

EU water directives
Europe’s water supplies are under extreme stress. Increasing levels of pollution and saltwater intrusion have increased their problems further. To deal with the situation in time, Pamela Taylor, president of Eureau, a water industry body, urged the European Union (EU) to legislate on the EU water framework directives. These directives aim to "Deliver sustainable water resource management across Europe and its boundaries, from protection of wetlands in Poland to water demand management in Portugal all come under its remit."Fearing that up to 40 per cent of the implementing cost might have to be borne by the industry, she stressed that it should be avoided.