
Climate change has hit each and every part of the world adversely in a direct or indirect manner. For India where more than 70% of the population depends on water from rivers and rains, what has become more important is the need to address the impact of climate variability and extreme weather events. Water resources development is approaching or has exceeded sustainable limits. More than 75% of water that flows in rivers is withdrawn for agriculture, industry and domestic purposes. This has led to the approaching physical and economic scarcity of water all around the country. It is expected that the availability of water in our country is likely to fall down to 1,140 cubic meters in 2050!
He has put his relentless struggle to revive indigenous wisdom on water harvesting and management systems and has passed it on to those who have long forgotten it. “Water is my life, my happiness, my teacher,” he says. Included in the list of “50 people who could save the planet” by The Guardian Rajendera Singh has won the Stockholm Water Prize, an award known as “the Nobel Prize for Water”, in 2015, Jamnalal Bajaj Award in 2005, the Magsaysay Award for community leadership in 2001 and many more. Born in 1959 his birth place Daula offered him good access to highest quality water in his childhood-the water of Ganges.
