Will SEZs existance turn Delhi into desert?

New Delhi, Oct 15: The national capital, which is already reeling under an acute water shortage, faces yet another threat of being turned into a desert if called upon to throw its weight behind the nine Special Economic Zones (SEZs) that are proposed to be set up in the National Capital Region (NCR) over the next few years, apprehend environmentalists.

''The massive scale on which these are planned is really a cause of worry in view of the water crisis being faced by Delhi.

Twenty-five per cent of the SEZs would be allotted for industrial purpose, and the rest would be for recreation, residential and others,which means a chunk of water consumption,'' says Mansi Ashar, a Pune-based environmentalist associated with Kalpavriksha, a non-governmental organisation.

'' The SEZs are being planned without assessment of the carrying capacity. The SEZs will be extracting water without any tax being levied on them. Drinking water will be a problem for Delhiites,'' Ms Ashar avers.

Each day the city fails to meet almost half of its water needs.

It is short of 370 million gallons every day. In two years from now, the minimum required by the nine Special Economic Zones will be another 100 million gallons per day. Where will it come from is the moot point, ask the evironmentalists.

At present, Delhi gets 83 per cent of the water from the Yamuna.

This river runs through three states of Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh and is increasingly subject to inter-state disputes. The rest of the water for Delhi comes from under the ground.

''This source is not endless and is at a threat of being over-exploited. The ground water level should remain constant and water taken should be replaced by rainwater and seepage of river water,'' says Kaoil Narula, a Water Scientist with TERI.

However, the Delhi Government's statistics reveal that already ''we are grounding out some ten per cent more than is replenished naturally''. Each year Delhiites have to go deeper to extract the prime natural resource.

In l960, groundwater was available at ten meters. Unlike, today it is at 50 meters. ''We are digging deeper by approximately half a meter a year.'' At 50 meters, the water starts to be chemically polluted. A study done by the Ministry of Environment and Forest has found that nitrate and fluoride contents are above permissible limits. This water has to be treated and Delhi can handle only 80 per cent of its needs.

''At this stage the economic zones could deteriorate the situation further if they depend on the ground water,'' says Suresh Babu, Water and Energy Scientist working with Centre for Science and Environment.

However, the government planners think they have another solution.

A senior official in the Ministry of Water Resources believes that Delhi would manage its water from the far-flung Bhakra Nangal dam in Punjab. But there is a catch --- this dam supplies water for agricultural purposes to two states; Punjab and Haryana.

It is unlikely that such water could be diverted to Delhi for industrial purposes. ''We will fight to death to keep out water away from Delhi,'' says Executive Chairman of Punjab Farmers Body, Kheti Virasat, Umendra Dutt.

SEZs would require a huge amount of water, energy and space which the NCR region can not sustain. Environmentalist and urban planners view this as a serious threat to Delhi's delicate ecology and inadequate natural resources.

''The capital is reeling under acute industrial and population growth and, consequently, its natural resources are on the verge of depletion, '' says Geo-scientist with Delhi University R B Singh.

A researcher with the CSE Mansi Sharma believes that the location of zones near the National Capital Region (NCR) should be reconsidered.

After deep analysis of the natural resources in and around Delhi Ms Sharma proposed that eight Special Economic Zones can be shifted to the places like Rudrapur in Uttaranchal, Sonepat in Haryana and Alwar in Rajasthan.

According to her, these places are well-connected to the NCR and have adequate natural resources to support these establishments.

Mr Narula is of the view that the site selection for the SEZs, which is presently being done randomly, should consider the water availability in the region.

The right mix of industries should also be taken into account as certain industries gulp down more water comparatively, he added.

He favours IT SEZs in and around Delhi in which water recycling could be a solution to the grave water problem.

However, he is skeptical about the captive power plants coming up in the SEZs as they consume a lot of water.

If SEZs go unchecked would Delhi turn into a desert is another poser that is weighing heavily on the minds of the environmentalists.

''The SEZs will put a burden to Delhi's infrastructure- roads, rails, residential areas. There will be an increase in crime, social problems and fight for space. It could be a scene of scavenging before Delhi turns into a desert,'' Ms Ashar regretted.

UNI