India Outruns Europe and Africa In Water Security Risks: WWF Analysis

New Delhi: India now faces the world’s worst water security risks and second highest basin risk, according to the recent WWF analysis- “Water Risk Filter”.

The analysis focuses on two separate issues namely- water stress cities face now and plan increase by 2050.

India has reportedly surpassed the water security risks prevailing in the entire continents of Africa and Europe.

“If you go just by the water risk now and that projected for 2050, Indian cities can dominate the list of cities that dominate the list of cities facing very high water risk”, said the international lead on the project, Ariane Laporte-Bisquit.

On a scale of 1 to 5, any figure exceeding 3 is high risk and over 4 is very high risk. Of the total 31 Indian cities dealing with water stress, 26 scored over 4. These cities face ‘very high risk’ right now.

The Middle East, which is the second worst placed region in the world has only six such cities. Asia (barring China) has five, North America has three, China has two and Central America has one.

None of the other continents including Africa, Europe, South America and Oceania has any city facing “very high” water risk.

International data suggested that the steepest ascent recorded, has been for Alexandria in Egypt, with a 16% spike by 2050, followed by Mecca and Tangshan (15% each). China constitutes 30 cities set to see surges of 10% or more and, with 46 cities, fills up nearly half of the list.

The highest increase in risk among Indian cities has concerns Jaipur and Indore, accounting for 11% and 10% each.

“Other cities in India do not feature on the global list (of 100) because their percentage increase in water risk is lower. But they still face very high water risk both now and in the future,” said Laporte-Bisquit .

“The percentage increase in the risk (for Indian cities) is not as great as some of the other cities because their current water risk is already so high.”

Ludhiana tops the list of worst among Indian cities with a score of 4.9 now, followed by Chandigarh with 4.8, Amritsar with 4.7, and Ahmedabad, Bengaluru and Gwalior with 4.6 each.

As the project report suggests, Ludhiana would exceed the scale of 5 by the year 2050. However, the registered rate of change will only read a mere 5%.

Jaipur stands at the face of the world’s worst challenge if both the present stress and increase in risk prevail with its score expected to go from 4.5 now to 4.9 by 2050, followed by Alexandria and Indore.

Globally, the population in areas of high water risk is formulated to rise from 17% now to 51% by 2050.

“These are how water risks will look like in the pessimistic pathway,” said Lapore-Bisquit.

“A world with unequal and unstable socio-economic development and high greenhouse gas emission levels, a pathway which will lead to an increase of global mean surface temperature of approximately 3.5°C by the end of the 21st century.”