Meghalaya worst in water index, Tripura tops the list: Niti

GUWAHATI, June 21, 2018: A report published by the Niti Aayog has said Tripura and Meghalaya are the best and worst performers respectively among the northeastern and Himalayan states in terms of water resources management.

The report, Composite Water Management Index (CWMI) for 2016-17, said with a score of 59, Tripura is at the top of the northeastern and Himalayan states followed by Himachal Pradesh (53), Sikkim (49), Assam (31), Nagaland (28), Uttarakhand (26) and Meghalaya (26).

The report, however, does not mention the other northeastern states.

Niti Aayog has developed the water management index as an attempt to nudge states and Union Territories towards efficient and optimal utilisation of water and recycling thereof with a sense of urgency, considering the growing water crisis in the country. Water is a state subject.

Altogether 600 million people in the country face high to extreme water stress, about three-fourth of the households do not have drinking water on the premises. With nearly 70 per cent of water being contaminated, India is placed at 120th amongst 122 countries in the water quality index.

Gujarat is the best performing state in the country with a score of 76 followed by Madhya Pradesh (69) and Andhra Pradesh (68).

However, in comparison to the water management index 2015-16, "Meghalaya, Sikkim, and Tripura are, in fact, all among the top five improvers, gaining more than 7.5 points each. This is particularly impressive given the low ranks of the first two of these states and Tripura's exceptional overall performance, and mi-ght signal increasing water policy action in this state category."

The report said most states reported a high percentage of urban population having access to drinking water, except the northeastern and eastern regions, with Bihar, Jharkhand, Assam and Nagaland reporting less than half of the urban population having access.

The report said among the northeastern and Himalayan states, Tripura and Sikkim are the only ones with more than 10 per cent coverage by micro irrigation, while Assam has "negligible" coverage.

Source: The Telegraph