Meena Menon MUMBAI: Very poor rainfall in Maharashtra has led to the State announcing that it is experiencing conditions akin to scarcity, according to a review by the Cabinet on Wednesday. Sixteen districts in the State have received rainfall below 50 per cent till July 8. The water storage in reservoirs is only 22 per cent against 47 per cent last year.

Kolar: The district is facing acute water shortage with 281 villages lacking drinking water facilities and their number is increasing day by day. The drought relief works requires a fund of Rs 18 crores and soon a proposal will be submitted to the government soon said deputy commissioner B Shivappa. He was speaking, presiding a meeting at his office on Monday of draught relief and calamity authority.

Dhiraj Nayyar The attack in Kabul must not be allowed to undercut vital economic ties between India and Afghanistan

DERGAON

Gurgaon

The water shortage in Guwahati can no longer be overlooked. The reason for this, according to AK Das, Junior Engineer, PHE, is the old pipelines and the scheme itself. The distribution lines are almost 30 years old. "The amount of water supplied is same but the population has increased manifold and the water is never enough.' Only when the distribution network is improved people of the city can expect to lead a water worry-free life.

The long and intense heat spells attributed to climate change, has of late posed discomfort to animals in the State Zoo. Though most of the animals out of the 750 at the zoo are indigenous, still the climate change that has been triggering erratic monsoons and water scarcity has prompted the zoo authorities to adopt a special summer care regime for the animals since the last couple of years. Apart from regulation of their diet, some of the species have been requiring artificial watering to keep their nerves cool in the scorching season.

It is not just the temperature that is rising in Madhya Pradesh but also the anxiety over water supply. Water has become so scarce that while people at some places are hiring armed guards to prevent its theft, at others they have been found using a lottery system to fill their buckets.

Darjeeling : The Bengal government has formed a high-level advisory committee to oversee the implementation of the Rs 55-crore Balasun supply scheme that is expected to solve the water shortage problem in Darjeeling town. "The committee has been entrusted with the job of reviewing the progress of work, suggesting measures for the timely commission of the project and coordinating with all agencies including the DGHC,' said Pranai Rai, the MLA from Darjeeling, who heads the panel.

Completion of three Yamuna basin schemes only will solve Delhi's water problems- Arabinda Ghose It sounds cruel to say this, but the stark reality is that only when three projects in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarkhand, hanging fire for more than two decades, are completed, water woes of Delhites can be resolved for a reasonably long spell of time.