Abstract:
Water is basic to the human health, welfare and economic development. It is equally vital for the preservation of wild life and natural environment. Fresh water is a central feature and can be a source of energy, avenue of transportation, means of production and aesthetics. It exerts a major influence on demographic patterns. Water is a finite and limited resource, and thus its efficient and effective use of water resources is necessary for sustainable economic and social development. 4Ritu Batra, 1990)
India is one of the few countries in the world endowed with abundant land and water resources. It is the seventh largest country in the world and Asia's second largest country, with an area of 3,287,590 Km2. Most of the Indian landmass is in the semiarid tropical belt characterized by seasonal rainfall lasting over a period of three to four months. Total population of India was 846 million in 1991(census 1991). It is expected to be one billion in may 2000. The water resources of India are enormous but they are unevenly distributed in space, time and quantity. Due to lack of proper water resources planning and budgeting, famine in the vast tracts of the western and southern peninsula plateau region and floods in northern and eastern India ravage the lives of millions of human and animal population...
