The majority of India's water sources are polluted. A lack of access to safe water contributes to a fifth of its communicable diseases. Each day in the booming, nuclear-armed nation, diarrhea alone kills more than 1,600 people.
Indian Officials Declare Drought Worst Water Shortage in Mumbai’s History
Published July 13, 2009
Anna-Katarina Gravgaard, for the Pulitzer Center
Twenty million residents of Mumbai, India's largest city, are facing an acute water shortage, the BBC reports this week. Authorities have cut water supplies by 30 percent, due to shortages brought on by sporadic monsoon rainfall. If rain doesn't come soon, agricultural production is likely to suffer and urban residents are worried they will have to buy water from private tankers. If the drought continues, the lakes that feed the city's water supplies will continue to recede. Water supplies for swimming pools have been cut and authorities say they may have to turn to cloud seeding to produce rain.
Meanwhile, floods have displaced 500.000 people in the western state of Maharashtra. Climate experts warn that changes in the monsoon and increased flooding are likely to be exacerbated with climate change. Hear what experts think about what is happening and what needs to be done. World Bank Water Adviser David Grey in New Delhi:
World Bank Economist Caludia W. Sadoff in Kathmandu: Ashok Jaitly of The Energy and Resources Institute in New Delhi:Project
Pulitzer Center grantee William Wheeler reflects on his experience in international reporting and the fraught path from daily journalism to long-form nonfiction.
Irrigation and hydroelectric projects along with shrinking glaciers are reducing the flow of the Indus River--and increasing tensions between Pakistan and India.
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Multimedia journalist Anna-Katarina Gravgaard has reported from four different continents with a focus on water and the environment. A print reporter from age 14, she transitioned into multimedia...
