the water concern

Having grown up in Chennai - in the peak of the water shortage years, i have many memories of spending many hours a day - at odd hours, that too - on gathering water.


when water supply was limited to alternate days, we still needed to pump water as the pressure was very low.
i had to learn the mechanics of the pump - and associated techniques. 
for priming - when the water level went down, including taking out the washer and softening it, if it went dry etc, or replacing it with a new one, when the old one wore out.

then there came the more modern versions like this:

we also had to wait for the water tanker and a camaraderie developed among neighbors till the water tanker came and competition when the tanker arrived, to ensure that each family got sufficient water.

i notice that water is also important for politics, where i see that even 'emerging' slums get water supplied in tankers by the local politician towards the welfare of that colony.

recently, when i was looking at the finalists of the engineering contests organized by mondialogo - one of the interesting initiatives that i have been following for the last couple of years -  

noticed that the largest number of entries were related to - what else, water!

not only the Indian entries, but also from other countries!


Some of the smart investors in India have been investing in water. 
as one of the economic theories go, the next major conflicts in the world are likely to be over water!


what is your take on water?