Teesta River Water Management through an Integrated Approach

Abstract

The significance of water resources and the increasing demand for it coming from various sectors has made water management vital. It is a well-known fact across the world that wherever nations have successfully addressed their water issues and adopted measures for better management of their water, economic growth and development is said to have followed. The same applies in the case of the Teesta River also. The Teesta River Water holds grave significance for both India and Bangladesh and hence the issue of water sharing and management has been a long pending and contentious issue between the two, often raising questions over the inability of the policymakers in addressing the issue of water management. The issue related is with ‘equity’ as the river supports the economy of millions of people residing along the basin. The paper therefore, drawing inferences on the available literatures, proposes integrated approach towards the Teesta River Water management. Integrated Water Resource Management aims at maximizing the social as well as economic benefits through coordinated development and management of water, land and related resources without compromising the sustainability factor. Therefore, it rests on three basic principles of economic efficiency, equity and environmental sustainability. The paper argues that lack of management is complicating the issue and if an Integrated Management Approach is adopted then it can help bring about a solution to the Teesta issue through the participation of all the stakeholders concerned including the users, planners and the policy makers.The basic findings of the study therefore rests on the argument for the adoption of an Integrated Water Resource Management as a viable solution to the issue of Teesta water. The paper also contends for the need to analyze the water issues from an integrated approach by understanding the various inter-linkages of water to other sectors. Apart from it, the involvement of the various stakeholders which includes both the users as well as the dependent people within the larger framework of Teesta water management can help resolving the issue and there is a need for making the data on water resources accessible and transparent. The paper, however, also points out the emerging challenges on the way and states that adopting the mechanism will not be an easy path