Vacations are the most memorable and best times of our lives. What makes it memorable are the beautiful places we plan to visit with our family or friends. We always search for the best destinations to visit to make the holidays special for our loved ones. While thinking of such exquisite places, one of the options that come to our mind is Shimla. Shimla is also the best options when it comes to honeymoons.
What’s Special About Shimla?
Shimla is the capital and largest city of the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. The climate in Shimla is predominantly cool during winter and moderately warm during summer. The temperature usually ranges from – 4-degree Celsius to 31 degree Celsius, therefore, it a great place to stay during summer holidays. The mountains covered with snow, the stunning greenery and beautiful lakes make much of a movie set for the common people. Yes, the place is ravishing place in India. But, what is making the natives of Shimla concerned about?
Water Scarcity: The Rising Threat in Shimla
Shimla and its neighborhood places are facing severe water scarcity from past eight days. The city usually receives around 45 million liters per day. But the supply reduced to 22 million liters over the week. This scarcity has forced residents to stand in long queues for hours just for a bucketful of water. The alternative solution is to pay huge sums to private water suppliers. Unsatisfied with the government’s response the angry natives have protested and even tried to organize a march to CM Jai Ram Thakur’s residence.
Water scarcity in Shimla has been growing over every summer but the situation is worse this time. Climate change is one of the main cause for this. Due to climate change, the snow and rainfall declined from past decade. Moreover, the poor infrastructure and planning made the situation critical. To complicate the situation, the Shimla administration suspended the distributor from a key water source, the Ashwani Khad river. It was reported that the source was contaminated by untreated sewage waste from a plant. Its water from the source caused a deadly jaundice epidemic in the city.
The Government’s Initiatives to Reduce Water Scarcity
Every summer the city accounts for 75000 tourists. This decline in the water supply is expected to cause a fall in tourism revenue of the state. As a result, the government is trying its best to come up with a number of solution. The government is encouraging rainwater harvesting and advanced wastewater treatment plants in hospitals and other institutions which require mass consumption.
Water scarcity is the major concern in big cities of the country like Bangalore, Delhi, Mumbai etc. It is heartbreaking to hear that the problem is spreading to rural India as well. Therefore, it is time to take action rather than writing slogans to save every drop of water for a sustainable tomorrow.