Application of CPSP model to Tapi River Basin : Final project report

Abstract

Extensive discussions and consultation among several international organizations and experts led to the preparation of World Water Vision. This was presented during the World Water Forum held at The Hague, The Netherlands during the year 2002. This vision document had projected large increases in global water withdrawals and storage of water for expansion of irrigation, the projected increase was quite substantial for the developing countries. However, there was no unanimity on the general conclusions and as a follow up, the International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID) initiated a project entitled “Country Policy Support Program (CPSP)”. CPSP envisages a more detailed assessment of the water situation in a few representative river basins for conditions as in the past, as at present, and likely in future, discussions on these assessments through consultations at the respective basin and national levels, and the use of these findings in a review of the national policies related to water resources. The CPSP specifically envisages addressing future water scenario for food & rural development, water for people as also water for nature, in the attempt to consider the needs of the three sectors in an integrated manner in the broader context of Integrated Water Resources Development and Management (IWRDM) for sustainable water use. The current form of Indian component of the CPSP is based on the study of the comparatively wet east coast Brahmani River flowing into the Bay of Bengal and the relatively dry west coast Sabarmati River flowing into the Arabian Sea. A preliminary assessment of the water availability and water use conditions of these basins was made and formed the basis of the basin level consultations during January 2003 at Bhubaneswar & Ahmedabad. Subsequently, the preliminary studies were presented in 3rd WWF in March 2003 in the ICID Session at Kyoto, Japan. Efforts for improvements in the approach used in the preliminary basin assessments as well as collection of more detailed sub-basinwise and seasonal data for refining assessments have continued. A workshop was held at NIH, Roorkee, on Dec. 12, 2003 in which the results of the application of the CPSP hydrological model for Sabarmati and Brahmani basins were presented. It was felt that some additional studies have to be undertaken to assess 1 - 2 the water situation in other river basins of the country. On the request of ICID, NIH has agreed to apply the existing CPSP model for two other river basins in India, Tapi and Pennar.