In its efforts to combat floods and conserve water, the Centre will spend nearly USD 300 million in the next two years to expand the water bodies along with building drains in seven cities including Bengaluru and Mumbai, as per the information shared by a government official to Reuters. It is the first federal flood control measure to be centred on water bodies and includes early-warning systems.

While storm water drainage is necessary to lower the runoff, it is equally important to bring in other nature-based solutions such as boosting the capacity of rivers and lakes to hold rainwater. The initiative could play a major role in mitigating floods, especially in the cities, according to Krishna S. Vatsa as reported by Reuters. Vatsa is a member of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).

The USD 300 million (around Rs 25 Billion) initiative will be allocated to seven cities. As per Vatsa, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata will receive Rs five billion each, while Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Pune and Ahmedabad will be allocated Rs 2.5 billion each. The reason for Delhi not being selected under the initiative is that the cities were chosen on the basis of the frequency of the floods and the analysis of the damages, Reuters reported citing Vatsa.

India has to make immense improvements on the water recycling and efficiency front as it lags globally in these segments. The domestic wastewater treatment level in India stands at 21 per cent, while advanced economies such as the United States of America have their levels at 98 per cent. Moody’s, a ratings agency, warned that India’s growth could get hampered due to its growing water stress.

As 100 mm of rainfall leads to inundation in cities, there has to be a certain investment level along with governance measures to solve the problem, according to Vatsa.