Significance of Water

Water claims to be an important resource. An important use of water in our country
is for irrigation. Besides, water is also required in large amounts for industrial and domestic
consumption.

Significance of Water
The significant of water needs no elucidation. It is as under:
(1) It is revealed by the history of human civilization that water supply and civilization are most synonymous.
(2) Several cities and civilizations have disappeared due to water shortages originating from climatic changes.
(3) Millions of people all over the world, particularly in the developing countries, are
losing their lives every year from water-borne disease.
(4) An understanding of water chemistry is the basis of knowledge of the multi-
dimensional aspects of aquatic environment chemistry, which involve the sources,
composition, reactions, and transport of the water.
(5) About 97% of the earth’s water supply is in the ocean, which is unfit of the remaining
3%, 2% is locked in the polar ice-caps and only 1% is available as fresh water in rivers,
lakes, streams, reservoirs and ground water which is suitable for human consumption.
Unlike land, which remains available as it is, the availability of water varies from place
to place and time to time. Our country is a monsoon land. The bulk of rainfall is confined to a brief period of 3-4 months that is from July to October. As such, large part of the country lacks surface water supply for a greater part of the year.