But thanks to its sophisticated water management efforts, the city may ride out the crisis.
However, other cities that lack these capacities are less likely to survive Day Zero.
Especially in developing countries, where urban water services are often provided by informal or illegal actors, running out of water could have dangerous ripple effects for peace and security.
But by 2050, most people in Asia and Africa will live in cities, where water supplies sometimes depend on violent entrepreneurs, criminal groups, and other informal or illegal service providers.
However, as their populations increase, the governments of some developing cities are falling behind, thus creating space for informal service providers, some of them armed, to fill.
Take, for example, military operations in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Every few years, the state attempts to clean house and reduce the level of violence.
Yet, as urban populations and water scarcity increases, these negotiated arrangements will be stressed to new heights.
Political players compete to secure territory, constituents, and bribes.
Karachi’s panoply of armed actors—including Taliban factions, Al Qaeda, and subversive groups—would only add to the political instability and risk of violent conflict.
For cities like Karachi, preventing Day Zero from becoming Day One of a violent conflict will require not only engineering solutions, but also political ones.

Turkey’s Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH) has so far opened 6,747 water wells in 36 countries under the scope of its 18-year-long project.
In a statement released to mark World Water Day, the IHH said it was continuing its efforts to ensure that millions of people suffering from water scarcity across the world get access to clean water that meets all their needs.
According to a UN report prepared in 2017 together with the UNICEF, 2.1 billion people worldwide remain unable to access clean water; there is no clean water in the houses of each three people out of 10 in the world.
Also, 4.5 billion people lack sanitation and hygiene services, it added.
With the water wells IHH establishes, locals not only have access to clean and drinkable water but also are able to use the water for their agricultural activities and generate income.
The water wells have been named after donors; in fact, majority of the wells have been named after martyrs of July 15, 2016, defeated coup and Operation Olive Branch.
Among the countries where IHH has established water wells are: Ethiopia, Somalia, Niger, Sudan, Cameroon, Kenya, India, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Palestine, Iraq and Lebanon.
Those who wish to donate for a water well can send 5 Turkish liras via text message to 3072 or 16 Turkish liras to 4072 or donate either online or do a money transfer to IHH’s bank account.
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This is only slightly better than the annual per capita renewable freshwater availability of 800 cubic metres in South Africa and way below the 2,000 cubic metres in China.
Renewable internal freshwater resources refer to internal river flows and groundwater from rainfall in the country, and exclude inflows from upstream countries (groundwater and surface water).
For instance, Punjab has the highest share of rice procurement in the country despite not being the most efficient state in producing rice in terms of water usage.
Thus, India tends to use more water than other major agricultural countries for growing crops.
In the most water-stressed states of Delhi, Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan, annual groundwater consumption is more than annual groundwater recharge.
While India is blessed with major rivers, there is a sharp regional skew in the availability of surface water.
The sharing of river water has become a political battleground in the south, as seen in the battle over Cauvery waters between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
About 60% of India’s districts face the problem of groundwater contamination or scarcity or both.
Despite progress, India still lags its peers in reducing deaths from water-borne diseases like diarrhoea.
Unless steps are taken to reverse the depletion and contamination of India’s water resources, India’s cities and villages may face a fate worse than Cape Town in the coming years.

Several countries have already benefited greatly from using these approaches for water management.
ALSO READ: 70 more water towers listed, to be protected As this year’s World Water Development Report makes clear, nature-based solutions offer answers to our most pressing water-related challenges and are also directly aligned with both the principles and aims of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
An estimated 3.6 billion people (51 per cent of the global population) now live in areas that could face water scarcity for at least one month per year, and that number could increase to 4.8–5.7 billion by 2050.
The effects of environmental pollution on African rivers from the Nile to the Mhlathuze in South Africa are poorly understood.
Global economic losses from floods and droughts have now surpassed US$40 billion per year across all economic sectors.
Projected losses due to floods, droughts and storms are estimated to increase to US$200–400 billion by 2030.
They address overall water scarcity through “supply-side management,” and are recognised as the main solution for achieving sustainable water for agriculture.
Constructed wetlands for wastewater treatment can also be a cost-effective nature-based solution that provides effluent of adequate quality for several non-potable uses, including irrigation, as well as offering additional benefits including energy production.
Nature-based solutions are crucial to achieving our Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG6 (Water), SDG13 (Climate Change), SDG14 (Oceans), SDG2 (Zero hunger) and SDG15 (Ecosystems).
Adopting them will, of course, not only improve water management and achieve water security, it will deliver on the tremendous promise of the entire 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

“The four major water bodies supplying water to the city – Poondi, Chozhavaram, Chembarambakkam and Puzhal at present has a holding of 11,257 mcft.
Also, the desalination plant will be taking care of 65 per cent of water restoration which is 500 million litre per day.”
Asked about the awareness among the people in using water efficiently, Namma Ooru NGO founder, Nataraj says, “People, especially those who do not care to spend money for water fail to understand the importance of water.
Government should bring in strict rules in water consumption.
More than saying that people are yet to get the complete picture on water awareness, they should leave their careless attitude over water usage keeping future generation in mind.”
A Metrowater official, says, “The city can manage this summer as we have got enough Krishna water coming in.
The summer may not be hard for Chennaiites as there is adequate storage to maintain water supply till October.” He adds, “Kandaleru reservoir at Andhra Pradesh which is the source of Poondi reservoir has touched 6,800 mcft.
The Chennai Metrowater is transferring water from Poondi reservoir to Red Hills and from there it will be treated and supplied to residents.
The supply of water from Chembarambakkam lake to suburban areas is expected to kick start at the earliest.
In times of need, the water will be supplied to Tambaram and the surrounding areas.

The most obvious impact will be the effect on the price of water.
If government wants to build the new water infrastructure we so desperately need, it will first have to find the funds.
For property owners, this will add complexity to their relationship with their tenants.
Simply passing on the costs to tenants or arbitrarily making provisions for additional increases will not endear them to their paying customer.
Buyers are reticent about the future of Cape Town as the threat of queuing for water looms large, opting for more water secure coastal towns instead.
Lenders want to see that everything possible has been done to ensure new developments are not at the mercy of municipal services.
This means making the development as marketable as possible.
In fact, just as was the case with generators during load shedding, lenders are even looking at funding water-saving initiatives and equipment.
This will only increase as climate change takes its toll.
It makes sense to begin planning for these changes now, and finding an investment partner who can help you do that.

With reports of water scarcity in certain pockets of the state coming in, the state government today issued firm instructions to collectors, officers of PRI and drinking water supply department that there should be “no scarcity of drinking wter either actual or perceived” during summer.
Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi set the benchmark for drinking water supply both for rural and urban areas during the summer and issued the directive today during a video conference with district officers.
Principal Secretary Panchayati Raj, Mr Deo Ranjan Kumar Singh and Secretary Housing & Urban Development G. Mathivathanan outlined the district wise position for review.
Mr Padhi said, “Collectors have been delegated with all powers for drilling of new tube wells, sanitary wells and repair & maintenance of all drinking water sources.
There is a bloc level committee under the chairmanship of BDO for procurement of materials.
Collectors should pull these resources and ensure adequate supply of drinking water in all areas”.
Collectors were asked to engage mobile repair vans in each bloc to restore defunct sources.
The district and bloc officers were further asked to engage water tankers in most difficult areas where the interventions cited above are not adequate to cater the drinking water need.Supply should be twice a day during morning and evening hours.
“All blocs will designate nodal officers for each panchayat and there would be a 24 hour control room at the block level,”said Mr Singh.
Mr Mathivathnan made it clear that control rooms should start functioning from today in all ULBs.Ward level water and sanitation committees would be formed in each ULB.

BHUBANESWAR: With the temperature soaring and several parts of the State starting to experience drinking water scarcity, the State Government on Tuesday directed District Collectors and Panchayati Raj Department to ensure adequate supply of water in areas facing such crisis.“There should be no scarcity of drinking water, actual or perceived, in any part of the State during summer,” Chief Secretary Aditya Padhi told District Collectors during video conferencing.Collectors have been delegated with powers of drilling new tube-wells, digging sanitary wells and repair and maintenance of all drinking water sources.
Sufficient funds have been kept in all the panchayats for this purpose.
The rate of contract for procurement of spare parts has also been finalised and block-level committees under the leadership of BDOs have been formed for procurement of materials, Padhi said.
The Chief Secretary asked Collectors to utilise funds at their disposal for engaging water tankers in most difficult areas where drinking water need of the people could not be met from existing sources.
Each block will have a control room and a nodal officer will be designated for each panchayat to monitor drinking water supply.
Sarpanchs have been directed to take stock of the situation at village-level every Friday while BDOs will review the situation every Saturday.
District Collectors will review drinking water availability every Tuesday and report to the State Government by Wednesday afternoon every week.
Secretary in Housing and Urban Development Department G Mathivathnan said control rooms have been made operational in all the urban local bodies (ULBs) from Tuesday.
The ULBs have been asked to complete maintenance of all drinking water sources before March-end and upload data on the daily water supply situation in the official website of the department for public viewing.
Mathivathnan said the department has already issued standard operating procedure (SOP) to all ULBs with a direction to follow it scrupulously.The Chief Secretary further directed to complete formation of ward-level water and sanitation committees in each ULB and identify water monitors, preferably from among women self help groups.

Almost half of the world’s population — some 3.6 billion people — currently live in areas vulnerable to water scarcity.
Water quality issues and increased demand for water due to a growing global population will combine to put the world’s freshwater resources at risk, explains the World Water Development Report, released Monday.
The report warns of risks of increased conflicts and threats to human civilization unless action is taken to reduce stress on lands and wetlands.
This ecosystem degradation is the main cause behind increased “water-related risks and extremes,” the report explains.
Therefore, over the coming decades, the biggest expected growth in water demand will come from industry and domestic use.
The greatest exposure to these impacts will come in low- and lower-middle income countries because of greater expected population and economic growth in these areas.
About 30 percent of the world’s population is expected to live in areas at risk of routine flooding and drought.
By 2050, between 4.8 and 5.7 billion people will live in regions that will be water-scarce for at least one month each year.
For agriculture, the report also recommends using practices that will help improve efficiency as well as soil quality.
And, as the report highlights, “given the transboundary nature of most river basis, regional cooperation will be critical to addressing projected water quality challenges.” Pointing to these growing trends of water pollution and environmental degradation combined with increased water demand, Audrey Azoulay, director-general of Unesco, which commissioned the report, said: “These trends pose broader challenges from the increased risk of floods and droughts, which in turn has an impact on our ability to adapt to climate change.

The most obvious impact will be that the effect on the price of water.
If government wants to build the new water infrastructure we so desperately need, it will first have to find the funds.
For property owners, this will add complexity to their relationship with their tenants.
Buyers are reticent about the future of Cape Town as the threat of queuing for water looms large, opting for more water secure coastal towns instead.
We are pleased to see some of the more forward thinking developers now placing a lot of attention on sustainability initiatives in new builds.
Lenders want to see that everything possible has been done to ensure new developments are not at the mercy of municipal services.
This means making the development as marketable as possible.
An increasingly ecologically sensitive customer, as well as lenders which are looking for economically stable investments, means property professionals can no longer ignore the environmental impact of their development.
This will only increase as climate change takes its toll.
It makes sense to begin planning for these changes now, and finding an investment partner who can help you do that.