Water Security is essential to ensuring Food Security : S A Naqvi

Press Release

Ensure “Right to Water” along with “Right to Food”.

Water Security is essential to ensuring Food Security 

§        NPAWP demanded water security alongwith Food security and claimed to ensure 70 lpcd (litres per capita daily) free of cost water (10 Kilo-litres to every household in a month) to all without discrimination;  that is essential to live life with dignity and to guarantee comprehensive food security program.

§         NPAWP demanded to revive ‘Piao’ (Water kiosk)/ water standpost culture so people at street can get free drinking water of high quality.

§         NPAWP also demanded to cancel water privatization scheme and roll-back water projects under PPP.

§         NPAWP questioned Delhi Government on withdrawing the public friendly scheme ‘Life Line Water’ benefit which was provided in 2004 and stopped in 2010 in a non-transparent manner (under which 6 KL free of cost water was provided by the government to every household per month in Delhi) .

§         NPAWP is of the opinion that subsidized Food grains under Food Security has no meaning without Water Security as no food can be cooked without water.

§         NPAWP questioned about high rise in water prices in last decade due to which water has become almost unaffordable to the common people in Delhi.

§         NPAWP wrote a letter to Chief Minister Delhi demanding Water Security in Delhi.

In a letter written to Chief Minister and Lt. Governor of Delhi; NPAWP showed its apprehensions about the food security provisions of the National Food Security Ordinance 2013 which is extremely inadequate, insufficient and inappropriate and it is not the real solution for ensuring food security to the millions of poor and hungry people in the country.

NPAWP demanded for ‘Right to Water’ along with ‘Right to Food’ programme that Delhi Government is going to launch on 20^th August.  

Food and Water are inextricably linked. Water is as important as food. Food security addresses multiple priority areas. In order to achieve a sustainable and comprehensive food and nutrition security, the Delhi Government must also declare ‘Water Security’ along with food entitlements to all community without any kind of discrimination on the basis of BPL or APL category citizens.

Delhi Government is going to launch the ‘Food Security Scheme’ on August 20, the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi to ensure a “hunger free Delhi”. But on the other hand, Government’s approach towards water is quite disturbing. Delhi Government is privatizing city’s water supply to allow corporate control over water through Public Private Partnership that will lead and result into high water tariffs which would be unaffordable for the common people, while the private corporations will earn huge profits. Mr. S.A. Naqvi, National Coordinator of NPAWP claimed that the increase in water tariffs in last decade was done to ensure profits to Corporate and private companies.

Mr. Naqvi said that there are several instances which indicate that private water projects in Delhi are full of corruption and are not sustainable. It is clear that private corporations have no ethical agenda to make water a ‘social good’, rather they have develop markets to make huge profits out of water. We strongly believe that food security can’t be achieved without ensuring water security for the people and water security can’t be possible without de-privatizing the water utility services.

The United Nation General Assembly in 2010 recognizes human right to safe drinking water and sanitation. Similarly the UN Human Right Council provides for ensuring water security at the individual and community level. The Constitution of India also has various provisions regarding ‘Right to life’ and ‘Right to health’ which obviously include Right to water. The obligation of the State is to ensure the creation and then sustain conditions congenial to good health, as enshrined in our Constitution’s Directive Principles under Article 21, (Protection of Life and Personal Liberty) of the Indian Constitution under the chapter Fundamental Rights clearly state that “no person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty, except according to the procedure established by the law”. Article 25(1) guarantees that “everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing, medical care and necessary social services…”. Part IV of  Article 38, 39, (e), (F), 42, 47 and 48 provisions provides the right to health. It is clear that right to health cannot be ensured without ensuring right to water.

Consequently Food and water are essential elements that all human being must have easy access to fulfill their dietary needs and for an active healthy life. Government must assure water security along with food security to the citizens of Delhi.

Hence we request and demand the following:

1. Water is essential for life. Delhi must ensure provisioning of lifeline water to all its citizens:

The NPAWP demands that the Government of NCT of Delhi must provide a minimum quantity of 70 Liters per capita daily (LPCD) drinking water free of cost to each in a family in Delhi to ensure the water security along with food security scheme. This will be approximately 10 Kilolitres (Kl) of water to every household every month and this must be declared as “life line water” for the consumption of drinking, cooking, personal and domestic hygienic requirements without any discrimination of rich or poor.

2. Revive Piaos (Water kiosk), install public stand posts for poor and passer bys at required places:

In almost every religion, providing water to thirsty people is considered as most pious and religious duty. The NPAWP demands that the Government of NCT of Delhi must reinstate the traditional facility of Water Kiosks (piaos) or public stand posts in different parts of Delhi at convenient locations. The water Kiosks will be meant for poor in the slums, at juggi jhopries, as well as for passerby on the roads to ensure availability of free of charge safe drinking water to the floating population of Delhi as well as to those who cannot afford to pay for water.

3. Stop Privatization and Comodification of water supply in Delhi:

Water is life and an essential element to food security in order to have good health and good nutrition! Malnutrition is caused by hunger, poor food quality and unsafe water. Water is an inalienable human right and a public trust. Therefore Water is our most precious common resource and is essential for all living beings. NPAWP strongly believes that water is not a commodity and must not be left to the whims of the market because no person or entity has the right to profit from it. Water must not, therefore, be commodified, privatized, traded or exported for commercial gains. Access to safe and sufficient drinking water must be available and affordable for every citizen. National and state governments both are responsible to ensure water services are delivered to all.

We all believe that local communities are ‘natural protectors and sustainable users’ of water; not its ‘customers’. Our collective concern is that “Water is a public good and it should remain in public hands. No attempt to control over water should be exercised applied through public private partnership (PPP) in drinking water supply and its distribution”. The privatization or commodification of water is against the spirit of a welfare state, as enshrined in our Constitution. Privatization of water leads to corruption, which in turn increases the financial burden of our citizens. World over, the model of Water Privatisation has miserably failed and now there is a trend of reversing privatization and re-municipalization of water to regain public control in countries such as France; UK; Germany; Canada;  Hungary; Finland; Tanzania; Malaysia; Hamilton, Dar-es-Salaam etc. and continued strong resistance to water privatization notably in Italy; Portugal; Greece, Spain, Brazil etc.

It is our humble request to stop the process of Privatisation of Water in Delhi to ensure an honest approach for the realization of comprehensive Food Security to the citizens of Delhi.

In view of the above, the NPAWP strongly reiterates its demands and appeal:

Hence that It is the moral obligation of the Government of Delhi to provide water security to the people of Delhi without any discrimination along with ensuring food security, so that the Father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi’s dream of “Hind Swaraj” and a “hunger and thirst-free India” can be a reality very soon. It is also requested kindly Roll-out the privatization of water supply;  Set up water kiosk (Piaos), water standpost network to ensure the right to water of the community.

Feel  free to contact

S.A. Naqvi: (National Coordinator of NPAWP)

Sanjay Sharma: (National Advisor)