Water Management- Optimum Utilisation of Hydro Resources Vis-a-Vis Ecological Balance

Science and Technology must be used to serve humanity, not to disturb the delicate ecological balance. Exploitation of natural resources for the benefit of mankind is as important as their conservation and these resources should be used upto a certain limit. Hydropower projects do not contribute to the air pollution causing greenhouse effect and are the least harmful to the environment during their generation, running and maintenance stages and can be used for multi purposes such as flood controlling, irrigation, fisheries purposes etc. besides generation of power. However, for the construction of a hydropower project or in that case for building a dam or creating a reservoir, deforestation and blasting off of the hills etc. is required, thereby, affecting the environment and ecology, the scale depending upon the magnitude of the project. So, for the proper utilisation of hydro resources i.e. for proper and efficient water management, a meticulous decision-making is required so as to conceive a project which should be scientifically and technologically accurate, economically viable and at the same time environmentally sound – environment being essentially a question of the very survival of life including that of human race on the planet earth. The paper presents the idea of appropriate water management.