Question.
Discuss how rainwater harvesting in semi-arid regions of Rajasthan is carried out.
( Chapter - 3 -Water Resources, Cass X NCERT Contemporary India -II )
Answer.
As we know that multi-purpose river project has many socio-economic and environmental disadvantages, so "rainwater harvesting" is the alternative to multi-purpose projects.
Rainwater harvesting is a simple technique in which rainwater is stopped from flowing and collected and stored for future use.
The semi-arid region of Rajasthan includes eastern Rajasthan which lies on the east side of the Aravalli hills.
The arid region of Rajasthan includes western Rajasthan which is situated on the western edge of the Aravalli ranges.
Rooftop rainwater harvesting was common practice in the arid and semi-arid regions of Rajasthan. In the arid and semi-arid regions of Rajasthan, especially in Bikaner, Phalodi, and Barmer, almost all traditional houses have underground tanks (or tankas) for storing drinking water that is connected to the roof via pipes. For example, a house in Phalodi had a tanka that was 6.1 m deep, 4.27 m long, and 2.44 m wide.
Tankas are part of a well-developed rain harvesting system and are connected through pipes to the sloping roofs of houses.
Rain that falls on the roof runs down the pipe into the tanka and will collect in these underground "tanka".
The first rains are usually not collected as they are used to clean roofs and pipes.
The rainwater stored in the tanka is a highly reliable source of drinking water and is used when all other sources dry up, especially in summer.
Rainwater is also called Palar water as it is considered to be the purest form of natural source.
In the summer season, underground rooms were built adjacent to the tank to beat the heat.
Today the tanka system in western Rajasthan is declining due to the perennial Indira Gandhi Canal. However, some households still keep Tanka in their homes as they do not like the taste of canal water.
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