ADB_book_18 April.qxp - Himalayan Document Centre - icimod

tension and conflict (Dixit 1994). Although India andNepal share many common river basins, they havenot succeeded in developing a mutually agreeablebasis for harnessing water resources. Some of theseaspects are discussed below.Rural Water IssuesWater rights in rural areas have closely followed landrights (Banskota and Chalise 2000; Pradhan et al.2000). The distribution of water rights is almost amirror image of the prevailing skewed distribution oflandholdings. Within the landholding groups,however, water rights are not static and are changingdue to various circumstances. Changes inlandholdings, particularly their fragmentation, haveincreased complexities of water distribution.Similarly, one-crop systems are moving quickly tomultiple-cropping systems that produce cropsthroughout the year, increasing water demand andplacing maximum strains on limited supply, weakdelivery channels, and informal managementstructures. In many instances disputes may remainlargely implicit and dormant (Pradhan et al. 2000).Conflicts among different groups are also quitecommon. Religious laws with their implied rules ofcleanliness and untouchability regarding water, andresulting exclusion, have created much difficulty forlower caste people and untouchable groups(Pradhan et al. 2000). Differences over water use,regulation, its transport, and related activities are notuncommon between landed and landless, betweenrich and poor farmers, between upstream anddownstream farmers, and sometimes also betweenthe community and the state. Although local wateruser groups have been an important innovation formanaging local water resources, they are not free ofconflicts. There are important questions of equitybetween members who have different status andresources. While benefits from the use of water areproportional to landholdings, cost and othercontributions are generally equal among members.Even when smaller holders object to this, thesesystems are not easily altered (Matrin and Yoder1987). Another aspect of the conflict is betweendifferent water user groups when they share thesame source (Pradhan 1990). During peak demandfor water, there are inevitable tensions as supply isnever adequate. Other sources of tension arechanges in cropping patterns and cropping intensity.Political groups have always been very willing toemphasize water issues during elections.Historically, water rights have rested with thecommunity and local sharing rules, and have beenmodified by the community over time as a responseto changing circumstances. The Water Resources Actof 1992, however, changes this by asserting that allwater resources belong to the state. Pradhan et al.(2000) argue that this is the opposite of what hashappened in land rights, which over time havemoved from the state to the individual. This legalassertion of state ownership is very significant in thecontext of agreements with the private sectorregarding investment in water resourcedevelopment.Urban Water ProblemsA number of water-related conflicts have begun toemerge in the urban areas of Nepal. There are anumber of acute problems relating to adequate andsafe supply of water, pollution of existing waterbodies, and finding ways to augment presentsupplies. Kathmandu’s experience has been verymixed, and satisfactory solutions are still not in sight(MOPE 2000). The conflict here is more implicit—between rich and poor, present and futuregenerations, urban and rural residents. Richer urbanresidents may be able to pay a higher price for waterbut may also succeed in making the nation pay forvery costly projects.First is the problem of adequate and safe supply.Although public supply is unable to meet rapidlyescalating demands, some continue to access thehighly subsidized public supply while others mustpay to buy water from private agencies. Publicdrinking water supply has become so unreliable inboth quantity and quality that many households haveto purchase bottled water (whose quality is alsooften questioned) for drinking. Rural water sourcesare being leased to private companies who then sellthe water in tankers. What conditions have beenmaintained for harvesting these water sources is notclear. In most cases, protection of water sources andpriority access to local people have not even figuredin the calculation except for payment of royalties. Forall practical purposes, these public resources arebeing privatized. A highly unsatisfactory situationwith respect to the urban water issue is becomingincreasingly obvious. In the past the focus has onlybeen on developing big projects like Melamchiwithout looking at all the numerous decentralizedwatershed-based water sources that are beingexploited by the private sector.The second major problem is the pollution ofexisting water bodies in urban areas. The historicponds found in many parts of the older towns ofKathmandu Valley have become disgusting eyesoresof the urban landscape. Most of the public stonewaterspouts—very important traditional watersources—are either completely dry or bring watermixed with sewage (Paudel 1996). A significantaspect of water pollution has been the worseningconditions of the Bagmati River, which runs throughChapter 11: Environment and Conflict: A Review of Nepal’s Experience165