Water is the elixir of life

Dr N Munal Meitei
“Water is the ink that writes the poetry of life”
Water is life and constant on Earth called “life liquid” or “the elixir of life.” Water scarcity leads to every global problem right from food shortages, economies, international peace and even civil unrest. Globally, nearly two-thirds of the world’s population, experience severe water scarcity for at least one month each year. By 2050, 5 billion people are expected to live with extremely high-water stress as the water demand will increase by 55% due to increase in population, manufacturing, thermal electricity and domestic use.
World Water Day is celebrated on 22nd March every year since 1993. The theme for 2026 is “Water and Gender,” with the slogan “Where water flows, equality grows”. This theme emphasizes centering women and girls in water solutions, as they are disproportionately affected by the water crisis and are critical to sustainable water management and decision-making. As global inequa- lity worsens, more people will be unable to afford clean drinking water and now, we need for an international define water right to prevent conflicts and water war.
All organisms contain water and depend for survival. Water is nature’s most precious gifts. Water is central to grow crops and raise livestock, producing electricity, maintaining human health, fostering equitable societies and meeting the world’s climate goals. Without better water management, population growth, economic development and climate variation are poised to worsen water stress.
Having free access to freshwater is the basic human right, of all and sanitation and hygiene are dignity. Water has the power to unlock human resources. But the problem faced is its scarcity due to injudicious use is immense. Without intervention, such as investment in water infrastructure and better water governance-water stress will continue to get worse, particularly in places with rapidly growing populations and economies. Living with water stress jeopardizes people’s lives, jobs, food and energy security.
Water covers 71% of the Earth’s surface. 96.5% of the planet’s water is saline and 3.5% are fresh water. Out of it, 1.7% is in groundwater, 1.7% in glaciers and ice caps. Only 0.1% of the Earth’s water is available with us. Out of this palatable, maximum is again in the lakes and rivers. Hence only a little fraction of water is available for us.
Increasing water stress threatens countries’ economic growth and food security. Due to climate variation, world’s irrigated agriculture faces extreme high-water stress up to 84%, with a loss of water supplies in about 60% of those croplands -particularly rice, sugarcane, wheat and maize. Yet to feed a projected 10 billion people by 2050, the world will need to produce 56% more food calories than it did in 2010 -all while dealing with increasing water stress as well as climate -driven disasters like droughts and floods.
The human body contains about 70% water. To keep us healthy, we need about 3% of our body weight equivalent to 3 litres of water daily.

(To be contd)