Ahmad Ayaz
Kashmir has long been celebrated as a paradise blessed with abundant freshwater. Snow-fed mountains, crystal-clear springs, mighty rivers, and shimmering lakes have shaped its landscape, culture, and identity. The River Jhelum meanders through the Valley, countless springs emerge from its hillsides, and an intricate network of streams nourishes villages before flowing into larger water bodies. Nature has been extraordinarily generous.
Yet, every summer, Srinagar presents a troubling paradox. This year, however, the crisis has reached alarming proportions. Large parts of the city have been grappling with acute drinking water shortages for weeks, leaving thousands of households struggling for one of life’s most basic necessities. Even more disturbing has been the apparent attempt to portray the situation as largely normal, despite the hardships being endured by residents across the city.
In a city surrounded by abundant freshwater, families begin their day with dry taps. Buckets are lined up before dawn, people remain awake late into the night waiting for water to flow, and no one knows whether the supply will last a few minutes, a few hours, or not arrive at all.
The irony is impossible to ignore. Srinagar is not facing a scarcity of water—it is facing a crisis of governance.
A CRISIS THAT HAS BECOME ROUTINE IN SUMMER
What is most disturbing is not that shortages occur, but that they have become an annual routine.
Every summer brings familiar explanations—reduced discharge at water sources, increased demand, maintenance work, ageing pipelines, or technical faults. While these factors may contribute to the situation, they cannot justify why the same crisis returns year after year with such predictable regularity.
Seasonal demand is not an unforeseen event. Population growth is not a surprise. Urban expansion has been visible for decades. Effective governance anticipates recurring challenges and prepares for them well in advance. When the same emergency repeats every year, it ceases to be an emergency; it becomes evidence of inadequate planning.
The people of Srinagar deserve more than seasonal explanations. They deserve sustainable and lasting solutions.
THE HMT AREA: A DISTURBING EXAMPLE
Nowhere is this contradiction more evident than in the HMT area on the outskirts of Srinagar.
For decades, the area has been served by the Rangil Water Supply Scheme, one of Kashmir’s most significant drinking water projects. Logically, residents connected to such a major scheme should enjoy one of the most reliable water supplies in the city.
Instead, several localities, including Rose Avenue and adjoining neighbourhoods, have been facing prolonged and erratic water supply for weeks. Families are forced to ration every bucket for drinking, cooking, washing and other essential needs. Many remain awake late into the night, hoping water will finally flow so they can fill their storage tanks before the supply disappears once again.
If residents connected to one of the Valley’s premier water supply schemes continue to face such hardships, the situation in areas dependent on smaller schemes is understandably even more concerning.
A CITY GROWING FASTER THAN ITS INFRASTRUCTURE
Srinagar has expanded rapidly over the past two decades. New residential colonies have emerged, the population has grown, commercial activity has increased, and tourism has reached unprecedented levels.
Unfortunately, the drinking water infrastructure has failed to keep pace.
Many pipelines have outlived their intended lifespan. Leakages result in enormous quantities of treated water being lost before reaching consumers. Distribution networks designed for a much smaller population are now expected to serve a rapidly expanding city. In several localities, illegal connections further reduce water pressure, depriving entire neighbourhoods of an adequate supply.
The recurring shortages are therefore not a failure of nature but a failure of planning, maintenance and infrastructure management.
WHEN OFFICIAL CLAIMS CONTRADICT GROUND REALITIES
Equally concerning is the tendency to project the drinking water situation as largely normal even when residents across several localities continue to struggle with dry taps.
Public confidence cannot be sustained through official assurances alone. When people queue for water, wake up in the middle of the night to fill storage tanks, and repeatedly complain of dry taps, projecting the situation as largely normal does not resolve the crisis. It only widens the gap between official claims and public experience.
Acknowledging the true extent of the problem is the first step towards resolving it. Transparent communication builds trust; denial and downplaying only deepen public frustration.
VOICES FROM THE STREETS
Across Srinagar, frustration has become increasingly visible.
In recent days, women in Batmaloo, Mehjoor Nagar and Basant Bagh areas of Srinagar took to the streets, protesting against the acute shortage of drinking water and demanding the immediate restoration of regular supply. These were not political protests but expressions of genuine hardship faced by ordinary families struggling to secure enough water for their daily needs.
When women, mothers and elderly residents are compelled to leave their homes and protest simply to obtain drinking water, it reflects a serious failure in the delivery of one of the most basic public services.
Water is not a privilege. It is a fundamental necessity and a basic right of every citizen.
THE HIDDEN COST OF WATER SHORTAGES
The drinking water crisis extends far beyond household inconvenience.
Children leave for school without adequate water. Elderly people suffer during the hottest days of summer. Small businesses incur additional costs arranging alternative supplies, while families spend hours waiting to store water instead of using that time productively.
The greatest burden falls upon those with the fewest resources. Wealthier households may purchase private tankers or install expensive storage facilities. Poorer families have no such options. They simply wait and hope that water eventually reaches their taps.
Access to safe drinking water should never depend upon one’s financial capacity.
THE NEED FOR TRANSPARENCY
Given the ongoing Amarnath Yatra, many residents naturally wonder whether drinking water resources have been temporarily diverted to meet Yatra-related requirements.
If that is indeed the case, people would understand that the inconvenience is temporary and necessitated by an exceptional event. However, if no such diversion has taken place, the Jal Shakti Department should clearly explain the actual reasons behind the continuing shortages and place the relevant facts before the public.
Transparency is not merely good governance—it is indispensable for maintaining public trust.
ACCOUNTABILITY BEYOND ANNOUNCEMENTS
Over the years, governments have announced numerous projects involving new pipelines, treatment plants, reservoirs and distribution upgrades. Significant public funds have been invested in strengthening the drinking water infrastructure.
Citizens therefore have every right to ask: Have these projects been completed? Have they delivered the intended results? If so, why do severe shortages continue to recur every summer?
Accountability is not an act of confrontation. It is the cornerstone of responsible governance. Public expenditure must translate into visible public benefit.
THE WAY FORWARD
The solution lies not in emergency tanker services or temporary arrangements every summer. It requires long-term planning supported by sound engineering and transparent administration.
Ageing pipelines must be replaced systematically. Leakages should be identified and repaired before precious treated water is lost. Distribution networks must be modernised and continuously monitored. Storage capacity must expand alongside urban growth, and scientific assessments should guide future planning instead of reactive crisis management.
Public participation is equally important. Responsible water use, prompt reporting of leakages, prevention of illegal connections and water conservation are shared responsibilities. Every drop saved strengthens the entire system.
A TEST OF GOVERNANCE
The recurring drinking water crisis in Srinagar is not merely an engineering challenge; it is a test of governance.
A responsive administration plans before shortages occur, invests before infrastructure fails, communicates honestly with citizens, and measures success by the reliability of essential public services rather than the number of official announcements.
The people of Srinagar have shown remarkable patience over the years. Yet patience should never be mistaken for acceptance.
CONCLUSION
Srinagar’s drinking water crisis is no longer a seasonal inconvenience; it has become a recurring failure of planning and governance. A city blessed with some of the world’s richest freshwater resources should never force its citizens to wait anxiously for a few buckets of water each day.
The continuing hardships experienced by residents across the city—including in the HMT area despite being served by the Rangil Water Supply Scheme—and the recent protests by women in Batmaloo, Mehjoor Nagar and Basant Bagh underscore the urgent need for better planning, modern infrastructure, transparent communication and accountable governance.
The people deserve honest answers, efficient public services and lasting solutions—not routine explanations every summer. Until these systemic shortcomings are addressed, Srinagar will continue to represent one of the Valley’s most painful paradoxes: a city surrounded by water, yet a city where thousands of residents still wait every day for a single drop to flow from their taps.
The Author is Columnist. He can be reached at ahmadayaz08@gmail.com
