Ageing large dams are the blind spots of India’s water policies. More than 4,000 large dams reach the minimum age of 50 by 2050, preparing the ground for a future water crisis. The consequences and probable remedies of such a crisis are analysed.
A water bureaucrat’s response to the critique of the Mihir Shah Committee report by M Dinesh Kumar et al (“New ‘Water Management Paradigm’: Outdated Concepts?” EPW, 9 December 2017) contends that by opposing the much-needed restructuring of the central water agencies, Kumar et al want to preserve the status quo and derail the attempt to reform the water sector.
