Q1. What are the reasons for urban water logging? What steps need to been taken in this regard? (250 words)
Paper & Topic: GS III à Environmental Conservation
- Model Answer:
- Urban water logging causes include:
- Natural Causes:
- Heavy downpours, cyclonic storms, and thunderstorms are meteorological factors.
- Hydrological factors include overbank flow channel networks and high tides that obstruct coastal city drainage.
- Anthropogenic Causes:
- Unplanned urbanisation: This is the main factor contributing to urban flooding. Blocking of natural drainage channels by construction work and encroachment on catchment regions, riverbeds, and lakebeds are both serious issues.
- Urbanization has a number of significant hydrological implications, including:
- Increased water demand, which frequently exceeds natural resource availability;
- Increasing wastewater, harming the environment and fouling rivers and lakes
- In Indian cities, lake destruction is a significant problem. Lakes have the capacity to control water flow and store extra water. However, the risk of flooding has increased due to the contamination of natural urban water bodies and their conversion for construction purposes.
- Paving surfaces results in less infiltration because it enhances surface flow and minimises ground absorption.
- Decreased stream base flow, increased groundwater usage, and decreased groundwater recharge.
- Storm-water Drainage systems: These were created to handle 12 to 20 mm of rainfall. Given the increased rainfall in Indian metropolitan areas, these antiquated designs are no longer appropriate. Another element that makes cities in India susceptible to flooding is the outdated and poorly maintained drainage system.
- Encroachments: In many cities and towns, encroachments are a significant issue. Alongside rivers and watercourses, settlements began to expand into towns and cities. This has led to an increase in water flow that is proportional to the urbanisation of the watersheds. Flooding has occurred as a result of the natural drains’ declining capacity. From 644 wetlands in 1956, there are now only 123 in 2018.
- Extreme weather occurrences have been brought on by climate change, which is the result of numerous anthropogenic activities.
- Poor Solid Trash Management System: Dumping of construction debris into drains and the disposal of household, commercial, and industrial waste all considerably lower the capacity of these systems. The accumulation of non-biodegradable trash, silt in storm-water drains, improper waste management practises, and building debris are all serious issues.
- Reducing Seepage: Indian cities are growing more water-impervious due to increased building as well as the type of materials utilised (hard, a non-porous construction material that makes the soil impervious).
- Lax Implementation: Despite the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA(a )’s regulatory tool) inclusion of provisions for rainwater harvesting, sustainable urban drainage systems, etc., user uptake and enforcement remain poor.
Absence of Community Participation: Flood control strategies developed without the impacted community’s input are unsustainable because they fall short of the requirements of important parties.
- Steps that must be taken include:
- Need for Comprehensive Engagement:
- The municipal authorities cannot contain urban floods of this magnitude by itself. Without coordinated and targeted investments of time, effort, and money, flooding cannot be controlled.
- Municipal corporations should collaborate on this task along with the Metropolitan Development Authorities, National Disaster Management Authority, State revenue and irrigation departments.
- Such investments can only be made in a mission-driven organisation with the active involvement of metropolitan-scale civil society organisations.
- Create Sponge Cities:
- A sponge city is designed to increase a city’s ability to absorb and use the water that falls upon it.
- Rainwater is absorbed by sponge cities, where it is organically filtered by the soil before entering metropolitan aquifers.
- This enables the use of urban or peri-urban wells to draw water from the earth.
- This water is simply treatable and suitable for use in city water systems.
- Stricter Wetland Regulations:
- Wetland management must be given more attention, and local communities must be included.
- Without a doubt, there needs to be stringent regulation of terrain modification and a moratorium on further changes to the landscape.
- New porous technologies and materials need to be promoted or required on a wide scale in order to increase the city’s capacity to absorb water.
These technologies include green roofs and harvesting systems in buildings, bioswales and retention systems, permeable materials for roads and pavement, drainage systems that allow storm water to trickle into the earth, and permeable materials for roads and pavement.
Q2. What are the duties of the Chief Minister according to Article 167 of the Indian Constitution? (250 words)
Paper & Topic: GS III à Indian Constitution
- Model Answer:
- According to Article 164 of the Constitution, the governor is to nominate the Chief Minister.
- The chief minister of the state is chosen from among the members of the party with the most votes in the assembly elections.
- Powers and capabilities:
- Regarding the Council of Ministers:
- Only those individuals who are suggested by the Chief Minister are appointed as ministers by the governor.
- He divides up the ministers’ portfolios and rearranges them.
- Since the Chief Minister is in charge of the council of ministers, his resignation from office could result in its dissolution.
- Regarding the Governor:
- The Chief Minister serves as a liaison between the Governor and the state council of ministers in accordance with Article 167 of the Constitution.
- When it comes to choosing the chairman and members of the State Public Service Commission, the State Election Commission, etc., CM advises the Governor.
- Regarding the state legislature:
- He makes all of the policy announcements on the home’s floor.
He advises the Governor to dissolve the legislative body.
- Other Purposes:
- He is the State Planning Board’s chairman.
- He serves by rotation as the vice-chairman of the relevant zonal council and is in office for a year at a time.
- He participates in both the Governing Council of NITI Aayog and the Inter-State Council, both of which are presided over by the prime minister.
- He serves as the state government’s principal spokesperson.
- In times of crisis, he serves as the top crisis manager at the political level.
- As the head of the state, he interacts with various groups of the populace and receives notes from them outlining their issues, concerns, and so forth.
He is the services’ political leader.
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