When the blue planet feels the blues: Cutting Paani

For generations, we have been calling our planet the ‘Blue Planet.’ It’s pretty logical when you think about how 97% of her surface is water. But, I guess, today our planet is facing some other kind of blue. And Samuel Taylor Coleridge worded it more beautifully than I ever could, in his Rime of the Ancient Mariner.

"Water, water, everywhere,

And all the boards did shrink;

Water, water, everywhere,

Nor any drop to drink."

The fact is that out of this seemingly enormous quantity of water, only 1% is fresh water, fit for our consumption, fit for life. And it is running out faster than we can imagine.

Why wouldn’t it?

We produce offspring after offspring, create more and more people even as our resources continue to shrink. There are now 7 billion of us, to be supported and sustained by one lonely planet.

We build ourselves houss, hotels and hot shot complexes by diverting the course of rivers. We block them, impediment their flow with dams and reservoirs and turbines. Our rivers have revolted. While some swell up to destroy the very civilisation they once birthed, others have simply evaporated.

Rains are not enough to grow all our crops. To quench the deepening thirst of parched land. Our nations are getting drier. Hotter. More extreme.

Water conservation may have been an occupation of the fancy decades ago, but it is a reality today, a need, and an emergent one at that. This was the bad news.

 Now, time for something good. We are to blame for the mess we find ourselves in, but we are also the ones who can do something about it.

So what can we, as individuals and as families do to save the elixir that saves us?

1.      At cafes and restaurants:

#CuttingPaani #InitiativebyLivpure makes it unbelievably easy to spare water at cafes and restaurants. Watch this video to know how.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3VhznzIznM

In addition, when you go out, you will find out that some restaurants charge for bottled water. So, what can you do, to save the environemnet as well as your hard earned money? Carry tap water in bottles from your house. In most urban cities, the tap water is potable, thanks to tireless efforts by purifying agencies. And where they are not, well, Livpure will come to your rescue. Super easy, right? Also, your home bottled water will be a good friend for you on the street, when you can’t find any other alternative sources. So, you will be set for the summer.

2.      At home:

#CuttingPaani works at home, too. Here’s a glimpse:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KoyQotJSzs

So, don’t fill up glasses to the brim, only to let water go waste when nobody wishes to drink it anymore. And, if even after cutting the water to half a glass, there is some left over, use it to water plants in your kitchen garden or collect all of it and use it to sweep or wash the floor etc. Using pipes to clean windows or water plants drains away precious gallons in minutes. And also raises your water bill. So, go the traditional mug and bucket way. If not always, maybe sometimes. The mug and bucket work well while bathing, too, instaed of waiting for bathtubs to fill up or squandering water away under showers. Switch taps off while you brush. Pay attention to tanks overflowing. Get repairs in time. After all, each drop conserved is an extra drop that your children won’t have to fight over.  Right?

3.      At the office:

By now, you already know what to do! Consume water judiciously at meetings, during presentations and while lunching with your buddies at office. Reuse glasses too, while you’re at it so as to add a little less to the mountain of trash that is sitting on our planet. Okay?

4.      Everywhere:

Fight for water conervation and responsible usage of the most necessary sustenance that not only humans, but also other forms of life, need. Nobody can survive without water for more than 3 days. Our bodies are 70% water. Water literally, helps us stand on our feet, breathe, think, act, cry, smile, love, live!

So, what are you waiting for?  Let's make sure our blue planet remains in the pink of her health. Now! Sign this petition, be good to go:

https://www.change.org/p/cuttingpaani