The paper discusses the natural resources accounting in the context of national/regional policy first, and then places water resource accounting within it. Subsequently, the methodology as well as study framework adopted for resource accounting are discussed. The findings of the case exercise on water accounting in NCT-Delhi are presented thereafter and an institutional framework for water resource management is drawn and discussed.
The paper argues for using water accounting as an appropriate tool for decision-making in water resource management through an illustrative case study of NCT-Delhi and goes on to provide a framework for resource accounting that can be adopted by the urban water authority (or the urban local government authority) and implemented to achieve the goals of water management cost effectively
The study finds that the balance of water resources, particularly of groundwater, indicates a deficiency, which has been rising and may further increase in future. Large wastewater discharges resulting from industrial sources have affected river water quality. The high willingness to pay (WTP) for water uses implies greater acceptance to compensate against damages, and thus the damage to water resources would have been large when compared to the avoidance costs. This gets reflected in the costs of ground water mined.
Groundwater has assumed a critical status due to excessive drawal of water in NCT Delhi, which has resulted in huge costs on society at large, particularly as it has resulted in the degradation of water quality. There exists a WTP for conserving various functional uses of water. The unsustainable trends in water resource management noticed through water accounts emphasize the need for addressing it in an operational framework comprising water budgeting, policy making and institutional mechanisms.
The paper goes on to discuss the relevance of each of these aspects for water resource management:
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