Water Security in India ― Water Policy and Human Security in the Indian Region

This unique survey analyzes the interconnections between water and human security in India and its region. In India, population growth, development, and modernization have brought water policy to the top of the agenda of national and local governments. Transboundary water sharing, dams, and projects to provide water have become strategic geopolitical tools. Water is a key issue in the India-Pakistan-Kashmir dispute, and has strained the relations between India and Bangladesh. If the availability of water may cause conflict, it is also essential for human development and environmental sustainability. Cooperation between states is needed to increase economic development, and the book argues that the importance of water for human security calls for the creation of a security community, that is: a stable political alliance, which will contribute to peace and development in the region, with India playing a key role in water leadership.

This comprehensive survey of a vital geopolitical issue of the 21st century in an emerging country will be invaluable to anyone studying Indian politics, Asian politics, environmental policy, and international law.

Vandana Asthana is Associate Professor in the Government Department, Eastern Washington University, USA. She was a member of the planning process of nongovernmental organizations at the United Nations Prep Com Meet on Environment and Development.

A.C. Shukla is a Visiting Scholar at the Program in Arms Control, Disarmament, and International Security at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA. He headed the Biopollution Study Centre at Christ Church College, UK and Chhatrapati Sahu Ji Maharaj University in Kanpur, India.