International Journal of Engineering Research ISSN:2319-6890 (online),2347-5013(print) Volume No.7, Issue Special 1, pp : 54-59 11-12 Jan. 2018 DOI : 10.5958/2319-6890.2018.00020.X NCETA@2018 Page 54 Water Sensitive Development – An Approach to Smart Cities Dipanwita Chakravarty 1 , Sandeep Sabharwal 2 1 Professor Bharati Vidyapeeth College of Architecture 2 Assistant Vice President, Reliance Foundation Email: dipanwita.chakravarty@gmail.com, sandeep.sabharwal@reliancefoundation.org Abstract: Water is an important natural resource which is becoming scarcer day by day. Conservation of water and exploring alternative sources is therefore important in the given context. The present paper addresses the issue of water sensitive development on a regional scale and tries to suggest skeletal guidelines for an action plan to be implemented as a part of conceptualization, formulation and implementation of Smart cities. Keywords: Water Sensitive development, Integrated Design, Flood Management, Contemporary towns, Regional Planning, Policy guidelines 1.0 Introduction India has been facing acute water shortage over the past years with more than a quarter of its population severely deprived of water. The situation in rural India is bad with farmers committing suicide, armed guard deployed to protect water and trains carrying millions of gallons of water to quench the thirsty areas. In Urban areas the situation is no better, with most of the metropolis in India reeling under water crisis. Since two third of India’s cultivable land is dependent on rain –fed irrigation food security is an important issue linked to water crisis as stated by Mr. K. D. Sharma in Current Science No. 11 that rain-fed agriculture irrigating 65% of India’s land will play a major role in India’s food security and sustainable economic growth, and there are large opportunities for gains from adaptation and new investments in water management under the proposed National Food Security Act. With subsidized electricity farmers draw up groundwater recording an annual fall of water table at the rate of 0.3 m to 4 m, as mentioned in the newspaper the economist May 25 th 2016. Water starved regions often grow water hungry crops like paddy cotton and sugarcane. Water related violence have spread from Urban slums to sophisticated neighborhoods of Bangalore following the Cauvery water dispute. Following these footsteps it is not unlikely that water woes would have unprecedented consequences. The National Water Policy 2012 identifies that conservation, distribution and minimizing wastage through proper development and resource management is the key to address this problem. The five identified goals of the Mission as enunciated by Ministry of Water Resources, River development and Ganga Rejuvenation, are Comprehensive water data base, water conservation, augmentation and preservation, attention to vulnerable areas, increasing water use efficiency and integrated water management. 2.0 Water Sensitive Development India tops the list of countries with the greatest number of people being deprived of safe drinking water (The State of World’s Water 2017), despite having a high average annual rainfall. Rainfall, being the primary source of fresh water, the concept behind conserving water is to harvest it. India, despite its different geographical locations, wide climatic diversity and varied cultural perspectives, has been traditionally conserving rain water in almost all parts of the country. These are century old practices many of which have been forgotten in recent times. The methodology of conservation in different parts of the country is different depending on local need and availability but the ultimate intent is conservation of rain water and storing it for use during drier months. A few practices that are commonly adopted in different parts of the country are Kul or channels carrying molten glacier water in Himachal Pradesh, Naula or surface water harvesting method typical to the hill areas of Uttaranchal, Khatris, Zobo or conservation of impounding run off in Nagaland and Eris in Tamil Nadu which have played important role in maintaining ecological balance as flood control systems, preventing soil erosion and wastage as run- off, during periods of heavy rainfall while recharging groundwater. In the Urban context also water sensitive development was witnessed, starting from Harappan Civilization that focused on the Great Bath House and the drainage channels. The city of Dholavira located in Khadir island of the Rann of Kutch, seen today as a fortified quadrangular city set in harsh and arid land, was once a thriving metropolis with water conservation techniques from rain water harvesting consisting of large rock cut reservoirs, rock cut wells and huge stone drains. One of the most ornate structure in Gujarat the Rani ki Bav, at Bundi iis a magnificent example of ornate stonework around a stepwell for water harvesting. The Jahaj Mahal at Mandu, built by anonymous architect of Ghiasuddin Khalji, the Delhi emperor incorporated several principles of solar passive architecture and water sensitive planning such as, placement of fenestration, use of rainwater, integration of landscape, design of opening and jaalis, with a mix of playfulness and elegance, where wind and water were woven through the built fabric (Grover Satish , Architecture during the Mughals) 3.0 Methodology The present paper aims to explore the development of contemporary towns where principles of water sensitive development have been implemented and tries to understand whether these methods can be applied to the modern town planning. It also looks at a few successful examples of