ANNOUNCEMENTS
Water is a vitally important but challenging resource that does not adhere to man-made interventions while suffering from gross disparity in its distribution. Freshwater sources amount to a little more than 2.5 per cent of all available water on Earth, making it an indispensable natural resource that is vital to life on the planet. It is common knowledge that a mere one-third of this freshwater is accessible for use by 7.7 billion people as well as the trillions of species we share the planet with. In fact, access to freshwater and sanitation facilities are proclaimed as human rights by the UN as a reflection of the fundamental importance of these basic necessities in a person’s life (UN General Assembly, 2010). Karnataka is known to be one of the most water-stressed states in the country. In 2017, Karnataka was reported to be facing severe water crisis for the fourth consecutive season with less than 20 per cent water remaining in 9 of 12 dams in the state (Financial Express Online, 2017). This was followed by UN projections proclaiming Bengaluru as one of 11 cities most likely to fall short of drinking water by 2030 (BBC, 2018).Coupled with the widespread population explosion, it is hardly surprising that we find ourselves in the midst of a global water crisis that is now inching towards a probable third world war over water. Further, climate change impacts are exacerbating the issue of global water stress, resulting in deteriorating water quality, rising sea levels, and the increasing global threat of droughts as well as floods. The paper establishes the declining status of water resources using NDWI and MNDWI. This builds the basis for further exploration of water scarcity as a consequence of widespread water stress and its distinct impact on businesses and industries as well as other broad sectors of the economy in the following chapters. The focus of the paper is to establish the declining status of water resources and propose recommendations to businesses and policy makers to address the mismanagement of water resources in the state of Karnataka India Water Tool 3.0, Karnataka, Water Policy, Water Risk, Water Stress
