It has been a glorious fortnight so far. It rained incessantly for most of it, alleviating the anxieties of Capetonians. It also further pushed Day Zero, hopefully, in the direction of eternity.
While this could be a harbinger of bountiful rains this winter, respite could be a much-desired novelty and a far-fetched possibility.
Both we Indians and South Africans, particularly Capetonians, are aware of the fickle-mindedness of the rain gods.
And we know better than to blame meteorologists. (Disclaimer: This doesn’t absolve them of their role as the punching bags.)
Be that as it may, the opportunity presented out of this crisis hasn’t been missed.
The Mother City has led by example. The long-term benefits accrued out of this process could broadly be categorised into two segments: the creation of physical, environment-friendly assets and voluntary (and sometimes involuntary but permanent) behavioural change.
Both will stand the City, as well its citizens, in good stead. Let us dwell upon the two in detail.
We keep on hearing how the tourism industry responded to this severe crisis so as not to dilute the experience of tourists visiting Cape Town in their quest to tick off items on their bucket lists.
Not only was the water usage brought down manyfold through use of technology and innovative, yet simple solutions, the effort at recycling stands to reduce the stress on municipal works for ever.
Other industries responded in their own unique ways.
However, the greater contribution, in my view, is the behavioural change brought about by the crisis.
The much quoted and much documented resilience exhibited by Capetonians in these dire times will not only inspire compatriots in South Africa and fellow human beings in other parts of the world, but also become a matter of lore in ages to come. It’s already being talked about.
Responding to the call, average water consumption was promptly brought down and continues the downward spiral to achieve the targeted figure of 450million litres per day.
Instead of dwelling and mulling over the crisis, fault-finding and playing the blame game, Capetonians quickly set about changing their habits and executing solutions to minimise, conserve and recycle the precious resource.
Lest one be cynical about the benefits emerging out of the behavioural changes, it will be apt to remind readers that these have been instinctively hard-wired among the children.
Efforts undertaken and practices adopted at schools and homes have influenced children in innumerable ways. And this effect is across the board.
This reminds me of the days of my own childhood, when my mother would scold me if I left a tap open or fooled around wasting water in my little kiddy games.
Much to my chagrin, I would be asked to run and properly close that leaking neighbourhood tap. We were constantly reminded of the need to conserve resources, be it water or electricity.
My mother still complains about wastage in the RO systems commonly used to purify water in India. Apparently, three parts of water are flushed down to purify one part of water. Wasteful indeed.
She dutifully collects the discarded water to use for irrigation purposes or toilet flushes.
As a child, I became my own father thus. Seasonal shift could lead to generational shift!
As fate would have it, I am uniquely placed here in Cape Town at this time of crisis to pass lessons of life on to my own child. Life does cometh full circle.
Times of crisis like the one in Cape Town tell us the path to the future is often guided by the compass of the past.
And talking about past, our traditional wisdom does offer us some solutions to deal with crises of the present.
Rajendra Singh, who is popularly known as the “Water Man of India” and has won the Magsaysay award and Stockholm Water Prize (referred to as the Nobel Prize for water) for his efforts in water conservation, applied time-tested traditional means to conserve water in the arid province of Rajasthan in India, in the process turning vast swathes of arid land into a green belt.
He revived the use of “johad”, traditional rainwater harvesting structures which had fallen into disuse with the passage of time, and helped in restoring soil quality, recharging ground water, reviving rivers and restoring endemic flora and fauna.
The famous “Chipko” movement (hug the tree movement) in India saw people physically embracing a tree (“Chipko” means to stick oneself to someone/something in Hindi) to save them from being chopped off by unscrupulous timber traders.
The messaging was clear - a tree is as important as a human life and the fulcrum of efforts towards environmental conservation.
On March 26, Google celebrated the 45th anniversary of the “Chipko” movement with a doodle.
Such extraordinary initiatives have reinforced the importance of ordinary and time-tested processes. These have also helped us realise the value of ordinary pleasures, like a full-fledged shower.
One doesn’t know yet when one would have a full and relaxed shower in Cape Town next, but whenever that time comes, and I pray it comes soon, the shower will not be without guilt. Such has been the behavioural change. But I guess it will be a good guilt and reinforce the hard-wiring of lifestyle changes.
This probably proves the much-quoted dictum that a wasted crisis is a golden opportunity lost. Not to imply I want another crisis, though!
* Shukla is Consul-General of India in Cape Town