What happens when water becomes scarce just as electricity demand begins to rise?
India faces an important challenge as it prepares for the potential impacts of a strong El Niño. An article published by The Economic Times on 14 October 2026 highlighted concerns about water availability, agricultural conditions, electricity demand, and heat risks following a monsoon season that recorded a 12.6% rainfall deficit. It also discussed the possibility of a hotter summer in 2027. These are potential risks, not inevitable outcomes. El Niño does not determine India’s rainfall on its own, and its effects can vary significantly across regions.
Nevertheless, these developments raise an important question about India’s climate resilience, water security, and energy security. Are our water, energy, and agricultural systems sufficiently prepared to manage climate uncertainty and periods of environmental stress?
1. Water Security and Energy Security: Why They Must Be Planned Together
Water security and energy security are closely interconnected. Water requires energy for pumping, treatment, and distribution, while agricultural and industrial activity can place additional pressure on electricity generation. Conversely, unreliable or expensive energy can make water distribution and agricultural irrigation more difficult.
Water infrastructure and energy infrastructure cannot be planned effectively in isolation. India’s long-term climate resilience will depend partly on how effectively these interconnected systems are designed, managed, and maintained to withstand periods of water stress and rising energy demand.
2. Sustainable Infrastructure: Does It Deliver Resilience When It Matters Most?
Through my professional experience with irrigation projects undertaken for the Government of Karnataka, including major and minor irrigation programmes and NABARD-funded projects, I gained an appreciation of the role water infrastructure can play in addressing rural water scarcity. Some projects focused on replenishing lakes and tanks that had dried up during periods of drought, with the objective of improving water availability for local communities.
A lake can be rejuvenated. An irrigation network can be completed. A reservoir can be constructed. But how effectively do these assets improve long-term water security when rainfall is inadequate and demand increases? The answer depends on more than construction. Water availability, infrastructure maintenance, groundwater conditions, operating practices, and local needs all influence long-term outcomes.
3. Climate Resilience Requires Coordinated Planning
Climate-related risks affect connected systems. Planning should consider drinking-water security and drought preparedness; agricultural planning and irrigation requirements; electricity demand and energy supply resilience; maintenance of critical infrastructure; and emergency response and protection of vulnerable communities.
It also requires coordination among government agencies, infrastructure operators, energy providers, agricultural institutions, and local communities. The central challenge is not simply to identify climate risks. It is to translate available information into decisions, responsibilities, and actions that reduce vulnerability.
For businesses and public institutions, this is also a matter of risk management, accountability, and governance. Are risks assessed in advance? Are responsibilities clearly defined? Are critical assets maintained? Are outcomes monitored? Can decision-makers identify potential failures before they become costly disruptions? These questions connect climate adaptation and environmental sustainability with effective infrastructure planning and responsible decision-making.
5. Measuring Climate Resilience: Beyond Infrastructure Construction
How should India measure the success of investments in water infrastructure, renewable energy, and climate adaptation? Infrastructure development is often discussed in terms of expenditure, capacity created, or projects completed. These measures are important, but they do not tell the entire story.
Resilience should also be assessed by whether systems continue to provide essential services during periods of stress, whether risks are identified early, whether infrastructure is maintained, and whether decisions are informed by reliable data and clear accountability.
Conclusion: From Building Infrastructure to Building Resilience
India’s response to climate uncertainty cannot depend on isolated interventions. Water security, renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, environmental protection, and infrastructure governance must work together. Decisions in one area can have consequences for another, making coordinated planning increasingly important.
The potential El Niño event provides an opportunity to examine these connections before future climate stresses test our systems. We may not be able to control rainfall or eliminate climate uncertainty. But we can improve how we prepare, allocate resources, maintain infrastructure, and measure results.
For professionals working in infrastructure, energy, agriculture, sustainability, and corporate governance, this raises an important question: Are we investing enough in climate resilience, or are we still measuring progress by the infrastructure we build rather than the risks we are able to withstand?
I welcome your perspectives.
This article is presented here as part of Rajesh Edara’s personal knowledge library. The original LinkedIn publication and PDF are available above.