Indian and International Experiences Ruth Meinzen-Dick Meyra Mendoza Water scarcity problems, escalating costs of developing new supply sources, rapid deterioration of existing water resource base, and growing demand for water from non-agricultural uses create an urgent need for reforms in water resource policies. Increasingly, the traditional policy prescription for centralised, bureaucratic control in allocating water is being challenged and new approaches in water allocation are emerging which go beyond technological innovations to look at the incentives each provides for water conservation.