Water pollution, depleting resources major problem, says HP Governor

Tribune News Service

Mohali, December 10

The first international conference on Sustainable Water Management organised by the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) got underway here today to brainstorm and deliberate on various aspects of meeting the water requirements of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own water needs.

Being conducted under the aegis of the National Hydrology Project of the Ministry of Water Resources, the 2-day conference is aimed at providing an interactive platform for sharing path-breaking ideas and case studies in respect of flood and drought management, hydrology, e-flows, inter-basin water transfer, climate change, intelligent decision support system, storage projects, etc., to address pressing issues regarding sustainable management of water resources.

Pointing out that growing water pollution and decreasing groundwater level had emerged as the biggest problem today, Acharya Devvrat, Governor of Himachal Pradesh, in his inaugural address said understanding the naturally evolving water enhancement system and developing an action plan accordingly were the need of the hour.

Cautioning against the excessive exploitation and mismanagement of groundwater, he stressed the need to conserve groundwater resources and design, invest more in water recycling and rainwater harvesting and encourage crop rotation techniques to improve the soil structure and enhance water holding capacity of the soil.

Human survival and well-being as well as sustainable development cannot be achieved without a water secure world, he said.

DK Sharma, chairman, BBMB, gave a detailed presentation on water-related issues which the country is facing and the role and activities of the BBMB role in regulating water resources and power generation, while SM Husain, chairman, Central Water Commission, spoke about water resource management initiatives being undertaken in India.

Martijn van Elswijk, Flood Resilience Manager at Royal Haskoning DHV, Netherlands, and Dr Stuart Richardson, groundwater expert from Australia, shared their planning and management experiences in different countries. A large number of delegates from India and abroad are participating in the conference and several technical sessions are being organised to discuss a host of related issues.

Two-day conference

Being conducted under the aegis of the National Hydrology Project of the Ministry of Water Resources, the 2-day conference is aimed at providing an interactive platform for sharing path-breaking ideas and case studies in respect of flood and drought management, hydrology, e-flows, inter-basin water transfer, climate change, intelligent decision support system, storage projects, etc., to address pressing issues regarding sustainable management of water resources.

‘Need to conserve groundwater resources’

Cautioning against the excessive exploitation and mismanagement of groundwater, he stressed the need to conserve groundwater resources and design, invest more in water recycling and rainwater harvesting and encourage crop rotation techniques to improve the soil structure and enhance water holding capacity of the soil.