On mission: Haryana to hold 2-day water conclave from April 26

Tribune News Service

Geetanjali Gayatri

Chandigarh, April 23

With the groundwater situation severely stressed in more than 40 per cent of Haryana’s villages, the state now intends to drive ‘water saving’ as an agenda through a two-day water conclave being organised from April 26.

During the conclave, more than 10 departments have been asked to present their two-year roadmap and action plan to achieve ‘Aspirational Target’ for water saving by undertaking various initiatives.

The conclave will feature purposeful sessions on various themes of agriculture, micro-irrigation, groundwater recharge and management of floodwater, reducing freshwater demand, maximising reuse of treated wastewater for non-potable purposes, optimising water demand, and augmenting supply in urban areas.

“With water being a critical resource for agriculture, industry, and daily needs, the need for a comprehensive and coordinated approach for managing water has become even more crucial in recent times,” says Devender Singh, Advisor (Irrigation) to CM Haryana.

He adds that the state has already undertaken various initiatives by launching schemes such as ‘Mera Paani Meri Virasat, creating institutions like the Haryana Water Resource Authority and Pond Authority in the last 3-4 years. “However, this mission has to be extended to other departments of the government as well to ensure the available supply is used judiciously,” he stated, adding that Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has taken the water-saving mission as a priority.

With a view to overcoming limitations of water availability and the rising demand for water, a block-level action plan to reduce the demand and supply gap by 25 per cent between 2023 and 2025 has been prepared by the state.

“In a first-of-its-kind water conclave, the authority has formulated an integrated water plan which is a compilation of the block-level water plan. Its objective is to understand the water gap and plan water-saving interventions at the demand and supply level. The groundwater is depleting quickly and our effort is that the government departments take ownership for water conservation,” said Keshni Anand Arora, Chairperson, Haryana Water Resource Authority.

Looking for sustainable solutions

The conclave aims to bring together stakeholders from the water sector, policymakers, local communities, civil society organisations and the private sector to develop effective and sustainable solutions to the challenges faced by the state.

About the ‘action plan’

It will focus on the supply-side water management interventions, which include groundwater recharge, pond rejuvenation, construction of surface water storages among others as also demand-side interventions which include micro-irrigation, crop diversification, conservation tillage among others.

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