Plan to harvest rainwater in Kangra for irrigation

Nurpur, December 20

The Kangra district administration is preparing an action plan to conserve rainwater to be used for fire safety and irrigation purposes. Daihan and Ramehar gram panchayats in the Bhawarna development block of the district have been selected for the implementation of the plan on a pilot basis.

As per official information, the Rural Development Department will work as the nodal agency while the Jal Shakti, Forest and Agriculture departments will coordinate with each other to make the plan successful. Deputy Commissioner Nipun Jindal said that rainwater harvesting and its judicious use were the main objectives of the action plan. He added that under the plan, rainwater harvesting structures had been built in government and private buildings in the rural areas of Daihan and Ramehar gram panchayats.

Jindal said, “Instructions have been given for the preparation of a complete database of these structures so that water from these can be supplied to fields for irrigation purpose through wells or pipelines.”

He said the Agriculture Department had been asked to provide data about the condition of existing traditional wells and initiate steps for water storage by constructing check dams in the two gram panchayats. The Forest Department had been directed to prepare a plan for the use of water stored in Amrit Sarovars while the Jal Shakti Department had been told to prepare a plan for using the water of storage structures for irrigation purpose.