Admn must come out with concrete ways to preserve groundwater: Envoy

Attari (Moga), October 18

Heads of five Indian missions, including that to the Netherlands and Russia, visited Moga on Tuesday to inspect the developmental works being done under the Aspirational Districts Programme started by the Union government.

They appreciated the people-friendly policies and unique initiatives taken by the district administration for improvement of socio-economic indicators.

The five ambassadors of India who visited Moga were Reenat Sandhu (The Netherlands), Pawan Kapoor (Russia), Dr Virender Kumar Paul (Kenya), Mohinder Pratap Singh (Mongolia) and Sanjeev Tandon (Togo).

The High Commissioner of India to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu, and ambassador in Qatar Dr Deepak Mittal came to Moga, but skipped the local visits and went to Wagah in Amritsar to see the Retreat Ceremony on the Indo-Pak border.

District Magistrate Kulwant Singh apprised the visitors about the efforts of the administration to improve the socio-economic status of small and marginal farmers and skill development in the education sector.

While giving suggestions regarding the implementation of the schemes and policies of the administration, they told the DM to prepare some good proposals on international cooperation, if needed, for development in various fields.

While emphasising the need for water conservation, Reenat Sandhu said the administration must come out with concrete proposals to preserve the fast-depleting groundwater. The contamination of underground water must also be stopped by minimising the use of fertilisers and pesticides, she said.

She suggested that diversification of crops must be given a priority to conserve groundwater. “Moga can become a role model for the country in sustainable agriculture practices by turning away from the cultivation of paddy,” she said.

Pawan Kapoor told district-level officials of various departments that more emphasis should be given on skill development.

The delegation also saw work being done under the Aspirational District Programme at Attari village. Progressive farmers have adopted baler machines and super-seeders for management of crop residues.

The DM said among the 112 aspirational districts of the country, the performance of Moga was good as it ranked at the 26th position in the country.