Raipur
The second national conference of water ministers of the states was held in Udaipur under the ‘Jal Vision 2047’ of the Government of India. In this conference, the Ministers of Water Resources of various states discussed water conservation, water management and future water policy. The program was chaired by Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Manjhi on the occasion. Union Minister of Water Minister CR Patil, Union Minister of State Chaudhary, Deputy Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh Arun Saw and Water Resources of other states were present at the conference.
On this occasion, Deputy Chief Minister Arun Saw, who is representing the Government of Chhattisgarh, gave detailed information about the efforts of water conservation in Chhattisgarh state. Chhattisgarh’s Water Resources Minister Kedar Kashyap, while sharing the efforts being made towards water management in the state, said that the public participation is at the top in the country in water harvesting. More than two lakh structures have been created for water conservation and promotion in the state. The state we are from Chhattisgarh is the maternal grandfather of Prabhu Shri Ram. Dandakaranya region good with forests is in Chhattisgarh. Prabhu Shriram has spent the highest 10 years of his exile in Chhattisgarh.
He said that Chhattisgarh is a state rich in natural resources, there are more than 44 percent of the forests. The northern and southern part of the state of Chhattisgarh is good with plateau and forests. The central part of the state is the plains. For this reason, water availability in the state is uneven. To overcome this imbalance, water conservation and management are being given the best priority.
Minister Kedar Kashyap informed that scientific and sustainable development of water resources is being ensured under Chhattisgarh Water Policy 2022. In addition, the Ground Water Act 2022 has been implemented and the process of establishing the Ground Water Regulatory Authority is going on. To deal with the water crisis arising from climate change, the government is giving priority to micro irrigation, pipe irrigation network, catchment sector development and water-market campaign. He informed that water supply of Raipur and Dhamtari is ensured from Gangrel Dame Ravi Shankar reservoir in Chhattisgarh.
Minister Kedar Kashyap said that under ‘Jal Vision 2047’, the state government has set several important targets. The target is to increase the irrigation capacity from 37.82 percent to 56 percent. Water storage is to increase from 7900 million cubic meters to 16,000 million cubic meters and industrial water uses from 2208 million cubic meters to 6000 million cubic meters. Drinking water supply is aimed at increasing 584 million cubic meters from 2094 million cubic meters and groundwater withdrawals from 5757 million cubic meters to 8000 million cubic meters.
Minister Kashyap said that sustainable use of water resources is necessary. Giving the example of Rajasthan’s water bank model, he said that there is a need to increase community participation regarding water conservation. He finally appealed to all the states to ensure the continuous and scientific management of water resources, so that the water crisis can be avoided in the future.