The Parliamentary Consultative Committee Meeting for the Ministry of Water Resources was today held here in New Delhi under the chairmanship of Harish , Union Minister for Water Resources.
outlined the multi dimensional challenges emerging in the water sector especially the demand side constraints viz., ever growing population, and expanding developmental activities causing the decrease in the availability of water sources due to expanding water needs of other sectors of our economy, couples with uneven distribution of water resources in space and time.He said access to safe water for drinking and other domestic needs, continues to be a problem in many areas due to the impact of climate change the per capita water availability, which is already low is going to decline further due to the population growth, leading us towards water scarcity. Hence available water needs to be conserved through strategies that include additional water storage, artificial recharge, rainwater harvesting, watershed development, inter-basin transfer, desalination, recycle, reuse, efficient use of water, maximizing value from water, etc, he added.
The minister said it has now obligatory to frame policies which recognize water as an integral part of the eco-system, a precious natural resource with a social and economic value and to implement these policies for the prosperity and well being of mankind.He referred to the National Water Policy, recently adopted by the National Water Resource Council, under the Chairmanship Prime Minister and said it has emphasized efficient use of water and better demand management for conservation of this precious resource. We need the continuous support of all stakeholders for achieving our goals.
The minister informed the members that his ministry has also launched National Water Mission as one of the eight National Missions under National Action Plan for Climate Change. He main objective of the National Water Mission is “conservation of water, minimizing wastage and ensuring its more equitable distribution both across and within States through integrated water resources development and managementâ€