(a) whether the Union Government has asked the States to design the bridges so that they serve as Bridge-cum-Bandhara for conserving the rain water and ensuring recharge of underground water table in the past;
(b) if so, the details thereof and the names of the States which have submitted their proposals, so far; and
(c) the details of action taken by the Government on these proposals?
THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT AND GANGA REJUVENATION (PROF. SANWAR LAL JAT)
(a)to (c) Ministry of Rural Development has informed that as a water conservation initiative, permission was given to the States to design the bridges so as to serve, wherever feasible, as Bridge-cum-Bandhara for storage of rain water. The depth of water storage should be limited to 3.5 meters. In such cases, however, prior commitment of the State Government for operation and maintenance of Bridge-cum- Bandhara has to be obtained. In order to develop and prepare the standardized drawings for this Bridge-cum-Bandhara, the Ministry of Rural Development has engaged Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology (VINIT), Nagpur as a consultant who have already prepared typical design and the drawings. First Workshop to sensitize the neighbouring States of Maharashtra on the issue was held by VINIT on 16th April, 2015 at Nagpur. No specific proposals have been received from the States in this regard.