Stressing on the importance of water in protecting mankind, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said that every drop matters and for that UP government had started the ‘Per Drop, More Crop’ campaign.
Addressing the closing ceremony of the Groundwater Week programme (Bhujal Saptah) organised at Lok Bhavan, the chief minister said that in a bid to tackle the problem of depleting groundwater level, the state government enacted a legislation in the year 2019.
“Under this, it was made mandatory for new residential and commercial buildings to have provisions for rainwater harvesting. This resulted in an increase in the number of rainwater harvesting systems in the state, which will meet future needs,” he added.
He said, “We have to collect rainwater because the higher the groundwater level, the more pure water we will get. On the contrary, the lower this level goes, the more complaints of arsenic and fluoride will be seen. This will also increase the risk of diseases.”
“Adopting the campaign of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to save water in the state, a campaign of ‘Per Drop, More Crop’ is being run in the state,” he added.
The chief minister said that the Groundwater Week programme, which began on July 16, was being formally concluded on Friday, but in reality, the programme would end on Saturday with a massive tree plantation.
“Under the tree plantation drive, 30 crore saplings will be planted in one day throughout the state, and the programme will be completed with five crore sapling plantations on the occasion of Independence Day. We all have to actively participate in the programme,” he said.
The chief minister said that the government had been implementing the Har Ghar Nal programme to provide tap water to every household. “People used to carry water on their heads for long distances in places like Bundelkhand and Vindhya earlier but now every home has access to clean water with ease. The government is working to provide RO water in these areas,” he said.
“If you wish ‘Har Ghar Jal Yojana’ to run successfully for a long time, then all the people of the state will have to come forward and understand the importance of water to increase the ground water level because water requirements can be met by 80 per cent to 90 per cent through groundwater,” he added.
The chief minister said that the double-engine government had made significant strides toward water conservation through Mission Amrit Sarovar at the district and block levels as part of the ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav,’ where Uttar Pradesh stood first.