Union Minister of Water Resources Uma Bharti on Saturday applauded the efforts of the Chhattisgarh Government in water conservation and restoration of water bodies.
Addressing a three-day national conference ‘Jal Manthan’ on inter-linking of rivers at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi, Bharti said that Chhattisgarh Water Resources Minister Brijmohan Agrawal has done a remarkable work in the field of water management and the Ministry will incorporate his suggestions and the suggestions of heads of various States to make policies more people-friendly and responsive to the needs of the States.
The three-day conference covered the issues of micro-irrigation on the first day, inter-linking of rivers on the second day, and wide-ranging discussions on repair and restoration of water bodies were held on the third day, with State Irrigation Ministers and a range of other stakeholders engaged in water resource development and management to achieve synergy of water resource development with environment, wildlife and various social and cultural practices.
Speaking at the conference, Minister Agrawal said that ponds play a vital role in water conservation and suggested that check dams should be prepared on shallow rivers and rivulets to increase water-level.
He said that increased water-level will ensure availability of sufficient water for irrigation, employment for farmers and availability of food in the country.
He added the Government should work in the direction of deepening rivers and rivulets. He also raised the issue of construction of control structure on ‘Jora Naala’ by the Odisha Government. Elaborating on the issue, he said that the Odisha Government had agreed to construct a control structure on ‘Jora Naala’ by June 2014, but the work is yet to be completed.