SHILLONG:
The Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC) held the North East Water Conclave at the State Convention Centre, Shillong on August 26, wherein Public Health Engineering (PHE) minister Renikton Lyngdoh Tongkhar was the chief guest at the inaugural function.
Speaking on the occasion, Tongkhar said, “We are blessed to receive water free of cost but we tend to abuse water by using it excessively.”
Urging the gathering to save water at every opportunity and to develop a habit of being a water cultivator and to understand the value of water, he added that water is life and without water survival is impossible.
He also stressed that land near the catchment areas needs to be acquired by the government in order to preserve water sources and to protect it from other forms of human activities which might pose a big threat to the survival of these water sources.
He further informed that despite the abundant rainfall the state received, it is shocking to note that water cannot penetrate into the soil rather it just flows away to the lower altitude areas. An in-depth study related to this matter is also needed in order to find ways and means on how to contain the rain water which the state is blessed with.
The minister also expressed his concern on the rise in the number of water sources drying up, due to which the government schemes need to be shifted from one source to another, creating a lot of delay and inconvenience to the public at large.
Raising concerns on the drying up of check dams and rivers, he urged the gathering to seriously delve into the matter through the conclave because it is the need of the hour to find out why it is happening. He also urged all the stakeholders to work together to ensure the problems can be tackled and solved at the right time.
Other speakers who spoke included Dr SC Sadhu, Secretary Water Resource Department, Meghalaya, Aankur Patni, Executive Director, Ion Exchange India Ltd, Sourav Daspatnaik, Managing Director, Swachh Environment Private Limited, among others.
The inaugural function was followed by Plenary Sessions where speakers dwelt at length on the topics: Upgradation of Water & Waste water Infrastructure and Leakages in Water Conveyance Lines and Storage.