Tura/Resubelpara:
The World Water Day was observed at Mission Compound Field, Tura, in West Garo Hills (WGH) and Bakra Multi Facility Hall, Resubelpara in North Garo Hills (NGH), on March 22, with the Public Health Engineering (PHE) department organising programmes aimed at highlighting the importance of water, particularly freshwater and solving the water crisis through awareness and taking effective measures.
Deputy Commissioner of West Garo Hills Swapnil Tembe, and Assistant Commissioner of North Garo Hills Tadingchi N Sangma addressed the gathering at the respective venues, and enlightened the gathering on the sustainable use of water given the water scarcity across the globe.
Addressing the gathering at Tura, Tembe highlighted on the importance of conservation of water by ground water recharge, etc and said that the District Administration along with concerned departments is trying their best to conserve water through various means in order to ensure that we have enough water to use for our daily activities. Moreover, he urged everyone to install rain water harvesting in our homes and institutions so that we have enough water to use, especially during the dry season.
Likewise. Speaking to the gathering at Resubelpara as a chief guest, Sangma enlightened the gathering on the pressing issue of water crisis all around the world and added that due to rapid urbanization and clearing of forests for human settlement the problem of water scarcity has become inevitable. “Since water and forests are inter-related there would be no water without forests and no forests without water”, she added.
Tembe on the other hand, advised everyone to use water judiciously and to close the tap if it is left open anywhere. He also congratulated all the winners of various competitions adding that participation helps in the overall personality development of an individual.
She implored upon the gathering to understand the significance of preservation of water catchment areas and fresh water resources; rain water harvesting and conservation of forests.
Highlighting some of the government schemes designed for the welfare of the people at large and in particular of the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) scheme, Sangma noted that for effective implementation of any scheme, people and the community need to have a ‘sense of ownership’. “Government’s effort alone is not enough; peoples’ participation is needed for successful implementation of the schemes as this would enable them to be part of the programme,” she said.