Nation-wide aggressive campaign on water conservation needed: V-P Venkaiah Naidu

Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu on Thursday pitched for conservation of water and said there was a need for taking up an aggressive nation-wide campaign on the crucial importance of saving the natural resource.

Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu on Thursday pitched for conservation of water and said there was a need for taking up an aggressive nation-wide campaign on the crucial importance of saving the natural resource. Water was essential and it has to be conserved for sustainable development. It was time for every citizen to realise the gravity of the situation and adopt water-saving measures at the earliest, he said at the event.

Naidu said he was glad that the Centre had taken several measures, including creation of the Jal Shakti Ministry, to give an impetus to integrated management of water resources, promote conservation, recharge and resuse. "There is a need for undertaking an aggressive nationwide campaign on the crucial importance of water conservation," he said at the Mission Paani's Jal Pratigya Diwas event organised by News18 and Harpic through video-conference facility.

Pointing out to a study which revealed that only three per cent of fresh water was available on earth and that too only 0.5 per cent for drinking, he said India constitutes more than 18 per cent of the world population but has only four per cent of world's renewable water resources. "We will be jeopardizing our own future and that of the future generations unless every citizen becomes a water warrior in saving every drop of water," Naidu said.

Citing a report by NITI Aayog which has estimated that the country's demand for potable water would outstrip supply by 2030, Naidu said there was a need to intensify water conservation efforts through people's movements. "We have to find sustainable solutions before we run out of options. Conscious efforts need to be made at the household level and by communities, industries, and local bodies to supplement the efforts of governments in promoting water conservation", he said.

Sustained measures have to be taken to prevent pollution of water bodies, contamination of groundwater and proper treatment of domestic and industrial waste water, Naidu added.PTI VIJ VS VS.

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