Villages learn to harvest water ahead of one more dry summer

Villages learn to harvest water ahead of one more dry summer
RUCHI AHUJA

NEW DELHI, MARCH 26: As the country braces for another dry, water-starved summer, several communities have learnt from the past and created reserves for themselves through the simple technique of water harvesting.

At a two-day meeting of representatives from 50 villages Mere Gaon ki Kahani, Meri Zubani organised by the Centre for Science and Environment, they shared their experiences, even though they didn’t share the same language.Hardevsinh Jadeja from Rajkot district described how the wealth of his village has almost tripled over the past five years after it successfully implementing various water harvesting techniques. Today, he too is prosperous enough to afford two jeeps and two cars, apart from a cellphone, of which he proudly declared: ‘‘I have a ghumta (roaming) number.’’

Jakalbehn Dheora from Bhavnagar described how, by harvesting rainwater from their rooftops, they get clean drinking water. Much of the water that flows down the streets is collected and filtered into underground storage facilities and can be used for purposes other than drinking. Earlier, much of the water in the area was all saline since the region is close to the sea. ‘‘It’s better than Bisleri,’’ she quipped.

Be it farmers from Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat or even Tamil Nadu, water scarcity is something everyone dreads. With almost 10 crore people and six crore livestock over six states threatened by an impending drought this year too, most of the villagers present wondered what it would be like in the years to come if communities do not band together to tackle the problem. Increasing dependence on the ground water for agriculture is also a major factor contributing to the depleting reserves. And with time-tested methods like baulis and underground tankas falling into disuse in drought-prone states like Gujarat and Rajasthan, communities are increasingly depending on the government to fulfill their needs.

Yeh sarkaar ka kaam hai(It is the government’s job),’’ they feel and exploit available resources without giving back to Nature what we take from it.