‘Water biggest worry of future’

Listing water scarcity as the biggest challenge for Maharashtra in future, Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Saturday said the water problem being faced at present although the worst in decades was only the tip of the iceberg. Unless long-term measures are taken to improve things, a huge water crisis would follow in the years to come, warned the NCP president.

Pawar was speaking at the inauguration of a new water tank constructed by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) at Taljai Hills.

"The present water scarcity is just a whiff of things to come. Until and unless we learn how to use water in a planned and proper manner, the state would face a severe water crisis in future," he said.

Pawar said the present drought was one of the worst in the history of the state and added that two of the three big dams in Maharashtra, Jaikwadi and Ujjani, have run dry. "The months from April to June would be very difficult for the state and we will have to take extreme measures to provide drinking water to people," he said.

Highlighting the importance of taking water planning seriously, Pawar cited an instance. He said that during water scarcity in the past, the state government had asked the PMC to clean up wells in Pune city and keep the Peshwa water system working. "However, once rain lashed the city, the water situation got better and the PMC left the project high and dry," he said.

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