‘It’s time to be water literate’

Nalgonda: Telangana State Water Resources Development Corporation Chairman Veeramalla Prakash Rao on Monday underlined the need for imparting water literacy among the people. Speaking at a seminar “Water Literacy” at Mahatma Gandhi University, Prakash Rao said that there was a pressing need to educate the people on water-related knowledge, attitudes and behaviour because of the […]

Nalgonda: Telangana State Water Resources Development Corporation Chairman Veeramalla Prakash Rao on Monday underlined the need for imparting water literacy among the people. Speaking at a seminar “Water Literacy” at Mahatma Gandhi University, Prakash Rao said that there was a pressing need to educate the people on water-related knowledge, attitudes and behaviour because of the growing importance of sustainable water resource use and management. Though earth constituted 71 per cent and water constituted 29 per cent in the globe, only three per cent of the water was suitable for the consumption. Increasing pollution resulted in the depletion of groundwaters, which impacted the fertility of the soil. The yield of any crop would depend on the fertility of the soil, he noted.

Stating that water was the elixir of life, he said that awareness would be created among the public about the judicious use of water resources. Reminding that eight thousand litres of water was required for the production of one kilogram paddy crop, he asked the farmers to take up the cultivation of pulses which require 2,000 litres of water per one kilogram production of the crop, which would help in saving the water. All sections of the people also need to adopt water conservation methods, the Chairman exhorted.

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Retired Chief Engineer (Irrigation) M Shyam Prasad said that India was backward in water conservation. But, irrigation and drinking water facilities were significantly improved in Telangana State due to the irrigation projects and schemes taken up by the State government. He pointed out that fluoride-affected areas in Nalgonda district were getting safe and pure drinking water. Vice-Chancellor of the University Prof Gopal Reddy and others also attended the seminar.

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