Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Mar 19: Chief Secretary, Atal Dulloo, today chaired a meeting of Jal Shakti Department to review progress on water conservation initiatives under the Jal Shakti Abhiyan (JSA) across various districts of Jammu and Kashmir.
The meeting besides the Additional Chief Secretary (ACS), Jal Shakti Department was attended by Principal Secretary, APD; Commissioner Secretary, H&UDD; Commissioner Secretary, Social Welfare Department; Commissioner Secretary, Forests; Secretary, RDD; Secretary, YS&S, MD, Jal Jeevan Mission besides other concerned officers of JSD. Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir/Jammu and Deputy Commissioners participated online.
The meeting focused on accelerating efforts to mitigate water scarcity and ensure sustainable water resource management through a multi-pronged strategy.
The Chief Secretary directed the Deputy Commissioners (DCs) to lay special emphasis on framing district water conservation plans in convergence with schemes like MGNREGA, CAMPA, Capex and other relevant Government programs. He also stressed the need for GIS mapping of these plans to ensure systematic execution of these plans for effective conservation of water.
Recognizing the growing water crisis, Dulloo urged the officials to geo-tag all water supply sources and implement measures to recharge five groundwater structures in every village. He called for saturation of Government schools and Anganwadi centres with rainwater harvesting structures under the JSA-Catch the Rain initiative. He emphasised that all newly constructed buildings must incorporate rainwater harvesting mechanisms to promote sustainability.
To enhance public awareness and participation, the Chief Secretary instructed the officials to organize ‘Jal Shapath’ (Water Pledge) ceremonies in every Panchayat on March 22, commemorating World Water Day. He also directed the officers to launch a special cleanliness drive for water bodies from May 1-7, aligning with JSA objectives.
Additional Chief Secretary (ACS), Jal Shakti Department, Shaleen Kabra, gave detailed insights on the significant achievements under JSA-Catch the Rain in J&K, which included Water Conservation & Rainwater Harvesting under which 16,002 projects stands completed, with Kupwara (2,201), Rajouri (1,516) and Poonch (1,011) recording the highest numbers.
Kabra also apprised that about 6,622 water bodies were restored under Renovation of Water Bodies with major contributions from Shopian (530) and Pulwama (278). Similarly 9,369 groundwater recharge structures were developed across the districts improving water levels in the water bodies.
Additionally, under Watershed Development 54,446 projects were executed to prevent soil erosion and enhance water retention. Notably, in Kupwara (5,551), Rajouri (4,977) and Poonch (4,675) works were accomplished under this area of water conservation.
As far as afforestation efforts are concerned, 37,362 afforestation activities had been conducted to improve green cover, particularly in Rajouri (2,743) and Ramban (1,609).
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