Chandigarh, June 28- The results of Mera Pani Meri Virasat Yojana, which was launched two years ago by Haryana Chief Minister, Sh. Manohar Lal, during COVID-19, has started showing results at the ground level. Today the Chief Minister inaugurated 7,500 micro irrigation schemes from Panchkula.
In the programme organized by the Micro Irrigation and Command Area Development Authority (MICADA), five mobile vans of micro irrigation were flagged off and along with it, two vehicles were dispatched from all the districts so that the message of water conservation can reach the general public. The Chief Minister said that water is life and we have to save water for future generations. It has become a challenge today. He said that the third world war would probably be a war over water. That's why we have to use every drop of water wisely. Keeping this in mind, Prime Minister, Sh. Narendra Modi had given a call for One Drop More Crop and I am happy that Haryana has carried forward this vision of the Prime Minister.
He said that today in the age of technology, new experiments have started in irrigation method. Drip and sprinkler are such systems in micro irrigation, that help save maximum water and at the same time can get good yield. Water is used for drinking and irrigation and we have to use a scheme like micro irrigation to optimize its usage. Paddy, cotton and sugarcane use more water. Agricultural scientists say that more than 3,000 liters of water is needed to prepare one kg of rice.
The Chief Minister said that in the 1960s, when the country was facing a shortage of food grains, the slogan of Green Revolution was given at that time and the farmers of Punjab and Haryana made the biggest contribution in the Green Revolution and made the country self-sufficient in food grains. He said that we became self-sufficient in the matters of food grains at the cost of using excessive use of chemical food grains and exploitation of ground water. However, today we have to seek alternative methods. Micro irrigation is also a step in that direction. He said that the interest of the farmers towards Mera Pani Meri Virasat Yojana, which was started two years ago during the Covid period, has increased and in the paddy-dominated districts of the state, farmers have started growing other alternative crops in place of paddy. He said that I am happy to inform that in the first year, instead of paddy, other crops were grown on 98,000 acres and this time a target of 2 lakh acres has been set.
There is nothing more valuable than water
The Chief Minister said that it is well known that there is nothing more valuable than water. If we pass on the inheritance of water along with land to the future generation, then there is no greater contribution than this. He said that about 200 water treatment plants are operating in the state and more than 50 percent of the treated water is being reused for irrigation and other works. Natural water sources also have to be saved, for this we have to make plantations, dams etc. but we cannot produce water. We have to use the available water carefully. Giving the example of Israel, the Chief Minister said that Israel is such a country in the world, where there is a lot of water scarcity and the agriculture is done by drip irrigation. Haryana Government has also signed several agreements with Israel for Water Conservation and Centre of Excellence in Fruits and Vegetables. He said that we should follow Israel’s example in water conservation.
Haryana has realized the vision of the Prime Minister
It is noteworthy that for water conservation, from Jal Shakti Abhiyan to other schemes like Har Ghar Nal Se Jal and other water conservation schemes, Haryana has started early. Apart from Irrigation and Water Resources Department, MICADA, The Haryana Pond and Waste Water Management Authority are also working on various water conservation schemes.
The Chief Minister said that we have to run on excellent water management. Haryana is such a state in the country where the availability of canal water is less, we have only one river, Yamuna, from which we get water.
The Chief Minister said that today water conservation has become a challenge for us. The Prime Minister of the country is concerned about this and plans are being made to implement water conservation in all the states. He said that we use 85 percent of the water in open irrigation and we have to reduce the same.
Additional Chief Secretary, Irrigation and Water Resources Department, Sh. Devender Singh in his address said that the department is working on water conservation schemes as per the vision of the Chief Minister. He said that people used to say about Haryana that air and water are available here but now we need to change our thinking. Out of 142 blocks in the state, 85 blocks have gone into the dark zone, where the level of water has fallen below 100 meters. He said that in a national seminar on water management, Prime Minister, Sh. Narendra Modi had appreciated the Haryana Chief Minister's Mera Pani Meri Virasat Yojana and threw light on water management in detail. The farmer of Haryana is hardworking and revolutionary. Out of 35 lakh hectares of the state, only 11.12 percent is under micro-irrigation, which will have to be increased to 20 percent. He said that no one has done as much work as Chief Minister, Sh. Manohar Lal on water conservation, promotion and management.
Chief Executive Officer, MICADA, Dr. Satbir Singh Kadian, thanked the guests present and said that by shifting to drip irrigation from paddy on 1 acre land, a family of five can be supplied with drinking water for one month. In this way we will not only achieve sustainability goals but also provide adequate drinking water.
Apart from the farmers present in the auditorium, the Chief Minister also interacted directly with the farmers planting paddy through video conferencing and expressed happiness that in the age of technology, interaction with the farmer has become possible from the fields itself and he also thanked the farmers who have adopted micro-irrigation projects.
On this occasion, the Chief Minister also launched the portal of MICADA
Haryana Vidhan Sabha Speaker, Sh. Gian Chand Gupta, Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister, Sh. JP Dalal, MP, Sh. Rattan Lal Kataria, Municipal Corporation Mayor, Sh. Kulbhushan Goyal, Chairman, MICADA, Smt. Keshni Anand Arora, Additional Chief Secretary, Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Department, Dr. Sumita Misra , Director General, Dr. Hardeep Singh, Deputy Commissioner, Sh. Mahavir Kaushik, Commissioner of Police, Sh. Hanif Qureshi and other dignitaries were present.