PM Narendra Modi urges people to conserve water amid country’s water crisis

New Delhi: As India stares at its worst water crisis in years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi appealed to the citizens to conserve water and do their bit to conserve the commodity.

In his blog shared on Twitter, Modi talked about traditional techniques of water conservation and horticulture, citing various examples.

One such example was of a teacher in Veraval region of Saurashtra who used soiled water to grow trees. The teacher had asked his students to bring water left after washing of utensils and used it to water plants and managed to create a green island in the dry, arid region.

Modi also appealed to the people to do their bit to conserve ecology.

With the slow progress of the crucial southwest monsoon across the country and below-normal rains in June, water level in reservoirs across the country has declined significantly. In its latest report, Central Water Commission (CWC), water level in 92 major reservoirs was at 26.944 bcm, about 17% of the live storage capacity of the reservoirs. The water level is lower on year and also less than last 10 years’ average.

The onset of the south-west monsoon over Kerala was delayed by a week to 8 June. Though the current has almost covered the entire country, rains have been below normal so far in the four-month season. As of Sunday, rainfall deficit for the country was at 21%.