A changing climate is leading to insufficient rainfall and extreme pressure on Meghalaya’s catchment areas, which must be vigorously protected, Chief Minister Conrad Sangma said in the Assembly today.
“There is a huge change in the overall quantity of water because of climate change,” the CM said during Question Hour, adding that water will be a major issue for the state, whose name means ‘Abode of the Clouds’, going forward.
“No matter how much rainfall we get, ultimately it is its management that is going to matter,” he added. “It will not be long before we see changes in the overall climate and things will get quite difficult for us.”
For this reason, reservoirs and check dams should be constructed for storing water to be used in the lean season. Rainwater harvesting in big buildings, recharging groundwater and the protection and rejuvenation of spring sheds are also very important.
In implementing all these, Sangma said that the government and society will be required to work together.
Earlier, taking up the issue of water scarcity in Tura, opposition legislator Zenith Sangma said that there are shortages even during the monsoon and he has to spend Rs 2,000 per day to supply his house.
Sangma also said that plenty of private water suppliers charge exorbitant rates.
Public Health Engineering Minister, Renikton Lyngdoh Tongkhar, informed that fresh proposals for the construction of 10 reservoirs under the Tura Water Supply Scheme, at an estimated cost of Rs 14.37 crore, have been made.
