There is an urgent need to save the Wahumkhrah and other water bodies in Shillong and the rest of Meghalaya to avert a potential crisis, East Khasi Hills Deputy Commissioner Isawanda Laloo said today.
She was speaking as the chief guest at the ‘People’s Water Conclave’, which was organised by the Rotary Club.
Stating that some commentators have rightly stated that the next world war would not be fought for land or politics but rather water, she said that water is a dwindling resource because of local and global scenarios, climate change, poor water management, bad practices in cities and countries across the world.
“We are potentially facing a crisis in which access to water will be further denied, especially to people who need it the most and the most vulnerable sections of society,” Laloo stated.
The biggest irony about Meghalaya is that, though it is a place with some of the highest levels of rainfall in the world, there are large areas that face acute water scarcity. With population growth and continued urbanization, there will be greater dependence on water resources and there is a need to think afresh and balance the developmental needs, the right of humans to water and the needs of the environment to ensure clean water supply for years to come, she added.
In East Khasi Hills, 54 per cent of target homes have received functional water connections as part of the central government’s Jal Jeevan Mission. Other developments will see water councils in each village deliberating on the needs and difficulties of their village and come up with ways and means to improve water conservation.
However, Laloo said that because of poor water management service and lack of public awareness about the overall scarcity and economic value of water many people do not realize the value of every drop until the taps run dry.
“We have so many institutions in the government level right up to the Dorbar Shnong level and, champions for the environment and green volunteers and we don’t lack any institutional strength but it is just about coming together and having a clear action plan,” she said informing that there is also a desire to revive the Shillong My Passion project.
“The Shillong My Passion project lays out a clear action plan for rejuvenation of Shillong water bodies and a detailed survey has been done, and GPS mapping like in Wahumkhrah a detailed study has been done and data which are the tributaries that flow to Wahumkharah and the localities in the upper streams and localities in the down streams, where is the cause of the pollution and what sort of pollution whether solid or sewage from the households and all we need is to come up with long term measures for ensuring the cleanliness and purity of this water,” she said.
