Public role emphasised in water conservation

The seminar was organised by the Central Ground Water Authority in association with the Central Water Commission here on Monday. The theme was ‘Ground Water Quality’.

R H Sawkar, Secretary, Geological Society of India, remarked that while the country was investing crores in tracking water on the moon, “we do not know what is happening on earth”. It is high time the government took initiatives to improve the quantity and quality of ground water, he added.

Digging more bore wells is not the solution for water crisis, the quality of water also matters, said former commissioner (ground water), Ministry of Water Resources, C S Ramashesha. “People should remember, that they are only making efforts to extract water from the earth, while there are none to put back water into the same earth,” he added.

Groundwater is considered the purest form of water, but human needs have over exploited the bore wells. As a result, ground water has dried up in many places, the experts said.