Traditional conservation practices need to be revived to improve water availability in the country, said Planning Commission deputy chairman K C Pant.
Traditional practices need to be incorporated in the water resource development programme, he said, while speaking at the valedictory function at the seminar on rain water harvesting.
Old and traditional irrigation systems need to be revived and in addition, rain water needs to be treated as a resource in planning, he said.
Roof top water harvesting in urban areas and introduction of a time-bound programme to install an appropriate structure for this purpose in all government and public sector undertaking building complexes, were the other steps he recommended.
He also suggested amendments in the building by-laws to make roof top rain water harvesting mandatory.
The massive population growth has resulted in the per capita water availability per year declining from 8,200 cubic meters in the beginning of the 20th century to 1,953 cubic meters today.
He said that against a total precipitation of 4,000 BCM per year, the annual renewable water resources are estimated at 1,953 BCM, of which utilisable water resources are 1.086 BCM per year.
