Water budget necessary in Kerala to address water scarcity in summers: CM Vijayan

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday said the state had been witnessing a reduction in water availability in the past few years and, therefore, a water budget was necessary for proper utilisation and to prevent wastage of the precious resource. Speaking after inaugurating the release of the public water budget, Vijayan said that despite having 44 rivers, many backwaters, lakes, ponds, streams and good rains, many parts of the southern state had been facing water scarcity during the summers.

"Therefore, usage of water has to be regulated in accordance with its availability in an area. That is where the water budget comes in. "It is the first of its kind project in the country and will be an example for others states to emulate," the CM said after inaugurating the third phase of the project 'Ini Njan Ozhukatte' (Let me flow now) for rehabilitation of irrigation networks in the Western Ghats.

He said the intention of the water budget was to take into account the water needs of each area, the water availability there and then to regulate its usage accordingly. "It would lead to awareness among the public against unnecessary wastage of water and through that we can achieve water conservation," he said. His words assume significance as Kerala has been witnessing extreme temperatures in the last few weeks coupled with water scarcity in many parts of the state.

During his address, Vijayan said that though the state had been receiving good rainfall every year, water availability has been going down. Despite that, the availability of water in Kerala is three times the national average, he claimed. Of the many reasons for reduction in water availability, one was "our actions and usage", he added He said that in the past there were numerous paddy fields -- where water stood for many months -- streams, ponds, lakes, wetlands, etc, but over the years many of these have been covered up.

Vijayan said that work was going on to create more ponds, protect our streams and rejuvenate other water bodies, and the same was being diligently carried out by local self government institutions (LSGIs) which have been now given the responsibility of implementing the water budget. The water budget would be prepared by a committee of officials from the Centre for Water Resources Development and Management and the State Water Resources Department as well as various experts, the CM said.

The first phase of the water budget was completed in 94 grama panchayats in 15 block panchayats in the state, he said. "It is expected to be finished in other panchayats in a time-bound manner," he added. He said water from summer rains must be accumulated and utilised, for which a change in mindset was required, as it would mean no farming can be done during summers. "LSGIs have to take steps in that regard and will receive all possible assistance from the Harita Kerala Mission," he said.

Regarding the rehabilitation of irrigation networks in the Western Ghats, Vijayan said that around 7,290 kilometres of irrigation networks have been rejuvenated under the first and second phase of the project. Giving some details of the water budget exercise carried out in the 15 block panchayats, T N Seema, Coordinator of 'Navakeralam Karma Padhathi', told PTI that in most of the places, the study has found that water was in surplus, but such places suffer from water shortage during summer months.

"The volunteers, resource persons, and technical committee members have considered all the water sources in each panchayat, including rainfall, wetlands, canals, and other water bodies, and also calculated the demand from humans and animals, agriculture, and industries.

"So, specific recommendations have been provided to each panchayat as part of the Water Budget," she said. Committee members have also taken the geographical and agricultural history of each of these panchayats and recommended remedial measures to improve the water availability. The committee had found out that in many places agriculture had come to a halt due to the non-availability of water, she said.