World Water Day 2024

22nd March 2024

ICAR Institutes pan India celebrated World Water Day today.

World Water Day is held annually on 22nd March as a means of focusing attention on the importance of freshwater and advocating for the sustainable management of freshwater resources. It is about taking action to tackle the global water crisis, in support of the Sustainable Development Goal: water and sanitation for all by 2030.

In 2024, World Water Day focuses on Water for Prosperity and Peace

ICAR-Indian Institute of Water Management, Bhubaneswar

Dr. Himanshu Pathak, Secretary (DARE) and Director General (ICAR) in his video message highlighted water and climate-related challenges that agriculture is facing, and the implications for its growth and food security of the nation. He urged reducing water stress through technological, institutional, and policy interventions would lead to peaceful resolution of water-related conflicts at village and basin levels.

  

The Chief Guest Dr. S.K. Chaudhari, Deputy Director General (Natural Resouce Management), ICAR emphasized the importance of sustainable management of water resources for enhancing water use efficiency and water productivity and underscored the need for a balanced approach to solving current and emerging challenges of water scarcity and the societal issues through wider consultation and cooperation.

Guest of Honour Dr. A.K. Sikka, IWMI Representative-India & Principal Researcher, IWMI discussed the critical role of water management in achieving ecological security and attaining SDG goals and underscored the need for collective and cooperative action for reducing water-related tensions and bringing transformative changes at the system level.

Dr. Arjamadutta Sarangi, Director, ICAR-IIWM, briefed about the importance of the Day

Er. Lingaraj Gouda, Engineer-in-Chief (P&D), Dept of Water Resources, Govt of Odisha in his special lecture ‘Water management and leveraging water for peace’ discussed issues of water sharing between the states, international treaties, and their functioning for solving transboundary water disputes.

Dr. A.K. Nayak, Director, ICAR-National Rice Research Institute, Cuttack, Dr. A. Velmurgan, Assistant Director General (S&WM), ICAR (virtually), Dr. N.G. Patil, Director, ICAR-NBSS&LUP, Nagpur (virtually), Dr. R.K. Yadav, Director, CSSRI, Karnal (virtually), Dr. M. Madhu, Director, IISWC, Dehradun (virtually), and Dr. D.R. Sena, Researcher, IWMI, New Delhi, were present during the programme.

The dignitaries felicitated the farmers with the ‘Water Saver Award’, distributed prizes to school children for participation in various events, and released a new edition of ICAR-IIWM Krishi Jal Samachar.

ICAR - Central Coastal Agricultural Research Institute, Goa

Dr. N. Bommayasamy, Senior Scientist and Head, spoke about the emerging water resource conservation technologies for increasing cultivable area under assured irrigation, improving on-farm water use efficiency to reduce water waste, and enhancing the adaptation of micro irrigation and other water-saving technologies.

  

Farmers and farm women actively engaged in the extempore competition.

About 40 farmers and farm women participated in this event and benefited from it.

ICAR- Indian Institute of Soil & Water Conservation, Research Center, Vasad

Dr. Trilochan Mohapatra, Chairperson, PPV& FRA, Former Secretary, Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE), and Former Director General, ICAR, emphasized the use of precision agriculture technologies for efficient water use and drone application for direct seedling plantations in ravine areas to enhance land productivity.

Dr. Manish Das, Director, ICAR-Directorate of Medicinal and Aromatic Plant Research, Boriavi, Anand shared his thoughts on enhancing WUE through micro-irrigation and integration of medicinal plants in the cropping system.