Nalanda model of water conservation

•  A model of water conservation adopted successfully by the authorities in Nalanda district of south central Bihar, has been selected for the national award for excellence in the Mahatma Gandhi national rural employment guarantee programme (MGNREGP), by the ministry of rural development.
• The award for excellence will be conferred on ‘Project Jal Sanchay’, the water conservation model.
• Nalanda has been an agriculture oriented district, but it always remained affected by drought like conditions, which impacted cultivation and farm production. Though, during monsoon there were flash floods in the area, the water run off used to be so high that within 15 days the entire water got washed away.

Jal Sanchay project:

• It started as an administrative initiative, but soon turned into a people’s movement
• Since Nalanda is an agriculture oriented district and was affected by the drought-like conditions which impacted cultivation and farm production, Project Jal Sanchay was launched under the MGRNREGP to overcome the obstacles and offer farmers a wide spectrum of solutions to their water crisis
• Under the project check dams were created and traditional Aahar-Pyne irrigation system and traditional water bodies were desilted and renovated and campaigns were held for creating awareness about water harvesting
• Traditional water conservation system useful in water management and in maintaining water table in the area were gathered from the local farmers and incorporated into the project. As a result of this, a holistic approach to the problem of water conservation was evolved, which was a blend of modern day techniques and technologies with traditional knowledge.

By: Vishal