PM said summer’s onset calls for renewed commitment to water conservation
New Delhi: Nearly 50 lakh artificial water harvesting structures have been created across the country under the ‘Jal Sanchay Abhiyan’ and 70,000 lakes were made under the ‘Amrit Sarovar Abhiyan’ in the last 11 years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday.
In his monthly radio broadcast ‘Mann ki Baat’, the prime minister said that with the onset of summer in many parts of the country, it is time to renew the commitment to water conservation.
He said that over the last 11 years, the ‘Jal Sanchay Abhiyan’ has created a lot of awareness among the people, with nearly 50 lakh artificial water harvesting structures created across the country under the campaign.
“ I am happy to see that community-level efforts are now underway in every village to address the water crisis. At some places, old ponds are being cleaned; at others, efforts are being made to conserve rainwater,” he said.
Under the Amrit Sarovar Abhiyan, Modi said, nearly 70,000 ‘Amrit Sarovars’ (lakes) have been made across the country.
“The cleaning of these lakes has also begun before the advent of the rainy season. Today, I would also like to share some inspiring examples with you. These examples demonstrate how widespread water conservation can be with public participation,” he said.
The Prime Minister cited Korea district of Chhattisgarh, where farmers worked on a simple yet effective idea. They made small recharge ponds and soak pits in their fields, allowing rainwater to remain in the fields and gradually seep into the ground. More than 1,200 farmers in this area have adopted this model, and the groundwater level of the village has improved significantly.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday highlighted the benefits of the ‘PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana’ and said its impact is being observed in every corner of the country.
The household rooftop solar scheme, said to be the world’s largest such initiative, aims to supply solar power to one crore households by March 2027.
The Prime Minister said if anyone visits any city, big or small, today, he or she will surely notice a change – solar panels installed on the rooftops of a large number of homes.
“Until a few years ago, this was only seen in a few homes. But today, the impact of the ‘PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana’ is being observed in every corner of the country,” Modi said in his monthly radio broadcast Mann Ki Baat.
He said the scheme has brought about a profound change in the life of Payal Munjpara from Gujarat’s Surendranagar district, who received training in solar power technology through the solar initiative and completed a four-month solar PV technician course.
