Bengaluru, May 6 (PTI) In view of possible El Niño conditions and anticipated water stress across the state, the Karnataka government on Wednesday convened a high-level technical review meeting to strengthen drought preparedness, officials said.
During the meeting, experts strongly recommended prioritising groundwater recharge initiatives and adopting long-term water conservation strategies to effectively manage available water resources in the state, they said.
They also stressed the need for large-scale public awareness campaigns promoting rainwater harvesting, a statement said.
Addressing the meeting, Karnataka Minister N S Boseraju said, “We must begin preparing immediately to effectively face the possible impact of El Niño in the coming months. Special attention must be given to preventing water leakage from tanks, pick-up dams, and reservoirs under the Minor Irrigation Department.” Responding to the recommendations, the minister issued instructions to Executive Engineers across all 18 departmental divisions to take full responsibility for the maintenance and monitoring of all tanks, reservoirs, and irrigation structures under their jurisdiction.
“Immediate preventive measures must be taken to ensure that even minor water leakages are avoided. Additionally, steps must be taken to organise awareness programmes to take the department’s newly initiated ‘Neeriddare Naale’ (Water is Future) scheme to the public,” the minister directed.
Officials noted that the meeting also focused on strengthening water conservation infrastructure, improving reservoir management, and enhancing preparedness to mitigate drought-related challenges in vulnerable regions of the state.
The meeting was chaired by Minor Irrigation, Science and Technology Minister Boseraju.
It was attended by scientists from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), experts from the Karnataka State Remote Sensing Applications Centre, the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre, the National Disaster Management Authority, and the Karnataka State Council for Science and Technology.
Chief engineers and executive engineers of the Minor Irrigation Department also participated. PTI AMP SSK
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