Citing Israel as example for effective utilisation of available water resources, Karnataka Governor Vajubhai R. Vala batted for minimising Cauvery water flow into the Bay of Bengal and maximising harvesting water from the Cauvery basin.
Addressing the gathering at the Krishi Mela on Thursday, he said, “The Union and State governments should work towards this goal. Excluding the environmental flows, the rest has to be harnessed by the governments.” He criticised all inter-State river water disputes. “The only way to solve such disputes is to put the farmers at the centre of the solution. The first right over river water is always to the farmers, and not the respective governments. There are no Karnataka farmers and Tamil Nadu farmers. All of them are farmers of this country,” he said.
He reiterated that water is the basic necessity of farm activities. “It is the duty of all governments to ensure water to farms wherever they are. The only way to strengthen the economy is to strengthen the farmers and put money in their hands.”
Being from a farming background, the Governor offered some advice to farmers. “Instead of letting all the water from your village join rivers and then depend on the government, you have to build check-dams across all water paths in your village that eventually join a larger river. Check-dams will not only harness water, it will also percolate and enrich your underground water table and help you in farming,” he said.
