The State government will launch a long-term project for the conservation of water resources, including ponds and waterbodies, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has said.
Inaugurating the renovated Anakkulam pond here on Saturday, Mr. Vijayan said the project, which would be implemented with the participation of the public and the local bodies, would be announced soon. The project envisages the promotion of a new culture to save water resources and revive those polluted or abandoned. He said the ‘water bottle culture’ that had emerged in the State exemplifies people’s concern about the quality of water resources, including groundwater.
“Though Keralites keep personal hygiene, they are in the habit of throwing household waste on roadsides, rivers and backwaters,” he said. Waterbodies are now seen as landfill. The action plan envisages a participatory drive, modelled on the literacy movement, with the objective of raising people’s consciousness. Its plan is to clean waterbodies contaminated by reckless waste disposal, he said. The State once had large ponds. Now most of them were in a dilapidated condition. The government would revive those ponds, including those in places of worship or in private holding, he said.
The government was also planning to make rainwater harvesting facilities mandatory for new buildings.
