International   Seminar   On   Water   Resources   Management 

An International Technical Seminar on ‘Water Resources Management’ was organised on 22nd January 2005 at India Habitat Centre, Lodi Road, New Delhi.

Mr. T. Sakai, Resident Representative, JICA India Office graced the occasion as the Chief Guest. The response to the seminar was overwhelming. More than 90 JAAI members and other invitees participated in the seminar.

The seminar started with the welcome address by Dr. O. P. Dewal, Vice President, JICA Alumni Association of India. Dr. Dewal elaborated the activities of JICA Alumni Association of India and said that the Technical Seminar is one of the most important event being organised by JAAI since last six years. He informed the audience that JAAI has been organizing such seminar on subject of public interest in past such as transport sector, Agriculture sector, Environment pollution, Health sector and Power sector. Mr. T. Sakai, Resident Representative JICA India Office delivered the inaugural speech. He praised JICA Alumni in organising the seminar on such an important subject. He elaborated on the ongoing projects and activities of Japan International Co-operation Agency in India. The inaugural session was followed by technical session.

Mr. A. Sekhar, Advisor (Water Resources), Planning Commission, Government of India Mr. Sekhar gave a presentation on the topic ‘Water Scenario in India’. He spoke about current situation about availability of water resources in India and various Government initiative being undertaken not only to conserve the water resources in the country but also to provide safe drinking water to all its citizens. He spoke on temporal and spatial variation of rainfall, surface and ground water availability, demand situation and irrigation potential. He also enumerated the challenges such as declining ground water level, low water use efficiency, tariff structure, inter-state water disputes etc. Simultaneously, he also suggested solutions and informed the members about the measures being taken by the Govt. i.e. the action plan to provide safe drinking water to all and meet the irrigation requirement.

Mr. Rakesh Mohan, Chief Executive Officer, Delhi Jal Board, Govt. of NCT of Delhi gave a presentation on the topic ‘Reforms in Water Sector – Special reference to Delhi.’ He discussed at great length the issues concerning water management in Delhi. The requirement of water for 14 million population, residing in Delhi is largely met by supplies from its neighbouring states. The pipelines laid are very old. DJB lacks the complete pipeline network data which has compounded the problems of frequent repair and maintenance. He informed the audience about the demand – supply carried out by DJB down to zonal level. The availability of water matches the demand. The problem lies in poor management of the system. He talked about the reforms being undertaken by the Govt. and also made an appeal for everyone’s cooperation to achieve their vision target of 24 x 7 supply.

Mr. Kurauchi Takashi (JICA Expert), Project Formulation Advisor, Japan International Cooperation Agency gave a presentation on ‘Irrigation Water.’ He emphasized on the need to develop Irrigation system in India as it has direct relation to crop yield. He presented a comparative study on Irrigation vis-à-vis Yield covering various countries. Development as well as maintenance of a proper Irrigation system including canal system is essential for Indian agriculture. Through technical cooperation in this field both Japan and India can benefit. India can benefit from Japanese experience in water utilization and development of new technology. Japan can learn from India’s diversity in water management.

Mr. Jun Iwasaki (JICA Expert), National River Conservation Directorate, Ministry of Environment & Forest gave a presentation on ‘Sewage Treatment.’ He apprised the audience of different systems of wastewater collection practiced in Japan and also compared it with Indian system. He discussed the advantages and disadvantages of the two systems i.e. Separate systems for rainwater and sewage water and the other being Combined system. Though the initial cost for the separate system is more, it reduces the load on the treatment plant and hence saving in the running cost. In India, the wastewater treatment is generally done by anaerobic process whereas Japan uses aerobic process. For effluent treatment, India uses sludge drying bed while in Japan gravity thickener (digester) is widely in use.

Members participated in the Question and Answer Session. Many questions were asked on Water problems in Delhi. There was a good interaction between the eminent speakers and the audience. The seminar was followed by lunch.