Trenches help store water in Gaya
A Jal Shakti Abhiyan (JSA) team from central government offices visited the holy district of Gaya which is home to the Mahabodhi Temple Complex in Bihar to assess water conservation measures. They found that trenches along the hillsides could help store rainwater and address water shortage issues.
The team comprised Chief Nodal Officer (CNO) – Shri B. Pradhan, Additonal Secretary, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India; Block Nodal Officer (BNO) – Shri. Rajesh Kumar, Programme Officer, MNREGA, Banke Bazar, Bihar; District Magistrate (DM) cum District Programme Coordinator, MNREGA – Shri. Abhishek Singh; Deputy Development Commissioner (DDC) – Shri Kishori Choudhary; Director RDD – Shri Santosh Kumar; and Technical Officer (TO) – Ranjit Singh, Panchayat Rojgar Sevak , Bihargain Panchayat.
On 24th July, 2019, the team visited Chaugain village in Bankey Bazar Block of Gaya.
At the outset, they found that there has been huge depletion of ground water levels over the past 10-12 years. This is attributed to continuous usage of water and abnormal precipitation in and around 4-5 km radius of the Gram Panchayat. As far as drinking water and water for irrigation was concerned, there was acute shortage.
After social and geographical assessment, the Gram Sabha had found a useful location near Bichli Hill for the purpose of water Conservation. They figured that rain water runoff from Bichli Hill could be stored effectively and could address water shortage in the area.
Rain water that was getting accumulated through contour bindings could be channeled into a series of trenches made alongside the slope of hill. Thereafter, the over flow water from the trenches would flow into the nearby Harihar Bandh. This practice enhances ground water levels and the over flow of water can be used for irrigation.
The innovation has resulted in a respectable rise in water levels and good growth in farm production.
[The Blog was first published on https://jalshakti.wordpress.com/]
