M F AHMAD
Daltonganj, June 9: The drought-prone Palamu today saw a brainstorming session on rainwater management of Palamu administration with officials of the Jal Shakti ministry’s ‘Catch the Rain’ and the Central Water Commission.
The Central Nodal Officer for the Catch the Rain Anindita Sinharay, who is a Director in the ministry of finance and Assistant Director Central Water Commission D Pandey sat and discussed rainwater management in Palamu with Palamu DC Shashi Ranjan and DDC Megha Bhardwaj and others.
Speaking to lagatar24.com today, the DC said the team has come to make field visits to see the rainwater management in Palamu.
He said rainwater management is not only for the rural landscape. It is equally important for the urban landscape where rooftop rainwater management is accorded priority.
The DC said Medinirai municipal corporation has been given Rs one crore for rooftop water management. All government buildings will be equipped with surface water management.
Although Palamu, which is a rain shadow district, gets more rainfalls than Punjab on average but here, the rainwater runs off faster than in Punjab and the topsoil moisture remains fragile.
Sources said during the rule of ex-CM Raghubar Das in Jharkhand, ‘Dobhas’ were dug up all over the state which is just earthen surface water retaining bodies.
However, dobhas in Jharkhand are sadly remembered for the drowning of children in it more than for retention and detention for the rain waters. Today, they are a taboo in the Hemant Soren government.
Palamu had once launched a campaign ‘Gaon ka Pani Gaon Me’. The slogan was catchy. But it failed to catch the rainwater.
Palamu had also toyed with the idea of Pani Panchayats. Scores of Pani Panchayats were set up in as many as 150 or more panchayats here out of the then total of 280 panchayats which today have come down to 260 plus panchayats. These panchayats could never save an inch of the surface water.
A Divisional Commissioner here had floated the concept of the submersible dam in the rocky bed river but this concept crashed before its start.
‘Rainwater runs off as fast as the big python here,’ goes a local saying. And as the python is not detained, so is the rainwater.
Sources said rivers in Palamu are rain-fed only and if the rain waters in them are retained, the proneness to the drought of this district will minimise.
Sources said Ambikapur in Chhatisgarh has also rain-fed rivers but there the local administration has built water walls in the bed of the rivers which retain and detain the rain waters till the next season of the rains and thus these rivers never go dry like the ones here in Palamu.
“We understand a comprehensive plan is required where various other departments like minor irrigation, irrigation, drinking water and sanitation, rural development, watershed management, forest, soil conservation etc are to converge as rainwater management is not the only cup of the watershed management.
The DC said the Government of India has recently launched Spring Shed management to preserve and conserve the natural springs of water.
He agreed that in this crass commercialism, springs are losing their existence and space as encroachment exists.
There is a hot water perennial spring at Tat Ha under the Barwadeeh block in the Latehar district. This hot water spring is alive and needs more effective and nature synchronized management.
Palamu also has one water spring called Sada Bah under the Bishrampur block where a thin trickle of water can be found 24×7 in all weather and season.
Sources said rainwater falling from the hillocks here in Palamu can be a fixed depository of surface water but unfortunately it cuts into the hillocks and gets lost.
