Please conserve water: Mamata

Kolkata: The Bengal government will set up more water bodies and construct check dams throughout the state to conserve water, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Friday.

Participating in an awareness walk, beginning from Jorasanko Thakurbari and continuing till the statue of Mahatma Gandhi on Mayo Road, Banerjee said the thrust areas of the state government included "Save Water, Save Power, Save Environment".

She added: "In the past eight years, the state government has dug up three lakh water bodies and 542 check dams to conserve water. We will have to dig up more water bodies along with more check dams in order to conserve water."

She further added that global warming has become an area of concern and if proper steps are not taken now it would pose a serious threat to civilization in the near future. "It is anticipated that major cities in India will experience severe water scarcity in the next 20 years and steps to counter the problem have become mandatory. Though Kolkata may be saved as the city is situated on the bank of River Hooghly but we will have to save water and ensure that not a drop of it is wasted."

The state government will observe July 12 as "Save Water Day" every year. The programme, meant to raise awareness about water conservation, was observed in all the 341 blocks on Friday.

The Chief Minister added that the "Jal Dharo Jal Bharo" movement launched by the state government has earned great success. "Pisciculture is being carried out in the check dams and this is providing a livelihood to many families. I will ask the Irrigation and Waterways department, Fisheries department along with Panchayats and Rural Development departments to work together to dig up more water bodies."

Chief Secretary Malay De, Home Secretary Alapan Bandyopadhyay, Director General of Police Virendra took part in the rally along with Mayor Firhad Hakim, Minister of State for Women and Child Development and Social Welfare Shashi Panja and Shantanu Sen, Trinamool Congress MP. Poet Subodh Sarkar, litterateur Abul Basar, film directors Arindam Sil and Raj Chakraborty joined the walk too. School and college students and people from all walks of life also participated. Sporting blue-coloured sashes with the massage "Save Water, Save Life", the participants also waved placards carrying the message of water conservation.

The theme song in Bengali "Jal Dhorbo Jal Bhorbo" composed by Alapan Bandyopadhyay and sung by Indranil Sen, Minister of State for Information and Cultural Affairs was played in the rally as a part of the campaign drive.