Opposition in Guj demands 'drastic' action over water crisis

Expressing concern over the 'deteriorating' water situation in Gujarat, Opposition members in the state assembly today demanded some 'drastic actions' by the government even as the water minister asserted that the situation was not as serious as being made out to be.
During discussion on the budgetary demands of the Water resource and Irrigation departments, opposition Congress and Gujarat Parivartan Party (GPP) MLAs voiced their concerns over the 'grim' water situation in the state, particularly in Saurashtra and Kutch.
"Most parts of Saurashtra get water once in 3-4 days and some areas are worst affected where water is provided through tankers (once) every 15 days," Congress MLA from Somnath Jasa Barad said.

"If this is the situation now in the areas like Sasan, Sutrapada, Gir which are greener areas, imagine what would happen during the summer? Government should come up with some drastic measures to thwart the water crisis," he demanded.
Similarly, GPP leader and former Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel also raised the issue of water woos in Saurashtra and demanded that there should be a special session of the Assembly to discuss this issue.
"There is a serious water problem in Saurashtra and anticipating a worse situation, there should be a full-day discussion on the issue and government should present a master plan to counter the water problem," he said.

However, state Water Resources Minister Babu Bokhiria countered these allegations and claimed that state government has succeeded in containing water scarcity.

"We have succeeded in bringing our state out of the water crisis and we have also proposed to allocate Rs 2,700 crore for Water supply department for 2013-14," said Bokhiria.
"The state government has also prepared a master plan under which water through Sardar Sarovar Narmada canals is proposed to be provided to 9,633 villages and 131 city areas in addition to joining 7,237 villages and 118 cities with 2,556 km pipeline," he added.
He also claimed that since the formation of the state from 1961 till 2000, there were only 18,365 check dams built, but from 2001 to 2012, over 1.32 lakh check dams were built.

Bokhiria also assured the opposition members that with advance planning done by the state, no area would face severe water problem.
"Government is aware about the concerns of the water deficient areas and keeping that in mind we have increased the water supply from Narmada canals for Saurashtra region from 80 crore litres to 110 crore litres," he said.