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Interviews | Dr. Mihir Shah, Distinguished Professor & Chair, Water Science & Policy Programme at Shiv Nadar University, interviewed by Mitali Mukherjee (TheWire.in)
Dr. Mihir Shah, Distinguished Professor & Chair, Water Science & Policy Programme at Shiv Nadar University, interviewed by Mitali Mukherjee (TheWire.in)

Dr. Mihir Shah, Distinguished Professor & Chair, Water Science & Policy Programme at Shiv Nadar University, interviewed by Mitali Mukherjee (TheWire.in)

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published Published on Oct 19, 2021   modified Modified on Oct 21, 2021

-TheWire.in

In conversation with the chair of the committee that devised the New Water Policy, which proposes a shift in focus towards the long-neglected demand-side management of water.

India’s new National Water Policy (NWP) argues that limits are now being reached on solving the country’s water problem from the supply side. The seven-member Mihir Shah Committee proposes a shift in focus towards the long-neglected demand-side management of water.

Mitali Mukherjee spoke with Shah to understand the context of the new policy, how it was different from previous water policies and what solutions presented themselves for the dangers of urban flooding and depleting water resources. As per the Groundwater Resource Estimation Committee’s report (from 2015), 1,071 out of 6,607 blocks in the country are over-exploited; this is likely to have worsened over the years.

* Thank you for speaking with me. I want to take a few steps back to the germination of the New Water Policy. What was the idea behind it?

When the minister for jal shakti spoke to us for the first time, he made it very clear that he was looking for a paradigm shift in water policy, a decisive break from the past. He told us that we have so far focused on the supply side and that we must now also focus on demand management and people’s participation. He said water is a major priority for the government and it is clear that business-as-usual would not do.

He briefed us on the prime minister’s five-fold emphasis on: the need to break down the silos into which we have divided water; respect for the immense diversity of India while planning for water; greater focus on management and distribution of water; higher priority to recycling and reuse of water; and raising people’s awareness and participation in management of water. This clarity and commitment on the part of the government greatly encouraged us to (in Star Trek lingo) “boldly go where no one had gone before!”

Our determination was strengthened even further after we heard and received 124 submissions by experts, academics, practitioners and stakeholders from all over India. This included submissions by governments of 21 states and 5 Union Territories and 35 presentations and submissions by departments and ministries of the Government of India.

What we found truly remarkable is the striking consensus in perspectives and suggestions across the spectrum, from Central and state governments to stakeholders from outside government.

Please click here to access. 

 

Image Courtesy: Twitter account of Shiv Nadar University, please click here to access 


TheWire.in, 19 October, 2021, https://thewire.in/environment/interview-national-water-policy-management-mihir-shah


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