A unique partnership between the West Bengal government and the Chennai-headquartered water treatment company WABAG is furthering the adoption of a watershed-based approach in the rain-fed areas of the state, especially Purulia district. The company has committed about Rs2.5 crore for the government’s Ushar Mukti programme, under which a comprehensive set of activities are being undertakento improve the villagers’ lot. Besides the financial support, WABAG is also actively participating in the annual planning-cum-review workshops for further improvement in the implementation. Involving planning, capacity building, monitoring and evaluation over a period of four years of the programme. At least 70 per cent of the MGNREGA fund will be used for activities supporting soil, moisture and nutrients conservation for the regeneration and restoration of natural resources. The objectives of the Ushar Mukti project, being implemented in partnership with the Bharat Rural Livelihoods Foundation (BRLF), an independent society under the rural development ministry to scale up such joint action by civil society and various governments, are six-fold: - Restoration of degraded land and soil enrichment; - In-situ water harvesting; - Conversion of agriculturally marginal lands to appropriate land use; - Reducing the impacts of climate variations and to make the communities climate-resilient; - Adoption of improved farm management practices (e.g. practice of water recycling, green manuring etc.); Intensification and diversification of farming that would promote prosperity and enhanced human conditions.
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Water storage systems need to be created to ensure availability for farming
