The Balrampur district administration in Chhattisgarh has launched a campaign to raise awareness among villagers and farmers about the importance of rainwater conservation, with a focus on improving groundwater levels and enhancing agricultural productivity.
As part of the initiative, the administration is encouraging farmers to undertake water conservation measures in their fields and villages before the onset of the monsoon.
District Collector Chandan Sanjay Tripathi said the campaign aims to retain rainwater for a longer period so that it can percolate into the ground and improve the water table across the district.
“In the rainy season, there is a single objective: to retain rainwater. The longer we hold the rainwater in place, the more it seeps into the ground, thereby improving the water table. We have initiated this campaign in Balrampur district,” Tripathi told ANI.
She said the work is currently underway in villages and will continue consistently in the coming period.
“By doing this, we can significantly improve the water table across the district. This is particularly crucial for the Balrampur area, which faces water scarcity and has active mining operations; there is a pressing need to implement these measures in such regions,” she added.
Brijlal Lakra, Sarpanch of a village participating in the campaign, said farmers were informed about the guidelines issued by the district administration and encouraged to implement water retention measures through voluntary labour.
“We informed the farmers about the guidelines received from the administration; by implementing these steps through voluntary labour, the water retained in their fields will boost productivity. While soil fertility was already reasonably good, the water level has risen in districts like Balrampur and Koriya following these measures,” Lakra said.
Villagers have also begun adopting the suggested measures in their agricultural fields.
Sanjay Minj, a local farmer, said he dug a soak pit in his field after receiving information from the Gram Panchayat about its potential benefits.
“I received information from the Gram Panchayat that constructing a soak pit in my field would be beneficial for crop productivity. With this in mind and anticipating the benefits for my field I dug a pit; when it rains, it will help improve my crop yield,” Minj told ANI.
The district administration has said it will continue the awareness drive across villages with the objective of conserving rainwater and strengthening groundwater recharge in the region.
(ANI)
