Water conservation is the minimization of the use of freshwater resources by the adoption of a sequence of methods as predesigned by the policy makers aimed at maximum utilization of available water resources. Water conservation events range from conservation methods like water monitoring and conservation-friendly building codes instituted by the government, to strategies for everyday people to reduce home water use. Water conservation imbibes reduction of energy use and enforces and enables stakeholders to become economically sustainable.
These five different types of water conservation events can be optimally designed for maximum output:
1. Updating to modern irrigation methods
2. Increasing Forest cover
3. Water conservation legislation.
4. Water redistribution.
5. Agro-based subsidies
However, the main objective of all types of water conservation projects is “When you conserve water, you ensure that there will be enough for people to use in your community."
Northeast India is extremely rich in biodiversity and has innumerable numbers of water bodies. That is why in this area of the Indian Subcontinent the problem is not scarcity of water but utilization of available water. This part of the country does not have any problem finding water, but they are confused about how to use the resource optimally such that all the stakeholders will become economically sustainable and secure with respect to their requirement for water.
Keeping in view of the above Northeast India with its seven states has many water conservation projects which have ensured the sustainable use of the available water resources. In this post, seven water conservation projects from the states of Northeast India were selected based on the most successful implementation of the basic objectives of such projects.
1. Dumbur Lake
Dumboor Lake is a charming water body located in Amarpur Sub Division 120 Km. away from Agartala. The look of the lake is like a tabor-shaped small drum, "Dumboor" of Lord Shiva from which the name "Dumboor" originates. A massive and breathtaking water body of 41 sq. km. The project is now generating sustainable income for the local people by using the wetland for ecotourism, irrigation, fishing, power generation, etc.
State: Tripura
Distance from Capital City: About 4:30 hr drive from Agartala
Video by @Mrinmoy
2. Chabimura Hills on Gumati River
Chabimura or Chobimura also known as Chakwrakma or Chakrakma is famous for its panels of rock carving on steep mountain walls on the bank of the Gomati river in the Indian state of Tripura. There are huge carved images of Shiva, Vishnu, Kartika, Mahisasura Mardini Durga, and other Gods and Goddesses. The water conserved by the project is used for irrigation, tourism, and satisfying the domestic demand of the area.
State: Tripura
Distance from Capital City: About 3:30 hr drive from Agartala
Video by @Mrinmoy
3. Lake Umiam
Umiam Lake is a reservoir in the hills 15 km north of Shillong in the state of Meghalaya, India. It was created by damming the Umiam River in the early 1960s. The principal catchment area of the lake and dam is spread over 220 square km. The project has enabled to use of the water of the lake for irrigation, tourism, and power generation. However, the dropping water levels of the Lake are causing tension among competing water users. This lake was constructed as a reservoir for a hydroelectric project in the 1960s. It (and associated tributaries).
State: Meghalaya
Distance from Capital City: About 15km north of Shillong
Video by Joppans Kitchen
4. Loktak Lake
Loktak Lake is the largest natural freshwater lake in India. It is a pulsating lake, with a surface area varying from 250 sq km to 500 sq km during the rainy season with a typical area of 287 sq km. The lake is located at Moirang in Manipur state, India. This ancient lake plays an important role in the economy of Manipur. Presently, it serves as a source of water for hydropower generation, irrigation, and drinking water supply. The lake is also a source of livelihood for the rural fisherman who lives in the surrounding areas and on phumdis, also known as "phumshongs"(Business-Standards)
5. Lake Tawang
Arunachal Pradesh is the largest mountain state in North-East India. The state is situated in the transition zone between the Himalayan and Indo-Burmese regions. The most important resource in the state is the forest. In total 26 major and more than 110 minor ethnic/tribal communities living in close association with forests for their livelihood. The Sangestar Tso, formerly called Shonga-tser Lake and popularly known as the Madhuri Lake, is located on the way from Tawang to Bum La Pass in the Tawang district of Arunachal Pradesh, near the Indo-China border above 15,200 ft above sea level. Thirteen hydroelectric projects have been planned which will need 249 hectares of Forest land. The total capacity of these 13 projects will be 2890.110 MW. Of these, three projects are over 500 MW capacity, seven projects of 50-100 MW capacity, and three projects of less than 50 MW capacity(SANDRP,2015). Traditional ecosystem resources management practices have sustained the tribal communities and also played a key role in the conservation of biological resources of this Himalayan state(Kanwal,2021)
State: Arunachal Pradesh
Distance from Capital City: Around 12hr drive from Itanagar
Video by Roamanchak
6. Tamdil Lake
Tamdil(Mustard lake) is the second largest lake in the state of Mizoram located in the Saitual Sub-Division of Aizawl District. Some historians assume that the lake was formed around 1893 when a tremendous landslide occurred due to unusual torrential rains over the entire state. The Government of Mizoram started to keep watch on its ecological importance in 1973. Due to its ecological importance, biodiversity richness, and eco-tourism potential, the State Forest Department took initiative in the preservation, protection, and development of the lake and its surrounding in 1986.
7. Nagi Lake
The Nagi area is located uphill and spring water is collected from the nearest source of Harkate Chuba and was channelized to the lake, 10 km away. The main objective of the project is not confined only to filling up the lake but to conserving the moisture in the soil by making seepage of water from it in order to achieve the target of maximum discharge of seasonal and perennial sources of its locality. Soon the lake got revived now benefitting about 1700 people of the nine villages. The villagers have benefitted from the increase in discharge strength of the streams and springs in Namthang and its vicinity. Agriculture productivity has also increased and dry lands have now been brought under cultivation.
State: Sikkim
Distance from Capital City: Around 2hr drive from Gangtok
Video by Learn Anything
@Mrinmoy
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