World water day today

COLOMBO: Earth has been named as the only planet on which water has been found. Thus fresh water is a very limited and precious resource, essential to sustain all forms of life, development and the environment. Since water sustains life, the effective management of water resources should be a main concern of planners, policy makers as well as the general public who are the ultimate users of this commodity.

The selection of "Water and Culture" as the theme of this year's "World Water Day" is highly relevant to Sri Lanka, said Agriculture and Irrigation Minister Maithripala Sirisena.

He said. Sri Lankan culture and its heritage is intertwined with water. We can boast of a rich culture nurtured by its varied mix of religions-Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity and Islam. Our culture uses water in different forms, as a purifier, life giver, a symbol of fertility, a symbol of transfer and a destroyer of evil.

Thus it can be seen that the culture and religious activities of all the nationalities in Sri Lanka have links with water.

The concept of integrated water resource management has become a central theme in contemporary thinking on water supply, planning and environmental management as water is a crucial factor in almost all activities relevant to human, animal and the entire eco-system. Water is used not only for domestic purposes but also for agriculture, hydro power generation, industry, commerce and for the sustenance of a balance in the environment.

The management of water has not been and alien task for Sri Lankas who can boast of the legacy of an ancient hydraulic civilization dating back to the pre-Christian era. The construction of great man made lakes and canals for irrigation purposes had earned the epithet "The Granary of the East" to the island.

However, on this important day, it is our duty to examine whether we can be satisfied with the present status of our water resources development. Although we have made substantial progress in rice production there are irrigation schemes where both Yala and Maha cannot be successfully completed even among major irrigation systems.

It is difficult to uplift the economic status of the farmer under these conditions. On the other hand, the increased water demand for drinking and sanitation requirements of the dwellers of rapidly growing urban centers has to be adequately met. The industries are growing in parallel and they also require more water. Inappropriate water use results in the pollution of water sources and it adversely affects the meeting of water requirement, especially of urban and rural poor.

Therefore, the paramount duty of water professionals is to design a water management and development strategy which will address the needs of all water user sectors and conserve the environment, with adequate safeguards to ensure the needs of the future generations. While admitting that it is a big challenge, I wish to state that our government has planned several projects and programmes to address the challenge.

Among these, new water resources development works such as Moragahakanda, Menik Ganga and Deduru Oya remain outstanding. We will be able to solve water problems of several dry zone areas with these projects. Initial work of these projects has now commenced, he said.