The Chennai Water Forum invites you
for an extraordinary opportunity to meet Dr. Rajendra Singh, Waterman of India
who was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership in 2001 and
the Stockholm Water Prize in 2015 for his outstanding work. Dr. Singh will
present his ideas of what to do against the drought situation in TN followed by
a discussion on what could be done by the civil society - a vital contribution
to the current situation prevailing.
These are grim times in Chennai
and Tamil Nadu. The state is facing unprecedented drought, with water
reservoirs running dry and drinking water supplies to last only a few more
days. Tough times lie ahead - for farmers, cattle, office establishments, industries
and homes - and water tankers will become a common sight.
And yet in contradiction the situation
was the reverse barely a year and a half ago, when rain was in abundance and
many Tmcft (thousand million cubic feet) of water simply flooded our homes or
drained into the sea. It is indeed ironic that we are confronted with two
disasters - one of flooding, and the other of drought within a span of just two
years! The solution clearly lies in Integrated Water Management - where all of
us recognize the life-force WATER is, and take unequivocal steps to harvest,
protect, preserve and nurture it.
And who better to guide us other than
the Waterman of India, Dr. Rajendra Singh, who has transformed barren
landscapes of Rajasthan into flourishing eco-systems, purely through indigenous
water harvesting structures. He has been fully engaged with local communities,
and his work resulted in recharged aquifers, improvement in ground and surface
water and securing food supplies.
Dr. Singh will be with us in Chennai, on
Saturday, 27th May 2017, from 6.00 – 8.00 pm at Goethe-Institut, 4 Rutland Gate
5th Street to share his thoughts on how we can tackle this drought in Tamil
Nadu and most importantly, on sustained actions to make the state drought-free.
All those who are interested
towards contributing to solving this crucial challenge are cordially invited.
Is it not the right time for us to come together again to instill this thought
into action to restore water security for Chennai and TN?
Geetha Vedaraman
Programme Coordinator
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