New Delhi: In the inaugural of the first edition of virtual ‘Global Water Management Conclave,’ Arghyam CEO Jayamala Subramaniam highlighted the importance of ground water management for water security. The conclave was organised by APAC Digital News Network and the Ministry of Jal Shakti, Namami Gange, National Water Mission, Government of India supported it as the ‘Host Partners.’
Arghyam CEO while narrating the work of her organisation for over the past 15 years in 22 states and over 100 districts and how it has observed a simple theory of change play out.
‘Groundwater is a common pool resource and communities close to it are best equipped to manage it on a sustainable basis. Based on the availability and demand, we plan the management and usage of groundwater. We call this participatory movements of groundwater and spring shed water quality management,’ said Jayamala.
Highlighting the importance of digital interventions, she added, ‘we are deploying digital methods to increase and improve the interaction on this. For instance, in the Western Ghats, people were using a gravity-fed technology for storage of water, which was more effective than Eastern Ghats. When interaction opportunity was provided, they learned from each other and it created an amplification of impact on the ground. Now we are working on making the digital spaces more useful and effective for communities to build their own agencies.’
‘Similarly, we are working on building tools, such as identifying recharge and discharge areas for groundwater spaces. We are hopeful that the digital infrastructure that we are creating can help communities contribute with ease and enable people to consume with confidence. Increasing reusability and ensuring more participation are our motto,’ added Arghyam CEO.
