8-Water Conservation and Public Awareness-Perspective and Programmes.

Abstract

Water has a fundamental and pervasive influence in human ecology howevar an adequate perception of water issues and appropriate responses to water problems will not occur in national socio-economic planning without deliberate communication efforts on the part of water authorities. The problem relating to water and its use, management and optimal utilisation are all the more important in developing countries like India because of exponential growth of population, poverty among masses, lack of education, lack of will to adapt new technology, social taboos, language barriers, cultural imbalance and lack of proper communi— cation network etc. Water conservation is now realised as a basic need for proper water management and there is always a need to have better and appropriate means of communication to have public participation and involvement.

The present paper has been devoted to the above mentioned ideas and specifically an attempt has been made to discuss water conservation, various techniques of water conservation, different techniques of communication and public participation etc. The paper opens with an introduction giving critical role of water, India's water availability, need for water conservation and public awareness. After this preamble a brief portion is devoted to various practical techniques of water conservation including water conservation in industries, houses etc. The next part focuses on role of administrators in water conservation, participation processes, magnitude of participation etc. The various techniques of public participation have been discussed in details specifically concentrating on suitable techniques for developing countries. The paper has been concluded by highlighting the need for water conservation, role and participation of public, role of water administrators in such programmes and appropriate inferences have been drawn for developing countries. As the literature available on public participation and various techniques of such participation is not readily available in India the paper ends with an exhaustive bibliography on the subject.