“Water is a Holy Substance Needed to Sustain Life of All Kind”: Dr M. Madhu at World Water Day 2022

At the Sustainable Use of Water in Agriculture webinar organized by Krishi Jagran in association with FMC India on World Water Day, Dr. M Madhu, Director of ICAR-IISWC, Dehradun emphasized upon the need to conserve water, especially rainwater for future use.

Speaking about the life-sustaining element, Dr. Madhu said that we must consider water as a holy substance as it is a basic necessity of every living being. This fact alone should make water conversation our top priority.

He pointed out that India receives approximately 2 meters of rainfall every year which is enough for our lives.

However, we get this amount of rain in a short period, which makes it crucial for us to conserve it so that it lasts all year long and does not result in a flood.

He also advised farmers and growers to plant one tree in every field as planting trees in the area helps to conserve the rainwater and raise groundwater levels.

This conserved groundwater can now be used throughout the year for irrigation and common use.

He shared another piece of advice with the farmers. He asked farmers to grow multiple crops; this does not only help in the preservation of groundwater and drinking water quality but also restores soil nutrition.

About Dr. M Madhu:

Dr. M Madhu is the director of ICAR-IISWC, Dehradun. While he is a conservation agronomist, his expertise and knowledge span a wide range of fields including Natural Resource Management (NRM), Integrated Watershed Management (IWM), Soil and Water Conservation, integrated and improved farming, and social sciences, which he has gained over 25 years of experience and service in various agro-ecological regions across the country.

His service made a significant contribution to farm research and rural communities.

His contributions have been recognized with numerous national and international honors, as well as high-impact research articles. Dr. Madhu has received numerous awards, including the USDA Global Research Alliance (GRA) Fellowship Program in 2011, the Vasantrao Naik Award in 2013, the IASWC Gold Medal in 2010, the IASWC Fellow in 2014, the ICAR-Team Research Award in 2017, the Dr. KG Tejwani Award in 2016-17, the University of Agricultural Sciences Gold Medal, and the Dr. HR Arakeri Gold Medal. He has almost 200 high-profile clients.