World Water Day Valuing Water on 22-03-2021

World Water Day is celebrated annually on 22nd March every year and the theme for 2021 is “Valuing water” as the value of water is about much more than its price. This day is celebrated keeping in line with UN Sustainable Development Goal number 6 which is aimed at achieving water and sanitation by all for 2030. This day was first formally proposed in 1992 at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In December 1992, the United Nations General Assembly adopted 22nd March of each year as World Day for Water and was being celebrated from 1993 by all countries to highlight the importance of water and raising awareness about the water crisis that the world faces. The human adult body consists of 60% with the brain and heart consisting of 73% water lungs 83% water, skin containing 64% water, muscles and kidneys with 79% and hard bones with 31%. Along with it, in agriculture, water helps to grow fruits and vegetables and raise livestock as they form the main part of our diet. Agricultural water is used for irrigation, pesticide and fertilizer applications, crop cooling and frost control. But in the present-day scenario, with ever changing climate, the water cycle undergoing drastic changes as warmer climate causes more water to evaporate from both land and oceans which in turn result in increased water holding in atmosphere and roughly 4% more water is retained in the atmosphere for every 1ºF rise in temperature. These changes are expected to lead to negative consequences like increased precipitation and runoff especially in winter and spring leading to increased flooding in some regions whereas less precipitation in the warm months can lead to longer, more severe droughts as storm tracks shift northward leaving arid areas increasingly dry. The declining water quality is another consequence of climate change. The rise in water temperature in streams, lakes, and reservoirs as air temperature rises leads to lowered dissolved oxygen in water causing stress on the fish, insects, crustaceans and other aquatic animals that rely on oxygen. As more and more intense precipitation leads to increased runoff in certain regions more pollution will be washed into waterways as sediments, nitrogen from agriculture, disease pathogens, pesticides and herbicides causing blooming of harmful algae and bacteria. One of the starkest effects of climate change is the rise in sea level worldwide due to the expansion of the ocean as it warms and the increased melting of ice sheets, ice caps and glaciers. Along with alarming threats to coastal communities, infrastructure, economies and ecosystems, the rise has implications for available freshwater as rising sea levels drive saltwater into freshwater aquifers. To be useful for drinking or irrigating purpose, more water from our aquifers needs to be treated which can be energy and cost intensive and processes. Given the wide range of human activities dependant directly or indirectly on water, future climate-driven changes in water resources will affect all aspects of our lives. KVK, Wyra celebrated World Water Day with 72 farmers, farm women plus 06 KVK scientists and DOA officials. Mr. M. Satish, APD and Deputy Project Director – ATMA, Khammam, Mr. S. Raghavaiah, Retired AO and scientists Dr. Jessie Suneetha W, Dr. K. Ravi Kumar, Dr. V. Chaitanya and Mrs. P. S. M. Phanisri attended the meeting. In this regard, farmers and farm women were sensitized on the need to adapt irrigation technologies like drip irrigation and sprinklers as they reduce the burden on water sources, provide adequate amount of water, prevent use of excess water supply during irrigation they by reducing the incidences of pests and diseases which in turn necessitate the use of harmful pesticides and fungicides and adapt climate resilient crops. The use of farm ponds in fields and soak pits at house hold levels were also reiterated. KVK, Wyra along with Department of Agriculture, Khammam Dt. is at the forefront of popularising irrigation technologies like dry converted wet rice, direct seeded rice, drip irrigation in paired row maize, cotton, black gram, groundnuts, vegetables like tomato, brinjal, ridge gourd and so on. The meeting was concluded after taking an oath to use water judicious and preserve for future generation as was passed to us by our forefathers.