NRAA Holds National-Level Meeting to Strengthen Watershed Development and Management.
New Delhi:
The National Rainfed Area Authority (NRAA), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, organised a National Level Technical Committee (NLTC) meeting under the REWARD (Rejuvenating Watersheds for Agricultural Resilience through Innovative Development) programme on September 22 at the NASC Complex, New Delhi.
The meeting was chaired by Dr. Chandra Shekhar Kumar, IAS, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), NRAA. Dr. A. K. Nayak, Deputy Director General (Natural Resource Management), ICAR; Nitin Khade, IAS, Joint Secretary (Watershed Management), Department of Land Resources (DoLR); Dr. Subrat Panda, IAS, Director (DSC&WD), Odisha; and Upendra Pratap Singh, Commissioner, Watershed Development Department (WDD), Karnataka, who participated online, were also present.
Around 45 participants attended the meeting, including scientists and representatives from the State Level Nodal Agencies (SLNAs) of Odisha and Karnataka, technical partners from ICAR institutes, agricultural universities, IITs, NGOs, consortium partners, the REWARD Programme Management Unit (PMU) of DoLR and NRAA, and the Centre of Excellence for Watershed Management (CoE-WM). The meeting was coordinated by Dr. Susama Sudhishri, Technical Expert (Watershed Development) and Principal Investigator of REWARD, NRAA.
Focus on data validation and watershed planning
During the meeting, Dr. Chandra Shekhar Kumar emphasised the need to validate statements and claims made in the draft National Technical Guidelines (NTG) using data collected under the REWARD programme. He also advised the governments of Odisha and Karnataka to make watershed data and the Decision Support System (DSS) available to all stakeholders.
Dr. A. K. Nayak stressed the importance of integrating Land Resource Inventory (LRI) data with hydrological information to improve watershed planning. He further stated that the methodologies used to arrive at various results and conclusions should be clearly documented in the NTG. He also called for the development of web portals at the earliest.
Proposal to reduce DPR preparation time
Nitin Khade, IAS, Joint Secretary (Watershed Management), DoLR, suggested reducing the time required for preparation of Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) from six months to three months. The proposal is aimed at providing more time for the execution of watershed development activities.
He also highlighted the need to explore convergence among different sectors and incorporate relevant aspects into the National Technical Guidelines.
Review of NTG and action taken report
At the beginning of the meeting, Dr. Susama Sudhishri presented the Action Taken Report from the previous NLTC meeting. She also briefed participants on additions made to the second draft of the National Technical Guidelines.
Dr. Sudhishri requested the State Level Nodal Agencies of Odisha and Karnataka to share recorded watershed-related data with NRAA and consortium partners. The data will be analysed and used for preparation of reports and validation of the NTG.
The National Technical Guidelines under development are intended to guide future watershed development activities in the country under the Watershed Development Component of Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) 3.0.
The meeting brought together government agencies, research institutions, technical organisations and other stakeholders to strengthen data-driven planning, improve watershed management practices and support resilient agricultural development in rainfed areas.
