- Meghalaya became the first Indian state to ensure water conservation after the State Cabinet approved the Draft Water Policy.
- This policy aims to provide safe and hygienic water for various purposes like drinking,domestic,sanitation and livelihood development.The policy recognises water as a common pool resource for all residents of the state.
- The policy will be implemented through the active participation of the community.The state will constitute a ‘Water Sanitation Village Council’ at the village level for smooth implementation of the policy.
- The new policy includes measures like (a)building check dams to conserve rainwater (b)rainwater harvesting systems (c)controlling the inappropriate use of groundwater and (d)maintaining the quality of water.
- The policy also suggests safety audit of state dams at periodic intervals by the Meghalaya State Dam Safety Organisation(SDSO) to identity the safety risks and mitigate the adverse impacts.
