Visit to Eastern Saiha again & Strategy to Solve Water Problem in Saiha & Mizoram

Today we went to Chakhang again. The entourage was lead by our Hon'ble Minster Pu S. Hiato, myself, SP Saiha, PD-DRDA & his team, EE-PHE, EM(Rev), EM(Edu). We had two programmes- distribution of house shifting assistance to the Phusa villagers who came to Chhuarlung. It was a nice interaction with the villagers. Apart from all the talks from officials, VCP we invited one villager to speak out his experience on shifting from Phusa to Chhualung. His narrative was:-" We were living in Phusa for the last 40 years and then shifted to Chhuarlung 2 years back. When we were in Phusa we had to carry our food stock on our back whereas now it is delivered at our doorstep. Because of this our health has improved considerably. Earlier everything was away from us, now we are so close to Saiha that we can take a bus and reach Saiha within 3 hours. Now our children can go to Schools". In sum their quality of life has improved. Hon'ble Minister requested them not to squander the assistance in useless expenses but they should build proper houses and use it for their good future. In fact we were feeling so happy on hearing it. Not only their quality of life has improved but once for all their housing problem has been solved.

Then we went to Chakhang and SHG training centre construction was initiated. It was for the weaving SHG which I mentioned in my earlier post. The Women member were very happy to know this. Not only that through Industry Deptt we will organise training for them too. I hope that it will lead to promotion of handicrafts too and in stead of burmese products, we will have our own Made in India traditional handicrafts product and will be able to market them outside too, which will not only lead to preservation of culture but will also lead to gainful employment for our artisans. Finally I feel it as a small but one of the important step in the right direction to preserve and promote our traditional art & craft.

Now coming to the main topic i.e "Strategy to Solve Water Problem in Saiha & Mizoram". First of all let me clarify that it is not the only strategy but one among many strategies and I would welcome any other strategy which is cost effective and environmentally sustainable and within our reach. Let me tell you how this idea came into my mind, the background is that today while on way to Siata village we stopped at a stream which supplies water to Siata. It was a small but very cold. Water was tasty. There PS to Minister Pu Chakhu told me that 10 years back it used to be a big stream with good amount of water flow and now it is just 20% of its previous flow. He told that it happened because of uncontrolled jhumming in the water catchment area of the stream and he further said that a time will come when it will be dry. Then we had a good discussion among ourselves as what we can do. I want to present these ideas among the readers and let me tell you frankly all are not my idea but I am crystallizing these into following words. These are cost effective and environmentally sustainable.

1. Preserving and rejuvenating the catchment area of the water sources. The hills from which we get water are aquifers and act as a large storage of water, i.e when it rains they start storing water in numerous holes among the clay, earth, rocks and this water keeps of seeping and come out in form of streams. From Saiha town we can see the way these hills look. All hills look barren, devoid of any vegetation and during jhooming season these keep burning. We have to declare all such region which form water catchment region as reserve forest and thick forestation is required in these. 
2. Formation of small small checkdams in the stream flow and watershed area. This will give us multiple benefit.:- it will stop soil erosion, it will stat storing water which can be used for fishery, it will recharge the acquifers which will raise water level which can be pumped out during dry season and ultimately it will benefit agriculture too. By doing this Magsasay Award winner Sh Rajendra Singh & his team had rejuvenated a dead river in Rajasthan and that river has become perennial now. Same thing we need to do.
3. Creation of big water reservoir in the flat lands in and around our town which can store big mass of water. We have sufficient flat land on Bolpui range in both sides, there we can create big water storage tank which can store sufficient rainwater which can be used for water supply. As yesterday I was reading editorial of one newspaper which stated that despite of so much of rain, PHE is unable to supply water. Here the issue is whether we store any rainwater, the answer is no. Then from where the PHE will supply water as acquifers take time to recharge themselves and without sufficient tree cover it is difficult for them to stop water and take them inside. Whole rain becomes surface runoff and goes to Kolodyne river. So creation of big water tank is the need of the hour.
4. Water harvesting at the household level:- This will increase the ground water level as in Saiha town the PHE is unable to find good places to put handpumps. The reason is whole town is barren and no where we are recharge the hill on which Saiha is situated.

Big solution like a Greater Saiha water project is in pipeline but the above mentioned steps does not require much expenditure and will substantially solve our water woes. This is possible as I learned in Chakhang that local NGO is preserving one hill where good flora & fauna is developing. We need to learn from them.

I am open to opinions of the reader.

Thanks

Kunal

dcsaiha@gmail.com