Government Sends Teams to Study and Tackle Water Crisis in Madhes

KATHMANDU, July 24 – In response to the worsening water crisis in the Tarai-Madhes region, Minister for Drinking Water Pradeep Yadav has directed all concerned authorities to deploy necessary human resources to address the shortage of drinking water, especially in districts like Bara and Parsa.

This comes after the Madhes provincial government recommended declaring the region a disaster-prone area due to extreme drought. Acting on that advice, the federal Council of Ministers on Wednesday declared Madhes a disaster-hit zone for the next three months.

A severe lack of rainfall has dried up underground water sources, leading to critical shortages of drinking water and severely impacting irrigation. Groundwater levels have dropped significantly, causing concern among both residents and farmers.

At a high-level meeting held on Thursday at the Ministry of Water Supply, Minister Yadav stressed the urgency of the situation and called for quick mobilization of staff. “If we deploy our team and resources effectively, we can solve the drinking water crisis,” he said. He also instructed officials to reach out to donor agencies, international organizations, and neighboring countries for assistance, noting that the crisis has been worsened by climate change.

Ministry Secretary Pramila Devi Shakya Bajracharya said the meeting decided to secure a budget for disaster management, allow flexible use of existing funds, and form a team to coordinate water supply efforts. The ministry also plans to take steps to strengthen international cooperation.

Meanwhile, the drought is severely affecting agriculture. Despite being in the middle of the monsoon season, Madhes has only managed to plant 46.83% of its rice crop so far, compared to 80.6% at the same time last year. In some areas, drinking water is being delivered by tankers due to the extreme shortage.

The Meteorological Forecasting Division (DHM) has predicted light to moderate rainfall in parts of Koshi and Madhes provinces, but warned that the overall situation is unlikely to improve significantly for at least a week. Even if rain falls, it may not be enough to provide meaningful relief.

Speaking in Parliament on Wednesday, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli said the government is committed to using all available resources to deal with the crisis in the Terai region. The DHM also said it had warned the government about the possibility of low rainfall a month ago.

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