Punjab Irrigation Department is holding a one-day seminar today on groundwater management issues in the province. The event, to be held in the department, is being organized by the Irrigation Research Institute of Irrigation Department and is part of the consultative process for the proposed groundwater management act. Punjab is faced with rapid groundwater depletion situation in a number of urban areas due to extensive unregulated urban and industrial extraction. Responding to this situation, Punjab Irrigation Department is planning to introduce regulation to manage the groundwater extraction, especially for industrial and urban usage. Experts from irrigation and agriculture sector are participating in this seminar to deliberate on various issues of groundwater management including conjunctive use of surface and subsurface water, water-logging control in certain areas and intrusion of brackish water into the sweet water zones. Irrigation Department has focused to get groundwater act approved by the end of next year.
