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WATER EDUCATION AND INSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENTwater resources projects should be directed to improve knowledge,attitudes and practices concerning the linkages between health andhygiene; provide higher water supply service levels; and improve theenvironment through safe disposal of human waste based on ethicalconcepts of water utilization and water conservation.Information, education and communication (IEC) activities whichinclude mass awareness programmes for water conservation, rainwaterharvesting and water quality conservation are being organizedby the various organizations of the Ministry of Water Resources,Government of India with the active cooperation of various stakeholdersand schoolchildren. Such IEC activities are being especiallyorganized on the occasions of large gatherings of people, such asduring the kumbh mela held at Haridwar in which millions of peopleparticipated. Through such activities the public is becoming awareof the importance of water and its conservation.In order to meet the needs of short-term and long-term plansfor water resources planning, development and management in thecountry, there is a need to evolve a long-term plan and suitablemechanism for the education and training of water resources engineers,scientists, observers and technicians, and for strengtheningcooperation among the various institutions and improving individualcommunities in real ways. Water education and training impartedto the field engineers of various state water resources departmentsand irrigation departments, as well as the faculties of educationalinstitutions, is helping to provide well-trained manpower for theplanning, development and management of water resources. It isfacilitating better planning, development and operation of waterresources projects. For example, a DSS (Planning) (DSS (P)) isbeing developed by the international DSS (P) consultants for theidentified river basins of the nine states of India with the supportof the World Bank and scientists, and engineers are being trainedon the DSS (P) software for integrated water resources developmentand management. There is active cooperation among some ofthe organizations and institutes that are involved in the applicationof emerging techniques such as GIS and remote sensing, isotopictechniques, hydrological modelling, soft computing,water quality modelling, assessment of the impact ofclimate change and downscaling of climate data. Similarefforts are being made by the educational and researchinstitutions, which are providing continuing educationand training to the engineers and academiciansof organizations engaged in water resources planningand development. Some international training coursesare also organized for participants from South AsianAssociation for Regional Cooperation, African andAfro-Asian countries. Some of the scientists and engineersreceive training from developed Asian, Europeanand American organizations. Such efforts are leadingto improvements in the capabilities of operational andresearch organizations at the centre and in the states inthe water resources sector.To make the educational and training programmesmore effective, brainstorming sessions, workshopsand seminars should be organized to indentify theconstraints, bottlenecks and difficulties facing fieldengineers, practitioners, planners, researchers, academicsand other related professionals in adopting newand emerging technologies and water cooperation forsolving complex water issues. Modern audio-visualaids, including videoconferencing facilities, should becreated and effectively used by the various organizationsfor training personnel under distance learningprogrammes. Large-scale awareness and effective participationin water resources management practices mustbe encouraged by the creation of public awareness inlocal languages and in English. Also, there should beclose interaction and coordination among the variousorganizations involved in coordinating educational andtraining programmes, in order to avoid the duplicationof efforts in training and capacity building.Image: National Institute of HydrologyParticipants from African countries and faculty of the training course on Project Hydrology[ 143 ]