On the occasion of World Water Day, the Future Society, in collaboration with UNICEF, organised a media round table session on Friday, focusing on water conservation. The event featured IAS Mohammad Junaid, Secretary of the Water Development and Land Conservation Department, as the chief guest. Rushabh Hemani, Incharge of UNICEF Rajasthan Office, and communication specialist Ankush Singh also participated in the discussion.
During the session, Mohammad Junaid highlighted the alarming decline in Rajasthan’s water levels and urged the public to conserve rainwater. He emphasised that the government is making continuous efforts to address the crisis and acknowledged the central government’s increased budget allocation for water conservation.
UNICEF’s Rushabh Hemani, through a detailed presentation, explained various water conservation methods, their importance, and the role of media in raising awareness. He also engaged with journalists, seeking their opinions on the subject.
Several experts and officials contributed to the discussion, sharing their efforts and initiatives for water conservation. Notable panelists included:
- Shoaib (Senior Climate Journalist)
- Satish Jain (PHED Department)
- PK Gupta (Watershed Department)
- Vinay Bhardwaj (Groundwater Department)
- Shyam Pratap Singh (Jahota Sarpanch)
- Mishika (Climate Champion)
- Jayesh (Vagdhara Institute)
- Shirish Purohit (Unnati Institute)
- Jagdish & Radhakrishna (Gram Gaurav Institute)
Each of them shared their experiences and initiatives in tackling water scarcity with the attending journalists.
At the conclusion of the event, Dr. Meena Sharma, Senior Journalist and Secretary of Future Society, extended gratitude to all participants.
Notably, the conference at Indira Gandhi Panchayat Bhawan (J.L.N. Marg) saw the participation of over 50 journalists and journalism students. Ravita Sharma, Vice President of Future Society, emphasized that the round table conference, held on March 22 (World Water Day), aimed to sensitize journalists about water conservation, empowering them to raise awareness among the public through their reporting.