About Pond Authority, Haryana

Introduction
Water is a prime need of life. Adequate availability of required quality of water is needed for human life and animals. Only 3% of fresh water is available for human beings for their various activities on this earth out of which about 2% is available as glaciers and ground water and only 1% is available in rivers and ponds. Surface water bodies such as lakes, ponds, reservoirs, river and tanks were used as sources over centuries. India has had abundant resources of pure water but progressing towards water scarcity due to increase of water demand for various sectors. The ponds have a vital role in conservation, storage, recharging of ground water and also being used for religious purposes in the country. The water sources are such as ponds, wells and rivers are worshiped as gods, but the situation of the ponds in the State are deteriorated with the passage of time resulting in the deterioration of the water quality in the ponds, reduction in the percolation of Ground Water causing the depletion of the ground water level. Less water is available for agriculture, industrial and domestic use.
Keeping in view, the State Govt. have taken an initiative to constitute “The Haryana Pond and Waste Water Management Authority”.

Constitution of “The Haryana Pond and Waste Water Management Authority” in the State of Haryana
“The Haryana Pond and Waste Water Management Authority” (HPWWMA) has been established under the obligation of an Act No. 33 of 2018 notified on 23.10.2018 and further notified on 18th December, 2018, whose composition is given in the Notification itself.

Objective of “The Haryana Pond and Waste Water Management Authority” in the State of Haryana
The main objective of constitution of “The Pond and Waste Water Management Authority” was to promote/monitor the development, protection, rejuvenation, conservation, construction and management of ponds & utilization of pond water after treatment thereof and for management and utilization of treated effluent of sewage effluent treatment plants for the purpose of irrigation, thereby reducing stress of over exploitation of ground water and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.

Scope
The definition of the pond as per act is “a tank or lake or any other inland water body having an area of 0.5 acre or more, whether it contains water or not, and mentioned in revenue records as talab, johar, tank or by any other name and includes green belt and the peripheral catchments areas, main feeder inlet and other inlets, bunds, weirs, sluices etc but does not include wet lands as notified by the Government from time to time”. The scope of the Pond Authority is to repair / restore / rejuvenate the ponds along with development of periphery of the pond with greenery and to preserve the aquatic life of ponds for conservation of bio-diversity.