HT Correspondent (Dehra Dun, August 1)

WATERMILLERS from all districts of Garhwal took out a procession here demanding a separate water policy for the region.

Processionists, who came from Chamoli, Rudraprayag, Tehri, Uttarkashi and Pauri chanting slogans demanding a separate water policy for the region.

They also demanded the right over their water resources. They marched through the streets before submitting their charter of demands to the District Magistrate, Tejpal Singh.

The memorandum addressed to the President of India points out that even though 25 per cent of the water that flows to the plains comes from the hills, only 7 per cent of the region is irrigated.

The memorandum says that about 35 per cent of the villages of the area are facing acute shortage of drinking water. The memorandum notes that even though 40,000 of the 70,000 watermills of Uttarakhand have been closed down due to the negligence of the government, the administration continues collecting taxes for it.

The memorandum demands that the watermills and other allied resources should be given due place in the district planning and a clear cut water policy for the Himalayas should be declared.

Dr. Anil Joshi, chairman of HESCO, an NGO, has been closely associated with the problem of the watermillers for years. Before addressing the demonstration, he told the Press that the watermillers of Garhwal, Kumaon, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu, Kashmir and North Eastern States, had filed a public interest litigation (PIL). The PIL demanded a separate water policy for the entire Himalayan region.

He said that the water from the Ganges, Yamuna and their tributaries had been traditionally used by the hill people to run the watermills which have been the backbone of the economy of the villages for centuries. He said that the watermills that have been closed down should be revived instead of going in for big dams.

Govind Singh Rana, president of the Watermillers Association, said that the watermillers were ready to take the campaign to its logical conclusion as they were well-organised. He appealed to the government to revive the watermills as this would also considerably solve the power shortage problem in Uttarakhand.