Report of the Online National Seminar on “Strengthening Agricultural Water Use Law, Policy and Management in India” held on 26th March, 2021.

The online seminar on “Strengthening Agricultural Water Use Law, Policy and Management” was designed with the objective of providing a platform for deliberations on the laws and policies governing the use and management of water in the agricultural sector in India. As India is primarily an agrarian economy, the Seminar delved into the varied contours of the legal and policy framework for sustainable use of water for agriculture. The national Seminar aimed at including contributions by experts from the legal and agricultural sector, academicians, agricultural scientists, legal luminaries and policy makers, to discuss and deliberate on the disparate issues of the agricultural sector with specific reference to water availability, use and management. The Seminar focussed on the following themes:
• Use of Technology in Water Conservation and Usage
• Multi-jurisdictional Comparative Analysis of Water Conservation Policy
• Accountability and Transparency of the Government in Agricultural Water Regulation
• The Regulatory Role of the Centre: A bane for Sustainable Agricultural Water Practices.
• Agricultural Water in India: Compromised by Economic Growth
• Public Private Partnership in Water Management and Utilization
• Efficient Management and Administration of Water Resources: Possible Avenues
• Striking balance between Right to Livelihood and Conservation of Water
• Exploitation of Government Agricultural Programs
• Re-Thinking Decentralization in Water Use and Management
• Sustainable Development Goals and Agriculture sector
• Sustainable Agricultural Practices
• Water and Food Security
• Water Policy for the Agricultural Sector with special emphasis on Climate Change perspective