In an aspiration to conserve & sustain water in Maharashtra region, the Maharashtra Water Summit 2022 was conducted on December 3, 2022 at Yashwantrao Chavan Pratisthan Auditorium, Nariman Point in Mumbai. It was a day-long forum which witnessed the presence of finest mind speakers from Government bodies, Corporates, Science and Academics. The leadership forum was designed to discuss the scarcity and water related issues of the region. Themed around “Water for all: Call for Solution & Action”, the event was primarily focused on solution, action & sustainability of water.
The forum focused on water & climate Change, conservation of natural water sources & infrastructure, Innovation & Technology for clean drinkable water along with key challenges in water security. There are several issues related to water in urban areas including challenges in water security. The role of community in water security cannot be overruled whilst creation and conservation of water bodies require immediate awareness & consideration. Corporates & Organisations play a vital role in this initiative and with a helping hand of CSR Partnership, water positive activities can be taken into action proactively. The entire summit concentrated on this agenda whilst also focusing on Corporate led water sustainability strategy.
The Chief guests in the Maharashtra Water Summit 2022 were Hon’ble Minister Govt. of Maharashtra – Mr. Eknath Shinde, Hon’ble Deputy Chief Minister Govt. of Maharashtra – Mr. Devendra Fadnavis and Dr. Rajendra Singh known as “Water Man of India”. He is a proud holder of the Magsaysay Award (2001) and Stockholm Water Prize (2015).
The finest mind speakers present in the Maharashtra Water Summit 2022 were Shri Haji Arfat Shaikh – Hon’ble Chairman (Cabinet Minister Status) Maharashtra State Minorities Commission, Dr. Ujjwal Kumar Chavhan (IRS) Founder – Mission 500 Crore Litres Water Storage – Joint Commissioner of Income Tax, Mumbai, Shri Mayank Gandhi – Renowned Agriculturalist & Social Reformer, Shri Shantilal Muttha – Chairman, Bhartiya Jain Sanghatana etc. to name a few. The event saw the presence of some of the finest NGO’s like Paani Foundation, SK Foundation, Naam Foundation, JSW Foundation. Academic institutes Mumbai University and Chandragupt Institute of Management, Patna joined hands in this initiative. From Corporate World Ms. Pearl Tiwari – Ambuja Cement Foundation, Dr. Leena Deshpande – Bharat Forge Ltd., Shri David Kumar – United Way Bengaluru and Dr. Pushpendra Pratap Singh – Country Head, Asia Shipping International Transport Pvt. Ltd. joined.
The summit started with the lamp ceremony by Dr. Pushpendra Pratap Singh followed by Dr. Senhal & others followed by context setting by Mr. Rusen Kumar, Managing Editor, India CSR Network. The Chief Guest Shri Rajendra Singh who is popularly known as Jalpurush guided the audiences with rejuvenation of 75 rivers in Maharashtra as a part of celebration of “Aazadi ka Amritmahotsav”. After his explanation, Dr. Ujjwal Kumar Chavhan, Founder Mission 500 Crore Litre Reservoir shared community based decentralized water management system.
Dr. Pushpendra Pratap Singh from Shipping & Logistics fraternity was honoured to be the only one to join in from the trade. In his address, Dr. Singh expressed gratitude to Maharashtra Govt., India CSR for this initiative and Dr. Rajendra Singh, Waterman of India. He referred to Dr. Rajendra as Bhishma Pitamah of contemporary times. Dr. Singh possesses professional experience of 23 years in his industry and currently working with Asia Shipping in the capacity of “Country Head” which is a Brazilian based multinational having presence all across the globe. He is heading the PAN INDIA team & responsible for business growth & expansion in India. Having travelled extensively gave him vast experience of the industry and global trade patterns. On the social side, he is a philanthropist and a Social Entrepreneur. He is also on the advisory board for corporate affairs for several NGO’s across India. After receiving Doctorate Degree, he was honoured with Bharat Shree & Bharat Gaurav Shree awards. Icon of Asia and MSME board gave “Acharya / Business Mentor of the year” award. During Indian CSR award ceremony, he was conferred as “Best Social Entrepreneur of the Year – 2022” recently in New Delhi by respected Dr. Kiran Bedi.
COVID -19 Pandemic left catastrophic effects on our lives giving new definition to our thinking. This sinister is a warning to mankind to be cautious with natural resources. This aftermath left a deep impact on Dr. Singh entrusting him to actively participate in his philanthropic activities. In this endeavour he joined Daksh Foundation as Member of Chief Advisory Board – Corporate Affairs & Confederation of NGO’s. In a short time, most companies have realized that it is not possible to imagine a world in which the wellbeing of people is disconnected from the preservation of the natural capital. Dr. Singh urges PR deptt & CSR team members to use the funds in the right direction. Indeed, as we have seen water becoming increasingly focused as a global and local issue nowadays, it has also become more focused as a CSR issue by organisations. He urged there are a lot of opportunities remaining in this sector. The private sector is not engaged at a level proportional to the gravity of the issue. This provides an opportunity for companies to do more good for society in an area, which is critical to all their stakeholders resulting in significantly strengthened relations and brand visibility.
As per companies act, Corporate utilise 2% of their net profit for CSR policies. Corporates should evaluate reaching to ground level and believe only after analysis of NGO’s which are working in the right path for mankind.
Dr. Singh informed that in the Shipping & logistics industry, Export & Import is primarily dependent on ocean mode as all commodities are physically shipped on vessels. Moving goods by sea is a viable option but there are several disadvantages of this mode also directly or indirectly polluting the water & environment. In India, most ports operate out of West India only as the coast in West India has deeper water than in east & south India. JNPT, Nhava Sheva, Mundra, Pipavav remains the busiest seaports of Indian coastline. The cost of shipping goods get higher due to non-operation of mother vessels into shallow water in the East Coast. Whilst comparing Indian coast to European and Gulf countries, their cost of logistics is competitive due to easy maneuverability of mother vessels.
During COVID pandemic, Asia Shipping proudly operated a Boeing 777 Charter flight from Mumbai to Sao Paulo, exporting 85 tons of pharmaceuticals. Imported 30 tons of Thermometers and 200 CBM of hospital disposables along with 100 tons of hand sanitizers from China.
He also expressed his gratitude to Hon’ble Prime Minister Sh. Narendra Modi Ji who took significant initiative in improving Shipping Infrastructure which led to the birth of National Logistics Policy. In a span of two months only, this policy has proved to be a stepping stone in the Logistics Industry. A new visibility and infrastructure is being laid connecting smaller towns with metropolitans. Special emphasis has been led to the warehousing, reducing logistics cost & making India economically competitive.
Water Conservation & sustainability onus lies on the shoulders of each individual of the country. This responsibility can never be alone shouldered on Government, NGO’s or CSR initiatives. Dr. Singh in his speech referred to Dr. Kiran Bedi on her visionary on 100th Independent India Mahotsav whereby we project India as “Vishwa Guru”. On an ending note, Dr. Singh mentions that the key is to always keep on trying to make this world a better and safer place to live for our future generations. He said कोशिश करने वालों की कभी हार नहीं होती. If we work collectively, nothing is impossible in this world. The whole universe shall work towards the achievement of your focus area.
The ceremony ended with honouring Finest Mind Speakers with Maharashtra Jal Samman 2022. This event is also being referred to as a benchmark for Maharashtra water conservation & sustainability.