The Government will install 10 thousand solar-based water systems in the Naxal-affected districts to meet the challenges of drinking water scarcity. In a written reply in the Lok Sabha, Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh said the solar-based system would go a long way in solving the drinking water problems of the Naxal-affected areas.

He said Rs 540 crore had been earmarked for this project and added that 200 such systems had already been set up in Maharashtra’s Gadchiroli district. Ramesh said improving water use efficiency was one of the main goals of his ministry and 70 per cent of all the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act works were water related works.

The Minister said besides enhancing the contribution of renewable energy in rural development works, efforts were also being made to improve the expansion of green cover in the country.