In continuation of his peculiar activities and statements, an Indian ruling party lawmaker in the central state of Madhya Pradesh has suggested locals to drink alcohol, chew tobacco, smoke weed, or smell thinner and solution as he emphasized on conserving water.
Addressing a workshop in the state's Rewa, his constituency, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) Janardan Mishra on Monday said: “Lands are running dry of water, it must be saved… Drink alcohol, chew tobacco, smoke weed, or smell thinner and solution but understand the importance of water.”
“There is no water left beneath the soil. Every year the groundwater level is decreasing, as we utilise more water than we save. We are not putting water back into the ground,” the MP said.
It's only when you spend money on water conservation that you understand the value of saving water, he further stated.
“Spend money on anything you like, I have no objections, chew tobacco, drink alcohol or smell thinner, do whatever you want. Spend on personal things or for religious use but understand the importance of water,” he said.
This is not the first time that Mishra has hit the headlines. Earlier, in a video that had gone viral in late September, he was seen cleaning the toilet at a girls' school in the state with his bare hands.
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In early 2018, the BJP leader cleaned a school privy and posted videos on Twitter. Before that, he was spotted cleaning the streets of Rewa.
In Madhya Pradesh, water shortage is a recurring issue every summer. The state government has promised tap water supply to every village by 2024. But drinking water is still inaccessible to millions.
A 2019 global report had named India among 17 countries where "water stress" was "extremely high".
The report said the states of Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Haryana were among those worst hit by the crisis.
India is the largest extractor of groundwater in the world - many still rely on it for their daily water supply.
But almost two-thirds of the country's districts are threatened by falling groundwater levels, the World Bank says.
India is projected to face severe water stress by 2050, with 30 cities said to fall in high-risk regions.
