New Delhi, Nov 18 (IANS) The Defence Estates Organisation (DEO) under the Ministry of Defence was honoured with Jal Sanchay Jan Bhagidari (JSJB) 1.0 Award in the category Best Partner Ministries/Departments during the National Water Conservation ceremony held in New Delhi on Tuesday, an official said.

The achievement celebrates the organisation’s exemplary contribution to water conservation and its role as a key national partner under the National Water Mission of the Ministry of Jal Shakti, the official said in a statement.

The organisation has emerged as a model for inter-departmental collaboration, effectively integrating community engagement with infrastructural and environmental initiatives, it added.

The DEO demonstrated good performance in advancing water security initiatives across Defence establishments nationwide.

Through innovative planning, community-driven actions and effective implementation strategies, the organisation successfully promoted large-scale water conservation efforts, the statement said.

The DEO also enhanced groundwater recharge across multiple regions; revived traditional water bodies and heritage water structures; encouraged behavioural change and community participation and strengthened long-term sustainability through responsible water stewardship.

The award underlined DEO’s pivotal role in supporting the Union government’s vision of a water-secure future with the ambitious target of creating 10 million artificial recharge and water conservation structures under JSJB 2.0.

In September, the Defence Ministry said in a statement that as part of the ‘Year of Reforms’ initiative, the DEO has introduced measures to strengthen efficiency, transparency, and institutional capacity.

During this period, DEO advanced digitisation, implemented land management reforms, rolled out citizen-centric welfare initiatives, and strengthened infrastructure, reflecting the Ministry’s commitment to modernising defence administration, the official said in a statement.

Earlier, the DEO collaborated with the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment to extend social welfare schemes in cantonments, including Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyan, National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem (NAMASTE) scheme, and Atal Vayo Abhyuday Yojana, enhancing the welfare ecosystem for residents.

A key milestone was the Special Land Audit Report for the North Eastern Region, covering nearly 50,000 acres of Army-occupied land across eight states, including Sikkim, which improved transparency and accountability in defence land management.

–IANS

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