Harvesting rainwater

Rain water can indeed be a good alternative source of potable water for us. Given that there is a fast depletion of groundwater level and that it is becoming increasingly difficult for the WASA in the metropolitan towns and cities to meet the demand for drinking and household-use water in the urban areas, time has come to move to newer sources of clean water. This is something that many countries in the world have already adopted, for example in some of the most water-scarce areas in Pakistan this age-old system of rain water harvesting has offset water scarcity.
The suggestions came at a three-day international convention titled, "Bangladesh Convention on Rainwater Harvesting" organised jointly by WaterAid and several other NGO's and BUET. The idea can not only address, in parts may be, the need for drinkable water in the urban areas, also the rural and the coastal belt areas plagued by salinity particularly can have the benefit of fresh water.
This is an age-old practice that has gone out of fashion with modernity, but natural compulsions demand that we revert to the old practice of holding not only the most refined water but also something that we have in plenty in the monsoons.
And it is not a day too soon to latch on to the suggestion and work on the idea. Given that we receive an average of 2150 mm of rainfall per annum, three times more than the world average of 800 mm, most of this huge volume ultimately runs off to the sea unutilised. Having said that, we must recognise the challenges in implementing the idea, for example we must ensure that the new building plans have provisions for holding rainwater, configure appropriate system for houses in the rural areas, and create general awareness among the masses.