ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Science and Technology Shibli Faraz on Friday said that practical steps must be taken to ensure availability of safe and healthy drinking water to the masses. During his visit to Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources, he said that consumption of contaminated water was resulting in water borne diseases which added extra pressure on our already fragile health care system. The PCRWR chairman briefed the minister regarding the initiatives and working of the organization. The minister stated that the value of water must be recognized at all levels and intervention should be made for its conservation as it was a matter of the future of our coming generations. He emphasized that holistic approach was required in all aspects of water resources including storage, irrigation, drainage, ground water depletion and waste water management. He stressed that it was high time to include modern techniques like crop zoning, drip and sprinkler irrigation in agriculture to minimise the wastage of water in this sector. Shibli Faraz said that a 10-canal telemetric system would be soon introduced in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by PCRWR. Commending initiatives taken by PCRWR, he said that priority areas should be chalked out so that all out efforts could be made in that regard.