Kolkata, Jul 1 (IANS): In order to raise water conservation awareness, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday announced that July 12 will be observed as 'Save water Day'.

"Today we have decided that July 12 will be observed as Save Water Day every year," Banerjee said during the inauguration of a trauma care centre at Seth Sukhlal Karnani Memorial (SSKM) Hospital.

The state government will hold a rally from Jorasanko Thakurbari (ancestral home of Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore) at 3 p.m. on July 12. This will be led by Banerjee herself.

"I invite people from various walks of life including students. Save water save life. Saving water will help in safeguarding the environment," Banerjee added.

As per NITI Aayog's 2018 report, nearly 600 million Indians faced high to extreme water stress. Also, twenty-one cities, including Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad will run out of groundwater by 2020, affecting 100 million people.