New Delhi, May 11: Softdrinks major Coca Cola today said companies should act in tandem with various stakeholders to overcome the water scarcity arising out of industrial operations.

In an interview to a news channel, Coca Cola India President and CEO Atul Singh said his company was committed to improve the ground water situation in next two years.

"For the people living in the nearby areas, industry itself makes arrangements for water. We have committed that in the coming two years, i.e. by the end of 2009, we will return more water than what we extracted," Singh said.

He said even the rain water needed to be protected. However, he maintained that in our country, more water was consumed in agricultural works.

"We cannot eradicate the complete water crisis but wherever we have a factory we can solve the problem of water there. We can work with local government and panchayats to solve the water problems. We are also working with CII, FICCI and other institutions," he said.

Speaking on other subjects, Singh attributed the ongoing pesticide controversy involving cola majors operating in the country to a communication gap between various stakeholders.

"This issue can be solved only through dialogue between various stakeholders. There has to be a dialogue between politicians, NGOs, civil society, us and and the consumers to reach a solution," he said.