Water Initiatives Orissa(WIO) and the Indian River Network (IRN) organsied the Odisha River Conference during 18 - 20 April 2009 at Sambalpur, Odisha. Attended by about 75 participants which included activists, environmentalists, journalists, academicians, researchers and civil society representatives from across the country, the Conference has just concluded with a "Sambalpur Declaration" that calls for saving the rivers from the current fate of high rate of degradation and giving communities their traditional rights over the rivers, among other strong resolutions.
"Sambalpur Declaration" Let the rivers flow: Lets culture the habit of living with floods and coping to disasters, again !
Let the rivers flow for them who love and live with (on) them Key Resolutions of the Odisha River Conference 18-20 of April 2009 Sambalpur ==========
To conduct further studies to understand the importance of rivers of Orissa , especially the socio-economic, ecological and cultural dependence of the people of Orissa on the rivers. And, to disseminate these information among the communities and all concerned for the conservation of rivers.
To establish a network of people and institutions so as to work as a support system for conservation of rivers of Orissa and establish people's right over it, emphasizing riparian rights.
To document people's institutions of water governance; people's knowledge on river management and work towards integrating those in river basin planning and management. To do this, initiate processes towards community based and ecologically viable river basin governance that builds up from below and where the traditional/customary as well as new panchayati raj institutions also have a proper stake.
To pressurize the policy makers to have a fresh water/ecological impact assessment of all dams and industrial projects that are affecting the river systems and work towards advocating decommissioning of dams and such industrial projects if necessary for maintaining and sustaining the ecological health of the rivers and socio-economic-cultural benefit of communities dependent on the same.
To advocate for non-allocation of river and reservoir water to industries and for allocation of the same to drinking water and irrigation.
To study pollution of rivers due to industrialization, urbanization and other such reasons and work towards raising more awareness on such negative impacts at the community level. Also, to advocate for non establishment of mineral and water intensive industries near the river systems and at the cost of ecology.
To work towards conserving the river eco-systems and their catchments and promote basin based development approach.
To endeavour to revive the traditional water harvesting and management systems and practices; for making policies that promote small irrigation structures and rain water harvesting systems.
To study new threats like climate change and work towards creating large scale awareness and community based adaptation systems. In this, working like a support organization that facilitates synergy between people, experts and other such people and institutions concerned towards conservation of the river ecology and sustainable living of the people dependent on these.
To study/monitor the role of and impact by grants/loan of multi lateral finance institutions like the World Bank and ADB on the river systems of Odisha and take the same to all sections of the society to be able to properly generate public opinion and action to modify/stop such projects.
To propagate for management of flood rather than controlling the same. Work towards developing the culture of living with floods. In the process call for increasing the number of small water reservoirs/bodies and link them to the flood flow for proper cushioning. Also promote suitable ecologically sustainable agricultural practices.
To work towards combating drought and other disasters in approaches where the communities take the lead and ecology is used as an enabling and ever increasing factor rather than being degraded in the process.
To establish link with all other such networks in the state and outside; to initiate all such actions and advocacy efforts from time to time that are required to save the rivers of Odisha from further degradation; to revive the dying rivers and to conserve and river eco-systems.
For further information, please contact: Ranjan K Panda Convenor, Water Initiatives Orissa Cell: 09437050103 E-mail: ranjanpanda@gmail.com Bimal Prasad Pandia Co-ordinator, Water Initiatives Orissa Cell: 09438488563 E-mail: waterinitiativesorissa@gmail.com Download the Sambalpur Declaration as a .doc here:Sambalpur Declaration Access the Odisha River Conference announcement on the blog here: Invitation - Orissa River Conference Press Releases related to the Conference can be accessed here:Press Release from WIO on Odisha River Conference, WIO Press Release on Odisha River Congress (18.4.09)