Bay of Bengal

Water, water, everywhere
Despite the many beautiful lakes, Udaipur’s water crisis is baffling. Increasing tourism and pollution make the city dependent on external sources for water supply. Posted on 09 Sep, 2016 05:42 PM

The city of Udaipur is all about its lakes. If Pichola gets the maximum tourist footfall, the scenic beauty of Fateh Sagar invites solitude lovers. The Udai Sagar lake in the east, which remained the first line of defence for the city, now meets the industrial need for water. 

Pichola lake attracts maximum tourists.
People of two states join hands to save the Mahanadi
The issue at stake in the Mahanadi basin is not one of Chhattisgarh vs Odisha, but one of agriculture vs industry. Posted on 07 Sep, 2016 04:29 PM

The Mahanadi is the lifeline of the people of both Chhattisgarh and Odisha, as it the most important water source for the farmers and other citizens of both these states to meet their domestic and livelihood needs.

Panel Discussion on the inter-state water dispute between Chhattisgarh and Odisha
Damn the dams, say the displaced
Many people have been displaced by major dam projects in the country. A bigger threat, however, lies in the ageing dams waiting to collapse. Posted on 30 Aug, 2016 12:28 PM

"If you are to suffer, you should suffer in the interest of the country.”

- Jawaharlal Nehru, speaking to villagers who were to be displaced by the Hirakud Dam in 1948.

The Hirakud dam
Farakka faces a barrage of criticism
The Farakka barrage is an ageing symbol of our need to control rivers and our inability to do so. Can we do away with it? Posted on 27 Aug, 2016 08:25 AM

The chief minister of Bihar, Nitish Kumar, called for the decommissioning of the Farakka barrage recently.

The lower Ganga, just upstream of Farakka, displays bank-cutting and erosion.
Encroachment behind Chennai floods: Panel
Policy matters this week Posted on 21 Aug, 2016 08:36 PM

Encroachment of lakes and riverbeds caused Chennai floods: Panel

Rescue efforts during Chennai's floods. (Source: IWP Flickr Photos)
Art of Living guilty of damaging Yamuna floodplains
Policy matter this week Posted on 16 Aug, 2016 09:57 AM

World Culture Festival damaged Yamuna floodplains, concludes NGT

The front view of the giant stage under construction for the World Culture Festival. (Source: Yamuna Jiye Abhiyan)
Children of a lesser God
Underprivileged children are the most affected by Assam’s annual floods. Their schools washed away and health affected, they also fall prey to nefarious activities. Posted on 09 Aug, 2016 10:32 PM

In what is considered the worst flood in a decade, the flood in Assam this year has swept over 2,800 villages away and submerged more than two lakh hectares of crop. More than 26 lakh people have been affected in 28 out of 34 districts of the state.

Children take refuge in temporary shelters.  (Photo source: Jhai Foundation)
UP unable to protect Yamuna, Taj Mahal: NGT
Policy matters this week Posted on 08 Aug, 2016 11:37 PM

NGT raps UP government over Yamuna's pollution near the Taj Mahal

Yamuna river near the Taj Mahal. (Source: Ekabhishek via Wikipedia)
Riverbed off limits, farmers fume
With the sewage-fed vegetable cultivation on Yamuna riverbed banned, the farmers are worried about their livelihood. Posted on 01 Aug, 2016 08:23 PM

Champa Devi has been working as a sharecropper on a two-acre farm at Nilothi village in west Delhi. Until a few years ago, the water she used for irrigation came from the Najafgarh drain that empties into the Yamuna river. This form of cultivation using waste water was a norm in the area till sometime ago.

Thousands of farmers like Champa Devi (in pic) who were growing edible crops or doing fodder cultivation on the riverbed and its floodplains took the brunt of the court’s decision.
NGT gets strict over notification of wetlands
Policy matters this week Posted on 30 Jul, 2016 11:53 PM

NGT orders CWRA to meet every month for identification of wetlands

A wetland in Assam. (Source: IWP Flickr Photos)
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