India

What’s shit got to do with child health?
Open defecation plays a key role in solving the puzzle of persistent childhood malnutrition in India, says study Posted on 02 Sep, 2019 06:35 PM

A pig snorts after emerging from the open drain that passes through a slum in the Digha area of south Patna. Small children crawl on the road nearby with slime dribbling from their nose.

Studies indicate that more children stunted in India than in sub-Saharan Africa (Image: MOSPI)
Monsoon set to abate: SkyMet Weather
Rainfall likely over central, western India; Mumbai & Chennai to receive no rains; light to moderate rainfall in Delhi this week; no extreme weather events expected across India. Posted on 28 Aug, 2019 11:49 AM

Since the 25th of July, there have been four consecutive weeks of surplus rainfall which have compensated for the delayed onset of monsoon and the deficient rains recorded in June and early July.  July had ended with a countrywide deficit of 9%, but vigorous Monsoon conditions took the rains to a surplus of 1% as on August 25.

Picture for representational purposes only. Picture courtesy India Water Portal on Flickr
Government to spend Rs 3.5 trillion to provide potable water
Policy matters this week Posted on 21 Aug, 2019 11:14 PM

Government to spend Rs 3.5 trillion under Jal Jeevan Mission: PM Modi

Women filling water from a tap (Source: IWP Flickr photos)
Hydropower in the Himalayas: Potential and risks
Study highlights significant hydropower opportunities in the Hindu Kush Himalayan region. Posted on 21 Aug, 2019 11:01 PM

Worldwide, the demand for energy has risen significantly and quickly, leading to serious impacts on environmental sustainability and hindering global efforts to mitigate climate change. Hydropower, a leading renewable option has the additional benefits of water storage for agriculture and other uses.

Hydel project near Kullu (Image: Nadir Hashmi, Flickr Commons)
Growing crops, one byte at a time
Mobile agri-advisory services provide timely and relevant advice to farmers. But do they translate to practice in the field? Posted on 19 Aug, 2019 12:09 PM

Agricultural extension and advisory services facilitate the transfer of knowledge, information, improved technologies and practices to farmers, farmer organizations and market actors. Research has shown positive effects of extension access when it came to knowledge, adoption, productivity, and economic returns for farmers.

CCMobile App compatible with Android and iOS, tends to connect farmers with their crop (Image: YourStory)
Mangroves: Powerhouses of carbon storage the planet desperately needs
Mangroves are carbon-dense ecosystems that can play an important role in carbon storage, study suggests. Posted on 16 Aug, 2019 09:35 AM

Straddling land and sea and swarming with life, mangroves are key to healthy coastal ecosystems. They are recognised for their role as storm barriers, protecting coastal areas from flooding and erosion by dissipating the energy of huge waves. They act as nurseries for fish, help filter river water of pollutants and trap excess sediment before it reaches the ocean.

A cluster of mangroves on the banks of Vellikeel river in Kannur, Kerala (Image: Wikimedia Commons; CC BY-SA 3.0)
Floods claim 227 lives; Centre proposes river basin management bill to check floods
News this week Posted on 14 Aug, 2019 01:37 PM

Southwest monsoon claims 227 lives

Rescue efforts underway during the floods in Chennai in 2015 (Source: IWP Flickr photos)
Government set to conserve India's springs
Policy matters this week Posted on 14 Aug, 2019 08:32 AM

Government rolls out plan to revive springs across the country

Many springs in the Himalayas have reduced discharge. (Source: India Water Portal)
P Sainath: The water crisis is not caused by drought
Magsaysay award winner & founder-editor of PARI, P Sainath analyses India's water scarcity, the agrarian crisis & farmer suicides, before asking: what can we do about it? Posted on 13 Aug, 2019 11:47 AM

P Sainath has been documenting stories from rural India for over three decades now.

Picture: The semi-arid regions of the Moyar-Bhavani River basin in Tamil Nadu. Picture credit: Prathigna Poonacha, Tanvi Deshpande; Indian Institute for Human Settlements from India Water Portal on Flickr. Picture used for representational purposes only
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