Physiography

Let's not only blame Punjab's farmers for lighting up!
The current rice-wheat crop cycle and the cost of safe disposal of the straw push farmers towards burning, thereby causing them health issues as well as draining available natural resources.
Manu Moudgil
Posted on 13 Nov, 2015 11:35 PM

A few days ago, there were news items galore with NASA's images of the burning of rice straw in Punjab. The red dots were presumed to be the fields
Short period between rice harvesting and sowing of wheat forces farmers to burn straw. (Source: Neil Palmer Wikimedia Commons)
Bangalore needs to break class barriers if its lakes are to be saved
The govt. has started reclaiming encroached lake beds in the IT city but unless citizens interact across class divides, these urban water bodies will continue to spew foam, says Leo F. Saldanha.
Manu Moudgil
Posted on 25 Oct, 2015 12:15 PM

Lakes spewing foam and catching fire in Bangalore made big news for several weeks but this is just an indication of the times to come as we fill up water bodies with effluents or turn them into sewage dumps in most cities across India. India Water Portal talks to Leo F. Saldanha of Bangalore-based Environment Support Group on how to manage these precious resources. 
Foam from lake engulfs vehicles in Bangalore. Source: Yoga Priya
Community conservation of forests is successful when women participate
Van Panchayats have only been successful in conserving their forests with the enthusiastic participation of women. This is how to increase women's leadership in forest conservation.
Chicu Lokgariwar
Usha Dewani-Das
Posted on 24 Oct, 2015 04:34 PM

When I first spoke with Bhagoti Devi, I attempted to break the ice by telling her how warmly our mutual acquaintances spoke of her. She was nonchalant. "Of course they will recommend you speak to me”, she said. “After all, it took a lot of hard work to have such a thick forest standing here.”
These two neighbouring oak trees, one untouched and the other over-lopped, are both managed by the women of one family and illustrate the impact that women have on forests
China operationalises one of the biggest dams on the Brahmaputra
News this week
Swati Bansal
Posted on 20 Oct, 2015 07:01 PM

China's Zangmu Hydropower Project, one of the biggest dams on Brahmaputra, is operational
Brahmaputra river in Tibet (Source: Luca Galuzzi via Wikipedia)
After Cyclone Aila, farming nurtures food, faith in Sunderbans
In 2009, Cyclone Aila caused significant damage to livelihoods in the Sunderbans. While saline soil is subversive to agriculture in the area, integrated farming gives many the courage to start afresh.
Usha Dewani Das
Posted on 14 Oct, 2015 09:53 PM

“Another flood like Aila should never happen again, but if it does, we have the knowledge to start working on our soil again”, remarks Binota Munda of Nebukhali village in Hingalganj block, North
Seed-banks are an effective instrument to preserve local varieties and keep people together
From suspecting black magic to diagnosing fluorosis: Madhya Pradesh's struggle
Fluorosis was first discovered in Madhya Pradesh in 1997. Since then half the state has been affected. The people involved in combating the spread of this disease in the state share their story.
Chicu Lokgariwar
Posted on 02 Oct, 2015 12:08 PM

It was 1995.
The use of borewells in fluoride-affected areas, such as this one in Dhar, is one of the primary reasons for fluorosis. (Source: Chicu Lokgariwar)
Media workshop on climate change adaptation in Assam
Applications are invited for the media workshop on climate change adaptation in Assam that will be held in Jorhat and Majuli from November 2 to 5, 2015.
Posted on 22 Sep, 2015 03:59 PM

About the Event:
Water guards of Rajasthan
Taankas are trusted allies in the harsh weather of Rajasthan, but the focus is shifting now onto personal assets rather than community resources.
Manu Moudgil
Posted on 20 Sep, 2015 07:29 PM

We were driving down the long desert road that runs parallel to the Indo-Pakistan border in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. There was little else to see except the surrounding sand dunes and desert grass.
A taanka in the Thar desert
Shimla school goes from students bathing every other day to swimming daily!
Bishop Cotton School in Shimla tides over water scarcity by harvesting rainwater, setting an example for other residential schools located in hilly regions.
Manu Moudgil
Posted on 07 Sep, 2015 10:26 PM

Mathew Jacob, estate supervisor at Bishop Cotton School (BCS) in Shimla, remembers when he took his students walking in single file to the nearby stream to wash and bathe

Four storage tanks are linked to 1350 sqm of rooftop area at Bishop Cotton School in Shimla.
Sunderbans and Siachen glacier to become trans-boundary protected area
Policy matters this week
Swati Bansal
Posted on 31 Aug, 2015 10:25 PM

Sunderbans and Siachen glacier proposed to be recognised as a trans-boundary protected area
Farm fields in the Sunderbans (Source: India Water Portal Flickr Photo)
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