Political

The dirty picture
A hard-hitting documentary film ‘Kakkoos’ looks at the politics behind the banned practice of manual scavenging and how the civil society connives to keep it alive. Posted on 12 May, 2017 11:27 AM

Kakkoos, a compelling documentary film on manual scavenging in Tamil Nadu is all about showing the practice as it is without any filter.

Manual scavenging is a caste issue. (Image: Divya Bharathi, Facebook)
A look inside your water tanker
While the quality of water supplied by tankers is suspect, having different sources of water for different uses is a luxury that not many can afford. Posted on 11 May, 2017 01:59 PM

In Hyderabad, water tankers are the dominant source of daily water supply. Research for the project Ensuring Water Security in Hyderabad Municipal Area gave us some insights into the quality of water carried by these tankers. When the water is pumped from borewells in villages, it is not always transferred to tankers immediately.

Water tankers queue up to be filled.(Source:SaciWATERs)
Greywater irrigation more profitable
A study that finds many trees like eucalyptus grow better with greywater than ground water shows a better way to manage water. Posted on 10 May, 2017 09:42 AM

Over the years, the increasing population and urbanisation have meant growing shortage of land for disposal of domestic greywater, indiscriminate cutting down of forests for biomass production and lesser availability of water for irrigation.

Greywater from kitchen and bathroom. (Source: India Water Portal)
Ennore oil spill: Flora, fauna recover slowly
News this week Posted on 08 May, 2017 10:03 PM

Oil spill in Ennore has highly impacted the zone between Ennore and Marina beach

Oil sludge being manually removed from the rocky coast. (Image courtesy: The Indian Express)
Now, Narmada is also a living entity
Policy matters this week Posted on 08 May, 2017 08:19 PM

Following Ganga and Yamuna, Narmada river also gets living entity status

Narmada river (Source: Wikipedia commons)
In the name of development
The indigenous community of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands has been systematically alienated from their land by the colonial and post-colonial policies. A new book chronicles the change. Posted on 06 May, 2017 08:12 PM

Pankaj Sekhsaria’s recent book Islands in flux--The Andaman and Nicobar Story is a collection of around 20 years of his writings on the environmental and conservation concerns faced by the indigenous tribal communities of the region.

The forests and the tribal communities of the islands are being decimated. (Source: Wikimedia Commons)
Water scarcity amidst plenty
Despite having many water sources nearby, Chavadiyur hamlet in the Attappadi region is facing a drought-like situation, thanks to institutional failure. Posted on 05 May, 2017 08:07 PM

In a tribal settlement called Chavadiyur in the Attappadi region in Kerala, the summer has begun. It is already facing severe water shortage. The scarcity of water in the region has been exacerbated by the significant decrease in rainfall during both the southwest and the northeast monsoons.

Source of water for the community. (Photo by V.JAYASREE)
ACWADAM's certificate course on groundwater
ACWADAM is organising a 15-day programme on training and facilitation in hydrogeology to enhance civil societies capabilities in watershed and groundwater management.
Posted on 04 May, 2017 04:01 PM

ACWADAM will be running a fifteen-day training programme on basic hydrogeology or groundwater science, for professionals from Civil Society Organisations or NGOs.

How Punjab can deal with its hot potato
Despite favourable climatic conditions, the spud is a difficult crop to grow. Add to it the government’s indifference and market fluctuations, the potato kings of Punjab are having a tough time. Posted on 03 May, 2017 05:13 PM

Till about two months ago, Punjab was all about potatoes and politics. A surplus production and market crash had farmers dumping their produce on the roads. At the same time, the results of the State Assembly elections were keenly awaited. While Punjab survived the prediction of a hung Assembly, the fate of farmers still hangs in balance.

More than potatoes, it's the seed that Punjab is famous for.
Now a human, Ganga receives its first legal notice
Policy matters this week Posted on 02 May, 2017 08:42 AM

After becoming a human entity, Ganga river receives first legal notice

Ganga near Gadmukteshwar (Source: IWP Flickr Photos)
×