Information, Education and Communication Campaigns

Dying wisdom of medieval water management of Aurangabad city - Paper presented at the National Seminar on Water and Culture (2007)
This paper discusses the water management techniques and technology known as Neher. Posted on 31 Jan, 2011 01:40 AM

The city of Aurangabad has benefited from the construction of  aqueducts and canals by its earlier rulers. According to the authors  between 1617 and 1803, a number of aqueducts and canals were constructed.

Glimpses of Bhagiratha Vidya - Irrigation engineering in ancient India - Paper presented at the National Seminar on Water and Culture (2007)
This paper looks at various ancient Indian texts to highlight irrigation techniques used at that time. Posted on 31 Jan, 2011 01:33 AM

There is mention of the importance of water in daily life in various prayers in the Rigveda. The author states that the earliest evidence of water conservation goes back to 3000 B. C. when Gabarbands were built in Baluchisthan. The Harappans built tanks and wells and were pioneers of well-digging technology.

Yale University releases Environmental Performance Indices for 2010
Environmental Performance Index (EPI) is a method for quantifying and numerically benchmarking the environmental performance of a country. Posted on 30 Jan, 2011 11:47 PM

This website by the Yale University provides information on the global and countrywise ratings for environmental performance in the form of Environmental Performance Indices (EPI) for different countries. The site also provides details of EPI scores for India in comparison with the average scores globally.

This index was developed from the Pilot Environmental Performance Index, first published in 2002, and designed to supplement the environmental targets set forth in the U.N. Millennium Development Goals (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_Performance_Index)

Water and its quality in ancient encyclopedias of Karnataka - Paper presented at the National Seminar on Water and Culture (2007)
This paper highlights how ancient texts of Karnataka have dealt with various issues of water which range from cloud formation to finding ground water. Posted on 30 Jan, 2011 06:40 PM

The author looks at three ancient Kannada and Sanskrit texts - Lokoparam, Manasollasa, Shivatattvaratnakara. All these texts were written between the 12th and 18th century. These texts record hydrological data ranging from cloud formation to traditional methods of preserving potable water.

Traditional water management practices and water sector reforms in South India - A comparative analysis of three systems and Participatory Irrigation Management policy - Paper presented at the National Seminar on Water and Culture (2007)
This paper deals with the comparative analysis of traditional water management practices in tanks systems and water sector reforms carried out in three southern states of India. Posted on 30 Jan, 2011 06:13 PM

The authors study three tanks; one each in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala and find that almost all tanks in Southern India face similar problems that include farmers in command area being deprived of water, siltation, lack of proper maintenance of such structures, lack of political will to decentralise authority to tank institutions etc.

Traditional water management practices in coastal Karnataka - Paper presented at the National Seminar on Water and Culture (2007)
This paper highlights traditional water management practices that were practised in coastal Karnataka. Posted on 30 Jan, 2011 04:10 PM

Th paper begins with a brief history of the region of Southern Kanada, its geography and the religious practices of the region. Some of the key features of this region includes  an abundance of rivers though they mostly are rain-fed. 

Suranga: A sustainable water resource - Paper presented at the National Seminar on Water and Culture (2007)
Surangas, an ancient drinking water system on the slopes of the hills, now nearly extinct Posted on 30 Jan, 2011 02:18 PM

This paper explores Surangas, which are an ancient water system based on tunnels bored horizontally on the slopes of hills to get drinking water. These structures are mainly found in the laterite soils of Dakshina Kannada region and some parts of Kerala and Goa.

Preservation of Mysore urban water bodies - Paper presented at the National Seminar on Water and Culture (2007)
Preserving our lakes in Mysore Posted on 30 Jan, 2011 04:00 AM

This paper presents the status of lakes in Mysore. It gives emphasis to the Socio-Economic Natural Complex - Lake Ecosystems (SENCLE) model of lake preservation and management which includes socio-technical aspects of lake care.

Glimpses of the historical water bodies in the Vijaynagar dynasty - Paper presented at the National Seminar on Water and Culture (2007)
88 Water bodies of the Vijaynagar Empire are either close to or extinct Posted on 30 Jan, 2011 03:44 AM

This paper uses secondary data to showcase the water bodies that were built in the Vijayanagar Empire. The author states that there were 88 such water bodies and these were used for irrigation purposes and also for consumption.

Decline of tank irrigation institutions in South India - A case-study of Tamil Nadu - Paper presented at the National Seminar on Water and Culture (2007)
This paper examines the importance of tank irrigation in Tamil Nadu and tries to ascertain the reasons why tank irrigation has failed today. Posted on 30 Jan, 2011 03:34 AM

The author gives a brief history of tank irrigation in South India. The number of irrigation tanks in India were 208,000, of which 120,000 were in the three Southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. These tanks irrigated 1.8 million hectares. The author uses graphs to point out to the decline in tank irrigation.

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