News and Articles

India has a groundwater problem
Despite being the lifeline of India’s water supplies, groundwater is overlooked by policy makers and users alike. Posted on 04 Nov, 2019 12:23 PM

A majority of India’s water problems are those relating to groundwater—water that is found beneath the earth’s surface. This is because we are the largest user of groundwater in the world, and therefore highly dependent on it.

An irrigation well at Randullabad, Maharashtra. Image source: India Water Portal on Flickr. Image used for representational purposes only.
India’s rivers carry deadly pathogens
A global study on pathogens in rivers finds that Indian rivers harbour dangerous levels of diarrhoeal disease-causing pathogens. Posted on 30 Oct, 2019 01:02 PM

Diarrhoea is one of the leading killers of children under the age of five in developing countries. Diarrhoea is rampant in India, with diarrhoeal diseases being the most prevalent of all waterborne diseases in the country.

The river Mutha in Pune (Image Source: India Water Portal)
Unregulated e-waste hotspots operating in Delhi with no safeguards
Study identifies 5,000 illegal e-waste units in Delhi operating without health and environmental safeguards. Posted on 28 Oct, 2019 02:11 PM

A study by Toxics Link, a Delhi-based environmental research and advocacy non-profit identified 15 e-waste processing hotspots in Delhi operating with impunity without safeguards. These hotspots house over 5,000 illegal e-waste processing units directly and indirectly employing over 50,000 people.

Most of the operations in these units were found to be manual and rudimentary (Image: Toxics Link)
Mapping Pune’s aquifers
Groundwater use has doubled in Pune. Comprehensive mapping of groundwater resources and better management and governance is the need of the hour. Posted on 25 Oct, 2019 01:13 PM

Pune continues to face a water crisis every summer despite having sufficient water, thanks to its geographical location and plentiful natural water assets. While enough of its water needs are taken care of by water supply from the Khadakwasla dam, the use of groundwater to meet the needs of the population continues to increase.

Groundwater, an exploited resource (Image Source: India Water Portal)
Ice stupas, the contested water towers of Ladakh
While ice stupas have been hailed as sustainable solutions to the water problems of Ladakh’s villages, the locals think otherwise. Posted on 24 Oct, 2019 04:38 PM

Ladakh, the arid Himalayan desert, is a high elevation borderland located close to the Union Territory (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir, in India. Water here originates from glaciers in the high altitude mountains that tower over Ladakh’s villages. Simple earthwork irrigation channels tap meltwater from streams that originate from these glaciers.

Ice Stupas near Phyang monastery (Image Courtsey: Sumita Roy Dutta, Wikimedia Commons)
How farm ponds in Madhya Pradesh are building agricultural resilience
An intern with Watershed Organisation Trust narrates his field experience from the villages of Madhya Pradesh, where farmers are using farm ponds to conserve water. Posted on 24 Oct, 2019 12:33 PM

Madhya Pradesh, promoted as 'The Heart of India' by the state's tourism board is aptly named so because of its central location. The campaign made me keen to visit the state, for the last many years.

A farm pond constructed by Sheshrao Dhurve in Karaghat Kamti village of Madhya Pradesh
Arrival of northeast monsoon & retreat of southwest monsoon coincides this year; Salt lake and several metro cities shrinking at alarming pace
News this week Posted on 23 Oct, 2019 01:36 PM

Soon a national framework for e-flows in all major rivers

Yamuna river in Delhi (Source: Sudhanshu Malhotra via IWP Flickr Photos)
Drinking water availability should be a top priority, concrete action should be taken against water wastage: NGT
Policy matters this week Posted on 23 Oct, 2019 10:35 AM

Drinking water availability should be a top priority: NGT

Queuing up for water (Source: IWP Flickr Photos)
Conflicts over land on the rise in India
A forum discusses the need to stop illegal land transfers and land alienation of the poor. Posted on 22 Oct, 2019 11:42 AM

Land-related conflicts in India are on the rise despite some of the most progressive legislations to protect people’s rights over land and forest.

The maldharis from kutch on their own road trip (Image: Malay Maniar, Flickr Commons, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
In conversation with K. J. Joy of SOPPECOM
In this interview, Joy talks about his work as an activist working in rural Maharashtra, and how he came to work on water conflicts in India. Posted on 21 Oct, 2019 10:41 AM

To many in the water sector, K. J. Joy needs no introduction. An activist at heart, Joy is known for his untiring rights based work in mobilising communities in rural Maharashtra, and for his research work on water and water related conflicts including inter-state riparian water conflicts.

KJ Joy speaks at a felicitation for the late Professor Ramaswamy Iyer.
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