News and Articles

35 years on, government looks away as Bhopal neighbourhood continues to drink chemical-laden water
Bhopal Gas Leak: Long Term Impact Posted on 07 Aug, 2019 02:09 PM

Alia, 15, cannot move or talk. “She is totally dependent on me,” said her father Mohammad Asad, an electrician. “Her mother passed away almost nine years back. I have to remain with her most of the time”.

Children at the Chingari Trust, Bhopal. Pic: Shuriah Niazi for Citizen Matters
Lok Sabha passes inter-state river disputes bill
Policy matters this week Posted on 06 Aug, 2019 02:45 PM

Lok Sabha passes Inter-State River Water Disputes (Amendment) Bill, 2019  

Cauvery river in Karnataka (Source: IWP Flickr photos)
Fertiliser sector’s bleak record on water use in India
A recent report by CSE rates fertilizer plants on how green the sector is. Posted on 06 Aug, 2019 02:09 PM

Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), a New Delhi based non-profit has rated the country’s fertilizer sector on several parameters, in a first of its kind study. The rating, done over an 18-month-long process, covered 28 of the 32 functional fertilizer units in the country.

There is need to improve the environmental performance of the fertiliser sector through multi-directional initiatives (Image: MaDailyGist)
All work and some play
Collective action games trigger conversations around the nature of the invisible and immeasurable common pool resource - groundwater. Posted on 02 Aug, 2019 12:11 PM

India is, by far, the world’s largest groundwater economy. India’s annual withdrawal of fresh groundwater (253 Billion Cubic Metres in 2013) amounts to one fourth of the global total and is more than that of China and the US combined. Over 80% of water extracted is used in agriculture. The share of tubewells in net irrigated area rose from a mere 1% in 1960-61 to over 40% in 2013-14.

Villagers in Magradeh, Madhya Pradesh watching neighbouring farmers play a game. Image credit: Water Practitioners Network
Is the Jalayukt Shivar Abhiyan just a quick fix to manage droughts?
A research paper argues that quick fix solutions to drought management will not work unless they are backed up by proper planning, implementation, monitoring and regulation of water use. Posted on 02 Aug, 2019 10:29 AM

Maharashtra is reeling under drought this year too, with the situation in Marathwada particularly bad.

Quick fix solutions to droughts will not work (Image Source: Wikimedia Commons)
How do farmers perceive soil erosion?
A study in Telangana argues that farmers’ expertise is important while assessing the severity of soil erosion. Posted on 01 Aug, 2019 03:24 PM

Regionally and globally, soil erosion is a major contributor to total land degradation.

A farmer in Pochampally (Image:Saurabh Chatterjee, Flickr Commons, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
Himalayan states call for green bonus and a separate ministry
News this week Posted on 31 Jul, 2019 05:35 PM

Himalayan states demand green bonus and separate ministry from Centre

The Himalayas (Source: IWP Flickr photos)
Rural sanitation: A charter of demands
Research & experience over 20 years in rural Odisha shows that an effective rural sanitation model requires both financial assistance & an integrated water supply. Posted on 31 Jul, 2019 02:08 PM

There are studies and field reports that have analysed the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) in terms of coverage and use of toilets in rural India.

Raibari Bewa standing near the toilet, bathroom unit and collecting water from the third tap in Dudukaguda village, in Thuamul Rampur block, Kalahandi district of Odisha. On the walls, details of Swachh Bharat Mission benefits availed by her in Odia | Picture courtesy: Ajaya Behera
Spending a summer building scalable water access in rural India
A young college graduate shares his experience working with Tata Trusts in Assam on water issues. Posted on 25 Jul, 2019 04:08 PM

This summer I had the incredible opportunity, to work with the Tata Trusts and their Tata Water Mission (TWM) initiative, exploring avenues to provide scalable water access to stakeholders in rural communities.

Stream Network in Tezpur, Assam. Image credit: Rohit Sar
Springing back to life
CHIRAG in Uttarakhand works with communities to revive local springs to achieve water security. Posted on 25 Jul, 2019 12:48 PM

In popular imagination, steeped in consumer culture, the hills are exotic and aesthetically sublime places to find solace away from busy urban life. This kind of imagination conveniently ignores and de-contextualizes the hills and the problems they face today. The Himalayas, often known as the Water Tower of Asia, are revered because many of the world's important rivers originate from them.

Image source: Water Practitioners Network
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