Presentations

Pampa Sarovara and its environs in Valmiki Ramayana - Paper presented at the National Seminar on Water and Culture (2007)
Understanding Water and its importance through ancient knowledge in mythology Posted on 14 Feb, 2011 03:17 AM

This paper describes a lake in one of the forests through which the Hindu god Ram and his brother Laxman passed, during their search for Sita. A virtual picture of the forest and the lake (Pampa Sarovara) in it using the Valmiki Ramayana which is a religious biopic of Ram's life on earth is created. This lake is situated near the town of Hampi in Karnataka today, and the forest is a rich source of water to this day.

Water management in the Vijaynagar empire - Paper presented at the National Seminar on Water and Culture (2007)
The ancient systems were built with a reverence for the environment and water. Understanding these from the Vijaynagar Empire Posted on 14 Feb, 2011 01:55 AM

This paper focuses on water management techniques used in two tanks constructed by the kings of the Vijaynagar Empire.

The first example taken, is that of the Anantraj Sagar built by the son of the minister of Harihar. The lake is still in use and there are inscriptions on stone near it which provide a thumb rule to constructing lakes. Construction of this lake began in 1369 and was completed in 2 years. The paper states that the length of the dam was 5000 dand, width was 8 dand and the height was 7 dand (One dand is about one metre).

Water management systems in the coastal area of Ratnagiri, with special reference to water tanks near temples - Paper presented at the National Seminar on Water and Culture (2007)
A study of the relation between water systems and temples to understand ancient knowledge Posted on 14 Feb, 2011 01:27 AM

This paper discusses the water management systems found in temples in coastal Konkan, based on a study of 5 temples in the district of Ratnagiri. The study area is a rocky and rugged country, with elevated plateau and intersecting creeks.

A temple tank in Devanahalli, Karnataka. Picture for representation only.
Ideal historical river water use systems - Paper presented at the National Seminar on Water and Culture (2007)
This paper explains an ancient surface water irrigation technique known as "Phad" and its management in parts of Maharashtra. Posted on 14 Feb, 2011 12:02 AM

The Phad system of irrigation which has been going on for centuries, is found in the northwestern parts of Maharashtra in the three river basins of Panjhra, Mosam, Kan and Aram. Weirs were constructed on these rivers to divert water for agriculture use. These weirs are locally called Bandhara. Each independent Phad system comprises of a diversion weir, a canal on the bank and distributor channels for irrigation.

Proceedings of the second international symposium on the management of large rivers for fisheries by FAO and Mekong River Commission
Over 220 river scientists and managers from around the world attended the symposium. Contributed papers represented 96 rivers from 61 river basins from all continents and climatic zones. Posted on 03 Feb, 2011 07:55 PM

The second international symposium on the management of large rivers for fisheries was held by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) and Mekong River Commission on 11 - 14 February 2003 in Phnom Penh, Kingdom of Cambodia. It had three primary objectives: (a) To provide a forum to review and synthesise the latest information on large rivers; (b) To raise the political, public and scientific awareness of the importance of river systems, the living aquatic resources they support and the people that depend on them; and (c) To contribute to better management, conservation and restoration of the living aquatic resources of large rivers.

The symposium was organised in six sessions:

Session 1: Status of rivers
Session 2: Value of river fisheries
Session 3: Fisheries ecology and conservation
Session 4: Management of river fisheries
Session 5: Statistics and information
Session 6: Synthesis

 It came up with the following recommendations for action -

  • Improve the valuation of living river resources in order to contribute to equitable and sustainable management of fishery resources and properly place the fishery in the context of the other uses of rivers.
  • Direct greater effort to better understanding the social and economic aspects of fisheries to support policy and management priorities; livelihood approaches will be a valuable tool.
  • Communicate and engage with environment and water resources managers within the context of multi-use of water in order to accurately assess impacts and to sustain the benefits of river fisheries in an equitable manner.
  • Develop processes that facilitate the users and beneficiaries of the fishery resource to assume greater control of its management.
  • Establish appropriate mechanisms at national and basin level to enable negotiation for the needs of communities dependent upon the living aquatic resources. In particular further regulations need to be elaborated to protect general ecosystem function and provide for environmental flows.
  • Use instruments such as the freshwater eco-regions approach, the Ramsar Convention and the guidelines for water allocation suggested by the World Commission on Dams, to enhance planning for conservation and sustainable use of river habitats.
  • Incorporate ecological flow requirements of river-floodplain systems into development plans and impact assessments that affect river flows, taking into account the seasonality of the system and the environmental cues needed by the fish for migration and reproduction.
  • Rehabilitate degraded ecosystems wherever possible. Prioritize schemes that ensure connectivity and protection of critical habitats.

Conjunctive use of surface water and ground water - Lecture delivered by Dr. R. Jagadiswara Rao at National Water Academy, Pune
Please find attached my presentation on "Conjunctive use of surface water and groundwater" at National Water Academy (NWA) at Pune on 4th November 2009. Posted on 03 Feb, 2011 12:09 PM

 

Dr. R. Jagadishwara Rao
Former Professor of Geology
Sri Venkateswara University
Tirupati, AP 517502

India's participation at the UN Climate Change Conference at Cancun, Mexico - MoEF press release and ninister's statement
Indian event at Cancun re-emphasizes importance of equity, 7th December 2010 Posted on 31 Jan, 2011 12:16 AM

Content Courtesy: Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India

CancunPress release: Indian event at Cancun re-emphasises importance of equity, 7th December 2010

India hosted a major event at the sidelines of the UN Climate Change Conference at Cancun, where the critical issue of equity and equitable access to carbon space was emphasised. 

India's Minister for Environment and Forests and Head of Delegation, Shri Jairam Ramesh personally chaired the side event that had presentations by Prof. T. Jayaraman, Tata Inst. Of Social Sciences, India, Mr. Martin Khor, Executive Dir., South Centre, Geneva and Dr. Harald, ERC & Univ. Of Cape Town, South Africa.

Download the entire press release here.

The worsening water crisis in Gujarat - The Earth Institute
This post is based on a White Paper produced by the Columbia Water Center for the workshop ‘Strategies for Sustaining Water, Energy and Incomes in North Gujarat,’ Posted on 20 Jan, 2011 04:41 PM

It was the kick-off event of an ambitious project to find solutions to the groundwater crisis in Gujarat, funded by the PepsiCo Foundation. More details of the project will follow this overview post.

Gujarat and the Mehsana region, India Source: Columbia Water Center

Whose water? Privatisation of water, a bane for consumers
All of us have felt the joy of slaking one's thirst with water, washing away the unforgiving heat of a Delhi summer with a cool glass of water. But have you ever paused to think about where we get our water from? How are we using this resource? Is it finite or will be always get clean water, everyday, for all our needs? Posted on 18 Jan, 2011 11:47 PM

All of us have felt the joy of slaking one's thirst with water, washing away the unforgiving heat of a Delhi summer with a cool glass of water. But have you ever paused to think about where we get our water from? How are we using this resource? Is it finite or will be always get clean water, everyday, for all our needs?

Managing Natural Resources -A report by IDSAsr
Managing the scare natural resources better and how space programme plays a role in this, a seminar of country's brilliant minds take the issue head on. Posted on 18 Jan, 2011 04:24 PM

The scarcity value of natural resources has risen due to rising pressure of human population and demands made by modern economics progress. As such managing these resources has become very important.

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