Citizens' Rights and Duties

Featured Articles
July 7, 2022 PMAY needs policy commitment to rehabilitate slums in small and medium cities of Gujarat
Need for legal framework for land rights in small and medium cities of Gujarat under PMAY (Image: Homes in the City)
December 6, 2019 A report by the India Rivers Forum highlights the need to focus further than the main stem of the Ganga river.
Distant snow clad mountains, the smaller hills and the Ganga river (Image: Srimoyee Banerjee, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)
November 21, 2019 A report by NIUA brings to light the chinks in Jaipur's sewage system and suggests some solutions.
Routine check done by the sewage treatment plant staff in Delawas, Jaipur. The plant is part of the ADB best practices projects list. (Image: Asian Development Bank, Flickr Commons)
November 18, 2019 Bangalore's water utility is understaffed, under financed and unable to service the city's water needs.
Image credit: Citizen Matters
November 15, 2019 On World Toilet Day, we bring to light the labour of India’s sewer workers - those who do the unclean work that a Clean India relies on.
Photo credit: Sharada Prasad
Banking on rainwater harvesting
National Water Mission’s campaign aims at creating rainwater harvesting structures in various parts of India. Posted on 11 Aug, 2020 10:27 AM

National Water Mission’s (NWM) has launched a campaign ‘Catch the rain’ on a pan India basis to nudge the states and stakeholders to create appropriate rainwater harvesting structures (RWHS) suitable to the climatic conditions and sub-soil strata before the onset of monsoon.

As a part of the campaign, work is being done on various interventions such as water for productive use, improving irrigation practices, creating water recharge structures (Image: Pikist)
Migration and the state amid the Covid-19 pandemic
The Covid-19 prompted migration crisis brought India’s inequalities into sharp relief. Posted on 06 Aug, 2020 06:05 PM

Through no fault of their own, migrants were forced to leave the cities after the government imposed a Covid-19 induced national lockdown in late March. After losing their work, fearing they would run out of cash and food they trudged back along with their families to the villages in search of humanity, food, and a place to live.

Migrants contribute enormously to urban society and economy (Image: Pexels)
Market linkage could ensure higher returns for farm produce
A study finds out gaps in the way farmer producer organisations are handling their operations and the available infrastructure. Posted on 03 Aug, 2020 06:49 PM

A recent national study on farmer producer’s organisations (FPOs) supported by Tata Trusts investigates gaps looming in business transactions between FPOs and market players and recommends interventions to bridge these.

Red chilli wholesale market at Karnataka (Image: Pxhere, CC0 Public Domain)
NREGA tracker looks at the schemes’ performance
NREGA should move towards becoming an open-ended entitlement that allows every individual to work for at least 200 days, as per PAEG. Posted on 26 Jul, 2020 08:46 PM

As per the findings of an NREGA tracker launched by the People’s Action for Employment Guarantee (PAEG) the lockdown saw a record spike in jobs under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

Women working on an NREGA site building a pond to assist in farming and water storage. Gopalpura, Jhabua, Madhya Pradesh (Image: UN Women/Gaganjit Singh)
Kamla, Kosi and Bagmati rivers in rage, disrupt life
Incessant rains in Terai region of Bihar and Nepal causes floods in North Bihar as many rivers rise above the danger mark. Posted on 15 Jul, 2020 07:58 PM

Due to intermittent rains in the Terai region of Bihar and Nepal, the water level of Mahananda, Kosi, Kamla and Bagmati rivers of North Bihar is continuously increasing and flood conditions have started to build in the region.

Locals provide aid to people hit by floods in Bihar
Floods in Bihar: Government prepares to shift people to safer places
As flood situation hits the state, the government is working towards taking people to safer places and preparing itself for the rescue efforts. Posted on 15 Jul, 2020 07:51 PM

Due to incessant rains, many rivers in Bihar are in spate and there is a situation of floods in the state. Meanwhile, the Meteorological Department has forecasted heavy rains for the next two-three days, which may worsen the situation.

Heavy rains predicted

Children drinking milk at a flood relief centre in Bihar (Source: Bhartiya Jan Utthan Parishad)
Drone to help monitor embankments and save people trapped in floods
This year, along with working at the grass root level to deal with floods, the Bihar government is also focussing on the full use of state-of-the-art technologies. Posted on 12 Jul, 2020 05:50 PM

#HelloWRD: A social media campaign

Completed flood protection in Naruar, Bihar (Image Source: Water Resources Department, Government of Bihar, Twitter handle)
Floods in Bihar: Helping government fight embankment breach
As fear of flood looms over Bihar, the state government has launched the campaign #HelloWRD for people to reach out to them if they observe any embankment breach or crack in their area. Posted on 08 Jul, 2020 10:01 PM

Every year, incessant rainfall during the monsoon causes floods in the state, with North Bihar being the worst affected.

Ways in which the government can be informed about the embankment breach in your area (Image source: Water Resources Department, Government of Bihar, Twitter handle)
Surviving in uncertainty
Gram Vikas stepped up to ensure access to adequate food and to strengthen dignified income-earning opportunities for the most vulnerable households. Posted on 08 Jul, 2020 07:33 PM

Uncertainty - the pervasive feeling that all of us have been living with from the middle of March 2020. It's the same in our partner villages in Odisha and Jharkhand. Communities we work with have been facing and overcoming uncertainties all through their lives. But this time, the crisis has put unusual stress on their abilities to cope.

Image: Ajaya Behera
Dharavi: From a dreaded hotspot to a model to be emulated
How Dharavi pulled off a miracle by not letting the disease spiral out of control. Posted on 02 Jul, 2020 10:10 AM

When the first positive case of Covid-19 was reported from Dharavi, Asia’s largest slum, known for its narrow lanes and compact housing, a sense of panic gripped the nation. And the fear and panic were not unreasonable given the extraordinary characteristics of this slum.

Located between Mumbai's two main suburban rail lines, Dharavi provides an affordable option to those who move to Mumbai to earn a living (Image: Deepti KC and Mudita Tiwari; CC BY-SA 2.0, Flickr Commons)
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