Demand and Consumption

Featured Articles
November 8, 2020 The National Hydrology Project has created a national platform for water data and is working to enhance the technical capacities of agencies dealing with water resources management.
Breakthrough cloud computing facilities and remote sensing applications have helped showthe filling pattern of a water body (tank or reservoir) through freely available satellite imagery at an interval of five days.  (Image: Maithan dam, Wikimedia Commons)
December 13, 2019 A study highlights the need to scale down the export of rice, maize, buffalo meat and other items to conserve groundwater in India.
A farmer uses a hosepipe to irrigate crops at her farm in Nilgiris mountains, Tamil Nadu (Image: Hamish John Appleby for IWMI, Flickr Commons, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
December 2, 2019 Water stewardship is an approach predicated on the concept that water is a shared resource and so water risks are also shared risks that everyone in a catchment will face
Picture credit: Romit Sen
November 18, 2019 Bangalore's water utility is understaffed, under financed and unable to service the city's water needs.
Image credit: Citizen Matters
October 25, 2019 Groundwater use has doubled in Pune. Comprehensive mapping of groundwater resources and better management and governance is the need of the hour.
Groundwater, an exploited resource (Image Source: India Water Portal)
October 24, 2019 While ice stupas have been hailed as sustainable solutions to the water problems of Ladakh’s villages, the locals think otherwise.
Ice Stupas near Phyang monastery (Image Courtsey: Sumita Roy Dutta, Wikimedia Commons)
Koodam – Breaking hierarchy, building democracy - Paper published in Integral Leadership Review
This paper discusses the Tamil concept of 'koodam' as a possible tool to transform bureaucratic structures into more non hierarchical and people friendly structures. Posted on 08 Jan, 2012 03:59 PM

The paper published in the Integral Leadership Review argues that hierarchy and bureaucracy are two of the most common features of governance systems that play a determining role in shaping the organisational culture, systemic re

Life, livelihoods, ecosystems, culture: Entitlements and allocation of water for competing uses
The Forum for Policy Dialogue on Water Conflicts in India presents a report on water allocation for competing uses. Posted on 27 Dec, 2011 05:10 PM

Water ConflictThis report has been prepared by the members of the working group set up by the Forum for Policy Dialogue on Water Conflicts in India on the issue of “Entitlements and allocations for livelihoods and ecosystem needs". The introductory chapter sets out the context of the report. The immediate context is the work of the Forum over the last 4-5 years, and the learning that this particular issue leads to many water conflicts in India.

Bringing life back to Chilika lagoon in India
This video describes the efforts undertaken to restore the Chilika lake in Orissa, which is the largest lagoon on the east coast of India Posted on 28 Nov, 2011 10:34 AM

Content and Media Courtesy: International Union for Conservation of Nature

This 116,500 hectare brackish lagoon separated from the Bay of Bengal by a long sandy ridge was added to the Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Importance in 1981.This was because the lagoon was facing serious degradation due to siltation and choking of the seawater inlet channel, resulting in the proliferation of invasive freshwater species, the decrease in fish productivity, and an overall loss of biodiversity [1].

Water poverty in urban India - A study of major cities - A seminar paper - Tata Institute of Social Sciences
This paper explores the quantity of water used in domestic households vis-à-vis the recommended quantity of water. Posted on 05 Nov, 2011 12:02 PM

This seminar paper submitted for the UGC Summer Programme at the Jamia Millia Islamia University describes the findings of a study that explored the quantity of water used in domestic households vis-à-vis the recommended quantity of water consumption in seven major Indian cities, n

Water conservation through better irrigation
What is required is a much more concerted efforts by all stakeholders to help farmers adopt efficient and modern water irrigation systems, as per India Water Review. Posted on 26 Sep, 2011 11:30 AM

Article and image courtesy: IndiaWaterReview

Haryana draft water policy focuses on water conservation

The agriculture sector in India, like elsewhere in the world, remains the largest consumer of water. As much as 80-85 per cent of India's available water resources are deployed annually in the agriculture sector, with industry being the second-most largest water consumer. But, contrary to the amount of efforts being put among industrial consumers to bring down their water consumption, agriculturists remain stuck on age-old methods and systems that lead to wastage of water.

So, while industry has been spending money on conducting in house research and development (R&D) to bring down their overall water consumption for making goods and products as well as deploying technologies that treat and reuse water and wastewater better, the agriculture sector has maintained status quo. Across India, farmers are still using flood irrigation methods for their crops. Most of them have not even head of drip irrigation or are so poor that they cannot afford to invest in drip irrigations systems.

Water for Indian cities - Government practices and policy concerns - Issue Brief - Observer Research Foundation
This brief from the Observer Research Foundation highlights the issues involved in improving urban water supply in India. Posted on 24 Sep, 2011 04:50 PM

The urban expansion in India has not been met by a similar expansion in infrastructure and basic services. This has severely affected the quality of urban life and economic growth.

"Meeting urban water challenges is matter of political will and priorities, not about technical solutions"
A brief report by Parineeta Dandekar on the World Water Week 2011 in Stockholm. Posted on 17 Sep, 2011 08:55 AM

Guest post by: Parineeta Dandekar

This year's World Water Week in Stockholm explored water and sanitation challenges faced by urban areas as well as the water, sanitation and equity challenges posed by urban areas. We take a look at some of the presentations and discussions that took place, especially with reference to India and South Asia.

 
"It would be wise to look at the world from a water lens than a CO2 lens"- Prof. Malin Falkenmark (Photo: Parineeta Dandekar)
"It would be wise to look at the world from a water lens than a CO2 lens"- Prof. Malin Falkenmark (Photo: Parineeta Dandekar)

Forecasting agricultural output using space, agrometeorology and land based observations
Proceedings of the annual review meeting by India Meteorological Department in August 2011 at Pune - Posted on 03 Sep, 2011 06:29 PM

This document presents the proceedings of the annual review meeting by India Meteorological Department (IMD) on “Forecasting Agricultural Output Using Space, Agrometeorology and Land Based Observations” (FASAL) organized at YASHADA, Pune during 1-2 August 2011.

Adaptive water resource management in the Lower Bhavani project command area in Tamil Nadu – A research report by IWMI
This study by IWMI explores the theory and practice of adaptive management based on a detailed field study in the Lower Bhavani project command area. Posted on 25 Aug, 2011 11:07 PM

Bhavani

To what extent farmers and water resource managers already practice adaptive management and whether it is practiced in an optimal manner or could there be areas for improvement based on recent advancements in the theory of adaptive management are some of the questions that are particularly appropriate in the light of rapid changes in river basin water use and also in relation to basin closure.

This paper draws on the development and use of water resources in the Lower Bhavani Project (LBP), with the LBP reservoir and the 84,000 hectare (ha) LBP command area. The project diverts water from the Bhavani River, a tributary of the Cauvery River in Tamil Nadu.

Biomass for sustainable development - Lessons for decentralized energy delivery in India – A report by World Bank
This report prepared by the World Bank and the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) deals with decentralized energy delivery in India. Posted on 22 Aug, 2011 07:55 PM

Biomass GasifierIt presents a summary of recommendations for enhancing the effectiveness of energy service delivery through a decentralized program, which currently finds a critical place in the Government‘s energy policies and electrification targets.

The pilot phase of the Village Energy Security Programme has shown several lessons and the need for improvements.

×