Ecology and Environment

Featured Articles
December 16, 2022 Soil research must focus both on technology development and implementation
The ability of soils to support soil functions or services is decreasing (Image: Katrin Park/International Food Policy Research Institute)
November 25, 2022 These maps at the watershed scales have been made to not only ensure inclusion of different freshwater ecosystems, their connectivity and hydrological processes, but can also provide a spatial context for conservation decisions.
A stream at Anini, Arunachal Pradesh (Image Source: Roshni Arora)
November 16, 2022 Adoption of hybrid solutions - grey and green structures appropriate for resilience building
Healthy wetland ecosystems help in reducing disaster risks and managing climate risks (Image: Pxhere)
October 30, 2022 This book by Dr. Mitul Baruah presents a fascinating, ethnographic account of the challenges faced by communities living in Majuli, India, one of the largest river islands in the world, which has experienced immense socio-environmental transformations over the years, processes that are emblematic of the Brahmaputra Valley as a whole. This is an excerpt from the book.
Floods are recurrent phenomena in Assam (Image: Mitul Baruah)
October 6, 2022 Rapid urbanisation and faulty land use policies are rapidly destroying forests, grasslands and wetlands in Jammu and Kashmir, India and the ecosystem value services they provide. Can these valuable ecosystems be saved?
Deteriorating ecosystems of Jammu and Kashmir, India (Image Source: tkohli at Flickr via Wikimedia Commons)
July 14, 2022 The river is faced with the dual problem of flood plain encroachment and growing levels of water pollution
Illegal transverse check dams (Badhals) built on Ichamati near a village in Basirhat (Image: Prithviraj Nath @ TheWaterChronicles)
First river interlinking project initiated
News this week Posted on 06 Oct, 2014 09:15 PM

Interlinking of Ken-Betwa rivers initiated

The Ken-Betwa river link (Source: Shannon)
Black life: Impact of coal mining in Jharsuguda
Agricultural lands of thousands of people have been destroyed in Odisha and the growing need for power is trumping over the environment. Better regulation can help but it needs to happen soon. Posted on 02 Oct, 2014 04:08 PM

"The agricultural production in our region has deteriorated due to pollution. Haphazard mining has lead to serious drinking water problems in the area", says Indar Bilas Shah, a 56- year old resident of Obada village, Lakhanpur block in Jharsuguda, Odisha. He's not the only one. Thousands of villagers in Jharsuguda echo these sentiments. 

Who's to blame?

Work in progress in coal mines in Jharsuguda
3000 MW Dibang mega project approved without public consultation
News this week Posted on 29 Sep, 2014 10:26 PM

Dibang hydel project gets Centre's nod

People protesting Dibang Project (Source: SANDRP)
Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan is now Swachh Bharat Mission
Policy matters this week Posted on 29 Sep, 2014 09:54 PM

Centre approves reconstituting the Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan into Swachh Bharat Mission

A toilet constructed under Parishudh initiative
A case against small hydropower
Small hydel projects are often hailed as sustainable models of power production but they spark an equal number of contentious issues much like the bigger projects. Posted on 28 Sep, 2014 07:34 PM

As Hari Singh led me towards his fields, I wondered if he was trying to play a joke on me. Large rocks were scattered in the area and there was no sight of any arable land, neither was there any clue of the irrigation channel which Singh claimed ran through his farm.

The Mani Mahesh hydel project near Saho village.
Uttarakhand submits Rs. 9478 crore Ganga clean-up plan proposal
Policy matters this week Posted on 22 Sep, 2014 05:52 PM

Uttarakhand Government submits to Centre the Rs 9,478 crore Ganga Action Plan

Ganga river at Gadmukteshwar
Supreme Court gets strict with illegal river sand miners
Policy matters this week Posted on 15 Sep, 2014 09:25 PM

SC gets strict with illegal river sand miners

Sand mining in the Narmada valley
"Ultra Mega Power" to destroy!
The film 'Kaayal Kadhaigal' meaning 'stories from the lagoon', shows how Cheyyur's flourishing fishing and agricultural practices, could soon end due to an upcoming coal power plant. Posted on 12 Sep, 2014 01:09 PM

Cheyyur, a town 100 km from Chennai in Kanchipuram, has been identified as the site for a 4000 MW Ultra Mega Power Plant (UMPP) by the Government of Tamil Nadu.

One of Cheyyur's productive lagoons
50% of MGNREGS reserved for water conservation work
Policy matter this week Posted on 08 Sep, 2014 10:18 PM

50% of MGNREGS work should be for improving water conservation: Government

Labourers building check dams under MGNREGS
Plastic bags don't just pollute, they kill!
The Olive Ridley sea turtle, which has been in existence for millions of years, has now become a critically endangered species because of increased coastal development and human activity. Posted on 07 Sep, 2014 10:07 AM

If one takes a walk on the coastal towns of Neelankarai and Marina in Chennai between December and April, distinct tracks in the sand will be visible from the beach till the shore. These are the unmistakeable tracks of the Olive Ridley sea turtles that nest on these beaches.

Hatchlings ready for safe release into the sea
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