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)
Waiting for water
The villagers of Khalabari are hopeful that the overhead tank being built in the village would make drinking water easily accessible to them. Posted on 15 Nov, 2017 05:50 AM

In the early hours, the villagers of Khalabari, a tribal-dominated village in the Dumuripadar gram panchayat of Koraput district in Odisha step out of their houses for bringing wood and drinking water. The road to the forest where the water is available is rocky.

Khalabari village (Source: India Water Portal)
NRDWP to get restructured
Policy matters this week Posted on 14 Nov, 2017 01:17 PM

Restructuring of National Rural Drinking Water Programme approved

A child drinks water from a hand pump in Madhya Pradesh. (Source: IWP Flickr Photos)
Delhi enveloped in smog again
News this week Posted on 14 Nov, 2017 12:56 PM

Yet again, North India shrouded in heavy smog

Delhi shrouded in smog. (Source: Jean-Etienne Minh-Duy/Flickr)
Drinking water: Access does not mean safety
A study from rural Maharashtra finds piped water supply does not guarantee safe drinking water. Water treatment, storage and WASH practices influence water quality. Posted on 11 Nov, 2017 12:36 PM

Concerned with contaminated water sources in rural areas, the Centre plans to provide piped water supply (classified as an improved water source by the W

Better drinking water access does not always mean that the water is safe to drink. (Image source: India Water Portal)
Chennai's struggle with segregation
Inefficient solid waste management results in waste piles that contribute to urban flooding in cities like Chennai. While most citizens blame civic authorities for the lapse, are they doing their bit? Posted on 08 Nov, 2017 11:30 AM

Come November, along with swollen waterways and flooded streets, another prominent image flashed repeatedly on television screens is that of mountains of mixed garbage. Chennai’s solid waste headache is by no means entirely monsoon-related.

Perungudi dump yard chokes the Pallikaranai marshland.
Wages delayed to MGNREGA workers in 19 states
News this week Posted on 07 Nov, 2017 07:46 PM

States freeze payments to MGNREGA workers

Labourers build check dams under MGNREGA. (Source: IWP Flickr Photos)
India Industry Water Conclave on Nov 28, 2017 at FICCI, New ??Delhi
The third edition of India Industry Water Conclave and fifth edition of FICCI Water Awards on Theme : ‘Water Use Efficiency- An Imperative for India’
Posted on 07 Nov, 2017 10:12 AM

The theme for the Conclave this year is “Water Use Efficiency: An Imperative for India” to highlight the imperative of water use efficiency in the industry, agriculture and urban contexts

Bee in safe hands
Amit Godse is on a quest to save bees by relocating them and motivating people to keep bees for honey in their gardens. Posted on 06 Nov, 2017 11:21 AM

Studies suggest that bees are disappearing at a rapid rate in India. Should we be worried? The disappearance of bees has particularly alarming implications for human existence. Honey bees play a very important role in preserving the biodiversity of nature.

Amit with a bee box installed in a garden at a house in Pune. (Image source: Amit Godse)
The jewels of Pardi Kupi
Pearl farming could be a profitable occupation for farmers residing on the banks of rivers. Here's the story of a successful pearl farmer. Posted on 03 Nov, 2017 05:15 AM

Pearl farmer Sanjay Gandate (33) was waiting for my arrival at his house in Pardi Kupi in the Naxal-affected Gadchiroli district in Maharashtra. I had missed my early morning bus to Pardi Kupi and took an autorickshaw instead to reach the village. Sanjay greeted me and took me to Wainganga river.

Clams in Wainganga river (Source: India water portal)
Thermal power plants can now use more water
Policy matters this week Posted on 31 Oct, 2017 09:04 PM

Norms relaxed to allow thermal power plants to use more water

An NTPC thermal plant (Source: IWP Flickr Photos)
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