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)
The good clams of Ashtamudi
Thanks to the timely intervention of fishermen who adopted sustainable fishing practices, the clam population in the Ashtamudi was saved from total depletion. Posted on 03 Jul, 2017 08:03 PM

Spanning an area of 61 sq km, the Ashtamudi lake is considered the gateway to the backwaters of Kerala. While the lake on the outside radiates with natural beauty, there is a notable treasure nesting deep within its waters--the short-neck clams.

(Source:Ken Hammond, Wikimedia)
Power at play in water business
While informal water market plays an important role in meeting the water needs of peri-urban Hyderabad, its power dynamics with the authorities determine its efficiency. Posted on 03 Jul, 2017 05:49 AM

The informal water market plays a crucial role in meeting the drinking and domestic water security of peri-urban communities. The increasing reliance on private informal water vendors in all our study villages speaks of their significance.

A jungle comes to the city
The redeveloped ecosystem of the Yamuna biodiversity park is what a polluted city like Delhi needs. Posted on 02 Jul, 2017 01:56 PM

It’s July now and the temperature is slowly dipping in Delhi. Only a few migratory birds wintered at the Yamuna biodiversity park remain. Others have left for Central Asia and Siberia. Some species of summer terrestrial migrants are expected to arrive while some others can be seen enjoying the park’s wetlands.

Black spotted butterfly at Yamuna biodiversity park. (Image: Prabhmeet Singh, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)
Why save the vultures?
The country’s vulture population has declined by a whopping 99 percent in the last 15 years. A video tells us what it means to us and the environment. Posted on 30 Jun, 2017 04:28 PM

Vultures are nature’s own cleanup crew. These scavengers are known to be immensely effective in managing animal waste by feeding on animal carcasses that, otherwise, have no other ways of disintegrating quickly.

Griffon Vulture (Source:Thermos,Wikipedia)
Every drop that matters!
A short film provides insight into the water sector situation in the Marathwada region in Maharashtra. Posted on 27 Jun, 2017 10:12 PM

The people of the Marathwada region have been facing severe water crisis for more than three decades. Despite adverse circumstances, the Akoladev panchayat in the Jalna district has set an example for other panchayats by solving their water woes through community participation and effective water harvesting measures that suit their geographic terrain.

Jivrekha river, Akoladev (Source:Dilasa)
Chennai faces acute water crisis
News this week Posted on 27 Jun, 2017 08:46 PM

Chennai reels under acute crisis of drinking water

Buckingham canal in Chennai. (Source: IWP Flickr photos)
Seed of doubt
While several studies confirm that GM crops can have serious impact on the safety of both humans and environment, the government is going ahead with GM mustard. Posted on 21 Jun, 2017 05:30 PM

Signs of mustard aphid, a key pest of the mustard crop appeared predictably in November last year in Dinesh’s farm. Drifting across the open green fields, it landed on the tender leaves of the mustard crop. “It sets in November during the flowering and pod bearing stage of the crop and lasts till January.

Opposition to GM mustard intensifies in India. (Image: Swadeshi Kheti)
Chilka's health brings wealth
The Chilika Lake is Asia’s largest saltwater lake known for its biodiversity. The video, Going the Chilika Way provides insight into the importance of investing in nature and improving biodiversity. Posted on 19 Jun, 2017 12:44 PM

Spanning over 1,165 sq km, the Chilika Lake is Asia’s largest saltwater lake. Over 200,000 fishers and 400,000 farmers depend on the lake for their livelihood. But what makes this lake stand out is its biodiversity.Over a million migratory birds winter here, making it a bird watcher’s paradise in India.

The Chilika Lake. (Source: India Water Portal)
Power play in Kinnaur
Villagers are making informed decisions when it comes to government projects that affect ecology. Equipped with legal knowledge, they are challenging damaging hydropower projects. Posted on 07 Jun, 2017 12:23 PM

Lippa is a small village in the Kinnaur region in Himachal Pradesh, close to Asrang wildlife sanctuary. On May 27, the village witnessed hectic activity as the gram sabha was to decide the fate of a hydroelectricity project to be constructed near the village. The project demands the water from the Kerang stream be diverted for power.

People believe that tunnels such as these cause irreversible damages to the environment.
CGWA mandates NOCs for tubewells in Punjab
Policy matters this week Posted on 06 Jun, 2017 07:29 AM

NOCs for running tubewells must for Punjab industries 

Tubewells in Punjab. (Source: IWP Flickr photo)
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