Health

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November 6, 2022 In 2020, 559 million children were affected by four to five heatwaves a year; numbers could increase four-fold by 2050, as per a report by UNICEF
Heat-related mortality is four times higher among children under 1 year of age than in persons aged 1–44 years (Image: Taqver, Wikimedia Commons)
September 26, 2022 This study found that the sanitary quality of neighbourhood drains, in addition to toilets, affected sanitation and hygiene and incidences of ill-health in rural households.
Dirty drainages, harbingers of illhealth. Image for representation only (Image Source: SuSanA Secretariat via Wikimedia Commons)
September 9, 2022 Highlights from a new report released by iFOREST
An old coal-fired power plant has been dumping vast quantities of ash out in the open for many years. (Image: Lundrim Aliu/ World Bank; CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
August 19, 2022 Better access to clean water coupled with health education to bring about changes in behaviour are critical to prevent exposure to dangerous cholera bacteria that lurk in untreated waters.
The hidden threat of cholera in India (Image Source: IWP Flickr photos)
July 20, 2022 This study found a high concentration of trihalomethanes (THMs) in water treatment plants in Delhi that were associated with increased risk of cancer.
What's in your tap water (Image Source: India Water Portal)
July 5, 2022 Studies reveal that children are the most vulnerable to the health risks associated with groundwater contamination due to nitrate and fluoride, highlighting the need for urgent remedial measures.
POisoned waters, dangerous outcomes (Image Source: India Water Portal)
Women lead the way in water quality surveillance
Why women need to be trained and engaged in monitoring and surveillance of water quality at the community level in rural India? Posted on 06 Mar, 2020 01:45 PM

Historically, water is a gendered burden, with women being the primary caregivers responsible for cooking, washing and cleaning chores in the house and in modern times in institutions (teachers, anganwadi and healthcare workers). Women have traditionally been associated with various water related tasks - be it collecting, fetching, or purifying water.

Organised under WaterAid India’s partnership with GAP, water testing workshop (2019) held in Indore district aimed at training women and youth to lead the entire process of community water management – from planning to supply, operations and maintenance and to educate communities on water-quality issues. (Image: WaterAid India/Ashima Narain)
Bringing back the trust: Getting our belief back in public water supply systems
While the government has passed a draft notification to bar use of Reverse Osmosis (RO) purifiers in cities, what does evidence on the ground tell us? Posted on 06 Mar, 2020 01:01 PM

The Government of India has passed a draft notification to bar membrane based systems such as Reverse Osmosis (RO) to be used as domestic purifiers in cities where the tap water is safe according to the Burea

Is our tap water really safe? (Image Source: IWP Flickr Photos)
The miserable plight of sanitation workers
A report highlights the dangers for the millions of people who clean toilets, sewers and septic tanks the world over and calls for urgent action. Posted on 29 Feb, 2020 06:01 PM

Many of the challenges sanitation workers face, stem from their lack of visibility in society, says a report ‘Health, Safety and Dignity of Sanitation Workers’ produced jointly by The World Bank,

A latrine emptier is lifted out of a pit in Bangalore, India (Image: WaterAid/CS Sharada Prasad)
Suffering in silence: Migrant cane cutters of Maharashtra
Overworked, poorly paid and deprived of any rights, migrant cane cutters, especially women are most vulnerable and continue to suffer from a number of health and security risks. Posted on 27 Feb, 2020 10:04 PM

Maharashtra is the second largest sugar producing state in India, after Uttar Pradesh where as high as 1.6 million farmers cultivate sugarcane on 0.7 million hectares of land. The sugarcane industry provides direct employment to about 0.16 million workers while 1.5 million workers engage in sugarcane harvesting and transport operations every year.

Women workers suffer the most (Image Source: Azhar Feder, Wikimedia Commons-CC-BY-SA-3.0)
Unravelling Kuttanad’s drinking water paradox
Floods such as in 2018 could take the situation downhill causing severe drinking water crisis. Posted on 24 Feb, 2020 12:55 PM

Surrounded by vast expanses of water, the Kuttanad region in Alleppey district, Kerala faces severe drinking water scarcity due to infrastructure failure and civic body inaction.

Lack of sufficient quality water, poor pipe connectivity and frequent breakdown of existing pipelines are common in the area (Image: Jayasree Vaidyanathan)
Community water purification system in a Delhi urban slum
Women swipe clean drinking water through an automated dispensing unit at the Lalbagh slum. Posted on 22 Feb, 2020 12:38 PM

It’s a dull reality that the state of water in the urban slum of Lalbagh near Azadpur in north Delhi was awful till a few years back. Hoards of people would queue up to get water from the public taps or the tankers along the road. Life was tough here and people got access to piped water supply only recently.

Once selected for the role, the women entrepreneurs were trained to run the community filtration plant and overlook all operations ranging from the management of customers to the plant finances. (Image: India Water Portal)
Overcoming heavy odds to emerge as a WATSAN model
How women came together in a Junagadh village to tackle drinking and domestic water shortage effectively. Posted on 17 Feb, 2020 04:18 PM

Kotda village provides an inspiring example of how a village suffering from teething troubles in the critical areas of water and sanitation can emerge as a model water and sanitation village. Located in Mangrol block of Junagadh district, from a distance this village presents a lush green appearance because of an abundance of coconut trees.

AKRSP has promoted rainwater harvesting to address the issue of scarce potable water at Mangrol. By encouraging households to collect rainwater using pipes on their roofs which then drain into an underground tank they have been able to promote water security. (Image: Aga Khan Foundation Flickr)
Decoding budget 2020
Is the budget a bummer? Experts speak at a panel discussion organised by CBGA. Posted on 10 Feb, 2020 04:35 PM

“Every single number in the budget, be it receipts or expenditure is a lie. The budget numbers can no longer be trusted, as the difference between actual expenditure and budget estimates are off by around 25 percent.

Woman farmer sifting grain (Image: Ray Witlin/World Bank CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
Micropollutants in groundwater, a grave concern
A study finds that a number of locations in the country have high concentrations of micropollutants in groundwater posing a risk to health and environment. Posted on 30 Jan, 2020 01:03 PM

Groundwater pollution due to organic micropollutants is becoming a major cause of concern in many parts of the world, where water resources are on the decline. India is the largest user of groundwater and the presence of micropollutants in groundwater has been a growing concern. What do studies on micropollutants in groundwater in India show?

Groundwater contamination, a serious concern (Image Source: India Water Portal)
Ramsar tag granted to ten more wetlands
News this week Posted on 30 Jan, 2020 10:36 AM

10 more wetlands in the country are now Ramsar sites

A wetland in Punjab (Source: IWP Flickr photos)
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