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September 1, 2021 Best practices for holistic urban water management in Chennai Metropolitan Area
These bright plastic jugs are ubiquitous in Chennai and Tamil Nadu. (Image: McKay Savage, Flickr Commons; CC BY 2.0)
December 26, 2019 Policy matters this week
The Mandovi river disputed between Karnataka and Goa (Source: IWP Flickr Photos)
December 6, 2019 A report by the India Rivers Forum highlights the need to focus further than the main stem of the Ganga river.
Distant snow clad mountains, the smaller hills and the Ganga river (Image: Srimoyee Banerjee, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)
December 4, 2019 To adapt well & build resilience, climate change strategies need to factor in efforts towards water security, writes Vanita Suneja, Regional Advocacy Manager (South Asia), WaterAid.
Image credit: WaterAid/Prashanth Vishwanathan
December 2, 2019 A study highlights the barriers to harnessing India's potential for wind energy.
Windmills in Karnataka, India. Picture credit: India Water Portal
5 crore people cleanse themselves at the cost of 5000
Ujjain's own labourers, farmers and the Kshipra river will bear the brunt of the onslaught of pilgrims at the upcoming Ujjain Simhastha (Kumbh Mela). Posted on 24 Feb, 2016 09:38 PM

The Ujjain Simhastha (Kumbh Mela) in Madhya Pradesh will begin on April 22, 2016 and go on for a month. The event, held once every 12 years, holds religious significance to Hindus, and throngs of people--approximately 5 crore over the month--take a holy dip in the Kshipra river during this time.

Early morning at Ramghat, Ujjain
Preparing for the Ujjain Simhastha Kumbh Mela
How is the MP government going to handle the water, sanitation and solid waste issues at the Mela? Diwakar Natu, Chairman of the Mela Authority talks to India Water Portal. Posted on 24 Feb, 2016 09:37 PM

The Ujjain Simhastha Kumbh Mahaparva is one of the four Kumbha Melas, which is held once in 12 years.

Diwakar Natu, Chairman of Simhastha Fair Authority
4 billion global population affected by severe water scarcity: NASA
News this week Posted on 23 Feb, 2016 12:16 PM

Groundwater levels are reducing all over the world: NASA analysis

A tubewell in Rajasthan (Source: IWP Flickr Photos)
Ken-Betwa river link project hits a roadblock
Policy matters this week Posted on 23 Feb, 2016 12:09 PM

No clearance to Ken-Betwa river link project till wildlife issues are addressed

Map showing Ken-Betwa river link (Source: Shannon via Wikipedia)
Eight ministries now responsible for Ganga clean up
Policy matters this week Posted on 09 Feb, 2016 12:39 PM

Seven ministries other than the Water Ministry to help revive the Ganga

Ganga at Gadmukteshwar (Source: India Water Portal Flickr Photos)
Agriculture and informal sector labour need a budgetary push
What initiatives should the 2016-17 budget include for the agriculture sector? ActionAid India’s submission to the Ministry of Finance looks at these. Posted on 08 Feb, 2016 08:46 AM

Recent data from the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) as well as the Agriculture Census highlighted the plight of Indian farmers. Around 85 percent are small and marginal farmers with an average monthly income of only Rs. 4653, which is lesser than their monthly expenses. Debt rates are very high among farmers with an average loan of more than Rs.

A farmer in Jhansi, Bundelkhand
Water and sanitation sector needs a budget push
Better regulation and transparency is needed in the WASH sector to ensure that India meets its Swachh Bharat Mission targets, as well as the Sustainable Development Goals. Posted on 30 Jan, 2016 12:56 PM

While the WatSan sector has been prioritised in the country’s policy agenda through the launch of the Swachh Bharat Mission, last year’s budgetary outlay was way below desired levels.

Handwashing at a Karnataka school
Pumping up hopes the solar way
What will it take for the Haryana government to switch 7 lakh groundwater pumps to solar powered options so it can lower its energy footprint and contain losses in the energy sector? Posted on 28 Jan, 2016 03:29 PM

Haryana's agriculture sector uses seven lakh tubewells, most of which are connected to the grid as the state has a policy of providing highly subsidised electricity to farmers costing Rs. 6200 crore a year. As a result, groundwater exploitation is rampant.

Better incentives needs to be provided to farmers to use solar pumps for tubewells in Haryana
Government sets ambitious targets for MGNREGS
Policy matters this week Posted on 26 Jan, 2016 02:09 PM

Aiming for an outcome-oriented programme, Government sets ambitious targets for MGNREGS

Labourers building check dams under MGNREGS (Source: IWP Flickr Photos)
Alarm bells ring for Delhi’s groundwater
The city's old wells and baodis are running dry, and the Yamuna is getting more polluted by the day. Where is Delhi's water going to come from when groundwater levels are also dropping? Posted on 25 Jan, 2016 01:19 PM

Delhi, home to 16.75 million people, is in the grip of a major water crisis. Statistics by the Delhi Jal Board for the year 2011 suggest that the water deficit stands at about 250 million gallons per day with the supply being 830 million gallons per day.

Residents say they are forced to flout the groundwater extraction norms with illegal groundwater pumps in Narela in North-west Delhi due to insufficient and poor quality of water supplied.
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