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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
Mantra for the Char Dham: Don't Panic!
The monsoons regularly lead to road blocks and panicking pilgrims being airlifted out of Garhwal. Can this repeated narrative change especially since the Char Dham isn't an ancient practice at all? Posted on 13 Jul, 2015 07:36 AM

'To be or not to be' may well be the new mantra for people undertaking the Himalayan Char Dham pilgrimage this year.

Pilgrims enroute to Kedarnath (Image: Sundaram + Annam)
What are the odds of a dam burst?
The recent earthquake in Nepal has pointed fingers yet again at the much neglected area of dam safety. Will that push India to put in place a comprehensive law that addresses this? Posted on 11 Jul, 2015 10:48 AM

One of history’s worst dam bursts took place in Gujarat in 1979 when the four-kilometer long Machhu Dam II on the Machhu River collapsed. This led to a deluge in the industrial city of Morbi located five kilometers downstream as well as surrounding rural areas destroying thousands of homes and lives. While this was a tragedy, it was by no means an isolated one.

Sardar Sarovar Dam (Source: Wikimedia Commons)
Groundwater as Commons demonstrated in Mahbubnagar, Telangana
Farmers agreed to pool their groundwater to create a water sharing network. Result? Crops were saved, irrigated area was doubled, and grain production increased by 240%! Posted on 08 Jul, 2015 05:37 PM

By the year 2000, farmers in Mahbubnagar, Telangana could see how risky their investments on groundwater had become. The area barely received 600 mm of annual rainfall, and just 15 percent of its area was under irrigation.

Collectivising groundwater for protecting rainfed crop; Source: WASSAN
Do not allow dam projects affecting environmental flows of rivers: Water Ministry to CWC
Policy matters this week Posted on 07 Jul, 2015 10:33 PM

Water Ministry restricts permission to dam projects hindering e-flow of rivers

Ganga river at Kaudiyala
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Posted on 06 Jul, 2015 08:50 PM

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Who's to blame for Shimla's water shortage?
It isn't just the tourists or its hilly terrain but a 140-year-old leaking water distribution system set up by the British in 1875 which is leading to heavy losses and contamination. Posted on 30 Jun, 2015 09:03 AM

Most tourists visiting Shimla won’t know that they are walking on a water tank when they wait to get their pictures taken or go horse riding on Ridge road but they will know that the city faces water shortage -- their hotel bathrooms have messages asking them to use water judiciously. 

The Ridge houses Shimla's first underground water tank
Surplus yet lacking: Water supply schemes in Punjab
The state is only focused on costly filtration solutions while little is being done to stop contamination at source, which is the cause of physical and mental disabilities especially in children. Posted on 21 Jun, 2015 10:22 AM

A small river flows past the village of Teja Rohela in Fazilka district, Punjab, crosses the border a couple of kilometres away, and enters Pakistan.

Body of a puppy floating in one of Punjab's public water supply tanks
Centre gives a uniform definition to the term 'Open Defecation Free'
Policy matters this week Posted on 16 Jun, 2015 11:23 AM

New criteria for villages and Gram Panchayats to be termed Open Defacation Free

An open defecation free zone in Salem
Raising Sardar Sarovar Dam height would be disastrous: Committee
News this week Posted on 16 Jun, 2015 11:16 AM

Committee warns against raising Sardar Sarovar Dam height

Sardar Sarovar Dam (Source: Shahakshay, Wikipedia)
Does 24x7 water supply help reduce water storage or hoarding in urban areas?
A study at Hubli Dharwad found that there could be limits to how formal a city's water supply systems is. These depended on consumer habits, the history of a city’s water supply and infrastructure. Posted on 27 May, 2015 01:23 PM

Urban water supply can be classified into two categories -- formal and informal.  A formal system usually means piped delivery, at least partly treated, and regulated by a utility.

Water, a valuable resource (Source: Wikimedia Commons)
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