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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
Indian troops polluting Siachen glacier: Pakistan
Policy matters this week: Pakistan says its main source of water supply is affected by Indian troops polluting the Siachen glacier, and Karnataka to increase the height of Almatti dam. Posted on 09 Dec, 2013 08:24 AM

Remove troops from Siachen: Pakistan

Indian Army, Siachen Source: defenceforumindia.com
Hidden cost to cheaper alternate energy
Shale gas has recently made headlines the world over. How good is it for the environment and what is its water footprint, especially in the Indian context? Posted on 08 Dec, 2013 10:01 PM

Shale gas, like other petroleum products such as oil and coal, is formed from the remains of plants, animals and micro-organisms that lived millions of years ago. However, this natural gas is made up of shale formations, a common name for rock that was once layers of clay or mud. Since these rocks aren't very permeable, gas is trapped in it due to its inability to travel.

Fracking in shale gas production Source: Wikipedia
Digging them into a hole
20 years ago, Amatikra village in Chhattisgarh wasn't full of fluorosis-affected residents. Today, they walk with bent backs and have severe dental issues. What has caused this situation? Posted on 08 Dec, 2013 10:00 PM

45 year old Ved Prasad, a farmer in Amatikra village in Korba district, Chhattisgarh, didn't always have a bent back. 20 years ago, he walked in an upright manner but over the last five years, he's had severe back pain, which has affected his gait. 50 year old Bhola Singh from the same village has an identical story to tell.

Amatikra residents with skeletal fluorosis
Small MP village inspires neighbours
Once water-deficient, Didakhedi in Madhya Pradesh is now a village with year-round water supply and a sense of community and belonging. Posted on 01 Dec, 2013 08:31 PM

The 200 odd residents of Didakhedi, a sleepy village just 13 kms from Sehore town in Madhya Pradesh, never had adequate water. Two decades ago, most of the farming in the village was done during the monsoons. The village had no electricity and a lone diesel pump operated the shallow dug wells to irrigate some lands during the winter.

Development or displacement?
The MP government is proposing a nuclear project in Mandala district. Villagers are wary about promises to rehabilitate since similar promises are yet unfulfilled to the Bargi dam oustees since 1990. Posted on 01 Dec, 2013 08:30 PM

Sukal Singh is 50 years old and is the only earning person of his five-member family. Suresh Barman works as a labourer supporting a 13-member family. Bhagirat and Gorelal Bhavedi are rickshaw-pullers supporting a 7-member family each.

Bargi dam affected Patha village, MP
Climate talks end in dispute
Policy matters this week: Climate change talks at Warsaw end up in dispute, a new division for the Himalayas and NHRC issues notice to the government on pollution in the Ganga. Posted on 01 Dec, 2013 03:30 PM

Money deals mar climate talks in Warsaw

Unfriendly climate at Warsaw Source: Wikipedia
Don't have toilet, can't contest polls
Policy Matters this week: Bihar government makes toilet compulsory for contesting polls, Ganga Jal pitchers to collect religious waste and Rs 1,444 crore for rural water supply in Maharashtra. Posted on 24 Nov, 2013 10:43 PM

Don't have toilet, can't contest polls

Toilet mandatory to contest
Floods need not equate disasters
A mix of high-tech and low-tech systems, government initiatives as well as a community level approach is needed to manage floods in the Himalayas. Posted on 24 Nov, 2013 11:19 AM

 Every year, we have about 76 disasters in the Himalayas, some 36,000 people are killed and over a million affected by disasters. The loss of life and damage does not need to occur. How people manage the situation can relieve the situation much better.

About a third of these disasters are from floods. In the Himalaya, there are two broad kinds of flooding:

Do floods have to cause loss?
Environment Ministry withdraws controversial amendment
Policy matters this week: Environment ministry withdraws amendments to waste rules, Odisha sanctions 12 crores for water in slums and the NGT halts dam construction in Manipur. Posted on 19 Nov, 2013 11:48 AM

Environment Ministry withdraws amendment to waste rules

New amendment to waste rules withdrawn (Wikimedia)
Can we build an alternative society?
There is no balance between the resources we demand and their available supply. Can we do something to halt and reverse this suicidal trend? Posted on 17 Nov, 2013 10:11 PM

Riverside apartments are in great demand these days. This has led to a surge in the number of apartments built along rivers that flow through urban areas. These same 'premium' apartments are encroaching on the river's channel and are therefore most vulnerable to the floods that they help create by constricting the river. This harm extends beyond the apartments in question.

A wastepicker sorts through waste (source: Chicu)
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