Rainfall and other forms of Precipitation

Featured Articles
September 13, 2022
Chaos in a concrete jungle
Heavy rains and floods have battered Bengaluru yet again. Uncontrolled and unregulated development and concretisation of the city that pays no heed to the ecology and hydrology of the region needs to stop!
Urban flooding in Bangalore (Image Source: Thejas via Wikimedia Commons)
March 29, 2022
India, in the hot seat!
The intensity and duration of heat waves is predicted to increase in India and human induced anthropogenic changes are to blame.
A man sits under the scorching heat of the sun in front of Amer fort in Jaipur (Picture courtesy: Prabhu B Doss, Flickr Commons: CC-By-NC-ND-2.0)
February 10, 2022
87% of India's districts vulnerable to droughts: IMD
47% of India’s population is vulnerable to floods, says IMD's Climate Hazards Atlas
(Image: J Surya, CC-SA-4.0 International)
July 4, 2021
Did the moody monsoon shrink forests in peninsular India?
A study finds that while forests existed in peninsular India, they were replaced by savanna grasslands over time. And the weakening monsoon was the culprit!
Savanna grasslands at Nannaj Bustard Sanctuary, Solapur, Maharashtra (Image Source: Raju Kasambe via Wikimedia Commons)
June 30, 2021
Climate change likely to affect agricultural productivity in Maharashtra
Climate analysis predicts mismatch in rainfall and temperature patterns with crop phenology: Soybean, Cotton, Wheat and Gram crops at risk, finds Institute for Sustainable Communities study across three major regions of Maharashtra.
Maharashtra faces an increasing risk from climate change which is likely to impact the production of four major crops - Soybean, Cotton, Wheat and Gram. (Image: BAIF Flickr, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
December 13, 2019
Trading in virtual water
A study highlights the need to scale down the export of rice, maize, buffalo meat and other items to conserve groundwater in India.
A farmer uses a hosepipe to irrigate crops at her farm in Nilgiris mountains, Tamil Nadu (Image: Hamish John Appleby for IWMI, Flickr Commons, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
"Media getting sensitive towards water and sanitation issues in North Bihar"-Recent updates from the work of Megh Pyne Abhiyan
The effort of Megh Pyne Abhiyan (MPA) since 2006 has started to impact different sections of the society differently
Eklavya Prasad
Posted on 10 May, 2011 06:41 PM

. I had shared how Megh Pyne Abhiyan through its local partner - Samta in Khagaria (supported by Gramyasheel, Kosi Seva Sadan, Ghoghardiha Prakhand Swarajya Vikas Sangh and Water Action) has been able to collaborate with the district administration to mainstream issues concerning water and sanitation for the flood prone areas.

In Supaul, the district administration requested our local partner, Gramyasheel to write about alternative drinking water practices (appropriate for the district) for a publication - Supaul Zila Ki Smarika, brought out by the district administration. A definite indication of the WATSAN practices being recognized at the local level. Though the collaboration is an ongoing process which would lead to positive results if time, ideas and perseverance are invested appropriately.

Groundwater: From mystery to management - An article by TN Narasimhan
Ground water is the source we survive on. This source is depleting. And rapidly. no direct observation and an almost occult status make alarm ring muffled low.
TN Narsimhan
Posted on 22 Apr, 2011 12:07 PM

Groundwater has been used for domestic and irrigation needs from time immemorial. It is a component of the hydrological cycle, vital for human sustenance. Unlike surface water, groundwater cannot be readily observed. Consequently, it was long considered to be mysterious or even occult in nature, influencing legal decisions relating to groundwater ownership and use.

Proposal for groundwater recharge in National Capital Region - A report by SK Sharma and Green Systems
This study by SK Sharma and Green Systems, details the current situation of the National Capital Region (NCR) area, in terms of geohydrology, climate and water usage.
Green Systems
Sk Sharma
Posted on 22 Apr, 2011 11:53 AM

It also explains the various laws that have been put in place to increase groundwater replenishment.
Country to have normal monsoon this year - PIB release
The country will have normal monsoon this year. There is very low probability for season rainfall to be deficient (below 90% of LPA) or excess (above 110% of LPA).
Press Information Bureau
Posted on 21 Apr, 2011 03:21 PM

 Releasing Long Range Forecast for coming June to September period, Union Minister for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences, Shri Pawan Kumar Bansal said, “The rainfall for the country as a whole is most likely to be normal i.e. 96-104% of Long Period Average (LPA).  Quantitatively, monsoon season rainfall is likely to be 98% of the LPA with a model error of + 5%.
Heavy rains and dry lands don t mix: Reflections on the 2010 Pakistan flood - Article from NASA Earth Observatory
Each summer, monsoon rains soak India and Bangladesh. In nearby Pakistan, the rains are usually less intense, more intermittent, and centred in the northeast.
Michon Scott
Posted on 16 Apr, 2011 03:42 PM


Flooding forced millions of Pakistanis to flee their homes in July and August 2010.Flooding forced millions of Pakistanis to flee their homes in July and August 2010.

 

The summer of 2010 was different. In July and August, rain fell over most of Pakistan and persisted in some places for weeks.

Lingering floods in Pakistan - Updates from Earth Observatory
Monsoon rains fall on Pakistan every summer, but the summer of 2010 was extraordinary.
NASA Earth Observatory
Posted on 15 Apr, 2011 09:49 AM

 

A combination of factors, including La Niña and a strange jet stream pattern, caused devastating floods. The Indus River rapidly rose, and a dam failure in Sindh Province sent part of the river down an alternate channel. The resulting floodwater lake lingered for months, leaving crops, roads, airports, even entire communities underwater.
Water turns the tide - A barren district of Rajasthan is seeing development, thanks to rains last year and floods in 2006
In 2010, this part of the Thar saw rains as never before. Rainfall was recorded 98 per cent more than the average of the past 50 years.
Ankur Paliwal
Posted on 12 Apr, 2011 11:31 AM

Article and Image Courtesy: Down To Earth
Author: 

A barren district of Rajasthan is seeing development, thanks to rains last year and flood in 2006.

Administration has revived a man-made pond in Nagarda village that was drying up (Photo: Sayantoni Palchoudhuri)Administration has revived a man-made pond in Nagarda village that was drying up.
Photo: Sayantoni Palchoudhuri

World Water Day in Kerala- Call to address issues of water security
Discussions were held by experts from various fields on the topic ‘Urban water issues in Kerala
Centre for Water Resources Development and Management (CWRDM)
Posted on 07 Apr, 2011 05:52 PM

Centre for Water Resources Development and Management (CWRDM) organised a panel discussion at Sasthra Bhavan on Saturday, 19th March 2011, in connection with the celebration of World Water Day which falls on March 22.

Review of Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal - A report on Krishna river water allocations
Recently, Justice Brijesh Kumar Tribunal (Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal - 2) has given the report allocating Krishna river water among the riparian states.
N. Sasidhar
Posted on 08 Mar, 2011 04:42 PM

This is a review of KWDT-2 report analysing how it has failed to protect the long term sustainable productivity and ecology of the river basin. It has also failed to understand the water allocations done by previous KWDT-1. KWDT-2 also negated the earlier KWDT-1 allocations at the same time categorically stating that it cannot change water use allocations of previous award.
Steps to create awareness about rainwater harvesting and encouragement to states for implementation of rainwater harvesting projects - PIB release
The Parliament has been informed that the mean annual rainfall is 1,170 mm with wide regional variation.
Press Information Bureau
Posted on 25 Feb, 2011 10:41 AM

 Giving this information in written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha on the average annual rainfall and rainwater harvesting, Shri Salman Khurshid, Minister of Water Resources, said that rain water is harvested through surface storages and recharge of ground water.The total storage capacity created through major and medium projects is around 225 BCM. The data on quantum of rainwater harvested through groundwater recharging is 433 BCM. Ministry of Water Resources does not maintain the data on quantum of water harvested due to manmade structures separately.It is estimated that the water utilized in 2010 is about 681 BCM.

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