Sustainability

Featured Articles
December 6, 2022
The water that you eat
Need to shift to a more sustainable diet without compromising on major nutrients and calories
Historically, India has been a net exporter of virtual water (Image: PxHere)
November 6, 2022
Protecting children from climate change impact not child's play
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)
April 26, 2022
Making the invisible, visible
The water stewardship initiative by WOTR that developed a tool to visualise aquifers has not only helped farmers understand groundwater as a shared resource, but also led to a behavioural change among water users and helped implement groundwater laws and policies.
Groundwater, a fast disappearing resource (Image Source: India Water Portal)
December 6, 2021
Leaving no one behind!
Will it be possible to ensure equity and justice while balancing climate action goals with economic progress?
Taking everyone along while achieving a balance between economic growth and climate goals is crucial (Image Source: Good Energies)
March 22, 2021
Water governance standard and certification system – An answer to the water problems of agrarian India
The recent 'Water governance standard and certification system' developed by WOTR can greatly help villages to develop good governance practices and manage their water needs equitably and sustainably.
Long queues waiting for tankers are common in different parts of Maharashtra during water scarcity (Image Source: WOTR)
December 29, 2020
Challenges to India’s urban water security and future growth patterns
Water resources in most Indian cities are overworked and overused, and not adequately replenished.
Cities in India are marked by unequal distribution of water, lack of access, outdated infrastructure and minimal enforcement of rainwater harvesting and other means of supply. (Image: Anish Roy, Pixabay)
Sikkim’s organic farming to feature in Satyamev Jayate, Aamir Khan’s first television project on DD1
Aamir Khan’s first television project Satyamev Jayate will have one full episode on organic farming in Sikkim. Sikkim is on its way to become totally organic and out of the cultivable land of 58,168 hectares, about 8,168 hectares had already been certified as organic by accredited institutions.
iSikkim
Posted on 27 Apr, 2012 11:36 AM

Article and Image Courtesy : iSikkim
Exploring the spatial associations between census based socioeconomic conditions and remotely sensed environmental metrics in Assam, North East India – A study by Gary R Watmough
Gary R Watmough’s PhD explored the spatial associations between socioeconomic variables like female literacy and employment in the non-agricultural sector derived from a subset of the 2001 Indian National Census and environmental metrics. The study was based on freely available remotely sensed satellite sensor data - Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) in Assam.
Gary R Watmough
Posted on 23 Apr, 2012 01:50 PM

Past studies have found associations between land and poverty, however these studies are usually focused on small areas using ground based studies.
Precious Kaveri water down the drain; wasted to wash vehicles: Letter to the Chairman, Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board
I tried sending a suggestion to Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) to tackle the urgent crisis in Karnataka this hot summer but didn't get any reply. Water crisis is a serious issue. When people do not have water to irrigate their lands, to drink for themselves, it pains me in the heart to see people wasting water profusely to wash their vehicles which goes down the drain. Manjunath M P presents the letter he sent to the Chairman, BWSSB.
Manjunath M P
Posted on 23 Apr, 2012 12:47 PM

Dear Chairman BWSSB,
Critical review of the impacts, challenges, prospects and conflict management for vitally needed inter-linking of rivers in India
Hon’ble Supreme Court in its judgment of 27th February 2012, directed union and concerned states governments, to implement ambitious interlinking of the rivers project (ILR) in a time bound manner and also asked Union Government to appoint a high-powered committee for planning and implementation of the project. Social tensions, political instability and street fights are already being experienced in India, on account of fast deteriorating situation of availability of qualitative water in adequate quantity.
This article presents a critical review of basic objectives, controversies, social & ecological impacts besides concrete suggestions to overcome the blockades in Inter-basin Transfer of Water (IBTW), now commonly known as Inter-linking of Rivers (ILR).
Er. Radhey Shyam Goel
Posted on 23 Apr, 2012 12:17 PM

Guest post by : Er. Radhey Shyam Goel

1. Introduction
Depleting water resources in Thalassery, Kerala: Huge effort is required to address water supply and sewerage handling issues
By chance only I happened to see the IWP, and am very glad and impressed to see the efforts and dedication of the team involved, to help the nation to promote and achieve sustainable use of water. I wish I can also contribute to the portal in whatever way possible to serve this noble initiative, in order to be part spreading awareness and thereby ensuring excess to drinking water to our future generations.
Fazal Maliyakkal
Posted on 22 Apr, 2012 02:57 PM

Author : Fazal Maliyakkal
Interlinking of rivers project: A disquieting judgement - Ramaswamy Iyer's perspective in the EPW on the recent Supreme Court decision
The Supreme Court judgement of 27 February 2012 directed the executive government to implement the river inter-linking project through a special committee which will take precedence over all other administrative bodies. In this article, first published in the Economic and Political Weekly, Ramaswamy Iyer explains why this backing of a 'potentially disastrous' project is disturbing. The article then calls for a reconsideration of this judgement.
Ramaswamy Iyer
Posted on 20 Apr, 2012 10:52 PM

 

1. Introduction
Two writ petitions were filed in 2002 on the subject of interlinking. The judgement finally passed in 2012 directs the implementation of this project. This judgement is disturbing for the following reasons:
A framework for rural drinking water quality management, based on experiences from the voluntary sector - A learning document by Arghyam
Arghyam, Bangalore, a non-profit foundation focusing on domestic water and sanitation, has published a document highlighting a water quality management (WQM) framework for rural areas. The framework lays out a phased and process-driven approach to WQM in rural areas and is based on work done by 12 prominent non-governmental organisations (NGOs) who have been working on water quality (WQ), from across the country. Ayan Biswas of Arghyam writes about this.
Arghyam
Ayan Biswas
Posted on 20 Apr, 2012 04:33 PM


The phases that have been identified for a sustainable WQM programme are: 

(1) Assessment of baseline situation

(2) Participatory planning

(3) Water quality monitoring

(4) Implementation
The sanitation crisis in India - An urgent need to look beyond toilet provision
Recent evidence indicates that India is heading towards a major sanitation crisis in the coming years. Efforts made at meeting the sanitation challenges have been found to have very limited results, with as high as 65% of the population not having toilet facilities coupled with very low use of existing toilets in urban and rural areas.
It is perhaps the right time to critically evaluate and move beyond the excessive focus we have on 'provision' and pay attention to the underlying complexities of the mechanisms involved, that influence sanitation behaviour among people. If we dont do so, we stand the risk of "missing all the trees for the forest", i.e. missing the social and economic dimensions of the sanitation needs of the people, in the hurry to count the number of toilets provided ! Aarti Kelkar-Khambete writes about the issue.
Aarti Kelkar-Khambete
Posted on 18 Apr, 2012 12:14 PM

Guest post by: Aarti Kelkar-Khambete

Image Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

The sanitation crisis and the recent evidence on lack of toilet facilities 
Water supply and demand management of the Indus basin : Options for current and future sustainable water resources management
The Indus basin is one of the regions in the world that is faced with major challenges for its water sector, due to population growth, rapid urbanisation and industrialisation, environmental degradation, unregulated utilization of the resources, inefficient water use and poverty, all aggravated by climate change. The Indus Basin is shared by 4 countries – Pakistan, India, Afghanistan and China. With a current population of 237 million people which is projected to increase to 319 million in 2025 and 383 million in 2050, already today water resources are abstracted almost entirely (more than 95% for irrigation). Climate change will result in increased water availability in the short term.
A.N. Laghari
D.Vanham
and W.Rauch
Posted on 17 Apr, 2012 12:04 PM

Article Courtesy : Hydrology and Earth System Sciences (HESS)

Authors : A.N. Laghari, D.Vanham, and W.Rauch
Maharashtra Water Resource Regulatory Authority s approach paper on criteria for determination of bulk water tariff in 2013 - 2016 - Draft put out for inviting comments
The Maharashtra Water Resource Regulatory Authority (MWRRA) has in March 2012 circulated its approach paper on criteria for determination of bulk water tariff for the period 2013-2016. The draft is now put out for public consultation, which is the next step in the exercise as per the regulations.
IWP
Posted on 14 Apr, 2012 09:46 PM

 
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