Urban Water

This paper is an outcome of  The Energy Research Institute's (TERI’s) study for the Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) under the Ministry’s Centre of Excellence (COE) to “Review the existing guidelines of determination of user charges for water and sanitation services and to incorporate economic principles of pricing in urban water supply sector in India”.

This working paper by the University of Bonn attempts to give a spatial and temporal overview of water management in India. It traces how people and the successive regimes made choices across space and time from a wide range of water control and distribution technologies. The paper divides the water management in India into four periods –

• the traditional system of water management before colonial times;
• response from the colonial rulers to manage the complex socio-ecological system;
• large scale surface water development after independence; and
• finally, the small-scale community and market-led revolution.

This report by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) deals with the economics of wastewater use in agriculture. It presents an economic framework for the assessment of the use of reclaimed water in agriculture, as part of a comprehensive planning process in water resource allocation strategies to provide for a more economically efficient and sustainable water utilization. 

Reports over the last week indicate heavy rains and loss of lives and property in the state of Tamil Nadu, which has faced the maximum brunt of the rains followed by Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and some parts of Sikkim and Himachal Pradesh. Reports also indicate that there have been massive losses to agricultural produce due to heavy rains in parts of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and because of droughts in the state of Orissa. At the same time, reports also indicate good news that there has been a rise in the water levels in the country and of attempts being made in different parts of the country to cope with floods and excessive rains in the future.

Rainfall
Tamil Nadu

• Tamil Nadu: The north-east monsoon, 50 per cent in excess in the State, claims over 200 lives and destroys crops and infrastructure
• After the deluge: Chennai has received 71 cm of rain during this year's northeast monsoon, leaving the roads in the Chennai Metropolitan Area in shambles
• The rain-hit north and south Chennai, Tamil Nadu get some respite even as several areas, including Velachery and Taramani, remained under a sheet of water, affecting hundreds of people
• Rain stops, but no end to woes for people from Chennai, Tamil Nadu
• Rain pours non-stop misery in Tamil Nadu
• 2,000 people rescued from low-lying areas along river Tamirabarani, in Kanyakumari district
• Torrential rain kills over 200 in Tamil Nadu
• 70 % excess rainfall in Cuddalore district, Tamil Nadu

Government of Nepal has asked the Government of India to compensate its citizens badly affected by embankments and other flood control measures taken on river Gandak. Will this not lead to a flood of demands for compensation by the victims of similar problems in other river basins like the Bagmati, the Kamala and the Kosi?

This document on the management of drought during 2009 published by the Department of Agriculture and Cooperation of the Ministry of Agriculture presents the deficiency and erratic behavior of rainfall, impact of drought, mitigation efforts initiated and their results. During the deficient and erratic rainfall of South-West monsoon 2009, fourteen States declared drought/ drought like situation/ scarcity in 338 districts of the country.

A two day workshop was conducted on 15-16 April 2010 at Bangalore by GTZ-ASEM and supported by the Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) and the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) regarding preparation of City Sanitation Plans.

The Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) has undertaken the preparation of the City Sanitation Plans (CSPs) under the National Urban Sanitation Policy (NUSP) since the year 2008.

Ecological Sanitation is a new approaching sanitation where there is minimal water use and where human waste can be used as fertilizer. It is a truly sustainable approach.

The Peer Water Exchange (PWX) was awarded the 2010 Intel Environment Award today. PWX, a project of Blue Planet Network, is a combination of process, technology platform, and people designed to unlock the global capacity and creativity of individuals, philanthropies, businesses and implementers to solve the global safe drinking water and sanitation crises.

Sanitation/Wastewater

• India tops the list of nations lacking toilets
• India hunts for a Rural Toilet Design, 1000 Euros up for grabs
• 82% of rural India deprived of three basic necessities of life — tapped drinking water, electricity connection and sanitation
• There are 700 million cell phone connections in India, but only half this number of Indians have access to private toilets, says a UN study