Voluntary Citizen or Civil Society Sector

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October 11, 2022 In an effort to inform the general public, especially citizen activists, policymakers, researchers, and students, about the current status of the Vrishabhavathi river, Paani.Earth has created the necessary maps, data, analysis, and information to drive conservation awareness and action around the river.
Vrishabhavathi river (Image Source: Paani.Earth)
October 1, 2021 Community videos as a tool to influence behaviour change and adoption in rural communities
Community videos are produced by farmers themselves and feature local participants and agents from the rural communities themselves (Image: Digital Green)
September 17, 2021 Benefits of well-managed commons on livelihoods
Collective efforts revived the canal structure of Bichhiya dam bringing water to the village (Image: Foundation for Ecological Security)
September 4, 2021 Committed to use the power of all forms of communication to bring about behavioral change and transformation at scale
Villagers participating in shramdaan for making watershed structures (Image: Paani Foundation)
September 3, 2021 Safe water learning cards being used to train a wide spectrum of stakeholders
Different combinations of safe water learning cards can be customised for a session based on the target audience (Image: INREM)
June 4, 2021 Meet these real-life heroes, who with their consistent and tireless efforts created an impact and turned their local areas into examples to follow.
Meet the water warriors who made a significant change in their own unique way (Image Source: Environment Club)
App way to track toilet demand
The mDemand mobile application pilot seeks to make tracking sanitation needs in rural India easy for the government. It is expected to take us a step closer to Swachh Bharat. Posted on 22 Jul, 2016 09:22 PM

As part of its efforts to promote rural sanitation, the government, under the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM), promises a subsidy of Rs 12,000 for the construction of individual household toilets. Households that fall in the below poverty line (BPL) category and select households such as those belonging to SCs/STs and the ones headed by women can avail of this subsidy amount.

Snapshot of the mobile app's dashboard
Rapar ends its long wait for water
How an arid, saline land where migration in search of water and jobs was a way of life, boasts of plenty of water now. Posted on 20 Jul, 2016 09:26 AM

Summer temperatures soar to a gruelling 50ocelsius in Rapar, a little known block in Gujarat’s Kutch district. Land here is dry, saline and arid; the monsoon is erratic. Many a times, the entire year’s rain falls in a short span of two or three days, doing more harm than good.

Rapar has many water structures now. (Source: Samerth Trust)
State does a Nero while Kharun weeps
Despite the pitiable state of a polluted Kharun, the government is keen on developing the riverfront to attract tourists. Posted on 18 Jul, 2016 09:30 AM

At sunrise, everything is luminous but not clear. 

― Norman Maclean, A River Runs Through It and Other Stories

Kharun river at Mahadev Ghat, Raipur.
Floods wreak havoc in many parts of the country
News this week Posted on 17 Jul, 2016 04:27 PM

Floods grip many parts of the country

Flooded Simen river in Brahmaputra basin (Source: IWP Flickr Photos)
Once a drain, now a sewer
Barapullah drain, which was once a major drain in Delhi, is being clogged with human waste, thanks to the rapid growth the city is undergoing. Posted on 05 Jul, 2016 09:33 PM

Originally a darya (creek), locally known as Nizammuddin darya, Barapullah is a key drain of Delhi today. Barapullah gets its name from a pul (bridge) built across it by the then emperor Jahangir's chief eunuch, Mihir Banu Agha.

Construction debris of the Barapullah flyover project chokes the nallah.
Pipara women realise pipe dream
Pipara village in the parched Bundelkhand region stands out for its uninterrupted water supply. The village has their women to thank for it. Posted on 01 Jul, 2016 12:03 PM

The cracks on the parched land of Bundelkhand are waiting for the monsoon to quench the thirst of its arid landscape. Despite the wide-spread drought here, Pipara, one of the villages in the region, stands apart as the only one that has not run completely dry. 

Women fill water from one of the taps at Pipara.
Call for nominations- Bhagirath Prayaas Samman 2016
Bhagirath Prayaas Samman aims to recognise outstanding, sustained efforts of river warriors towards protection and conservation of rivers.
Posted on 29 Jun, 2016 06:25 PM

Bhagirath Prayaas Samman was constituted in 2014 as an award to recognise efforts and initiatives for river conservation, in the first India Rivers Week jointly organised by Peace Institute, INTACH, Toxics Link, SANDRP and WWF-India. In India, numerous awards are given for excellent initiatives around water conservation, ut none on rivers.

Farm ponds save village from drought
Tonk Khurd’s innovative farm ponds prove that when it comes to solving water crisis, one size does not fit all. Posted on 21 Jun, 2016 09:09 AM

Vikram Patel, a 71-year-old farmer in Chidavad village of Dewas district in Madhya Pradesh is one of the first farmers to have embraced the idea of farm ponds to increase the groundwater level in his farm.

Vikram Patel near his farm pond in Chidavad.
Simhastha leaves farmers fuming
The festival has hordes of Ujjain farmers broke and the mighty Kshipra river troubled. Swift government action is needed to set things right. Posted on 12 Jun, 2016 07:38 PM

Ramesh Mali, a farmer in his late thirties, looks at his farmland nervously. It has been 13 days since the Simhastha Maha Kumbh festival, 2016, concluded. The district administration had acquired his four bigha land (approximately 0.64 hectares) for the festival. The barricades and the concrete left on his land give us the idea that the land is not fit for farming this season.

Kshipra at Mangalnath Ghat, Ujjain
How water brought a village together
The village of Bankpura has come together for the cause of safe-drinking water. As a result, they are empowered and are prospering. Posted on 11 Jun, 2016 04:11 PM

Bankpura village is in Mehgaon gram panchayat in Dharampuri block in district Dhar of Madhya Pradesh. It is situated 26km away from the sub-district headquarters, Dharampuri, and 68km away from the district headquarter, Dhar. Dhamnod is the nearest town to this village which is approximately 7km away.

Water tank near the primary school and anganwadi for the children to avail safe water. (Source: Puja Singh)
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