Assam's river atlas to tackle floods, deforestation

Assam prepares river atlas to tackle floods, erosion, deforestation

The Assam government is preparing a river atlas with the aid of the North Eastern Space Application Centre (NESAC) that would serve as a comprehensive database of all major and minor rivers of the state. Besides serving as a database, the atlas would also help record deforestation in the region to tackle recurring floods and erosion in the state. The NESAC has also been asked to bring quality and quantity of sand and sand layers in the river beds within the ambit of the study as this would later help in exploring the possibility of using sandbars as solar parks. 

Zero Budget Natural Farming proves successful for Andhra farmers

Under the Centre’s Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana, Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF), the state government's unique initiative, was launched in September 2015. The objective of the scheme was to improve farmers’ livelihood of the drought-prone Rayalaseema region by eliminating the use of chemical pesticides and promoting good agronomic practices. The farming practice has proven to be a success in the region as it has helped farmers get higher yields with reduced input cost. Looking at its success, the state government plans to cover an estimated six million farmers by 2025-26 with ZBNF. 

No summer sowing for Gujarat farmers this year

Madhya Pradesh received scanty rainfall in the last monsoon resulting in reduced storage of the Narmada dam reservoir. The water storage in the dams has reduced to its lowest in 15 years while the storage under the Narmada command area has dropped by 45 percent this year. Taking note of the situation, the Narmada Control Authority has decided to suspend water supplies in the Narmada canal network for irrigation purposes from March 15. Following this, the Sardar Sarovar Narmada Nigam Limited (SSNNL) issued a circular alerting farmers not to take up summer sowing, which starts around March. 

E-waste contaminates Delhi's groundwater and soil: Study

According to a study, the capital's groundwater and soil are getting polluted due to improperly handled e-waste. Heavy metal contamination has been found in groundwater samples of the analysed areas with metals such as lead, cadmium and copper found 20 times higher than levels considered safe by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), while nickel and chromium levels were about five times higher. In March 2016, government made it mandatory for electronics manufactures to ensure safe disposal of e-waste. Despite this, 80 percent of e-waste gets discarded unsafely.  

River flooding to increase due to global warming: Study

As per a study, global warming is going to increase the risk of river flooding over the coming decades. The study states that the river flooding will endanger millions of people around the world, particularly in the United States, parts of India and Africa, Indonesia and Central Europe. The study also warns that the risk of river flooding will rise despite efforts to reduce climate change as greenhouse gases have already been emitted in past decades.

This is a roundup of important news from January 9 - 15, 2018. Also, read the policy matters this week.