Hamsa Iyer

Khazans are a unique man-made ecosystem that give Goa its traditional form of farming. Khazan lands are reclaimed lands from the river or sea.

Sharks are very important to the oceans as they control the fish population and maintain the food balance. However, many species of these predators are under threat due to human interventions, specifically shark finning. 

As a faculty of the Earth Sciences Department at Goa University, Dr. A.G Chachadi wanted to develop a facility to harvest rainwater and recharge groundwater at the campus at Taleigao Plateau. He wanted to showcase rainwater harvesting within the campus and also spread awareness on the benefits of doing it.

Khazans are reclaimed lands from the river or the sea. A created network of bunds protects the agricultural fields and adjoining villages from tidal flows. Khazan lands have three main features: sluice gate, poim and two types of bunds.

Bunds

Dimbhe dam is located near the tourist spot of Bhimashankar in Maharashtra. With a capacity of 13.5 million cubic meters, the dam displaced 1253 families, submerged 11 villages and partiallly affected another 13 villages when it was completed in 2000.

The Shirpur pattern propogated by Suresh Khanapurkar has been widely criticised but also accepted by many villages in Maharashtra.

Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipa

The Western Ghats, known for its biodiversity, is one of India's most sought after ecological hotspots. One of its stark features is the basalt rocks, often referred to as water buckets indicating the water retention capacity of the rock, found there.

The Western Ghats are made of up basalt rocks, which were formed from lava flows. These rocks are also known as water buckets as they are able to retain a lot of water. This unique feature helps create springs. At an event organised by IIT Mumbai and India Water Portal to mark World Water Day, Dr. Jared Buono talked about how springs were revived in Panchgani with the help of spring boxes.

Pophala is a dry land farming village with 73 families that cultivate 290 acres. The people would spend as many as 5 hours to go to another village and get water. In the year 2013, the Gram Sabha in Pophala village, decided on something unique. They decided to figure out a way to get and keep water in their village so as to not be dependent on anyone else.