India

Government bends its own guideline, fast-tracks green nod to Arunachal hydel project

Union Budget 2015-16 reduces funds for Water and Environment Ministry 

Muneswar and more than 170 farmers in Ambikapur, Chhattisgarh have no regrets after shifting over from traditional agricultural methods of farming to the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) method. Why would they? Most of them have been overwhelmed by the kind of returns they have got compared to their investments.

The agriculture sector has been playing a significant role in shaping India’s overall growth trajectory. What promising initiatives should the Budget 2015-16 come up with? Should it extend timely credit facilities to farmers belonging to all the farming categories? Should it extend crop insurance facilities to all farmers and for all crops? 

By declaring 2014 as the International Year of Family Farming, a lot of attention was focussed on the contribution of small farms, and the role of the families involved in it in eradicating hunger and poverty.

India’s 7500 km coastal line supports nearly 4, 87,100 hectares of mangroves. These unique ecosystems harbour nearly 3985 species of flora and fauna. Due to the increasing effects of climate change, mangrove forests in the country are under serious threat.

What are mangroves?

The Himalayas, an important part of the geography of India, extend along the entire Northern and North-Eastern boundary of the country. It spans six Indian States namely, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal, West Bengal, Sikkim and a major part of Arunachal Pradesh from west to east.

Indian Water Works Association in collaboration with Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai and SGGS Institute of Engineering and Technology, Nanded is orgainising a national seminar on 'Water Conservation and Rainwater Harvesting' at IIT Bombay.

For more details, download the event brochure and registration form attached below.

Groundwater, though replenishable, is ultimately a finite resource. Excessive withdrawal leads to depletion of the water stored underground, resulting in serious social, economical and environmental consequences.