The Advantages of Recycling Paper

Before throwing that piece of paper in the trash, consider how many trees you could save by starting a

The Silviculture of Indian Trees, is a seminal reference work in three volumes, that contains in-depth information (from a silvicultural point of view) about nearly all tree species of India, covering some 63 botanical orders. It is the outcome of twenty years of field-based research by Robert Scott Troup, a British forestry expert who spent much of his career in India, and is considered a classic landmark work on the subject.

The book starts with an introduction, followed by information organised by the botanical order, genera and finally, species. Each sub-section on a specific species, contains details such as the botanical name, vernacular names, distribution and habitat, silvicultural characters (climatic, temperature, soil conditions that help the tree grow), botanical descriptions as well as silhoutte drawings of the seed seedling leaf trunk root flower fruit bark and other plant parts, uses, flowering fruiting and leaf-shedding process as well as season, natural and artificial reproduction methods and rate of growth, germination process and role of animals birds insects wind and water, and botanically allied species.

Entry 56 of List I of Seventh Schedule provides that "Regulation and development of inter-State rivers and river valleys to the extent to which such regulation and development under the control of the Union is declared by Parliament by law to be expedient in the public interest".

Original document can be viewed here on the Ministry of Water Resources website

March 2010 issue of e-Disha from the CDD Society. An effort to disseminate knowledge to promote sustainable sanitation solutions in South Asia.

The Revitalising Rainfed Agriculture (RRA) Network is a national consortium of academics, bureaucrats and representatives of civil society working to develop policy options aimed at enhancing appropriate and comprehensive public investments in rainfed agriculture.  The network's functioning is premised on a combination of collating existing experiences, undertaking

• Director - River Basins & Water Policy

World Wide Fund for Nature -  India
Location: New Delhi
Last Date: March 20, 2010

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Dear All,

Guest post by Sangeeta Deogawanka

February 2nd, designated as World Wetlands Day, has quietly slipped by with isolated events that speak of the lackadaisical attitude towards this rich ecosystem.

With 67,429 wetlands covering an area of about 5.5 million hectares, [Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), 1990], the wetland systems in India are diverse, found in high altitude cold zones, the hot and humid coastal areas or occurring as scattered inland wetland systems.

Ground Report India

A huge controversy has been generated in recent days over the much quoted lines in the IPCC’s 2007 report: “Glaciers in the Himalaya are receding faster than in any part of the world and, if the present rate continues, the likelihood of them disappearing by the year 2035 and perhaps sooner is very high if the Earth keeps warming at the current rate” (Working Group 2, page 493). We do need to question how a statement of such magnitude, without peer review, made its way into the IPCC report. That it was discovered,externally, more than two years later raises concerns about both the mindset and the weakness of the processes of the IPCC in checking and correcting information they collate, information that is so vital in the global debate. However, to question the credibility of the science of the global warming, supported as it is by a wealth of empirical evidence, or to question IPCC’s work, as is happening in some quarters, is gross exaggeration and sometimes driven by dubious and malafide intentions.

The Geology of India by DN Wadia, a geologist with the Geological Survey of India, is considered to be one of the most important and complete reference works available today on the subject.

The book divides India into three main geological divisions - the triangular plateau of the peninsula, the mountainous or the extra-peninsular region bordering India on the west north and east, and the Indo-gangetic plain extending from the valley of the Indus to the valley of the Brahmaputra in Assam. The desert region of western Rajasthan is considered to be a unique fourth category, as it combines characteristics of two of the three main divisions.