Political

Farakka behind Bihar flood: CM

Telangana, Maharashtra sign pact for irrigation projects across Godavari

The chief minister of Bihar, Nitish Kumar, called for the decommissioning of the Farakka barrage recently.

The small town of Navalgund of Dharwad district in Karnataka with a population of 25,000 has been the epicenter of farmers’ protest demanding water from the west-flowing river, Mahadayi.

Manual scavenging has been glorified since the time of Mahatma Gandhi. It hasn’t changed now with prime minister Narendra Modi describing it as an “experience in spirituality”. Manual scavenging is dehumanising. And despite the laws created to abolish it, the news of manual scavenging and manual scavengers dying in sewers and septic tanks are not unheard of.

The pitiful state of some of the water bodies in the country, coupled with the sheer apathy of the government, have forced some well-meaning citizens to come out of their comfort zones and make a difference. Some of these efforts, like the Puttenahalli lake in Bengaluru that is now overflowing with clean water, have been successful, while others are ongoing.

In the field of environmental justice, compliance is one of the least understood and researched topics. Since compliance may involve scientific and technological aspects of the environment, it is mostly left to technical experts, regulatory bodies and members of the industry. It has seen almost no public engagement or community action at the field and at policy levels.

Ajit Tiwari is Deputy Commissioner, Swachh Bharat Mission, Madhy

India witnesses 40 percent rise in farmer suicides in a year

Encroachment of lakes and riverbeds caused Chennai floods: Panel