Political

The issues of sustainable food security assume national importance, as the country is debating on the crucial National Food Security Bill. Breaking yield barrier, accelerating growth of production and ensuring sustainability are the critical policy concerns in Indian agriculture.

The roundtable discussion underlined the need to harness the opportunities offered by the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) and its extensions to crop production in many areas. This may help in substantially reducing the need for embedded subsidies in every grain of rice while achieving increases in yield by 15 per cent to 40 per cent or more over present conventional methods. In India about 1.7 million farmers are estimated to have adopted the technique on more than 7.5 lakh hectares across 160 districts, without any major project funding so far. Tamil Nadu and Tripura are the leading states for adoption of SRI, but many others are following suit.

This report by Him Dhara, an environmental research and action collective, deals with the Asian Development Bank financed hydropower projects in Himachal Pradesh, which are leading to obstruction of the rivers and their consequent disappearance for harnessing energy and making ‘judicious’ use of the water. Within the hydro sector the attention has turned to the Indian Himalayan region which is estimated to have seventy nine per cent of the total hydropower potential of the country.

The technology of ‘run of the river’ (ROR) used to tap “the flow of rivers” in high gradient zones to generate power has given impetus to setting up of hydro-projects in the Himalayan states. In India, the mountainous region of the Himalayas offered the “perfect setting” for such projects, with the availability of several flowing water sources that could be tapped before they reached the plains. Of the Himalayan states, after Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh is second in line with a hydropower potential of about 21000 MW. The installed capacity has increased twenty fold (from 326 MW to 6370 MW) in the last ten years indicating the frenzied pace of hydropower development in the state.

Organizer: Indian Institute for Human Settlement (IIHS)

Venue: Bangalore

 It traces the historical growth of thinking on watershed in the region, and highlights issues and influences. Impacts and benefits are discussed in relation to sustainability. The review shows that success in these projects is usually isolated, mostly seen in small micro-watersheds with naturally good water harvesting conditions.

Organizer: Kriti

Venue: Alliance Francaise, 72 Lodi Estate, New Delhi

Description:

The festival is aimed at creating greater awareness, interest and actions around environment and the ecosystem, so that together we can challenge the impact of global warming and climate change; and make efforts at protecting nature and ourselves to preserve our present and the future. 5th June is World Environment Day, with India playing host to the day with the theme ‘Forest Nature Works for You’.

Organizer: Forum for Policy Dialogue on Water Conflicts in India in collaboration with Baitarani Initiative and Odisha State Resource Centre of the Forum, SaciWATERs-CapNet Network (SCaN) and Cap-Net

Venue: Satapada on Chilika Lake, Odisha

Topics:

• Understanding water
• Normative concerns around water
• Legal and institutional issues related to water

The New India Foundation, based in Bangalore, uniquely matches public-spirited philanthropy with ground-breaking and relevant scholarship. In the six decades since Independence, there has been a large body of work produced by Indian historians and social scientists.

The core activities of the New India Foundation are the New India Fellowships, awarded to scholars and writers working on different aspects of the history of independent India. The duration of the fellowships is twelve months. Each year, mixes of young and experienced candidates are selected.

Ascenso Management & Consulting Services Pvt. Ltd (AMCSPL), New Delhi is an independent consultancy company offering high quality technical services in the field of Environment, Health & Safety. It was started as Ascent Management & Consulting Group which has been active in this field since its inception.

The Dhamra Port Company Limited (DPCL) is a 50:50 joint venture of L&T and Tata Steel. DPCL has been awarded a concession by Government of Orissa to build and operate a port north of the mouth of river Dhamra in Bhadrak district on BOOST (Build, Own, Operate, Share and Transfer) basis for a total period of 34 years including a period of 4 years for construction.