Political

This document by Collaborative for the Advancement of the Study of Urbanism through Mixed Media (CASUMM) provides details about the K-East Water Distribution Improvement Project (WDIP) started in Mumbai, in the form of FAQs.

It argues that the very way in which the project is being planned and implemented, indicates that the agenda of the donor organisations is to gradually push for the privatisation in the water sector.

In this document by CASUMM, the author raises important questions regarding the recent trends towards privatisation of water supply in Indian cities by discussing the case of the water supply scheme project in the K-east ward of Mumbai.

The privatisation of the water supply scheme, which has been implemented through grants by the World Bank (WB) raises serious questions regarding the intentions of the international organisations that fail to take into consideration the local context and the needs of the people and focus exclusively on profit making.

This document provides the background for a workshop on 'Water Challenges in Greater Bangalore', organised by NIAS and CASSUM at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), Indian Institute of Science (IISC) campus on March 27, 2007.

The document highlights the current scenario of privatisation of water services that are being funded by international financial institutions under the water sector reforms in the city of Bangalore, which have had a very negative impact on the urban poor, who continue to face the problem of inadequate, unreliable and unsafe water supply as compared to other posh and water rich areas in the city.

This report deals with the social conflicts emerging out of the encroachments owing to the change in course of the Ganga upstream and downstream of the Farakka barrage. The barrage was built with the intention of diverting water into the Hugli river with a view to flush the sediment load into the deeper part of the estuary and revive the navigational status of Kolkata port. During the last three decades of its operation, the silt-management in the barrage was given scant or no attention. The sediment movement in the tidal estuary of Hugli is a function of a complex fluvial system that can hardly be governed by inducing 40000 cusec of water.

This paper by Centre for Studies in Social Sciences and Jadavpur University, aims at explaining the factors that determine private investment in groundwater irrigation in West Bengal. It also addresses the issues pertaining to institutional arrangements, particularly provision of facilities by the government. The study, largely empirical in nature, is based on data collected from surveys conducted in close to one thousand moujas (villages) spread across the major agro-climatic zones in West Bengal. It begins with a descriptive account of the changes in the agricultural scenario in West Bengal over the last thirty years. The research questions are discussed and the econometric methodology presented.

Integrated Hydrological Data Books are a compendium of important hydrological information of twelve non-classified basins (i.e., other than Ganga and Brahmaputra) consolidated at the national level by the Central Water Commission (CWC).

It covers basic hydrological data on gauge, discharge, silt, sedimentation and water quality collected on a regular basis by the CWC regional field offices, who document it in the form of a Water Year Book, Sediment Year Book and Water Quality Year Book. These along with the relevant land use statistics collected by the Ministry of Agriculture are integrated into this Data Book.

The information is of use to planners, researchers, policy makers and the public at large.

The report of the Expert Group on Ground Water Management and Ownership (2007) of the Planning Commission takes stock of the availability and use of groundwater and outlines the extent, causes and consequences of groundwater exploitation. It suggests the need for exploiting the untapped ‘static’ water, which if untapped creates stagnant conditions and over time provides the necessary time factor for the deterioration in quality. The rising demand for groundwater from agriculture has been attributed to the legal/regulatory regime governing groundwater and partly to the minimum support price policy and agricultural trade policy currently being followed.

Based on the recommendations contained in the Report of the Technical Committee chaired by Dr. C. H. Hanumantha Rao released in 1994, the Common Guidelines (1994) were issued by the Ministry of Rural Areas & Employment (now Ministry of Rural Development) and the watershed approach was adopted for implementation of all Area Development Programmes viz. DPAP, DDP, IWDP and the watershed component of the EAS w.e.f. 1^st April 1995. Taking the above into consideration, Government of India had constituted a Committee on Training under the Chairmanship of Shri V. B. Eswaran to go into all aspects of training under the Common Guidelines.

The report released in 1997, presents a review of the existing training arrangements for watershed development and suggests a system for organizing training for different level of functionaries. The need for detailed guidelines, to be prepared at the State level for this purpose is suggested. There is also a need for developing an institutional mechanism for providing training as soon as there are changes in the incumbent. Once a project is sanctioned, the Project Implementing Agency (PIA) should know the various tasks to be undertaken as regards training and the institutions to be approached for this purpose.  

Content Courtesy: Timesjobs and Monster

Organizer: International Water Management Institute

Eligibility: PhD in the field of hydrogeology/environmental/irrigation/civil engineering or a closely related water resources discipline.

Description:

The International Water Management Institute (www.cgiar.org) is a non-profit, scientific organization engaged in research and capacity building activities for developing countries. Our mission is to overcome poverty through the better management of land and water resources. Working with diverse partners and supported by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (www.cgiar.org), IWMI seeks to translate its research findings into actionable recommendations for policymakers, resource managers and poor rural communities. IWMI is based in Colombo, Sri Lanka and has regional offices in 12 countries in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. IWMI is one of the 15 research centers of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research.