Political

This presentation by M G Gopal of the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board deals with the water issues faced in the city. The issues presented include – (a) Inter-sectoral allocation (b) Meeting the demand (c) Maintaining quality standards (d) Reducing unaccounted for water (e) Recycle and reuse (f) Promoting rainwater and conservation (g) Implementation of CDS and (f) Is ‘privatisation’, a solution or a disaster?

The report on “Watershed Development in Maharashtra” by Society for Promoting Participative Ecosystem Management (SOPPECOM) ), on behalf of the Forum for Watershed Research and Policy Dialogue (ForWaRD), deals with the present scenario and issues for restructuring the programme. The concept of integrated and participatory watershed development and management has emerged as the cornerstone of rural development in the dry and semi-arid regions of India. Over the years the country has been making increasing investments in this area with the objective of enhancing the production potential of rainfed agriculture.

This article by Rajashree V Bothale deals with the identification of suitable sites for water harvesting structures in Upper Betwa watershed through WARIS. The present study uses decision support system WARIS for identification of suitable sites for water harvesting structures.

The article deals with AVSWAT- A spatial decision support system for land and water management and its application for watershed management in Bankura district of West Bengal. Decision Support Systems (DSS) are defined as computer-based information systems designed to support decision makers interactively in thinking and making decisions about relatively unstructured problems. Spatial Decision Support Systems (SDSS), which are the integration of DSS and GIS was initiated by Densham and Goodchild ( 1988) are emerging as efficient tools for managing natural resources like land and water.

This article deals with cadastral level resources information system for Kundapallam (Kd1) and Neeralipallam (kb3) watersheds in the Nilgiris district using remote sensing, GPS and GIS. The main objectives of the study are as follows -

• Creation of cadastral level resources information system for sustainable watershed development
• To identify the improper land-use practice areas with the combination of slope and soil type
• To evolve and arrive at local-specific cadastral boundary level development action paln considering land and forest resources for optimal utilization and to address the remedial developmental measures for Kundapallam (kd1) and Neeralipallam (kb3) microwatersheds on a sustainable basis.

Forwarded to the Portal by: Himanshu Thakkar, SANDRP

Submission Sent to Prime Minister, DJB, Ministry of Water Resources & HP Govt.

A memorandum demanding the scrapping of the proposed Renuka Dam Project in Sirmaur, Himachal Pradesh was sent to the Prime Minister, Union Minister of Water Resources, the Delhi Jal Board, the Central Water Commission and the Ministry of Social Justice today by concerned environment groups as well as representatives of the dam affected communities. The 5 page detailed submission has made this demand on three basic grounds - technical/conceptual issues, environment implications and the social impacts of the project. Attacking the very root and concept of the project the memorandum highlights the point that the agreement that was signed in May 1994 is no longer valid, as per the opinion of the Union Ministry of Law and Justice, since Rajasthan, one of the parties, did not sign the agreement. The Delhi Jal Board has admitted in response to an RTI application that no options assessment has been done to arrive at the least cost option before taking up the Renuka dam proposal. Without such an assessment, taking up a proposal like the Renuka dam would be completely wrong and inappropriate use of public resources. Moreover, several Studies have proved that Delhi itself is thirsty not because there is shortage of water but actually due to mismanagement and misappropriation of water. According to the Performance Audit report of the Delhi Jal Board for 2008, Delhi has distribution losses of 40 per cent of total water supply which is abnormal and significantly higher than the acceptable norms of 15 per cent prescribed by the Ministry of Urban Development.

The presentation by M N Thippeswamy (Retd. Chief Engineer of BWSSB) deals with the operation and maintanance of water supply systems. The structure of the presentation is as follows -

• Key issues regarding water supply scenario around the World
• Definition of Operation and Maintenance
• Key issues before the water authorities for water supply O & M
• Objectives of Operational System and Management
• O & M of Water Resources for quality and quantity
• O & M of Conveyance system of water resources
• O & M of Water Treatment Plant
• O & M of service reservoirs and distribution pipeline
• O & M of drinking water quality maintaining and surveillance
• O  & M of billing and collection
• O  & M of Energy Audit
• Water Audit and Leakage Control
• System Management
• Public Private Partnership (PPP / PSP)

Best practices on urban water management from across the world

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This case study by All India Institute of Local Self Government deals with the transformation of Surat, from a city infested with plague to second cleanest city in India.  This transformation was largely due to improved municipal management, which was brought about by a strong leadership.

This study by the National Institute of Hydrology deals with the geomorphologic & land use planning for Danda watershed in Tehri Garhwal district of Uttar Pradesh.