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MGNREGA demands makeover
A decade after its implementation, MGNREGA is in shambles. Taking Jharkhand as an example, a paper analyses what went wrong and how to rectify the mistakes. Posted on 23 Sep, 2016 09:04 PM

The article, The MGNREGA crisis: Insights from Jharkhand, published in the Economic and Political Weekly dated May 28, 2016, provides an overview of the status of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act or MGNREGA in India.

Labourers build check dams under MGNREGA. (Source: IWP Flickr Photos)
Who gives a sh*t?
Skin irritations, respiratory distresses and sometimes even death, it is a life of suffering for the cleaners of human filth. Posted on 20 Sep, 2016 05:47 PM

“My mother used to head out with a basket full of ash every day. She would visit dry latrines in the area one by one, sprinkle the ash on the night soil, scoop it up and carry the excreta-filled basket on her head to dump the contents into a small tanker. This was almost 40 years back in our 'Singara (beautiful) Chennai',” recounts Ravanaiah.

Despite the ban, manual scavenging continues. (Image courtesy: The Hindu)
Forgotten water bearers of Guwahati
Most of the ponds in Guwahati are in a sorry state now. They need to be preserved, not just as heritage sites, but also as drinking water providers and collectors of surface runoff. Posted on 19 Sep, 2016 06:04 PM

Guwahati, one of the fastest growing cities in India, is thousands of years old. Once known as Pragjyotishpura or the city of eastern light, Guwahati has many ancient stories attached to it. This beautiful city finds mention in epics such as Ramayana, Mahabharata and the Puranas.

Jorpukhuri near Ugratara temple.
Heavy metals and pesticides pollute Ganga: CPCB
News this week Posted on 19 Sep, 2016 09:40 AM

Ganga polluted with heavy metals and pesticides: CPCB

Ganga near Gadmukteshwar. (Source: IWP Flickr Photos)
Release 12,000 cusecs of water to TN: SC to Karnataka
Policy matter this week Posted on 19 Sep, 2016 09:20 AM

Cauvery river dispute: Karnataka to share less water, SC raps the two states over protests

Cauvery river in Karnataka (Source: AmyNorth via Wikipedia)
Cauvery row: When source is the cause
Karnataka and TN are sparring over the dwindling Cauvery water. Kodagu, where the Cauvery begins its journey, is witnessing landscape changes which is impacting the water inflow to the river. Posted on 17 Sep, 2016 09:27 PM

Even as Karnataka and Tamil Nadu fight over their rights on Cauvery water, not much thought has gone into the place where the river originates. Kodagu district, earlier known as Coorg, lies on the eastern slope of Western Ghats, a biological hotspot which is home to the Cauvery and is also the primary catchment area of the river.  

Cauvery river at Kodagu. Source: Rameshng/Wikimedia Commons
A river on fire
Communication, based on sound scientific information, involving farmers as well as other stakeholders, is the only way to solve the Cauvery dispute. Political mandate, too, is important. Posted on 17 Sep, 2016 05:52 PM

River Cauvery has been in the epicentre of agitation and violence in the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu--both fighting over their share of the Cauvery water. Thanks to the deficit monsoon this year, the Cauvery basin reservoirs in both these neighbouring states are only filled half as much as they should be![1].

Cauvery river at Hogenakal, Karnataka. (Source: IWP Flickr Photos via Claire Arni and Oriole Henri)
Delhi enters uncharted waters
The national capital is setting standards on water supply by promising uniform service to the residents. Though the government is taking many steps in the right direction, there are a few hiccups. Posted on 15 Sep, 2016 11:44 AM

If you are a resident of Delhi, it wouldn’t matter if you have a residence proof or not; neither would it matter if your settlement is illegal. You will get individual water connection that will supply enough water for your daily use.

Residents of Kusumpur Pahari, a slum in south New Delhi, fill containers with water from a DJB tanker Source: Columbia Water Center/flickr
When Osaka comes to Lucknow
The UP government is on a mission to replicate Osaka's riverfront in Lucknow. This spells doom for the families dependent on the Gomti for sustenance. Posted on 14 Sep, 2016 10:14 AM

Raghunath Lakhpat is a terrified man. He can only watch warily as the land on either side of his modest home is being dug up by huge earthmovers. “We are stuck in the middle. Sooner or later, we will have to leave. But where will we go? What will we eat?” he asks helplessly.

Earth movers cluster on the riverbed of the Gomti, engaged in channelizing the river
Relief in the time of flood
The flood in Bihar is getting worse by day. A grassroot organisation in Bihar, BJUP that rushed to the affected areas with relief, shares some pictures of the relief work in progress. Posted on 13 Sep, 2016 10:33 PM

Bihar is India's most flood-prone state, with 76 percent of the population in north Bihar living under the recurring threat of floods. North Bihar is home to eight major rivers, all of which end up in the Ganges.

Pahleja Ghat on the Hajipur-Sonepur road submerged in water.
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