News and Articles

This workshop organised by the DHAN Foundation in the Gingee Town Panchayat (GTP) in Tamil Nadu on the 18th of November 2011, aimed at initiating a scientific study titled “Strategy for increasing per capita availability of water for Gingee town, Tamilnadu". Elected representatives of the town panchayat along with the general public and government officials participated in this workshop.

The Central Water Commission (CWC) has recently prepared a report on water quality scenario of our rivers and has evolved a methodology for identifying hot spots in Indian rivers. The water quality data is based on the average values observed during the last ten years (2001-2011) at 371 monitoring stations of CWC on almost all major, medium and minor rivers in India. Please find below a letter (dated November 5, 2011) from South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers & People, New Delhi to the Chairman, Central Water Commission stating its concerns regarding the report.

Guest Post: Nitin Rai, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE)

Drawing upon his experience working with the Soligas who live within the Biligiri Rangaswamy Temple Wildlife Sanctuary, Nitin Rai talks about the ‘wilderness’ myth and explores the origins and impacts of the belief that people and animals cannot co-exist. 

Content and photo courtesy: Environment Support Group  

On the contentious policy relating to privatization of lakes, the Justice N K Patil Committee appointed by the Karnataka High Court has recommended that private sector participation solely based on commercial interest is not desirable.

In a significant development, the Committee appointed under the Chairmanship of Justice Mr. N. K. Patil, Judge of the Karnataka High Court and Chairman High Court Legal Services Committee, in response to the Public Interest Litigation by Environment Support Group challenging the privatisation of management and rehabilitation of lakes in Bangalore (WP 817/2008), has strongly recommended that ““private sector participation solely based on consequential commercial interest” is not a desirable model” (Emphasis in original).

Guest post by – Rahul Bakare, Arghyam

 This article details an example where local knowledge has been used to develop access to safe water in the tribal areas of the Eastern Ghats in Andhra Pradesh

The news this fortnight has been dominated by the north-east monsoon in South India, mainly in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Periyar, Vagai, Krishnarajasagar, Mettur and Chemberampakkam reservoirs have either reached full capacity or are expected to in the next few days. Areas downstream of Vagai reservoir received flood warnings.

In the cities of Tamil Nadu, heavy rains and inadequate infrastructure have led to damage to life and property, with 10 people dead in two separate incidents. 

Winter precipitation has begun in Kashmir, with the higher reaches receiving snowfall. 

The workshop aimed at possible replication and acceptability of KAF as a viable, low cost appropriate arsenic mitigation measure in the arsenic contaminated regions of the country.

Image courtesy: http://sikkimsprings.org/

Adequate potable water supply to the community has become an uphill task to the administration both in rural and urban areas. This is because of dwindling groundwater sources, over-extraction, pollution of surface water bodies, negligence of fresh water bodies, poor water management, etc.