Rivers

Issue of Commons and institutional arrangements:

In these videos namely Part I and Part II, Narayanan Unni walks us through his farm located in Chittur, Palakkad, Kerala that includes a range of organically grown medicinal plants, vegetables and introduces the organically grown ancient med

Introduction

What do we see our rivers as? Are they merely conduits for water that is to be used to its fullest extent? Or are they valued and revered ecosystems? The Himmotthan Society, Dehradun and International Rivers, U.S.A., hosted a discussion a workshop on ‘Environmental Flows’ at Hotel Madhuban, Dehradun on 08 June 2012 that sought to clarify the issues around these questions.

A Primer on the What, Why and How of environmental flows, authored by Dr. Latha Anantha (River Research Centre, Kerala) and Parineeta Dandekar (South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People, SANDRP) and published by International Rivers, was shared with the participants.  The presentations made during this workshop are presented in this article.

The legendary Jog falls are a shadow of their former self after damming (Courtesy: Dr.Latha Anantha)

The Ganga is the most sacred river in the sub-continent, and revered by millions.It is also among the top ten rivers at risk. The key threat to the river is indiscriminate abstraction of water from the river, leavng it unable to maintain its ecological integrity or to satisfy the needs of riparian communities.

WWF-India has been working to promote harmony between human beings and nature for more than four decades.Today, it is recognized as a premier conservation NGO in the country dealing with nature conservation, environmental protection and development-related issues. At a time when the Web of Life has come under increasing threats, WWF-India's attempts have been to find and implement solutions so that human beings can live in harmony with nature, and leave for future generations a world rich in natural resources and natural wonders.

Sarakki Lake, also known as Jagaranahalli Lake located in South Bangalore is one of the oldest lakes in Bangalore, and once upon a time one of the most glorious. It has now become a reservoir for untreated sewage and a dumping yard for the surrounding neighbourhoods. This lake was a source of water for four villages up until just a few years ago.

In 2001, the Himmothan Pariyojana (HMP) programme was initiated to work on rural development issues in collaboration with the Government of Uttarakhand, as formalised by a 10-year MoU between the two in 2004.

Bihar is surrounded by Nepal in the north, West Bengal in the east, Uttar Pradesh in the west and  Jharkhand towards the south. There are several rivers that run through the state: Ganga, Sone, Punpun, Falgu, Karmanasa, Durgavati, Kosi, Gandak and the Ghaghara, to name a few. Nearly 85% of the state’s land is under cultivation.

This paper from the journal Asian Journal of Experimental Sciences presents the findings of a study that attempted to assess the physicochemical parameters of surface water in Gujarat state to explore the suitability of water