Society, Culture, Religion and History

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Featured Articles
October 8, 2023
India's rivers: From conservation movements to legal personhood
While the current push for legal personhood for rivers is facing obstacles and is stalled, it holds potential as a viable long-term strategy for the preservation of India's rivers
River quality deteriorates as demand for hydropower to support economic growth continues to expand. (Image: Yogendra Singh Negi, Wikimedia Commons; CC BY-SA 4.0 DEED)
June 16, 2023
Majuli Island: A tapestry of resilience and environmental harmony
Majuli serves as a symbol of both the delicate balance between human activity and the environment and the tenacity of its residents
Addressing various aspects of women's lives to enhance their social, economic, and political status (Image: Rebuild India Fund)
January 13, 2022
Water management in the times of Gonds of Central India
The water structures constructed during the Gond period continue to survive the test of time and provide evidence of the water wisdom of our ancestors.
Kundeshwar lake, Kundam in Jabalpur (Image Source: K G Vyas)
January 2, 2021
The fast disappearing traditional water harvesting structures of Rajasthan
Lack of community ownership and local governance are spelling doom for the once royal and resilient traditional water harvesting structures of Rajasthan.
Toorji Ka Jhalara, Jodhpur (Image Source: Rituja Mitra)
December 7, 2020
Not in the interest of women farmers!
The new farm related bills will spell doom for women workers who form the bulk of small and marginal sections of Indian agriculture, warns Mahila Kisan Adhikaar Manch (MAKAAM).
Farm women, overworked and underpaid (Image Source: India Water Portal)
December 11, 2019
Scientists intervene to save dry toilets
Dry toilets have long been hailed as a sustainable solution to the sanitation and waste management crisis facing India today, but have been overshadowed by more modern toilet designs.
A traditional dry toilet. Image: India Science Wire
Are people in villages less thirsty?
Veteran journalist P. Sainath says we are living in a time of inequality--of wealth, water and income--driven by policies. Shouldn’t we be more angry about this?
P Sainath
Posted on 18 Oct, 2017 07:49 PM

In India, there has been a stunning growth of inequality in the last 25 years and a spectacular growth of inequality in the last 15 years. It is not just a question of wealth and income; inequality is visible in every sector. It is visible in water whether (it is) water for irrigation or drinking water.
An upcoming building in Mumbai has a pool on every floor. At the same time, migrant labourers rely on tapping municipal leakages for their drinking water. India has more inequality than the rest of the world.
What it means to be water rich
Next Diwali, you will have the option of buying a bottle of water for Rs 65 lakh. Here are some other ways you can spend that money.
Chicu Lokgariwar
Posted on 17 Oct, 2017 06:16 AM

I grew up in the Konkan, drinking water from a well that was filled by rainwater, filtered through the area's laterite aquifers and “fortified” by the leaves shed by the jackfruit tree above it. And then I moved to Pune, where I came across a cloudy, salty, heavy liquid that passed for water.
One bottle of water or 65 open wells? That's the Rs 65 lakh question!
Romancing the Ganga
The Ganga has now been transformed into a water machine with millions of tube wells and canals sucking its waters at frightening rates. What are its implications?
Aarti Kelkar Khambete
Posted on 10 Oct, 2017 09:59 AM

The Ganges, the most revered river in India, faces an unusual predicament. Pollution and excessive usage have turned it into a toxic sludge as it snakes its way through cities, industrial hubs and millions of devotees.
The Ganga (Image source: Anthony Acciavatti)
When women came together for water
The video tells the story of the women of Podapathar village in Himgir panchayat in Odisha who, through their collective efforts, managed to improve the drinking water situation in their village.
Makarand Purohit
Posted on 04 Oct, 2017 01:29 PM

Women of Podapathar village in Sundargarh district in Odisha have become an inspiration for millions of women in the country now, thanks to their determination to improve the drinking water situation in their village. 
Women of Podapathar (Source: India Water Problem)
Delhi's groundwater overexploited: NGT
Policy matters this week
Swati Bansal
Posted on 27 Sep, 2017 11:56 AM

NGT concerned about overexploited status of Delhi's groundwater
A shallow groundwater site. (Source: IWP Flickr Photos)
Saving kunds of Vrindavan
An NGO comes forward to restore the forgotten kunds of Vrindavan which are not just historical marvels but are also freshwater sources.
Amita Bhaduri
Posted on 23 Sep, 2017 12:16 PM

Vrindavan, the small dusty twin town of Mathura in Uttar Pradesh, has a special place in the Hindu mythology. This is where Lord Krishna is believed to have spent most of his childhood and adolescence. The river Yamuna straddles through the town, a hot destination for thousands of devotees lining up for a dip in it every day.
Ancient man-made small water bodies known as kunds are being revived through an NGO's efforts. (Image source: Braj Foundation)
Sardar Sarovar dam to submerge 40,000 families
Policy matters this week
Swati Bansal
Posted on 19 Sep, 2017 08:44 PM

PM Modi inaugurates the controversial Sardar Sarovar Project
Sardar Sarovar dam (Source: Shahakshay, Wikipedia)
Citizens participate in mapping Bengaluru’s groundwater
A partnership between Biome, ACWADAM and WIPRO brought stakeholders together to map Sarjapur's aquifer.
Priya Desai
Posted on 14 Sep, 2017 11:34 AM

The problem of Bengaluru’s water is well known.
Talapariges, the small traditional water bodies of Karnataka. (Source: IWP Flickr photo by Mallikarjuna Hosapalya)
Wetlands wait to be saved
No wetlands have been notified in Delhi-NCR since the wetlands rules were brought out in 2010. Meanwhile, draft wetlands rules are set to decentralise its management to states.
Amita Bhaduri
Posted on 14 Sep, 2017 10:52 AM

In the afternoons these days, Basai wears a deserted look. Known as a bird’s delight and privileged by the protected status of a national park, the wetland is located just eight kilometres from Sultanpur bird sanctuary in Gurugram in Haryana. No birds can be spotted foraging the soil of the Basai wetland or its waters.
Sun sets on a water body inside Keoladeo National Park. (Image: Swati Sidhu, Wikimedia Commons CC-BY-SA-4.0)
Does farm loan waiver save farmers from loan sharks?
It's the rich farmer who benefits from the government's loan waiver. As long as moneylenders lend money to the poor farmer, he would continue to be mired in debt.
Moin Qazi
Posted on 12 Sep, 2017 10:43 AM

The Devendra Fadnavis government in Maharashtra has decided to expand the coverage of Rs 34,022-crore farm loan waiver scheme to extend the benefit to farmers indebted since 2009. The government had earlier said 89 lakh farmers would benefit from the scheme. The expansion of the scheme's ambit means the number of farmers, as well as the amount, will rise.
A poor farmer is always at the mercy of loan sharks. (Source: IWP Flickr photos)
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