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
A Data Journey in Odisha
How Balasore became recognised as a fluorosis-affected district in Odisha
Fluoride Knowledge and Action Network
Posted on 06 Sep, 2017 02:22 PM

Back in 2015, the Member of Parliament (MP) from Balasore, Odisha got to know about a strange problem in his constituency. There were reports of a number of bone deformities and crippled people in areas surrounding Patripal village of Remuna block. They seemed to be related to fluoride in water, causing a disease called Skeletal Fluorosis.
2015–16 Fluoride data of Remuna, Balasore, Odisha
Tackling encephalitis: The sanitation connect
Recent encephalitis deaths in Gorakhpur put the spotlight back on the disease and the importance of better sanitation as a preventive measure.
Aarti Kelkar Khambete
Posted on 04 Sep, 2017 04:58 AM

Gorakhpur is back in the news with 42 more children dying in 48 hours at one of the biggest hospitals here--Baba Raghav Das Medical College Hospital or BRD hospital.
Sanitation plays an important part in preventing encephalitis. (Image Source: Wikimedia Commons)
Ganapati idol immersion continues despite ban
News this week
Swati Bansal
Posted on 30 Aug, 2017 05:28 AM

Despite ban, immersion of Ganpati idols made of PoP continue in Bengaluru lakes
Ganesh Visarjan (Source: Wikimedia commons via Chetan Gole)
Mangroves: The green coast guard
Mangroves in the country are under threat from rapid development. A video tells us how investing in nature can reverse this ecological crisis.
Shubhangi Singh
Posted on 23 Aug, 2017 07:09 PM

In our effort to make space for infrastructural developments, India's green cover is declining at an alarming rate. The overall mangrove cover in the country stands at 4,740 sq. km., which is 0.14 sq. km of India’s overall geographical area. 
Mangrove nursery (Source: India Water Portal)
What do rural women say about sanitation?
Women, who need safe sanitation the most, are often left out of crucial sanitation-related decisions at households, a study says.
Parimita Routrey
Belen Torondel
Thomas Clasen
Wolf-Peter Schmidt
Posted on 15 Aug, 2017 10:09 AM

Does gender matter when it comes to sanitation? Apparently, it does.
Women and their unvoiced sanitation needs. (Women in Deogarh morning, Orissa, India. Source: Simon Williams / Ekta Parishad)
Bad times at Baddi
Unless industries clean up their act and authorities take it up seriously, Baddi’s water will continue to be polluted causing hardship to its residents.
Anil Gautam
Puja Raghubanshi
Vivian Konijnenberg
Sumit Sharma
Chicu Lokgariwar
Posted on 09 Aug, 2017 05:59 AM

When Satya Devi was a child, the open well near her house in the village of Malku Majra was the water source for the household. She reminisces, “The water was clean and soft. The well would never go dry.
The state pollution control board insists that none of the factories in the area allow any pollutants to be discharged into the environment. The state of the surface water bodies, however, belies this statement.
Draft of groundwater rules signal relaxation
News this week
Swati Bansal
Posted on 08 Aug, 2017 12:23 PM

Groundwater rules might get relaxed
A well in Rajasthan (Source: IWP Flickr photos)
To some, floods can be good news
A large part of the Kanwar Lake has been converted to permanent agriculture compromising its ecological diversity. A video tells us why it is important to restore it.
Shubhangi Singh
Posted on 02 Aug, 2017 05:52 AM

Floods are generally considered destructive but in some cases, overflowing rivers have the potential to create wetlands. These wetlands can serve as agreeable landscapes that turn resourceful due to the multiple functions it can host. The Kanwar Lake in Bihar is a striking example of this shared, altering landscapes. 
Red-naped Ibis at the Kanwar Lake (Source: Wikipedia)
How a poor labourer became a rich farmer
A video tells the story of a poor farmer who, through effective water conservation methods, became rich and a role model to other villagers.
Makarand Purohit
Posted on 27 Jul, 2017 07:59 PM

Vasant Baburao Parkale, a 52-year-old farmer, has become a role model for many farmers in the drought-prone Marathwada region. His determination and the will to excel in life have helped him to transform his dreams into reality.
Vasantrao Parkale (Source: India Water Portal)
Maharashtra mandates drip irrigation for sugarcane
Policy matters this week
Swati Bansal
Posted on 25 Jul, 2017 04:32 PM

Maharashtra cabinet decides on drip irrigation for sugarcane cultivation 
A sugarcane farm (Source: IWP Flickr photos)
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