Voluntary Citizen or Civil Society Sector

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August 11, 2024 Even in the face of daunting challenges like climate change, collective action and community engagement can lead to meaningful change
SeasonWatch tree walk at Rupa Rahul Bajaj Centre for Environment and Art (Image: SeasonWatch)
October 8, 2023 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)
October 6, 2022 In an effort to inform the general public, especially citizen activists, policymakers, researchers, and students, about the current status of the Vrishabhavathi river, Paani.Earth has created the necessary maps, data, analysis, and information to drive conservation awareness and action around the river.
Vrishabhavathi river (Image Source: Paani.Earth)
October 1, 2021 Community videos as a tool to influence behaviour change and adoption in rural communities
Community videos are produced by farmers themselves and feature local participants and agents from the rural communities themselves (Image: Digital Green)
September 17, 2021 Benefits of well-managed commons on livelihoods
Collective efforts revived the canal structure of Bichhiya dam bringing water to the village (Image: Foundation for Ecological Security)
September 4, 2021 Committed to use the power of all forms of communication to bring about behavioral change and transformation at scale
Villagers participating in shramdaan for making watershed structures (Image: Paani Foundation)
Pink city turns heat island
A new phenomenon, urban heat islands in Jaipur indicates that the city has begun to witness the worst of climate change. Posted on 18 Jun, 2018 09:37 AM

This summer, Jaipur’s temperatures are soaring upwards of 40 degree Celsius. Jaipur witnessed its hottest day on April 26 when a temperature of 43.2 degree Celsius was recorded.

A man sits under the scorching heat of the sun in front of Amer fort in Jaipur. The city landscape is now dominated by heat trapping materials that prevent its cooling through evapotranspiration. (Picture courtesy: Prabhu B Doss, Flickr Commons: CC-By-NC-ND-2.0)
Indore retains its cleanest city tag
Indore became the cleanest city in India for the second time in a row, thanks to the untiring efforts of its municipal corporation and residents. A video tells the success story. Posted on 17 Jun, 2018 06:26 PM

Indore has retained its cleanest city tag in the clean India survey 2018. Before it was praised for its cleanliness drive in 2017, the city was just like any other urban city in India dealing with its mounting garbage problem.

Clean road near Pardesipura, Indore. (Source: India Water Portal)
Toilets need water, women suffer under ODF drive
Toilets in households have only increased the drudgery of village women as they have to fetch water from faraway sources for toilet use. Posted on 12 Jun, 2018 01:28 PM

Rajasthan is all geared up for the open defecation free (ODF) status well before the national deadline of October 2, 2019. According to the assistant engineer of the nagar parishad, Resha Singh, 4.75 lakh toilets have been constructed since October 2, 2014 in Alwar district which is about to be declared ODF.

Village women collect water for toilet use. (Photo by India Water Portal)
Wetland turns treasure trove of herbs
Medicinal herbs, edible greens and fruits thrive in and around Chennai’s Sembakkam lake, reveals a study. Posted on 11 Jun, 2018 11:31 AM

The districts of Tiruvallur, Chennai and Kanchipuram once boasted of a landscape densely dotted with wetlands and a lifestyle that was closely linked to the survival of these water bodies.

Sembakkam lake currently spans across a 100 acres in South Chennai. (Picture courtesy: Care Earth Trust)
Alwar homes, farms and factories fight for water
Water conflict in Rajasthan’s Alwar district is not just between upstream and downstream users; it is also between users with domestic, agricultural and industrial needs. Posted on 07 Jun, 2018 11:46 AM

Lewari, a village located around 17 km from Alwar in Rajasthan, is the site of a water conflict these days. “The production of Jayanti jaljeera, haazme ka lalantop drink (a digestive drink) has left our village parched,” says Nanak Singh, a resident.

Operation of sluice outlet of Siliserh lake is marked by chaos and conflict among various interest groups.
Not enough water, villagers look for solution
Chhattisgarh’s Bemetara district has been facing severe water shortage for a while now. Rainwater harvesting could be a solution to this. Posted on 25 May, 2018 06:03 PM

There seems to be no end to the drinking water crisis in the Bemetara district in Chhattisgarh. It is only becoming worse with every passing day. More than 40 percent of all the hand pumps installed in the district have run dry due to the depletion of groundwater level.  

Women of Bagledi struggle to get a pot of drinking water from one of the four stand posts.(Pics: India Water Portal)
Palwal puts Game Theory to practice
How 'super village challenge' in Palwal district set the benchmark for the speedy development of villages. Posted on 21 May, 2018 09:27 PM

At just 24 years of age, Abhinav Vats has learnt a lot as the chief minister’s Good Governance Associate (CMGGA) posted in Palwal district of Haryana. An economics graduate from Delhi University, he worked as a research analyst with McKinsey and Company at Gurgaon for two-and-a-half years before deciding to be a CMGGA.

Women participate enthusiastically in the ‘Palwal super village challenge’ for last mile delivery of rural development schemes. (Pic courtesy: Abhinav Vats)
Village swims in desperation
Livelihood and education affected, villagers of a marooned land look for solutions. Posted on 18 May, 2018 10:45 AM

“Our village is also called the swimmers’ village because almost all of us including small children know how to swim. To learn swimming is not a luxury but a necessity for us.

A girl oars a boat to go to college. (Pic courtesy: Gurvinder Singh)
Sewage to blame, Dal turns dull
Years of indiscriminate dumping of sewage turns Kashmir’s beautiful Dal Lake into an eyesore. Posted on 17 May, 2018 01:09 PM

Srinagar's prime tourist attraction, Dal Lake, is no more the scenic beauty it used to be. It's turning into an eyesore, thanks to sewage discharge and weed growth.

A Kashmiri boy on a boat among lotus leaves on Dal Lake. (Pic courtesy: Safeena Wani/101Reporters)
Where the mind is without fear
Phoolbasan Yadav’s journey towards empowering women in Chhattisgarh is an inspiring one. Posted on 09 May, 2018 08:49 PM

Phoolbasan Yadav from the remote Sukaldaihan village in the Rajnandgaon district in Chhattisgarh shot to fame for her untiring effort in empowering the women of her village. "Since my childhood, I had experienced extreme poverty and hunger, and I feel that similar is the plight of lakhs of women in the country.

Phoolbasan Yadav (right) receives Padmshree from President Pratibha Patil in 2012.
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