Where are the panchayats?
Of the three farm water conservation programmes currently under way in Karnataka, the Jal Samvardhene Yojana (jsy) has completed a year of …
The negotiators
Of India's 18 major rivers, 17 are inter-state. In all cases, the water is intensely fought over. In all cases, there seems no resolution. In …
Tanking up on history
AAJ BHI KHARE HAIN TALAB Anupam Mishra Publisher: Gandhi Peace Foundation Price: Rs. 120
Resurrecting a tradition
The tank system in India needs to be revived to maintain water reserves. This can be achieved through a central body such as the National Tank …
A water harvest
Catch rain where it falls. No one knew it better than the people living in Mandu, a hill-fort town in Madhya Pradesh, 1,400 years ago
Temples of irrigation and land management
From the 9th century to the 16th century, south Indian kingdoms did not have irrigation or public works departments. Temples were given the job …
Fast-forward to the past
Only a few villages stand testimony to the success of traditional water harvesting methods in tribal areas of Singhbhum. A report by Binayak Das
Traditional irrigation fails themoney test
USER-FRIENDLY IRRIGATION DESIGNS Nirmal Sengupta Publisher: Sage Publications, New Delhi Price: Rs 185
A success story
The 2003 monsoon could herald a great change in the socio-economic landscape of village Birora Kheth in the Tikamgarh district of Madhya Pradesh. …
Restoring the past
A civil engineer revives an age-old system of farmers managing irrigation tanks in Tamil Nadu
Back to basics
Integrating indigenous knowledge in joint forest management projects is an essential prerequisite for the success of such programmes, but years …
Ground reality
As the water crisis surfaces yet again, illegal borewells spring up in and around Delhi. Binayak Das and Suresh Babu on a plummeting water table …
Rise and fall of water managers
Book>> Waternama, A Collection of Traditional Practices for Water Conservation and Management in Karnataka Sandhya Iyengar publisher …
The relation between tanks and trees
For survival of the traditional water management structures, one must understand the linkages between the tanks and trees
Pitching in for a pond
The government and people of Madhya Pradesh have joined hands in their fight against drought through various jan sahyog programmes
Climate change is a threat to Africa’s transport systems: What must be done
Worst-case disruptions to Tanzania’s multi-modal transport networks could cause losses of up to $1.4 million per day
Dengue - reality bites
The millions affected have many to curse -- the mosquitoes, officials and the scientific communityby Ritu Gupta
How to sustain municipal sanitation: Delhi’s Aya Nagar offers some lessons
The pilot project is a prototypical model for evolving a sanitation management programme in a high density settlement
The chase and the change: Let’s look back at 15 years of MGNREGA this World Water Day
The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act has shown what it can achieve by putting water conservation at its core
Why better sewage management in Chennai will help fight floods
Down To Earth Editor Sunita Narain explains how the city's three rivers and 320 tanks and lakes that worked as flood barriers are used mostly for …
Will BJP’s projected win help Vidarbha’s cause?
Vidarbhavadis hope BJP, which during its earlier stint at the Centre carved out three new states, will be more sympathetic to their demands
Manual scavengers: Existing in the shade
Several government departments continue to maintain silence on plight of manual scavengers, despite an array of schemes for them
Heating pools
No water where the oceans meet
The revival of an ancient waterway could solve the water scarcity of this pilgrim town
Forewarning
Will another social activist in Bihar meet a gory end?