Think India Foundation

Huda fines 50 for misusing water, collects Rs 10,000 fine

Gurgaon : Continuing with its practice to stop wastage of water, the Haryana Urban Development Authority (Huda) challaned offenders in various sectors on Thursday. People were also fined for causing damage to roads. The team of Huda officials issued challans to over 50 people in Sectors 4,7, 15, 40, 9, 10 and other places.  The department collected  Rs 10,000 as fine amount on Thursday. 

While the minimum amount charged from offenders is Rs 200, the fine can increase depending upon the amount of water misused by people and subsequent damage to roads etc. Read more

Source : hindustantimes.com

New vented dam in Mangalore may be ready by 2013

MANGALORE: The augmented water supply for the city, which the new vented dam at Thumbay is expected to bring about, is likely to be in place by December 2013. While the existing vented dam has a storage capacity of 4.89 million cubic metres (mcm), the new vented dam, that is being constructed 50 metres downstream from the existing dam, will take the storage up to 14.74 mcm. This would meet the city's water requirements for five months with zero inflow.

The existing storage capacity of 4.89 mcm helps Mangalore City Corporation (MCC), which uses this water storage reservoir as its primary source of drinking water, for three months. The new dam will give the civic body a cushion of two months in meeting its water supply requirements to domestic and commercial users in the worst-case scenario of prolonged summer which can be accentuated by a delay in the onset of monsoon. Read more

Source : articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Water woes loom large over Bangalore

MYSORE: With early onset of summer all but a foregone conclusion, all eyes are on the rain gods, for if the Cauvery catchment areas do not receive sufficient pre-monsoon showers, hassle-free water supply to Bangalore and other towns may remain a mirage.

Officials of the irrigation department are a worried lot indeed: with receding water levels in three primary reservoirs - Krishnaraja Sagar, Kabini and Hemavathi (see table) - they may need to perform a balancing act in meeting the needs of the urban population and farmers simultaneously. Read more

Source : ibnlive.in.com

Firozabad seeking better infrastructure, education to stem migration

Firozabad (ANI): With four of seven phases of polling over in Uttar Pradesh, residents of Uttar Pradesh's Firozabad city, the state's famed glassmaking hub, have to contend with a lack of water, power supply and education, which is fuelling the migration of its residents to other cities, as well as abroad. 

Speaking about the acute water problem, social activist Waqaruddin Ahmed said apart from the receding water table, the paucity of power often forced people to walk long distances to fetch water. Read more

Source : newstrackindia.com

SCMS Group setting up centre on water technology in Kochi

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM : The SCMS Group of Kochi is setting up an Indo-German Centre for Water Technology and Management. It will shortly become operational at the SCMS School of Engineering and Technology (SSET).

Germany is way ahead in the field of water technology, conservation and management. This will be the first international research project undertaken by the SSET Centre for Research Consultancy and Innovation in Engineering and Technology, the research division of SCMS Engineering College. Read more

Source : thehindubusinessline.com

Now, an ''App'' to locate where to Pee!

New Delhi : Six teams of IT experts and professors supported by the Water and Sanitation Program presented mobile applications or ‘Apps’ that can help support consumers and governments surmounting the water and sanitation problems in India. The event took place at Vigyan Bhawan on Tuesday.

The prototypes were presented to private firms such as Nokia, Vodafone and Accenture. Read more

Source : expressindia.com

Investment in drinking water, sanitation as important as investment in defence: Jairam Ramesh

New Delhi: In the upcoming budget to be presented on the March 16, Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation may see a hike in allocation that could be anything between 40 to 60 per cent, which means that the allocation could go up from approximately Rs 9500 crore to at least Rs 14,000 crore.

Speaking at the 2nd meeting of National Drinking Water and Sanitation Council, the minister for Drinking Water and Sanitation Jairam Ramesh said, "We must feel that investment in water supply and sanitation is a matter of urgent priority. It is as important as investing in defence. We can invest in missiles, aircrafts and tanks but if we don't have clean drinking water and sanitation, the population is not going to be healthy... We are becoming a wealthy population but not a healthy one." Read more

Source : ibnlive.in.com

JUSCO Mysore project continues to draw flak

Chennai/ Mysore : Over half the contractual period of six years lapsed, the project to remodel, manage and maintain Mysore’s water supply system by JUSCO continues in run in troubled waters.

The Jameshdpur Utilities & Services Company Ltd, continues to draw flak from all sections including the Mysore City Corporation (MCC) and its beneficiary residents in 64 wards in Mysore, the erstwhile royal headquarters over its 161 crore project. A tripartite agreement between MCC, Karnataka Urban Water Supply & Drainage Board (KUWS&DB) and JUSCO was signed in November 2008 when the Tata enterprise bagged India’s largest water supply and operation management (O&M) project in Mysore. It was the first such project for an entire city to provide 24x7 water supply to its population. Read more

Source : business-standard.com

Protest against irregular water supply in Mysore

MYSORE: Irregular water supply issue and JUSCO's poor handling of the water crisis, which has irked corporators and MCC officials, has created trouble at its Mysore site office on Monday with protestors staging a snap protest.

Enraged that water was not supplied even on Shivarathri to parts of Vidyaranyapuram and surrounding areas including Kanakagiri, the agitators, mainly women with empty pots, accused district minister S A Ramdas of failing to attend to their needs. What angered them further was that the supply was cut off affecting their preparations for the festival. Many areas in Krishnaraja constituency, represented by Ramdas, are not getting water supply daily, they said. Read more

Source : articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Delhi Jal Board wants cheaper power

NEW DELHI : Approaches Appellate Tribunal for Electricity for recourse

The city's water supplier, the Delhi Jal Board, wants its electricity charges rationalised. After complaining that it is being asked to pay a “high and unreasonable” tariff, the DJB has gone to the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity for recourse and is also seeking a go-ahead from the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission for opting for open access to purchase cheaper power for its installations.

In the financial year 2011-12, the DJB paid Rs. 320 crore as electricity charges. The water utility claims this amount could have been much lower had the DERC not fixed its electricity charges much higher than even the industry, which is charged the highest per unit rate. Read more

Source : thehindu.com

Research: agriculture accounts for 92% of average global water use

Researchers at the University of Twente, in Enschede the Netherlands, report mankind's water footprint in the US Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The study quantified and mapped the water footprint (WF) of humanity at a high spatial resolution. Read more

Source : allaboutfeed.net

Water crisis looms over India

Major metros like Delhi and Mumbai face huge water and environmental crises as infrastructure tries to keep pace with the increasing population, says a new study of 71 Indian cities.

The report, Excreta Matter, prepared by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), comes at a time when India is urbanising at the highest rate in the world and half of all Indians are expected to be living in cities by 2050. Read more

Source : hindustantimes.com

Let children enjoy learning, says Abdul Kalam

COIMBATORE : "Inspired by ‘India Vision 2020’, the youth are now thinking in terms of what they can do for the nation. I have met 12 million youth in a decade and I can say there is a marked change in their thinking process", former President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam said here on Monday.

Students greeting former President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam as he arrives for an interface with them at PSG College of Arts and Science in the city on Monday. Photo: M. Periasamy

At an interface with students of PSG Institutions at PSG College of Arts and Science, he said youth were now ready to contribute to the development of the country. This confidence of the 600 million youth of India was the greatest asset that no other country had. Read more

Source : thehindu.com

Indian minister 'shocked' CO2 emissions cuts seen as U.N. goal

NEW DELHI (AlertNet Climate) - India's rural development minister has slammed a United Nations report which includes reducing C02 emissions as a development target agreed by poor countries, saying it was a "mistake" and that the international body was "sending the wrong signal".

In this 2010 file photo, India's former Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh gestures during a news conference at the U.N. headquarters in New York. REUTERS/Jessica Rinaldi

Jairam Ramesh, a former environment minister, was India's voice - echoing that of many developing nations - in refusing to commit to legally binding targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions in international climate change negotiations. Read more

Source : trust.org

In Asia-Pacific, health poses challenge to 2015 goals

DELHI — Sixty percent of the world’s population lives in the Asia-Pacific, which makes its performance critical to achieving the global Millennium Development Goals by 2015.  It stretches from Turkey in the west to the Pacific island nation of Kirabati in the east, and from the Russian Federation in the north to New Zealand in the south. 

The latest assessment, however, indicates that the region is performing poorly on reducing child mortality and improving maternal health. In 2010, over 3 million children died before their fifth birthday. Read more

Source : smartplanet.com

Swedish tech for arsenic-free water in Bengal

KOLKATA: The state government has woken up to the problem of arsenic contamination of ground water that has been gnawing people of Bengal for about two decades. A team from Sweden recently visited the city and demonstrated how arsenic-free water can be produced using the new technology. Arsenic levels were traced to be high in ground-level water. Places like Behala, Jadavpur, Santoshpur, areas in and Garia and Tollygunj, where people draw their drinking water from tube wells, were said to suffer the highest risk of arsenic poisoning.

Speaking on the sidelines of the two-day international conference on water quality with special reference on arsenic, state urban development and municipal affairs minister Firhad Hakim said on Tuesday, "There has been an overall lack of planning so far to tackle the arsenic problem. We are looking into the new technology. Read more

Source : articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

‘85% wells contaminated in Kochi’

Kochi : Despite the high quality of life indices, acclaimed sanitation facilities and public health consciousness, nearly 85 per cent of wells in the state is contaminated by E.coli bacteria.

The Pampa is the most polluted river in the state, according to studies by Centre for Water Resources Development and Management. Read more

Source : deccanchronicle.com

Corporators blame officials for water supply woes in Mangalore

MANGALORE: Corporators, cutting across political lines, blamed officials for not ensuring proper supply of drinking water at a special meeting of Mangalore City Corporation (MCC) held here on Friday. 

Members from BJP, the ruling party, Congress, JD(S) and CPI(M) alleged that water supply was being disrupted frequently in their respective wards. Earlier, member from Congress Lancelot Pinto had raised objection to MCC's decision to disconnect public taps in the city. "Many poor families, who live in rented houses in the city, use public taps for their daily water requirement. The city corporation officials should make alternative arrangements for those families, who use public taps, before disconnecting it," he demanded. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

SMC to begin water supply to 8 Dumas villages

SURAT: Nearly 25,000 households of eight villages in Dumas areas will get potable water from Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) from Thursday. They were included within the city limits during the last expansion of 2007, following which water supply and distribution network of SMC was getting ready. From now onwards, nearly 13 MLD of water will be supplied to 13 villages.

Five villages of Rundh, Magdalla, Bharthana, Bhimrad and Sarsana are already getting water supply of nearly 2 MLD from Vesu 1 network since last year. In the second phase, eight villages of Dumas, Bhimpore, Sultanabad, Gaviyar, Vata, Abahva, Khajod and Vesu were taken up 18 months ago under Golden Jubilee urban development scheme of the state. Read more

Source : articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

KWA hits out at corporation for non-payment of water bill

KOCHI: The cat and mouse game between Kochi Corporation and Kerala Water Authority may result in your water taps running dry.

The corporation owes KWA more than Rs 4.5 crore in arrears. Read more

Source : articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Water supply to be regulated in Visakhapatnam

VISAKHAPATNAM : The city will be divided into three categories

Water supply will be regulated to meet the demand during the summer, Municipal Commissioner B. Ramanjaneyulu has said.

The city will be divided into three categories in the Summer Action Plan. Those falling in ‘C' category will be supplied water by tankers; in ‘B' category part of the need will be met through supply and in ‘A' category piped water supply will be regulated. Read more

Source : thehindu.com

 

Maharashtra regulator suggests water trading

The proposal allows farmers to sell 50% of quota to other farmers if they feel they can’t use it fully

The Maharashtra Water Resources Regulatory Authority (MWRRA), an autonomous body that decides issues related to tariffs and allocation of water, has published a draft paper and is inviting public comments on its controversial recommendation to allow trading of water within the agriculture sector.

The paper argues that the move will promote efficiencies in water usage. The paper states that farmers can be allowed to sell 50% of the allocated quota to other farmers if they feel they are not in a position to use the entire quota. For example, if farmer A has been allocated a quota of 10,000 litres of water per day from dam B, and he feels he can utilize only 7,000 litres of water per day, he may sell the rest of his quota to other farmers. But the sale of water should not exceed 50% of the quota, which implies that farmer A would not be able to sell more than 5,000 litres of water in this case. Read more

Source : livemint.com

RWAs may get more teeth to prevent water misuse in colonies

Gurgaon : To prevent the misuse of potable water in residential colonies, Haryana Urban Development Authority (Huda) is planning to give RWAs and maintenance agencies the power to penalise erring residents. "We can give this authority to some residents' welfare associations or maintenance agencies," said Huda administrator Praveen Kumar. 

"But that would be the power to issue 'evidence-based challan'. It means the RWAs or private agencies should have proper evidence before issuing challans against any resident," Kumar added. Read more

Source : hindustantimes.com

Drinking water project: pipe-works to begin

ALAPPUZHA : Finally, pipe-laying work for the much-awaited Alappuzha Drinking Water Project will begin in the municipal jurisdiction on Friday.

Pipes to be laid as part of the much-awaited Alappuzha Drinking Water Project near one of the spots in the municipal region where work will begin on Friday. Photo: Dennis Marcus Mathew.

The project, which saw the High Court on Wednesday summoning the top-brass of the Kerala Water Authority to the court to enquire upon the delay in completion, at last got the nod from the municipality to go ahead with digging up of roads for laying the pipelines. Read more

Source : thehindu.com

Priorities for BMC poll winners: Slums, roads, water

In a day, we will know which party or alliance will control the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the body responsible for the running of the city of Mumbai. Rs 21,096.56 crore is what the BMC budgeted to spend in 2011-2012, and, considering the problems citizens of the metro face in the context of the responsibilities of the BMC, one wonders where the money has gone.

The mushrooming of illegal encroachments across the city needs to be a high focus for the winners of the high-stakes battle. Reuters

Here’s a look at the top concerns of Mumbaikars that the BMC needs to alleviate: Read more

Source : firstpost.com

'Curb wastage, pollution to tackle water disputes'

New Delhi: Curbing wastage, reducing pollution and forming joint platforms to assess geological changes were among the urgent steps needed to tackle the growing conflicts on water between countries and within their own boundaries, say experts. 

The issue was debated at length by various experts, including filmmakers, columnists, academics and activists, at a roundtable on Water at War at the Alliance Francaise here Wednesday. Water had led to tensions between countries and caused fights within cities, the participants noted. Read more

Source : zeenews.india.com

Artificial Glaciers Water Crops in Indian Highlands

Villagers discover that it is easier to store water in ice than in a reservoir, and less is lost to evaporation.

Ran Bhadur (right) and Mohan Bhadur (left) shovel sand and rock to dam a stone embankment holding water that will eventually freeze and serve as an artificial glacier in the village of Stakmo in India's northern Ladakh region. Photograph by Mary Knox Merrill, Christian Science Monitor/Getty Images

This story is part of a National Geographic News series on global water issues.

A remote Indian village is responding to global warming-induced water shortages by creating large masses of ice, or "artificial glaciers," to get through the dry spring months. (See a map of the region.)

Located on the western edge of the Tibetan plateau, the village of Skara in the Ladakh region of India is not a common tourist destination. Read more

Source : news.nationalgeographic.com

Kolkata to host international conference on water quality

Kolkata (PTI) : A three-day international conference on water quality with special reference to arsenic, a major concern for many states including West Bengal, would begin here from February 18. "Arsenic from ground water has become a major concern for many states of India and several countries of the world. The objective of the meeting is to share experience with other countries and find its remedy," West Bengal Public Health Engineering Minister Subrata Mukherjee said.

Latest research, techniques and development in related fields internationally and its application to check arsenic contamination, besides a strategy to mitigate it and reduce the health hazards in a systematic and scientific manner would be discussed by participants from over 14 countries. Read more

Source : ibnlive.in.com

Yamuna veggies toxic: Study

New Delhi: The next time you stop along the Yamuna to buy those fresh leafy vegetables, think twice. A study carried out by The Energy Research Institute (TERI) has found that the continuous dumping of untreated industrial effluent and sewage into the river has contaminated the riverbed soil, and several vegetables, specifically the green leafy ones, contain high levels of toxic metals. 

The report, titled 'Living in a cleaner environment in India: A strategic analysis and assessment', says that levels of nickel, manganese and lead in Yamuna's water were found to be higher than the international aquatic water quality criteria for fresh water. Meena Sehgal, a consultant with TERI who worked extensively on the report, says that their focus was on heavy metals found in the environment and through what means they enter the human body. "Our findings made it clear that it is essentially green leafy vegetables that contain the highest amount of metals. This is because such vegetables have a high tendency to accumulate metals. Levels were significantly lower in other vegetables and practically negligible in drinking water samples," she said. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

UN: Soil erosion increasing global warming threat

Global warming will get worse as agricultural methods accelerate the rate of soil erosion, which depletes the amount of carbon the soil is able to store, a United Nations' Environment Programme report said today.

Soil contains huge quantities of carbon in the form of organic matter which provides nutrients for plant growth and improves soil fertility and water movement.

The top metre of soil alone stores around 2,200 billion tonnes of carbon, which is three times the level currently held in the atmosphere, said the UNEP Year Book 2012. Read more

Source : buenosairesherald.com

Villagers demand access to portable drinking water in Maoist-affected Purulia

Purulia (ANI) : Villagers in the Maoist-hot bed of West Bengal's Purulia District have complained against the lack of portable drinking water, as hazardous wastes from a variety of sources have contaminated the ground water resources. 

Residents complained that they often suffer from infections and diseases by consuming unhygienic water available in the region and demanded access to clean drinking water. Read more

Source : newstrackindia.com

Rescuing cities from chaos

When it comes to basic areas of citizen requirement, only a small number of cities and towns have so far been able to take stock of where they stand, not to speak of steadily improving the benchmark levels. 

Master plans are one way to ensure orderly development of cities.

Urban governance is assuming new, enterprising forms. During my recent visit to some South Indian cities, it was reported that Chennai's water supply would be augmented with the government's plans for a Rs 330-crore new reservoir. This is good news, as the demand for drinking water has increased to 1,190 million litres a day, whereas Metrowater is able to supply about 800 mld. But it is clear that the city on its own cannot do this and hence the dependence on the State.

Surat is set to generate 24 MW of electricity from 600 tonnes of solid waste generated everyday. Read more

Source : thehindubusinessline.com

‘Poor planning may leave Gujarat high and dry by 2015’

Gandhinagar : Gujarat, which traditionally has less per capita water availability than the national average, may face chronic water shortage in the coming years as per the state government’s own projection. And this may badly affect the state’s overall social and economic development.

A key research paper — Water Resources in Gujarat - Past, Present & Future, prepared by B N Navalawala, Adviser to Chief Minister Narendra Modi on water resources and former Central water resources development secretary — indicates that the per capita water availability in the state is considerably low and is likely to go down further by 2015. Therefore, it says, the state needs to focus on the effective planning and management of its water resources. Read more

Source : expressindia.com

With 42 green buildings, Chennai leads the pack

CHENNAI: The state may be hobbled by a severe power shortage, but its capital is home to more green buildings than any other city in the country. Chennai is home to 42 of the 212 structures in India that are certified as eco-friendly by the Indian Green Building Council(IGBC). 

Chennai is followed by Mumbai, with 29 green buildings, and the National Capital Region (28), among cities awarded Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification by IGBC. Hyderabad and Bangalore are tied in fourth place with 24 each and Kolkata is sixth with eight. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Housing conundrum: FICCI report on urban infrastructure reveals uncomfortable truths

In 2001, about 286 million persons were living in urban areas of India and it was the second largest urban population in the world. According to the Registrar General & Census Commissioner of India, the urban population in India over the next 25 years is expected to grow 38 per cent and become 534 million in 2026. Furthermore, as per the Census of India, 2001, 640 cities/towns in 26 States/Union territories have reported slum populations. 

Andhra Pradesh has the largest number of towns (77) reporting slums followed by Uttar Pradesh (69), Tamil Nadu (63) and Maharashtra (61). As many as 42.6 million people lived in slums in 2001. This constitutes 15 percent of the total urban population of the country and 22.6 percent of the urban population of the states/union territories reporting slums. Read more

Source : economictimes.indiatimes.com

Right to drinking water covered by Constitution: Activists in HC

Mumbai : Contending that the right to drinking water is covered by the constitutional right to life, Pani Haq Samiti, on behalf of slum-dwellers from various parts of the city, has moved the Bombay High Court challenging the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) move to stop their water supply.

According to the petition, a circular was issued by the Department of Urban Development stopping supply of drinking water to people residing in slum areas that came into existence after 1995. In August 2002, the BMC’s water charge rules came into force denying water to these slums, they contended. Read more

Source : indianexpress.com

Govt to provide all facilities to Kashmiri migrants at Jagti

Jammu (Scoop News) – Minister for Revenue, Relief and Rehabilitation Raman Bhalla has said that the Government would provided all facilities to Kashmiri migrants at Jagti like road connectivity, regular power supply, safe drinking water, healthcare, sanitation, education besides sports infrastructure.

This was stated by the Minister while interacting with Kashmiri migrants after assessing their development related problems during his tour to Jagti Migrant Township, here today. Read more

Source : groundreport.com

Mangalore City Corporation team returns from Gujarat tour

MANGALORE : The 46-member team studied amenities at three cities

A 46-member team of councillors and officials of Mangalore City Corporation returned from their seven-day study tour of Gujarat on Wednesday.

The team members included 27 councillors of the Bharatiya Janata Party, seven councillors of the Congress, a councillor of the Communist Party of India (Marxists) and an Independent. Read more

Source : thehindu.com

Call to segregate waste at home

Chennai : The Germans and most other families in the developed world have four bins to segregate garbage at home — one is for glass, the second for metal, the third for paper and the fourth for organic waste.

In contrast, we continue to dump all garbage together, ignoring the repeated pleas from the civic administration and environmentalists to segregate waste between biodegradable and non-degradable by keeping just two separate bins at home. Read more

Source : deccanchronicle.com

India, Israel to collaborate on urban renewal, water treatment

India and Israel are expected to sign an agreement on collaboration in the field of water treatment technologies in urban areas during the forthcoming visit of Minister of Urban Development Kamal Nath.

With India and Israel commemorating 20 years of establishment of diplomatic relations, the new year has seen a flurry of activities and further diversification in areas of cooperation to include many new fields. Read more

Source : waterworld.com

Improper urban planning in Northeast

Kohima : Airing concern over the improper urban planning in the north eastern states, the need to adopt a comprehensive strategy and road map for securing a holistic development and reformation of urban areas has been stressed here today at the regional workshop on “Urban Governance, Management and Municipal Finance” for the north eastern states.

Chief Secretary Lalthara told the workshop that the vulnerability of earthquake is very high in North East. Lalthara said most of towns/cities in North East are in congestion coupled with water, sanitation and drainage problem, adding that it is very difficult to rectify now as proper urban planning was not taken into account. Read more

Source : morungexpress.com

Water purification business attracts over Rs 500 crore in PE

The inability of the state to deliver on basic services has nurtured many a business: inverters and bottled water, to name just two.

A third one is beginning to flourish: water purification and waste-water treatment. As the state increasingly relinquishes these functions to the private sector, and even discusses the idea of privatising water supply, companies in this business are seeing a likely suitor: private equity (PE). Read more

Source : articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com

100 snakes found in a pit near potable water pipeline in Kurukshetra

KURUKSHETRA: Around 100 snakes were found in a pit near the broken main pipeline of potable water supply in Kurukshetra, creating panic among the residents on Saturday evening. All the snakes were allegedly killed by few members of the Banjara community before wildlife employees reached the spot to enquire the matter.

A high drama was witnessed when some persons from the Banjara community living in huts near Sector 8 here came to take water from a broken pipe. Sources said when they were pouring water in their pot, two snakes were seen in pit and they immediately killed them. But they were shocked when the series continued and around 100 snakes came out from the pit. Though, the snakes were killed before any human loss. Read more

Source : articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

'India should adopt sustainable ways of farming'

New Delhi: A top climate scientist today asked India to adopt sustainable ways of farming which is under pressure due to water crisis caused by global warming. 

UN Secretary General's Special Advisor Jeffrey D Sach also underlined the need for adopting green technology to deal with the issue of climate change in various sectors including agriculture. Read more

Source : zeenews.india.com

Clean up and save water, says expert

BANGALORE: Wastewater treatment expert Glen T Daigger is president of the International Water Association (IWA), a global network of 10,000 water professionals who research all facets of the water cycle. Headquartered in London, IWA supports a series of strategic programmes designed to engage members on subjects critical to the water sector's wider development. TOI spoke to him on areas of concern for India, mitigation measures and the global water crisis. Excerpts:

What are the prime areas of concern in countries like India? In developed countries like Europe, the average lifespan of people went up significantly once the problem of sanitation was addressed. In developing countries too, emphasis should be on efficient sanitation system to reap economic benefits in the long run. With the global climate rapidly changing, it is getting difficult for countries to tackle long periods of drought and intense rain spells. Proper infrastructure needs to be in place too, to deal with the global water crisis. Read more

Source : articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Let water, not profits, flow

As a finite, life-giving resource, access to water must remain a fundamental right. The state, as custodian under the public trust doctrine, should uphold the right of the citizen to clean, safe drinking water. It is such a strong, rights-based approach that should underpin official policy on water in India. Many areas in the country are water-stressed, and there are simmering inter-State disputes on sharing river waters. The National Water Policy 2012, now published in draft for public comments, should ultimately take a holistic view of the issue. The draft text makes some references to the importance of water for people and Nature, but is disproportionately focussed on treating water as an economic good. Such an approach predicated on realising the costs that go into the supply of water can only distort access and prices in the long run, affecting less affluent citizens. To suggest, for instance, that the state should exit the service-provider role and become a regulator is only a step away from abandoning the equity objective. Private sector water services have clearly failed in many countries, including those in the global North, and local governments have taken over again. In the current year, for-profit private water companies in England are raising tariffs, while the publicly-owned service in Scotland is not. Just over a decade ago, water wars in Bolivia reversed privatisation moves. Evidently, private partnership imposes the burden of extra costs. Read more

Source : thehindu.com

‘Cities are growing, but not facilities’

Bangalore : Cities are going to be the engines of growth for India, which is advancing faster than other countries, said DrIsher Ahluwalia, chairperson of High Powered Expert Committee on Urban Infrastructure.

“At present, 37.7 crore of the country's population lives in cities. By 2031, this number is expected to grow to 60 crore,” she said. Read more

Source : dnaindia.com

Policy should ensure water for cities and villages

"An integrated supply policy should ensure that both urban and rural areas get equitable water supply as per the need of domestic, agricultural and industrial sectors. The onus of providing quality and continuous water supply should be on the state governments.

Keeping in mind how urban areas grew by 54% in the past decade, the National Water Policy 2002 should be revised and water grids framed," said Sudhir Krishna, secretary of the Union urban development department. Read more

Source : articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

2 Pune schools part of national project

PUNE: Two schools from the city are part of a nationwide initiative, wherein students from std VIII and IX of 1,300 schools are being taught how to test the fluoride contamination level of groundwater in their schools and locality.

The programme, called the Schools Water Portal, is an open, web-based platform for sharing learning resources on water among educators, students, school managements and parents. Read more

Source : articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Water project: Rajasthan to get 440 cr from France

New Delhi: A French financial institution today signed an agreement with the Rajasthan government to provide a Rs 440 crore loan for a water supply project in Jodhpur city. 

"French institution French Development Agency (AFD) has given approval for loan worth Rs 440 crore for reorganisation of Jodhpur water supply project," the Rajasthan government said in a release. Read more

Source : zeenews.india.com