Order of the National Green Tribunal in the matter of In Re: News Item titled "Nayar river is vanishing - a yatra reveals conservation goes beyond science and policy" appearing in ‘The Down To Earth’ dated 03.06.2025. The original application was registered suo-motu based on the news item titled "Nayar …
The slump in rainfall, as experienced in most parts of South Africa, will result in a severe spell of prolonged drought, according to a warning issued by the Kenya Meteorological Department ( kmd ). They have predicted that the severity of this drought, which commenced last year, will be worse …
the crisis over the availability of water for humans has never assumed graver proportions than during present times. It is, therefore, natural for scientists to think of conservation and efficient utilisation. With respect to the flora, obtaining water for a handful of plants does not pose a problem. The dilemma …
Thanks to a Japanese company, Soft99, you can now "wash' your car without so much as using water. The company has developed a "wet wax' sheet, a multi-layer textile, which stores a thin bed of detergents and waxes under a layer of short fibres. As the sheet is wiped over …
for years, Dewas district in the Malwa region of Madhya Pradesh, has been facing the grim prospect of desertification following the unregulated use of groundwater in the region. But it seems a people's movement launched by M Mohan Rao, district magistrate, may yet manage to avert such a fate. Say …
The wisdom of harvesting rainwater to meet growing demands and augment depleting water resources has perhaps at long last caught the attention of the Delhi government. In his address to the Delhi Assembly on the first day of the Budget session, Lieutenant-Governor Vijai Kapoor said the government was planning to …
THE reds are being forced to turn green in the Nizamabad, Adilabad and Warangal districts of the Telangana region where the people have embraced the Andhra Pradesh government's joint forest management (JFM) programme in a big way. What is unusual is that forest officials move around freely in the remote …
Recently, a group of social activists visited the Telangana region to probe police atrocities against the Naxalites. What they were shown by the extremists as their concern for poor villagers was amazing: check dams, boulder-filled dams and water harvesting structures. That the Naxalites are getting involved in water conservation is …
THE world's earliest civilisations began on the banks of rivers. With time, this became an accepted phenomenon as water was essential to sustain human habitat. Unfortunately, water has been overused and abused across the world irrespective of the economic status of the region. Take, for instance, Europe. Around 60 per …
with the Yamuna dead, Delhi's aquifers almost empty and the watertable having fallen more than 7.5 metres in less than 20 years, the state government is considering three proposals for water harvesting in the capital. All of them deal with traditional water harvesting methods, reviving the Yamuna and its ancient …
everything is picture perfect in Mahur village, about 75 km from Pune in Maharashtra. Acres of marigold and lilies in full bloom, teak trees and a variety of crops conceal its unpleasant past. This huge tract in the Western Ghats was, till the mid-1970s, barren and untended. Even vast expanses …
Dear Prime Minister, This is a year of severe drought in Gujarat and western Madhya Pradesh - an area that is well known for natural disasters of this kind. During the last general elections, your home minister, fighting for a fresh term from this region, had to face evocative slogans …
as a twelve-year-old, Gurdev Singh Hira, now a senior soil physicist at the Punjab Agricultural University ( pau ) in Ludhiana, saw the water in his well rise so fast that he could touch it with his hands. But as he grew up the water level went down to such …
as we approach the new millennium, a glass of clean, uncontaminated water seems to be a luxury, that even money cannot buy. Newspapers are awash daily with reports of fluoride-contaminated water sources. Sadly, long-term constructive policies are yet to see the light of day. Occasional studies and certain discrete temporary …
a study conducted by scientists from five countries including the us and Canada stated that Israeli, Jordanian and Palestinian authorities should work together to preserve aquatic eco-systems in the region. Fresh water supplies in the Middle East now are barely sufficient to maintain a quality standard of living, said Gilbert …
over recent years, farmers have come to recognise the advantages of drip irrigation, a type of micro-irrigation (sprinklers, perforated earthenware pipes and mulching). The method which was first used by Israel, is mainly introduced to utilise water efficiently in irrigation. In drip irrigation, water is constantly supplied at the root …
How do you propose to address the issue of drinking water now that your party is in power? The question is not just how we can address the issue. We should consider why we have such a situation. Earlier, no one bothered about water as it was easily available. It …
The gravity of the problem of freshwater scarcity on a global scale was recognised as far back as 1977, when the un Water Conference took place at Mar del Plata, Argentina. The action plan drawn up at Mar del Plata is considered by many as "an excellent road map", much …
"W e are dealing with a different type of reality,' said Nicky Nzioki, a non-governmental representative from Kenya. "In the South, it would be almost impossible to put an economic value on water that flows by in a stream in a village, far away from developed areas.' China reflected this …
Industry and freshwater. "The challenge is to create the market conditions whereby sustainability will form the basis of competitiveness," Bausuano added. "Voluntary commitment cannot be a substitute to legislation," said Bjorn Stigson, president, WBCSD. "It can only complement an on-going process. In developing countries, voluntary effort will have to come …
