NMCG approves 12 projects worth Rs 929 crore under Namami Gange

The National Mission for Clean Ganga has approved 12 projects worth Rs 929 crore under the Namami Gange programme. Under the project, two sewage treatment plants (STPs) have been sanctioned for Delhi for creating 340-MLD waste treatment capacity at a cost of Rs 580 crore. Projects worth Rs 128 crore have been approved for Uttar Pradesh. For West Bengal, two projects, one for upgrading the STP in Kancharapara and another for Hilsa fisheries improvement at Farraka barrage, have been approved. Several other projects under the CSR category and beautification have also been okayed.

NGT fines NHIDCL for dumping muck in Bhagirathi river

The National Green Tribunal has ordered the NHIDCL (National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation) to submit Rs two crore to the Central Pollution Control Board for environmental restoration. The company has been found dumping muck into the Bhagirathi river in Uttarakhand. The expert committee has been directed to carry out quarterly inspection of the area till the muck dumping sites are saturated. The NGT has also ordered the NHIDCL to conduct soil survey in respect of stability of soil and the geology structure of the areas before taking up such projects in the future. 

Centre orders states to complete audits of District Mineral Foundations by 2018

The central government has ordered all the states to complete their respective audits of District Mineral Foundations (DMFs) by the end of 2018. DMFs are the district-level bodies established under the new mining law to benefit local people affected by mining operations. Also, 60 percent of the funds collected under DMFs would be utilised under high priority sectors like drinking water supply, health care, sanitation, education, etc. Centre has also pulled up Goa, Bihar, Kerala, Meghalaya and Tamil Nadu for spending less from funds collected under DMFs.

NGT bans stone crushing near rivers in Himachal

The National Green Tribunal has cancelled the permission granted to stone crushers within 100 metres of rivers and water bodies in Himachal Pradesh. The move has been taken as the location of the stone crusher near a water body is illegal and in violation of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. The tribunal has also directed the state pollution control board to file a compliance report within two months. Permission for stone crushing was granted to 347 crushers by the industry department. However, 121 of the crushers are lying closed for various reasons and in violation of the norms. 

Despite centre's notification, Telangana devoid of a wetland authority

In September last year, the environment ministry had notified Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017 that mandated constitution of State Wetlands Authority (SWA). The rules mandated that the authority should prepare a list of wetlands to be notified by the state government within six months. However, the Telangana government has failed to constitute the State Wetlands Authority despite the ministry giving its notification more than a year ago. 

This is a roundup of important policy matters from October 30 - November 6, 2018. Also, read news this week.

Global wildlife populations have fallen by 60 percent in the past four decades: WWF

As per the 2018 Living Planet Report prepared by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the global wildlife populations have fallen by 60 percent in the past four decades due to accelerating pollution, deforestation, climate change and other man-made factors. Also, the report highlighted that more than 4000 mammal, bird, fish, reptile and amphibian species declined between 1970 and 2014. The report also pointed out that eight million tonnes of plastics are entering the oceans annually and has urged the nations under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) to consider a treaty for the protection of the global wildlife.

Only 40 percent FRA claims approved in the last decade

In the last one decade, tribal communities across the country have filed 4.21 million claims to acquire forest land under the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (FRA). However, as per the status report by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA), only 1.74 million of them have been approved. Also, the report highlighted that the highest number of claims were rejected either by the gram sabha or the district-level committee. Experts have blamed MoTA for failing to execute its responsibility for the effective implementation of the Act.

Farmers' collective to launch Rebuild Kerala 2021

Manarcadu Social Service Society (MASS), a collective of more than 5000 organic farmers, will launch 'Rebuild Kerala 2021'. The project, that will be launched on November 26, aims to help farmers in Idukki to rebuild their farms and livelihoods through organic farming. Within the project, around two lakh freely distributed saplings would be organically cultivated in Idukki. The project will be completed in three years in a phased manner with a focus on different aspects of farmer development that includes organic farming, employment and eco-tourism.

Groundwater quality along Ernakulam coast deteriorating, thanks to seawater intrusion

According to a recent research by Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), the groundwater quality along the coastal areas of Ernakulam district is slowly deteriorating due to seawater intrusion. The study also observed changes in shoreline along the coasts of Ernakulam district which lead to a rise in sea level at 1.8 millimetres per year. As per Dr S. Sreekesh who led the research team, in order to regulate seawater intrusion, there is a need to control construction activities and groundwater extraction in the area.

No more use of explosives for fishing at Doyang reservoir in Nagaland

During a seminar-cum-sensitisation programme on the harmful use of explosives for fishing, nearly 16 villages under Doyang Hydro-electric project in Wokha district of Nagaland agreed to ban the use of explosives for fishing at Doyang reservoir and its surrounding areas. With regard to the use of explosives and poisonous substances, the Wokha Deputy Commissioner has affirmed that in order to curb any illegal activities, the various authorities will strictly follow the laid down regulations. Use of explosives for fishing not just destroy the fish habitat but also affects the entire aquatic ecosystem along with reducing the fish stock.

This is a roundup of important news published between October 30 - November 6, 2018. Also read policy matters this week.

Lead image source: Tjdeena via Wikipedia Commons

River Paondhoi is best known today as a sewer running through Saharanpur city. Originally, however, it was an important source of drinking water for the city. In its heyday, the water of the river ran ankle deep, just enough to wash one’s feet. People coming into the city would wash their feet in the river giving it the name, Paondhoi.

The river originates from a spring in Sanklapuri village at the foothills of the Shivalik ranges, about eight km from Saharanpur city in western Uttar Pradesh. “As per folklore, Baba Lal Dass, a local religious ascetic who lived about 300 years ago brought the Ganga to this area where it debouches from the Himalayan ranges into the alluvial plains through his devotion. People revere the river by calling it Paondhoi Ganga,” says Dr P.K. Sharma, a retired professor of Geography from Meerut University.

The river empties into the Dhamola, a tributary of the Hindon. The city depends on groundwater which feeds the streams. Despite starting as a clean water source, it has become a sewer now.

How Paondhoi became a dead river

By the 1980s, the Paondhoi went from being a lifeline to thousands of people to a carrier of municipal sewage. Its waters had turned notoriously grimy and the river is now considered unfit for bathing.

The city and its adjoining areas are known for its polluting industries that range from paper and sugar to distilleries and slaughterhouses. They discharge untreated wastewater into the Paondhoi and the Dhamola. “Over 50 dirty outlets meet the river in just two-km stretch in the city,” says Dr Sharma who is the deputy secretary of the Paondhoi Bachao Samiti.

The Samiti has been cautioning people for years against polluting the stream. Many harmful pollutants were being thrown into the stream by the people, municipality and industries. Tanneries and slaughterhouses too were emptying waste in the waterway.

Dr Sharma was already active in the Jal Biradiri initiative in the area. Other concerned residents like Dr S. K. Upadhyay, a retired professor of botany too were alarmed at the shrunken state of the river.

The first river cleaning drive

The river was cleaned up in 2010 after concerned residents created a stink about the dirty waters. Sushant K. Singhal of Saharanpur.com, an independent media outlet in the city, who’s also a member of the Paondhoi Bachao Samiti had prepared the blueprint of the river clean-up in 2009. Singhal says that over 10,000 people were contacted to get their signed pledge to keep the river clean.

“We found out that motivating people was not enough. We needed authority to command various government departments like Nagar Nigam, Yamuna Action Plan (Jal Nigam), Saharanpur Development Authority, Pollution Control Board etc., besides support from the general public,” he says.

The Paondhoi Bachao Samiti was formed as a joint effort of government officials as well as civil society to clean the river. “Alok Kumar, the district magistrate along with the additional district magistrate Neeraj Shukla spearheaded the clean-up drive with the district administration as well as the city residents pitching in starting 2010,” writes Dr Virendra Azam in his book Gatha Paondhoi Ki.

The Paondhoi Bachao Samiti was set up with the district magistrate as its chairperson and the nodal officer and the additional district magistrate as secretaries. With the district magistrate at its helm, the government departments acted promptly. Civil society too was well represented in the Samiti which had a total of 22 members.

The action plan to clean up the Paondhoi was discussed at a meeting in May 2010. The existing budgets of the city’s municipal body were utilised for the clean-up drive. Children got involved in cleaning the river and a lot of awareness was generated among the citizens. The clean-up efforts involved removal of over 10,000 truckloads of silt, sludge and other solid waste from the river bed over four months. Over 30 households constructed septic tanks instead of draining the untreated sewage into the river.

Open drains were diverted into sewer systems and the Samiti also worked on waterfront development. Stretches of the river were fenced. Legal action was initiated against polluters, but the cases went nowhere. The media covered the campaign extensively. The members of the Paondhoi Bachao Samiti met on a daily basis to plan and assess the work during the four-month clean-up drive in 2010. The river was de-clogged and revived at a cost of just Rs 10 lakh.

The water quality of the river improved and the traditional Kewat Leela, a ritual of pulling a symbolic boat across the river held during Ramlila was conducted after 35 years. The success of the river led the principal secretary of urban development to issue a letter to district magistrates of 24 districts in Uttar Pradesh to emulate the campaign of river revival.

The unholy stink continues

“Nigrani Samitis (neighbourhood watch committees) were set up in 2010 to keep an eye on river pollution but they became defunct in the years that followed. The city could not make good on its pledge of slashing the flow of raw sewage and garbage into the river. With the Nagar Nigam itself draining its sewers into the river, how will people be motivated to do otherwise?” says Singhal.

The promise to cut the flow of pollutants into the Paondhoi was not met as district magistrates got regularly transferred and took little interest in the river revival. Some efforts are still underway and the river is cleaned up twice by the Ramlila committee just before monsoon to prevent flooding and again just before Dussehra.

It became increasingly clear that the condition of the river is slowly being reversed to what it was before. Like most conservation movements, this one too failed in working out a sustainable solution.

Smart city tag and plans to revive river once again

The Centre launched its flagship smart cities mission aimed at developing 100 smart cities over five years in 2015 with much fanfare. It was touted as the biggest urban reform in India but a look at Saharanpur shows that the project has not gained momentum. The city was selected in the competition in January 2018 at the last minute but due to the lack of preparation and zeal on the part of the municipal body, the mission’s work in the city is likely to lose track.

Under the scheme, however, Saharanpur will get Rs 500 crore from the Centre for implementing various urban infrastructure projects. An equal amount, on a matching basis, will have to be contributed by the state or the urban local body. Saharanpur city has formed a special purpose vehicle, a body created specially to take charge of smart cities and lead their development. It has also appointed Price Waterhouse Coopers as well as Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services Limited as joint project management consultants. Not much progress has taken place and the city seems to be dragging its feet.

How far will this clean-up go?

“Though there is no denying that little work has happened on the ground, the smart cities mission did include our plan to revive the river Paondhoi. A riverfront development is proposed under the mission and there is hope if the project is taken up in a systematic manner and their speed of execution improved,” says Dr Sharma who served as a consultant in the project during the planning phase. The cost of the river clean-up include Rs 177 crore for sewerage and sanitation-related work and Rs 69.55 crore for waste management as per the Saharanpur smart city plan.

“It also has to be more comprehensive and include the clean-up of river Dhamola into which the Paondhoi drains,” says Dr Sharma. A plan is proposed under the smart cities mission to widen Paondhoi’s banks and deepen the river bed. Two check dams are planned at a distance of one km in the river’s upper reaches to maintain the river’s water level.    

The question now is, will generous funding under the smart cities mission result in concrete advances in river clean-up? Will tons of household trash that line the river and form islands of refuse disappear? “The river revival effort has to move beyond cleaning up of the river and plug the sources of pollution—solid waste or sewage,” says Singhal who is now busy working on awareness drives in residential areas and schools on solid waste management.

Centre mandates NOC for using groundwater for infra projects

Taking note of the precarious state of groundwater in the country, the environment ministry has made it mandatory for infrastructure projects to seek no objection certificate from the Central Groundwater Authority (CGWA) before using groundwater for project activities. The states have also been ordered not to grant clearance to projects with no certificate. However, as per the experts, given the regulatory lacunae, it would be challenging for the authorities to ensure compliance of the order. 

Ganga Bill proposes ban of ports, jetties in the river

In its National River Ganga (Rejuvenation, Conservation and Management) Bill, 2018, the government has proposed to ban the construction of jetties, ports or permanent hydraulic structures in the Ganga unless permitted by the National Ganga Rejuvenation Authority. The Bill, which is being circulated for comments, also lays down a host of restrictions to ensure “uninterrupted, ecological flow” of the river. As per activists, although the government is making efforts towards cleaning the Ganga river, no concrete steps are being taken for maintaining the natural flow of the river.

No financial compensation to Pong dam oustees

Out of the 16,300 oustees of the Pong dam, as many as 2,501 from Himachal Pradesh are still waiting for the land promised to them by the Rajasthan government. The oustees who are eligible for getting a land in fertile areas were being offered land in arid areas of Jaisalmer which they have rejected. Though the Rajasthan government was provided with a proposal to give financial compensation to the 2,501 oustees so that they could buy land elsewhere, the state government has turned down the proposal. The matter has been taken to union water resources minister Nitin Gadkari who has assured to intervene.  

NGT penalises TN government over encroachments in Chennai

The National Green Tribunal has slapped a fine of Rs two crore on the Tamil Nadu government for failing to remove encroachments along the Adyar and Cooum rivers in Chennai. Out of the total 26,300 encroachments along the rivers, the state government has been able to evict only 408 encroachments. Moreover, no tangible action has been taken to mitigate pollution in the two rivers and the state government has also performed poorly in pre-monsoon preparedness. The NGT has directed the public works department to deposit the fine with the Central Pollution Control Board within 15 days of the order. 

Panel defers green nod to diamond mining in Panna

Taking note of the site's proximity to the Panna Tiger Reserve and a wildlife corridor, the expert panel has deferred green clearance granted to the state-owned miner National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) for diamond mining in Panna. The NMDC had obtained the mining rights of Majhgawan Diamond Mine and a supplementary section till 2020 under the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) notification, 1994. However, it had to approach the environment ministry afresh, following the Supreme Court ruling in April 2018 that ordered the mining projects which got the green nod in 1994 to obtain clearance under the EIA Notification, 2006.

This is a roundup of important policy matters from November 7 - 13, 2018. Also, read news this week.

Basanti Haldar (45) has been living in a slum at Kalikapur in Kolkata for over two decades. She works as a domestic help in an upscale locality in the neighbourhood. She is happy nowadays due to an increase in her income. 

The installation of Automated Dispensing Units (ADU) has not only provided her with clean potable water but have also saved her from the cumbersome job of standing in long serpentine queues for a bucket of water. She has time for more work that has also helped her earn better. 

The two ADUs installed at Kalikapur slum under the WASH (Water and Sanitation Hygiene for Urban Poor) project in 2014 are operated by a solar water treatment plant. The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has provided around one cottah of land for the project. 

The units have come as a boon for the slum dwellers of Kalikapur which is one of the largest slums in the city with several thousands of people residing in its dingy lanes. They do odd jobs in different parts of the city for a living. 

“The project has changed our lives as it has not only saved us from the trouble of rushing early to the taps and hand pumps but have also provided us with clean water. Earlier, we had to depend on a local pond for drinking water that was unhygienic. The defunct hand pumps added to our woes. We now get pure water 24x7 at a negligible price,” she says. 

Nila Shaw (45) who has a small grocery shop at Kalikapur concurs. “Earlier, I had to close my shop during the daytime to collect water when it was available which affected my business. We often suffered from ailments due to the presence of high level of arsenic in groundwater and also had to walk for more than a kilometre to obtain clean water from a tap in another locality when the taps and hand pumps here go out of order. The clean water has made life easier for us,” she says.

The units provide around 600 litres (20 litres every day) of drinking water to every household per month but they are charged only for 300 litres (Rs 50 paisa per litre) to make it sustainable. 

Purified water, bio-toilets change scene

The water of the local pond is purified through a solar water treatment plant and dispensed through ADUs. “The project has benefitted over 4000 people in Kalikapur alone. We have been able to provide them with clean potable water which is available round the clock,” says Amrita Chatterjee, director (communications), South Asian Forum for Environment (SAFE), a civil society organisation that has implemented the project. 

Around 24 bio-toilets have been constructed in the slum for the dwellers and reverse osmosis helps in keeping them clean. Moreover, sanitation units are connected to the biogas used by the residents for cooking. The project runs completely on solar energy. The water is treated by reverse osmosis and the refuse water from the RO is reused in bio-sanitation units. The toilet refuse flows into biogas units, which powers the community kitchens. SAFE won UN Water for Life Award in the year 2015 for this project. This is the first of its kind project implemented in the country.

Apart from Kalikapur, similar projects are running in four places in the city and also in Sunderbans in North 24 Parganas and Purulia districts of West Bengal and also in the Northeastern states. The projects are funded by HSBC Water Programme and the World Bank. 

The project facilitators also did capacity building in three tiers, of which the first was on awareness building about community hygiene and resource use through budgeted allocation and waste minimisation. In the second part, technical capacities were built among the community youth for managing and maintenance of solar power and water treatment plants to make the community independent. Financial inclusion and fiscal management at the community level composed the third tier of training for the members of joint liability groups which comprised community members represented mostly by women. The group organises community meetings and works to ensure overall community participation in the project.

No water for other domestic use

But everything is not hunky-dory for the residents of Kalikapur. Though the ADUs have managed to solve the potable water crisis to some extent, other issues continue to make their lives miserable. They are forced to bathe in the pond water because of the absence of water connectivity in their houses. “Our drinking water issue has been somewhat resolved but other problems persist. Our family members have to bathe in the dirty water of the pond in the absence of clean water and they contract diseases,” rues Rumi Biswas, a homemaker residing in the slum.

Interestingly, a leakage in the water pipe maintained by the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has come as a major relief for the people of Kalikapur and residents of other slums living close to it. The residents have inserted a plastic bottle through the hole to fulfil their daily water requirement. “The leakage in the pipe passing overhead has been like a gift to us. We wash our clothes and also bathe below it. The water is also used for drinking as 300 litres provided every month through ADUs often fall short of our requirements. It is difficult to believe that people living in the heart of the city amidst high-risers have to survive on leakage,” says Ranjoy Haldar (47), a local resident. 

Locals rue that the ‘godsend’ facility might just be temporary as the course of the pipe is likely to change once the construction of a flyover completes. “We pray that the pipe is not removed from its position otherwise, it will make our lives miserable once again,” he adds.

Project doesn’t go according to plan

The extent of water scarcity could be gauged from the fact that people often take home the water that is kept for cleaning the bio-toilets. Most of the time, the toilets remain dirty. “We try to keep the toilets clean but the shortage of water often forces people to take that water. We are helpless as the keys are with the local people who have the responsibility of keeping them clean. We have done our bit by offering clean, potable water. The government should also step into it to solve the pending issues,” says Dr Dipayan Dey, Chair, SAFE.

When contacted, the KMC officials says that the issues will be sorted out soon. “It is a newly built area so it is taking time for us to arrange water facilities for people. But it would be done in a few months. We will repair the leaking pipe as it is a wastage of water and will try to provide an alternative source of water to the people,” assures Bibhas Kumar Maiti, Director General (Water), KMC. 

Himalayan council constituted for sustainable development of the Himalayas

In order to ensure sustainable development of the Himalayan region, NITI Aayog has constituted the Himalayan State Regional Council. The council will be chaired by Dr V.K. Saraswat, member, NITI Aayog and will also include the chief secretaries of all 12 Himalayan states. The aim of the council is to review and implement identified action points based on the reports of five working groups established by NITI Aayog last year. The working groups were tasked to prepare a roadmap for action across five thematic areas covering springs, tourism, shifting cultivation, landscape and data information in the Himalayas.

Violation of solid waste management rules: UPPCB issues notices to 300 institutions

The Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board has issued notices to 319 institutions across five districts for violation of solid waste management rules, 2016 and has warned them of strict action if no improvement is made in this regard within 15 days. The institutions include schools, hospitals, hotels, private colonies, government bodies and other commercial units. The Agra district reported maximum violations, followed by Kanpur, Lucknow, Gorakhpur and Varanasi. As per the 2016 solid waste management rules, all premises established over 5,000 square metre of land are required to make their own arrangement for the segregation and disposal of waste. 

Pollution in Beas and Satluj rivers: Punjab government to pay Rs 50 crore fine

The National Green Tribunal has slapped a fine of Rs 50 crore on the Punjab government over pollution in Beas and Satluj rivers. The strict move has been taken after dead fish were found floating in the Beas river in Gurdaspur district. Sugar mills in the area are being considered as the primary cause for pollution in the two rivers. The tribunal has also ordered the Central Pollution Control Board and the State Pollution Control Board to take water samples from various places along the rivers and inspect the quality.  

Karnataka challenges Mahadayi Water Dispute Tribunal’s decision 

In August this year, the Mahadayi Water Dispute Tribunal had granted 1.33 tmcft of Mahadayi water to Maharashtra, 33.39 tmfct to Goa and 5.40 tmfct to Karnataka while the surplus 147.93 tmfct water was ordered to let into the sea. However, the Karnataka government is unhappy with the tribunal's decision and has filed a fresh plea in the Supreme Court challenging the order. As per the state government, despite the apex court mandate for the equitable share of Mahadayi river water among the riparian states, the tribunal had reduced the allocation for the state from 24.15 tmcft to 5.40 tmcft.

Noida hospital construction gets nod but 1,500 trees need to be planted for lost green cover: NGT

Finding no illegality in environmental laws, the National Green Tribunal has allowed the construction of Kailash hospital at NH-01, Sector 71, Noida. The tribunal has, however, ordered the Noida Development Authority to plant 1,500 trees against 100 of those which were transplanted and maintain the plantation for five years. The Central Ground Water Authority and the NDA have also been ordered to ensure groundwater balance through rainwater harvesting and create pits for the same.

This is a roundup of important policy matters from November 14 - 18, 2018. Also, read news this week.

India’s flagship sanitation programme, Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM), highlights both the importance of latrine use, and also of “safe and proper disposal”. Since most of urban India is not connected to sewers, the SBM recommends that cities work towards technological, financing and governance initiatives that would ensure safe faecal sludge management. In practice, this means mechanical (i.e. truck-and-hose) sludge removal as opposed to the now-illegal manual method of emptying toilet pits. But how do cleaners live and work? What do their days and nights demand of them? And to what extent does their work rely on India’s age-old caste system, about which SBM policies are silent? What, in other words, does the “backend” of Swachh Bharat look like in an Indian city? In this photo essay, we trace the flow of waste from pit to dump in urban India, making visible the labour that produces the sanitary city.ⁱ

It’s a typical December day in the lives of Deepak, Rajesh and Prabhu. They empty out septic tanks and soak pits for homes and businesses, they are all from the Maadiga (Dalit) community, and they have been at this job for three to five years. Deepak is driving a yellow Tata 909 truck fitted with a large cylindrical tank at the back. The men are going to a home in a middle-class neighbourhood, whose toilet has backed up because the pit is full.

It’s not hard for homeowners to find an emptying service when they need one. Truck owners paint the name and number of the service in large font and bright colours on the holding tanks and on city walls; the drivers carry business cards. They park at busy intersections where they can easily be seen while waiting for a service call. Fliers are distributed with the daily newspapers. The Yellow Pages carry advertisements. 

When the truck reaches the home, Rajesh and Prabhu jump out and try to locate the pit. It is covered by a concrete slab and it’s under a foot of soil. They find the slab and pry it open to insert the hose. The other end of the hose is attached to a vacuum pump. On Prabhu’s signal, Deepak starts the truck engine which gets the pump started. In a few minutes, the pit is empty. Prabhu and Rajesh work quickly to coil the hose back on the hook attached to the tank. 

The men work with bare hands and have flip-flops on their feet. They say that the gloves and boots in the market are not designed for the kind of job they do, and they do not want to scare the public. “We don’t wear gloves or masks. Wearing them makes people think that our work and the waste we carry in our truck are dangerous. So we act normal as if it is harmless. That also makes dumping it a lot easier.”

The crucial part of this business is dumping the sludge, and it isn’t easy to find discreet dumping spots. Deepak says that Prabhu is an expert at finding suitable spots, but Prabhu modestly demurs. He just gets lucky, he says. Open and dry plots in the periphery of the city are always good, he explains, the soil dries fast and doesn’t hold the smell for long. 

The large stormwater drains that carry water out of the city—raja kaluve—already carry sewage, and the main sewer lines can also be accessed from side alleys all over the city’s outer edges. The cleaners have to be quick if they use the main sewer lines, though since they could be reported to the city. Finally, there are farmlands—dumping sludge on a fallow farm is a safe option for the operator. This is a good option for smaller cities like Guntur or Dharwad but Bangalore has urbanised so rapidly that there are not many farmlands in the periphery anymore. 

Rainy days are the best but rainy nights are even better. “We find a road that is flooded,” says Deepak. “We park the truck, attach a short pipe to the drain valve and lower it just enough to submerge it, then we open the valve and let the sludge mix with the rainwater.” Don’t people notice the sludge coming out of the pipe? “No, not really. The rainwater is muddy and flooded roads have slow traffic—people are completely focused on driving.” Sometimes vigilante groups, calling themselves the “public”, take videos, curse (“they say we are soolemaklu” ⁱⁱ), and threaten to call the police. But mostly the sanitation workers are left alone. “Who has the patience to stop their vehicle in ankle-deep water, wade through sewage, come to us, and ask?”

This morning, it’s not raining and the truck stops right in front of an open drain outside the city proper. Rajesh and Prabhu connect the PVC pipe to the draining end of the tank and open the valve. In eight minutes, gravity empties the tank. 

The next stop is the septic tank of one of India’s best known companies. That tank is large—eight to 10 trips will be needed to empty it. If a man isn’t careful, he could fall into the pool of sludge and die. Cleaners do, every year. Rajesh connects the end of the pipe to the pump. Prabhu ties a five-foot long iron bar to the end of the pipe and submerges it into the sludge. The bar acts as a mixer. Deepak starts up the pump and the truck tank fills up in about 12 minutes. Then the men are out on the road with the first load of sludge. No one has washed his hands.

Once the third load has been dumped into an open drain, Deepak takes a swig of whiskey, Rajesh and Prabhu share a packet of gutkha.ⁱⁱⁱ

Deepak says that everyone he knows drinks. “I drink even when I don’t work.” Prabhu, too: “But I only drink when I am home. I eat gutkha when I work.” And Rajesh? “No. I don’t drink. I just eat gutkha.” 

The men are almost done with emptying the fourth load of sludge when a police jeep passes and stops. Deepak gets out and walks towards the jeep. In a couple of minutes, Deepak is back. “Those people want their share.” He sounds matter-of-fact. “We pay them the mamool ^ivwhen they see us or when we go home past the police station.” 

Urgent calls are answered during the day, pretty much all day, the cleaners said, but certain pre-arranged cleanings are done during the night. Elite hotels, especially, want the septic tanks cleaned at night. They do not want their guests to see or smell the operations. Tonight the men have been called in by a “large, posh” hotel. “People pay Rs 10,000 per day to stay in the hotel, and their shit smells just like everybody else’s,” says Prabhu. He thinks it will be almost 5 am before the men can go home. 

Suctioning faecal waste via a hose and pump is progress over manual scavenging in which faeces are cleaned using hand-held tools and carried away in a cart. The three men know that. They also know that the job of working with sludge is still left to a sub-section of Dalits. It’s risky work, they are disgusted by the waste they handle, they need alcohol and opioids to numb the senses, there is no protection, there are no benefits. But, they agreed, there is a small measure of job security. “The job security we have is our caste. Other castes will not do this work.” 

As per the agricultural statistics of 2014, nearly 430 people depend on farming in India while 263 million people are either farmers or agricultural workers. Farmers are major contributors to the growth of Indian economy and their concerns impact policies in the country. 

Nearly 87 percent of farmers in India has less than two hectares of land while 69 percent does not even possess a hectare of land. These farmers are able to earn only Rs 50,000 per year or even less indicating how alarmingly low their income is. In order to supplement this meagre income, farmers rear animals and also work as labourers under MGNREGA or in cities, especially during non-farming months. Crop failure due to inadequate weather conditions and pest attacks further pose risk to their income. Moreover, the possibility of fall in crop prices at the time of harvest season causes additional worry to the farmers. 

In order to earn more money, a farmer needs to grow more crops while spending less. He also needs to ensure better yield of the crops he grows. How can this be done?

How to grow more crops?

With more availability of water, a farmer is able to increase the crop yield. There are four ways to increase water availability—watershed development for increasing water efficiency in the local area; large irrigation projects for command area irrigation; groundwater extraction and other methods such as lift irrigation.

Another way to better the income is through better crop yield. For growing more crops per sowing, a farmer needs to apply several techniques like rice intensification in case of paddy cultivation; sow higher-yielding seeds; use better fertilisers, herbicides, pesticides to tackle nutrient deficiency and make of use of technologies such as drip irrigation. However, the implementation of these methods may face several constraints like knowledge transfer to farmers, affordability and very limited risk-taking ability of farmers. 

How to get more yield?

Crop grown by a farmer goes through numerous intermediaries before reaching the consumer. In such a chain, a farmer may get a very small portion of the final price. Moreover, farmers have limited bargaining power and are affected by the cartelisation of agricultural produce market committees, lack of storage facilities and limited financial capacity. Even the minimum support price (MSP) is not helpful to farmers as it is effective only for wheat and paddy crops.

What are the challenges involved in growing more and earning more?

• Water and water security. There are possible solutions but technical skills and leadership to manage demand are needed at the village level.
• Buyers monopolise as farmers are unable to bargain in the market.
• Limited infrastructure for storage reduces farmers' bargaining power further. 
• Inability to shift to remunerative crops due to lack of knowledge.
• Precarious finances prohibit risk-taking as failure can be a life and death situation for a farmer. 

What farmers can do?

Farmers can follow collectivisation for succeeding. While it has its challenges, if farmers come together, then this single most critical step would help them to:

• optimally tap common resources like water
• cooperate and acquire knowledge for growing better price yielding crops
• share infrastructure like storage
• negotiate for better crop prices with buyers
• negotiate for better input prices with sellers

Collectivisation models include 

1. Cooperatives 
2. Political parties 
3. Contract farming to private players 
4. Producer companies (formed by the farmers themselves)
5. Leasing of land. 

What governments can do?

1. Provide infrastructure to villages
2. Curtail exploitation by Mandis
3. Ensure alternate marketing mechanisms as competition to Mandis
4. Enhancing agricultural knowledge creation and transfer
5. More non-farming jobs to reduce pressure on land 
6. Provide affordable crop insurance with a quick settlement
7. Quick delivery of basic services like health and education so that farmers are not crippled by debt for these

For a better understanding of the analysis, please view the presentation below. 

A new study, Mahanadi: Coal Rich, Water-Stressed sheds light on how both Odisha and Chhattisgarh have locked horns over the distribution of waters of the Mahanadi river. The 851-km-long river originates in the Dhamtari district of Chhattisgarh, flows through the state and then Odisha before joining the Bay of Bengal at Odisha’s coast. Of late,Odisha has been complaining about the reduced flow of water at the Hirakud dam—Asia’s longest earthen dam—because of the dams and barrages constructed upstream by Chhattisgarh.

“Yet, coal-fired power plants that have put the water resources and people to severe stress have never come up for discussion between the two states. Instead, the state governments are using the river for political mileage and stoke the issue during election times,” says Ranjan Panda, the author of the study while releasing the report at an event in New Delhi recently.

Mahanadi river, local communities gasp for life

The study, undertaken with support from Heinrich Boll Stiftung, India, claims that Chhattisgarh's projects are not the only reason for the decrease in the Mahanadi river's water flow. “An IIT study showed that the water flow has decreased by around 10 percent in the Mahanadi. This is mainly due to the decrease in rainfall caused by climate change. The government's own sources found a substantial increase in the temperature in the Mahanadi basin. Increasing temperatures affect the water retention capability of a river basin. It, therefore, means that one cannot hold the dams and barrages of Chhattisgarh responsible for the decrease in the water flowing to Odisha,” the study says.

Coal-fired plants, the main culprits

Speaking at the event, Panda who is the convener of Water Initiatives Odisha, points to how the two states have been promoting the river as a “water surplus” one and have committed themselves to mining and industrialisation in the name of “development”.

"If Odisha executes its plan to generate 58,000 MW of coal-fired power in the coming decade, the water requirement will be 1,624 MCM per year, which means diverting that water from 3,24,800 hectares of farmland. If we factor in domestic water requirement too, then the plants will be using about 32.5 percent more water than is required for domestic use,” the report says. Coal-fired power plants are a major guzzler and have put water resources to stress in the Mahanadi basin. “In all these, the real issues faced by people affected by mining and thermal power plants have been put on the backburner,” adds Panda.  

The waters of the Mahanadi were colonised by the state in the Hirakud dam with no scope for participation of affected communities in the river basin management. Due to the barrages and dams upstream, the total inflow of water to Hirakud is 16,211 million cubic metre against Odisha’s requirement of 18,175 million cubic metre and the ecological flow need of 9,621 million cubic metre.

The original irrigation plan from Hirakud was to cover nearly 1.84 lakh hectare, which stands at 1.54 lakh hectare now due to the substantial increase in water allocation to industries from the reservoir. People were forcefully evicted from their land, forest and water resources in the name of development in this coal belt of India. Odisha and Chhattisgarh have 24 percent and 16 percent respectively of India’s coal reserves.

“The first major protest was in October 2006 when 30,000 farmers in Odisha formed a human chain along the Hirakud dam demanding that the state scrap its plan of giving away 478 cusec water to industries, fearing that it would further shrink the irrigation coverage. The assurance was provided to farmers by the then chief minister that not a single drop of water meant for farmers would be diverted to industries, but water diversion to industries continued unabated. The river has been completely sold out to industries by both Chhattisgarh and Odisha governments,” says Richard Mahapatra of the Centre for Science and Environment, a panelist at the event.

Two states at loggerheads over Mahanadi waters

The recent conflict between Odisha and Chhattisgarh over Mahanadi waters is the latest addition to India’s long list of interstate river water conflicts. The conflict started in July 2016 when Odisha objected to the construction of some barrages in upstream stretches of the river in Chhattisgarh. This, Odisha argued, would deprive its farmers of water, while Chhattisgarh maintained that it was well within its rights to build the barrages to expand irrigation facilities for farmers in the state. Soon, this snowballed into a major political fight and Odisha sought the Centre’s intervention in the matter. In the meantime, developments in the Mahanadi basin continued to create a dangerous cocktail of heat and pollution.

Dialogue, not tribunal can resolve Mahanadi issue

Following a Supreme Court order to sort out the longstanding dispute between Odisha and Chattisgarh, the Centre formed a Mahanadi Water Disputes Tribunal early this year over the sharing of water from the river. “The two states do not have a legacy of water conflict. Being a very recent interstate river water dispute of India, the case offers an opportunity to understand the conflict and its new dimensions. Odisha has a rich and glorious legacy of mobilisation of local people resisting displacement and other forms of social exploitation,” says Mahapatra.

The report states that the two states should build interstate cooperation and keep the door open for dialogue instead of fighting the issue at a tribunal. “Tribunals have not proven effective so far and will not be able to deal with issues of reviving a river or giving rights to farmers or fisher folks and other indigenous communities. Tribunals do not adhere to any specific principle of judging water and may, at the most, work out a formula of water sharing out of the existing water. This formula may or may not be adhered to by the states in conflict,” says Panda.

Also, interstate disputes are long drawn out processes where scarcity, or a perceived notion of scarcity, let the conflict continue for years without an end in sight. “The two states should reject the idea of large dams, of interlinking of the Mahanadi with the Godavari and work towards recognising the Mahanadi’s “right to life”. Odisha and Chhattisgarh should sit together for talks and form a joint, strategic action for the proper management of the Mahanadi's water. They should not allow the Mahanadi conflict to become a political fight between ruling parties of both the states,” Panda says.

The report warns against conflict mongering without seriously looking into the consequences. It puts forth a two-pronged approach to deal with the Mahanadi crisis—the legal recourse and the peace and cooperation building, while preferring the latter. There is also a need to collect more authentic data about the river basin’s water-holding aspects, the report says.

The governments should immediately work out a green energy plan for the basin and phase out coal-fired power plant by a fixed target year, maybe by 2030. Besides, there is a need for both states to work together on climate change mitigation and suitable resilience-building programmes that enhance the coping capacity of communities towards drought. The report also suggested the need to recognise community rights over resources and to ensure their participation in river management.

Yamuna river pollution: NMCG approves projects worth Rs 1,573 crore

With an aim to curb pollution in the Yamuna river in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal and Himachal Pradesh, National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) has approved 10 projects worth Rs 1573.28 crore. A major part of the funds has been allocated to the Rehabilitation/Renovation of Agra Sewerage Scheme (Interception and Diversion Works). The components of the project include tapping of 61 nalas/drains; construction, renovation, upgradation, operation and maintenance of sewage treatment plants and renovation of the sewage pumping station. The remaining funds have been allocated between Uttar Pradesh's Kasganj and Sultanpur; Bihar's Chhapra, Fatuha, Bakhtiyarpur and Khagaria; West Bengal's Burdwan Municipality and Paonta Town, Himachal Pradesh.

Centre identifies wetlands for conservation

Under the Central Asian Flyway Action Plan, the environment ministry has identified 20 wetlands and nine wetland clusters for conservation as these wetlands are stopover and wintering sites for several migratory waterbird species. As per the plan, the boundaries of these wetland clusters will be demarcated and notified according to the Wetland Rules 2017. Whenever needed, additional water will be allocated for maintaining the ecological health of these wetlands. The plan proposes several measures to conserve the migratory bird species and for the implementation of single-species action plans for 20 species including Greater Flamingo, Great Knot, Lesser Flamingo etc.

Development plans in the Western Ghats need restructuring: Study

A report titled Kerala Floods 2018-The Disaster of the Century has emphasised that high-rise buildings should not be permitted on the steep slopes of the Western Ghats as the region is prone to landslides. The study has been conducted by a six-member expert panel appointed by the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Development Studies (RGIDS). The report has emphasised on the need to restructure the present development plan and exposed the various deficiencies in the system which aggravated the deluge. It has also recommended a strategy to rethink operations of hydel power stations and to institutionalise a proper strategy for the opening of major dams.

Health assessment mandatory for green nod to thermal plants

For the first time, the environment ministry has made human health and environment criteria mandatory for the environment clearance of new thermal power plants in the country. With the new notification in place, the company seeking clearance will take into account chronic exposure to air and noise pollution which may affect the health of the workers and people living in the plant's vicinity. The condition is not only applicable to coal and lignite-based thermal power plants but also to waste from energy plants. The notification mandates that even after getting the approvals, the company will have to conduct biannual health check-up of workers and study the impact on agricultural crops and large water bodies in the vicinity once in two years.  

HC seeks detailed list of complete and incomplete irrigation projects from Maharashtra govt

The Bombay high court has ordered the Maharashtra government to submit a detailed list of completed and under-construction irrigation projects within two weeks. The direction has come following a petition filed in the court with respect to incomplete irrigation projects in the region which led to a spate of farmer suicides in Vidarbha over the years. The Vidarbha Irrigation Development Corporation (VIDC) has failed to complete works of nearly 45 irrigation projects that resulted in huge economic losses for 30 lakh farmers owing to insufficient facilities. 

This is a roundup of important policy matters from November 19 - 25, 2018. Also, read news this week.

Government focusing on Ganga clean-up and not its rejuvenation: Environmentalists

The India Rivers Week 2018 was held in New Delhi with 'Can India Rejuvenate Ganga' as the theme. During the event, environmentalists claimed that as many as 940 dams, barrages and weirs have been built on the Ganga river and these were restricting its flow and hindering its rejuvenation. The experts stated that the government is addressing the issue of sewage waste in the river while there is a need to improve the river flow for its rejuvenation. This year at the India Rivers week, Arun Tiwari and Vishwanath Srikantaiah have won accolades for their exemplary work in the water sector. 

IMD gets equipped with Impact Based Forecasting Approach

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) is now equipped with a new technique named 'Impact Based Forecasting Approach' which will help authorities minutely monitor the impact of rainfall and assess the rise of water level in rivers and reservoirs in advance. The new technique can show pre-event scenario which may help the authorities in making real-time decisions. With the increase in extreme events due to climate change, the forecasting approach will be helpful in future for any situation such as Kerala floods that had occurred in August this year. 

Maharashtra farmers stand up for their rights

Over 20,000 tribal farmers from across Maharashtra marched to Azad Maidan in Mumbai on November 22, 2018 protesting the inordinate delay by the state government in declaring a drought. The delay will have cascading effects on relief benefits for farmers. Moreover, the tribal farmers have their names missing from the land ownership titles making them ineligible for availing any relief from the government. This is the third mass farmer protest in the state in a year. The first took place in March for farm loan waiver followed by another protest in July by dairy farmers for a hike in milk prices. 

SAIL's mining activity: Severe health problems reported in two villages in Jharkhand

Mining activity by the public sector Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) is making the lives tough for the residents of Binua and Chiria villages located near the Chiria mines in West Singhbhum district of Jharkhand. The air in the area and the Hamsagadha river, the only source of water for these villages, have been polluted due to the mining activities. Moreover, heaps of mining dust seeps into the agricultural lands in the area, turning the fields infertile. Authorities have turned a blind eye to the apathy of residents for whom health issues like diarrhoea and skin ailments have become common. 

River activists and farmers oppose the tower project on Cauvery river

The Karnataka ministers have proposed to construct a 125-ft tower on the government land near the Krishna Raja Sagar dam as a tourist attraction. The plan, however, has been opposed by the river activists and farmer leaders from Mandya region. As per the activists, the tower project will only weaken the dam which needs to be repaired. Some farmer leaders also see the proposal as an attempt to grab the lands of people.  

This is a roundup of important news published between November 19 - 25, 2018. Also read policy matters this week.

The Erai river, the main tributary of the Wardha river, is the lifeline for the people of Chandrapur in Maharashtra. It primarily supplies water to the Chandrapur city and Chandrapur super thermal power station (CSTPS). Since 1984, after the initiation of operations of M/s CSTPS and Western Coalfields Limited (WCL), the river has begun to get polluted and is now gasping for breath.

The total length of the river is approximately 24 km. It originates near the Tadoba tiger reserve and ends at Hadasti near Ballarpur. In the last three decades, the river has been highly polluted by industrial effluents and sewage. Coal mining in the area has resulted in flooding in the Erai watershed area.

In 1964, when the drinking water supply scheme from the Erai was initiated, the population of Chandrapur was approx 50,000. Now, it is more than 4.5 lakh and the water is supplied to the city from the Erai dam.

“The water level of the Erai has declined substantially. The groundwater levels in the villages have also declined and the wells have gone dry. We are facing a water crisis in the area," says Subhash Gaurkar, ex-panchayat committee member, Bhatadi gram panchayat.

In summer, some of the power generating units of the thermal power plant are closed due to the shortage of water. Even the drinking water supply to the city gets affected. Now, the overall storage capacity of the river has been reduced to 35 to 40 percent out of which 50 to 60 percent of the water is polluted and not fit for drinking.

“Every year, this area gets flooded in monsoon and affects 150-200 families. Ten years ago, the groundwater level was hardly 10-15 feet but now even after digging 50 feet, we don’t get water. Despite living on the bank of the river, we are facing a water crisis," says Siraj Khan Pathan, a resident of Chandrapur.

The video, The tragic tale of Erai talks about how industrialisation has polluted the Erai river and left a population looking for drinking water.

Thousands of farmers march to Delhi against the looming agrarian crisis

On November 30, thousands of farmers from across the country reached the Parliament street for the Kisan Mukti March organised by the All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee, a coalition of 200 farmer groups from across India. The farmers demanded a joint session of Parliament to discuss the agrarian distress and two Bills--freedom from debt and guaranteed remunerative minimum support price. Both the Bills are in accordance with the MS Swaminathan Commission report and were introduced in both Houses of Parliament three months ago. 

Karnataka, Gujarat constitute state-level river rejuvenation committee

In accordance with the National Green Tribunal's directions issued in September, both Karnataka and Gujarat governments have constituted a four-member river rejuvenation committee. The committee will now be responsible for controlling pollution and rejuvenation of all major rivers in the state and will also prepare an action plan for making all polluted river stretches fit at least for bathing within six months of finalising the plan. The action plan will include identification of polluting sources in the polluted river stretches along with other river-related issues.

Ajit Pawar responsible for multi-crore irrigation scam: Maharashtra ACB

The Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has held Ajit Pawar, the then minister of water resource department (WRD) of the state, responsible for scams like the multi-crore Vidarbha Irrigation Development Corporation scam. The ACB has stated that as per Rule 10 of the Maharashtra government rules of business and instructions, it was the duty of the secretary/ executive director to vet the files and ensure proper procedure was followed. Also, it was during Pawar's tenure that the VIDC projects violated the government rules and accepted substandard work. 

Centre okays check dam project worth Rs 4,721 crore for Himachal

The Centre has approved Rs 4,712 crore water conservation project in Himachal Pradesh. The project aims to construct check dams on small rivulets and khuds in the state. The project would be completed in four phases. In the first phase, Rs 708 crore has been earmarked. Along with this, the Centre has also given its go-ahead to a project worth Rs 800 crore for the augmentation and improvement of rural water supply schemes functional in the state before the year 2000. The Himachal government has also sought approval for a new project for flood control and to check soil erosion on the banks of rivulets and khuds. 

Groundwater situation remains grim in Punjab: CPCB

As per the latest report of the Central Groundwater Board (CGWB), groundwater withdrawal has increased to 152 percent in the state in 2016-17 as against 149 percent in 2013. Moreover, some central pockets also registered an exponential increase of 300 percent in cities like Patiala, Amritsar, Sangrur and Jalandhar. However, the Malwa belt and south-west districts in the state have better groundwater situation owing to poor quality of groundwater in these areas. The officials have blamed tube wells with high horsepower pumps and paddy cultivation for the extraction of groundwater. 

This is a roundup of important news published between November 26 - December 3, 2018. Also read policy matters this week.

CWC allows preparation of DPR while TN objects to the Mekedatu project on the Cauvery river

The Central Water Commission (CWC) has given a go-ahead to the Karnataka government to prepare a detailed project report on the construction of a reservoir on the Cauvery river near Mekedatu. The Tamil Nadu government, however, has objected to it and has requested the Centre to order the CWC to withdraw its permission. As per the state, the decision has caused apprehension among the people in Tamil Nadu as the project will pose danger to the livelihood of farmers who depend on Cauvery water. The state is also fearful of violation of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal Award by Karnataka.

Delhi Jal Board reprimanded for failure to utilise treated wastewater and drain mess in west Delhi

The National Green Tribunal has ordered the Delhi Chief Secretary and the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) to deposit Rs one crore each with the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) for failing to utilise the treated wastewater in the capital. The tribunal has sought a concrete action plan within a month and in case of failure to furnish the plan with the deadline, both Delhi Chief Secretary and DJB would be liable to pay Rs two crore each. The NGT has also ordered the DJB to deposit a sum of Rs 5 crore as performance security for improving the sewerage network of Inderpuri in west Delhi. The drain, which was supposed to carry only stormwater in the rainy season, has turned into a cesspool of sewage. 

Panel calls closure of Sterlite plant unjustified

The panel appointed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) to probe the shutting of the Sterlite copper smelter in Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu has called the closure of the unit as not justified and against the natural justice. As per the panel, the state government carried out the shutting without giving any notice to the smelter plant. The plant was also not given an opportunity to present its side. The panel has sought responses from both Vedanta and state government within a week and posted the case for December 7 for further hearing. In May this year, following a violent protest from the public, the Tamil Nadu government issued closure notice to the Sterlite plant for polluting water and air in the area.

Public hearing ordered for Polavaram project

The Supreme Court has ordered the Centre to conduct a public hearing with the affected people of the Polavaram dam project in Odisha and Chhattisgarh. As per the court, the project-affected people have the right to know what is happening with the project and through the public hearing, they could discuss issues pertaining to submergence of their land, compensation, and rehabilitation. The court has also sought details of the public hearing, including the government agency that would hold the hearing. However, a petition filed in the court has demanded a new environmental clearance as there is a change in the dam design. 

J&K government asked to dismantle toilets close to water bodies

Following the report prepared by the member-secretary of the State Pollution Control Board, the Jammu Kashmir high court has ordered the authorities to dismantle toilets in close proximity to water bodies forthwith. As per the report, the faecal waste from the toilets pollutes the water bodies making them unfit for even bathing. These water bodies have also become carriers of water-borne diseases. The court has now directed the authorities to come up with an action plan as well as a timeline for the construction of fresh public toilets at places which are not close to water bodies and have been approved by experts. 

This is a roundup of important policy matters from November 26 - December 3, 2018. Also, read news this week.

Sikri is a small village that lies 65 km north-west of Bharatpur on the Alwar road. The village used to depend on a traditional irrigation system that assured water throughout the year. A local saying related to the water availability at Sikri goes thus: Lakh daal le chittri, jay rahoongi Sikri (You may put lakhs of fetters to stop it, but the waters will still reach Sikri). This saying has lost its sheen today as the village is now finding itself in the centre of a struggle for water among farmers.

Farmers from the area got together for a mahapanchayat in Sikri in March 2018 and at a nearby village of Bela in April 2018 to demand the diversion of Yamuna water from Haryana through the Gurgaon canal to the irrigation project at Sikri, known as the Sikri bandh. The agitation was led by Mohan Singh Gujjar, the president of the Sikri Kisan Sangharsh Samiti, a local farmers’ organisation that has been demanding that the government provides water, electricity and other basic facilities in the area.

Take a quick walk through the village, and these concerns seem completely justified. Farmers grow fodder crops such as bajra and jowar during the kharif (monsoon) season. Mustard is the main crop in the area during the rabi (winter) season and Bharatpur is the largest mustard growing division covering about 48 percent of the total production of Rajasthan. “There has been a shift from the cultivation of cereal crops to oilseeds over the last few decades,” says Lakhvir Singh, sarpanch of Sikri gram panchayat.

Oilseed crops like mustard are grown for cash in the dry region that gets just about 664 mm of rainfall in a year. “The crop has seen a lot of price fluctuation due to cheaper imports of palm oil by India, yet farmers in the area don’t have an adequate option in crops to shift since there is not enough water for irrigation in the area,” says Singh.

Sikri bandh goes dry

The main source of surface irrigation here is the Sikri bandh, a diversion irrigation system on Ruparel. This is a seasonal river that originates from Udainath hills in Thanagazi tehsil of Alwar and finally terminates in Bharatpur district. It passes through the forests of Sariska from where it draws its flow. This drainage and flood control system was initially introduced by the rulers of the erstwhile princely states of Alwar and Bharatpur.

The inundation irrigation system evolved over a period of two centuries to utilise the rainy season flows of non-perennial rivers. The system comprises the diversion of surplus river flow from the river through canals, inundation of large area and storage of water in small and medium shallow reservoirs. As per the district gazetteer of Bharatpur, “Surface water conservation is done through 197 earthen dams with a total storage capacity of about 226.7 million cubic metres. There are a total of 90 canals with a total length of 650 km. This unique system helped in replenishing the phreatic aquifer with freshwater and suppressed groundwater salinity”.

These filled up with monsoon inflows and depleted later in the months of September and October to provide inundation irrigation downstream as well as to allow the growing of rabi crops in the reservoir area. The system received waters from a canal in Natni ka Bara in Alwar district and fed the traditional earthen dams or johads in the area. An agreement dating to the princely estate times assured 55 percent of water to Bharatpur while Alwar got 45 percent water.

“The system is not operational today because of the reduced capacity of diversion channels, silting of canals, riverbeds and detention reservoirs. There is a need to restore the existing irrigation system through desilting measures. More than anything, the water flow into these structures has reduced. The system, with its elaborate canal, distributaries and sluices, is completely dry since 2012,” says Gujjar. He adds that “the construction of johads and anicuts for water harvesting from 1985 onwards by the NGO Tarun Bharat Sangh has helped improve the water availability in the upper reaches of the Ruparel in Alwar district but has inopportunely reduced the inflow into our system”.

As a result, the farmers are heavily dependent on tube wells nowadays, which have proliferated even in the canal beds. “The falling water tables have worsened the salinity problem in the area, and pulses, being highly sensitive to salinity, cannot be grown in the area any longer,” says Asiya, a farmer from Hussepur, a village adjacent to Sikri.

Not enough waters from the Gurgaon canal

The other source of irrigation that the Sikri Kisan Sangharsh Samiti has been demanding for is its share of the Yamuna waters from the Gurgaon canal. Bharatpur district has been getting much less than its due share of Yamuna waters. As per the decision of the Upper Yamuna River Board (UYRB), Rajasthan was allocated 1917 cusecs from Tajewala head and 1281 cusecs at Okhla head works. Of Rajasthan’s allocation of nine percent of Yamuna waters, the state gets very less even when excess water is available in the river between July and October every year.  

“The Sikri irrigation system was expected to get 500 cusecs of irrigation water. From Okhla head works, 200 cusecs of Yamuna water is being received in Bharatpur from the Gurgaon canal that passes through Haryana and another 100 cusecs from the Bharatpur feeder that passes through Uttar Pradesh,” says Gujjar.

Rajasthan has not been getting its due share of water and has on various occasions raised the issue of short supply of Yamuna water in the various meetings of the UYRB. Committees were formed and a chief minister-level meeting was held to discuss the various issues related to water sharing.

Rajasthan’s argument is that there is unauthorised lifting of water from Gurgaon canal by Haryana farmers which the state has not taken adequate steps to control. Serious steps to stop unauthorised lifting of Rajasthan’s share of Yamuna water in its territory by joint patrolling or by other suitable mechanism are proposed. It was also decided that water should be measured at the release point in Gurgaon canal at Haryana territory and at the receiving point in Rajasthan territory.

The UYRB has also not been able to ensure compliance of its decision on water sharing. Rajasthan had requested the UYRB for joint gauging on the existing G&D (gauge & discharge) sites at Rajasthan border and requested to establish the G&D sites at the starting point of Bharatpur Feeder and Gurgaon canal.

The help of the Central Water Commission in establishing and monitoring of G&D sites was also sought but things have not moved on the ground. The unaccounted difference should be compensated by Haryana either by stopping the theft of water or by supplying extra water.

Projects in the pipeline

A new phase of the Gurgaon canal is in the offing—Gurgaon canal phase II irrigation project. It plans to provide waters to the areas that are already fed by the Gurgaon canal. “Ideally, the government should have planned the Gurgaon canal phase II for the areas left out from phase I. But in this case, there is no such proposal on the table,” says Narendra Bainsla, a member of Sikri Kisan Sangharsh Samiti.

Jats are the dominant caste in the area and wield enormous power, social and political. “That could be the reason why the proposed irrigation project went through Jat-dominated areas while villages dominated by Gujjars and Muslims were left out of the plan. The Samiti’s demand is that the government alter the proposed plan under the Gurgaon canal phase II irrigation project and divert the waters to feed the Sikri irrigation project. This project, costing about 40 crores, would entail lifting the waters by up to 27 feet. The technical feasibility report has already been prepared and this is entirely possible if there is political will,” says Lakhvir Singh.

For those like Gujjar who have been hearing the same promises for decades now, the government’s assurances ring hollow. “Time and again people come, say things will happen. Politicians come for votes and go. But no one does anything. I've been seeing this for years,” says Gujjar.

The act of supplying canal-based irrigation waters to the Sikri area is fraught with its own risks—the risk of the water being gobbled up for water-intensive crops like paddy and sugarcane. There is a need to move away from a mere restoration and increase of storage capacity of village ponds, anicuts, earthen dams, tanks and canals to improving the water use efficiency to meet the future water demand. 

Put aside Rs 500 crore for lake clean-up: NGT to Karnataka government

Taking note of the authorities' neglect of pollution in Bellandur and Varthur lakes, the National Green Tribunal has ordered the Karnataka government to put aside Rs 500 crore towards the cleaning up of these lakes. The tribunal has also directed Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to pay Rs 50 crore as environment compensation to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). The tribunal has also sought an action plan for the lake clean-up in one month and has asked for a performance guarantee of Rs 100 crore, which shall be paid in case of failure to implement the plan within the timeline. 

Centre approves Shahpurkandi dam project on Ravi river

Keeping in view the provisions of the Indus Water Treaty between India and Pakistan, the union cabinet has given its go-ahead to the Shahpurkandi dam project on Ravi river in Punjab. The project which was planned 17 years ago, will help India arrest the water flowing through the Madhopur headworks downstream to Pakistan. The project has been planned to get completed in June 2022 and envisages to create an additional irrigation potential of 5,000 hectares in Punjab and 32,173 hectares in Jammu & Kashmir. The project will also generate 206 MW of hydropower in Punjab. 

Green nod to Char Dham highway comes under SC scanner

The Supreme Court has sought the Centre's response to the expansion of the national highway network in sensitive mountains of Uttarakhand. The ambitious plan to connect the Char Dham pilgrimage spots—Gangotri, Yamunotri, Kedarnath and Badrinath—in Uttarakhand through a 900-kilometre road network had received the green clearance from the National Green Tribunal. The proposal, however, drew scepticism from environmental activists who fear that more development in the fragile hills of the state will affect the ecological balance of the region and can also lead to another disaster like the flood in Kedarnath in 2013. 

Stage I forest clearance no more a prerequisite for converting forest land

In a letter to the Maharashtra government regarding forest diversion for several coal mining projects of Western Coalfields Ltd (WCL), the environment ministry has made forest rights act irrelevant in the initial stage. As per the Forest Conservation Act (FCA), 1980, forest clearance is carried out in two stages—Stage I, the in-principle approval, and Stage II, the final approval. However, according to experts, exemption from Stage I clearance will not only dilute the importance of the Forest Rights Act in the name of ease of doing business but will also disregard the rights of tribal communities.  

Panel recommends leasing of wasteland to the corporate sector for re-greening

In its report, the expert committee appointed by the environment ministry for suggesting ways to increase the green cover outside forests has recommended to lease wasteland to the corporate sector for re-greening. The committee has also recommended evolving business models for tree cultivation, issuance of green bonds, development of appropriate public-private partnership (PPP) models involving the private sector and forest corporations. The recommendations are made towards the completion of the Intended Nationally Determined Contribution targets which aims to bring 33 percent of the geographical area under forest and tree cover by 2030. 

This is a roundup of important policy matters from December 4-10, 2018. Also, read news this week.

Most nations lack the political will to fight climate change: COP24

According to a recent report, Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) 2019, released by Germanwatch and the NewClimate Institute at the 24th Conference of Parties (COP 24) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, only a few countries have started working towards limiting global warming below 2°C or even keeping it at 1.5°C. India has ranked 11th in the index due to the country's low levels of per capita GHG emissions and an ambitious mitigation target for 2030. The index highlighted that the gap between the current emission levels and actual efforts to fight climate change is widening every day.  

Pune eateries saving water through the 'half filled water glass' initiative

In a bid to save water and avoid its wastage, the Pune Restaurant and Hoteliers Association (PRAHA) has asked hotels and restaurants to adopt the “half-filled water glass” initiative. The PRAHA will also distribute theme cards on water conservation to hotels and restaurants to make the customers understand the rationale behind the initiative. As Pune hotels wake up to the need of saving water, the motels and farmhouses in Delhi has come under the Supreme Court radar for wasting food and water at wedding functions. The apex court also questioned the authorities for preferring commercial interest to public interest. 

Yamuna is fighting to stay alive: Panel

According to the monitoring committee, less than two percent stretch of the Yamuna river accounts for 76 percent of pollution in the river. This stretch is from Wazirabad to Okhla in Delhi and bears the maximum discharge of untreated industrial and domestic wastes. The committee further pointed out that the river is fighting hard to stay alive and in order to rejuvenate the river, it is important to maintain a minimum environmental flow in it. The committee has recommended forming a team of scientists from the CPCB, the DPCC and other institutions like IIT Delhi or NEERI to carry out inspections and submit reports for remedial action.

Bullet train project: Gujarat farmers to take their fight to Japan

The farmers, villagers and activists in Gujarat have met the three-member Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA) team during their two-day visit and have shown their opposition to the 508-km Mumbai–Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail Corridor (MAHSR). The farmers alleged that the project is anti-farmer and is in violation of the land acquisition rules. Moreover, the project is going to pass through the reserved forest, mangroves and around 80,000 trees will be felled. It will also affect the water sources and biodiversity of the entire corridor. The farmers have threatened the JICA team to take their fight to Japan if their demands are not met. 

Environmentalists for 'Save Kodagu, Save Cauvery' campaign

As part of the 'Save Kodagu, Save Cauvery' campaign, nearly 500 environmentalists across Karnataka marched to Madikeri against the expansion of the National Highway 275 between Kushalnagar, Madikeri and Sampaje. The projects worth Rs 10,000 crore will pass through the fragile terrain, which is still recovering from the devastating floods in August. According to the activists' claims, the projects serve the vested interest of people while neglecting the plight of the local people and the ecology of Kodagu which is a principle catchment of Cauvery. The protestors have also asked for a greater allocation of flood relief plan for the region instead of these development projects.

This is a roundup of important news published between December 4 - 10, 2018. Also read policy matters this week.

Droughts are one of the most feared natural calamities in India impacting food production, the economy as well as the morale of millions of farmers in a country where agriculture is the livelihood of 60 percent of the population.

This year too, 255 districts of the country have received deficient or scanty rainfall. More than 50 percent of the districts in Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Meghalaya, Karnataka, Arunachal Pradesh and Goa have been affected. Some states have declared drought while others are still in the process of doing so. 

The agricultural sector is undergoing a grave crisis and hundreds of farmers have marched to Delhi to raise their concerns, the water crisis being an important one!

Studies show that droughts will be more frequent in India!

This is not the first time that the country is witnessing droughts. There were 26 major droughts during the period of 1871–2015, when the All India Summer Monsoon Rainfall (AISMR) was found to be lesser than the mean rainfall for the country.

While many of these droughts have negatively affected agricultural output and caused immense suffering to people, recent studies show that the risk of droughts over India is predicted to increase further, particularly so in the northeastern and western parts of India!

What are droughts and how are they defined?

A drought can be defined as:

“An extended period—a season, a year, or several years—of deficient precipitation compared to the statistical multi-year average for a region that results in water shortage for some activity, group, or environmental sector”.

While this is a general definition, droughts can be classified into the following categories:

• Meteorological droughts occur when there are long gaps in normal rainfall and are measured based on the degree of dryness and the duration of the dry period.
• Agricultural droughts occur when there is insufficient soil moisture to meet the needs of a crop at a particular time. Agricultural drought usually follows meteorological drought and occurs before a hydrological drought. Agricultural drought can be measured through indicators such as lack of rainfall, changes in evapotranspiration, soil water deficits, reduced groundwater or reservoir levels etc.
• Hydrological droughts are the result of surface and subsurface water supplies from streams, rivers and lakes becoming scarce due to scanty rainfall. The frequency and severity of hydrological droughts are defined at the watershed or river basin scale and are influenced by factors such as land degradation or land use changes, construction of dams etc.
• Socioeconomic droughts occur when water shortage starts to affect people’s lives, individually and collectively.

This classification of droughts is very useful to measure drought frequency, severity, and duration.

What are the causes of droughts?

Droughts are caused due to lack of rains over extended periods of time. A number of factors such as temperature changes between land and water, changes in air circulation and erratic weather patterns can affect rainfall frequency and intensity leading to droughts 

Human activities such as land use changes, deforestation, urbanisation, pollution can also have a negative impact on rainfall leading to dry conditions and loss of soil moisture.

Poor rainfall and high temperatures coupled with overuse of surface and groundwater resources and poor water management practices can lead to demand for water exceeding the available water supply. These can trigger droughts.

Why is India vulnerable to droughts?

A number of factors make India susceptible to droughts such as:

• Yearly, seasonal and regional variations in rainfall in spite of high average annual rainfall 
• A short span of fewer than 100 days during the south-west monsoon
• Loss of water during heavy rains as surface runoff
• Less rainfall over 33 percent of the cropped area in the country
• Over-exploitation of groundwater resources and poor conservation and storage mechanisms for surface water leading to inadequate water availability in times of scanty rainfall
• Steady decline in per capita water availability for humans and animals even in non-drought years
• Rapid deforestation, urbanisation and climate change that has been leading to erratic rainfall patterns
• Limited irrigation coverage leading to excessive dependence of agriculture on rainfall

Areas vulnerable to droughts in India

As high as 68 percent of the cropped area in India is vulnerable to droughtsof which 33 percent is classified as 'chronically drought-prone' comprising desert and semiarid regions that receive less than 750 mm mean annual rainfall.

Thirty-five percent area receives 750 mm to 1125 mm rainfall and is classified as 'drought-prone' that is confined to the arid, semi-arid and sub-humid regions of peninsular and western India and include the states of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra.

How is a drought declared in India?

There are considerable variations in the way droughts are declared at the state level in India. Many states still continue to rely on the traditional annewari/ paisewari/ girdawari (rough estimate of standing crops in terms of how many annas, paisa in a rupee, where the rupee is considered as the standard measure of full crops) systems of drought estimation where crop production estimates are obtained by calculating the value of crops as the value of the actual yield after harvest in relation to the value of the crop grown.

Areas with less than 50 percent annewari / paisewari / girdawari are considered to be affected by a drought. The annewari / paisewari / girdawari figures for kharif crops are calculated in December, while those for rabi crops in March. This has, however, led to a lack of uniform classification of droughts.

The Government of India has laid down revised norms for drought declaration in 2015 and according to the Manual for Drought Management published in 2016, the following four categories of indices are looked at to assess the extent of drought:

• Rainfall-related indices
• Remote sensing-based vegetation indices
• Crop situation-related indices
• Hydrological indices

Rainfall is considered to be the most important while others are looked at in combination with rainfall.

Read more here

Other factors that are considered in the evaluation of droughts include:

• Fodder availability, pricing and information on cattle camps
• Drinking water availability for humans and livestock
• Migration of people in search of employment
• Agricultural and non-agricultural wages compared with normal times
• Availability and price of food grains and essential commodities

The intensity of the drought is assessed by looking at the values of at least three of the above indicators and:

• Severe drought is declared if three impact indicators are in the severe category
• Moderate drought is declared if two of the three impact indicators are in the “moderate” or “severe” class
• Drought is classified as normal for all other cases

In the case of “severe” or “moderate” drought, states are asked to conduct a sample survey to make a final determination of drought.

Read more here

Institutional structures to deal with droughts in the country

The Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare (DAC&FW) under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare is the apex body that formulates policies and institutional structures for drought management at the national and state levels. The department has a Drought Management Cell (DMC) that gathers information from various sources, monitors drought conditions, issues advisories, coordinates with central government and state government ministries and other concerned agencies to mitigate the effects of drought. The department updates and reviews the Crisis Management Plan (CMP) that decides the roles and responsibilities of different stakeholders in the central and state governments and their agencies in managing droughts.

A Crisis Management Group (CMG) for drought management is also expected to come up to manage various stages of drought at the central, state and district levels. Another plan is the creation of separate Drought Monitoring Centres (DMCs) at the state level which would report to the State Disaster Management Authorities (SDMA).

The DMCs can collect, collate and analyse information on drought obtained from National and State level agencies such as the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Mahalanobis National Crop Forecast Centre (MNCFC), Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture (CRIDA), Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), National and State Remote Sensing Application Centres (N&SRSAC), Central Water Commission (CWC) and Central Ground Water Board (CGWB).

Read more about it here

Narrow approach to drought management hinders progress

Drought management, however, continues to be inadequately addressed in the country, not due to lack of policies and institutional framework, but due to lack of proper planning, coordination between different functioning units and implementation at the ground level. Many also blame the very approach of drought management that focuses on quick-fix solutions without taking into consideration the long-term sustainability and livelihood issues of the farmers. Declaration of drought has also been found to be riddled with problems and the new norms have been blamed for being too strict making it difficult for the states to prove "severe" drought and get relief from the Centre.

While scanty rainfall, depleting water tables continue to fuel the agricultural crisis in the country, it is clear that we need to be better prepared to mitigate the impacts of a drought. Concerted action at the policy level by giving agriculture the importance it deserves and urgent adaptation strategies to cope with the situation need to be implemented urgently.

Until a few decades ago, the Ganga flowed with gay abandon and descended with rapidity into the plains. Today the waters have withdrawn from its banks and downstream of the hydropower and irrigation projects that have hindered its flow, the Ganga is totally dry.

The demand to restore and maintain the wholesomeness of the Ganga has grown from all quarters of society over the years. The union government, through its National Mission for Clean Ganga, issued a notification on October 10, 2018 laying down the flow specifications. The ecological flow (e-flow) or the minimum quantity of water that the various stretches of the Ganga must necessarily have all through the year for the ecosystem and biodiversity requirements is specified in it.

What does the e-flow notification say?

As per the notification, the upper stretches of the Ganga—from its origins in the glaciers and until Haridwar—would have to maintain 20 percent of the monthly average flow of the preceding 10 days between November and March, which is the dry season; 25 percent of the average during the lean season of October, April and May; and 30 percent of the monthly average during the monsoon months of June-September.

For the main stem of the Ganga, from Haridwar in Uttarakhand to Unnao, Uttar Pradesh, the notification specifies minimum flow at various barrages—Bhimgoda (Haridwar) must ensure a minimum of 36 cubic metres per second (cumecs) between October-May and 57 cumecs in the monsoon; and the barrages at Bijnor, Narora and Kanpur must maintain a minimum of 24 cumecs in the non-monsoon months of October-May, and 48 cumecs during the monsoon months of June-September.

The new norms would require hydropower projects located along the river to modify their operations so as to ensure they are in compliance. Power projects that don’t meet these norms as yet would be given three years to comply and “mini and micro-projects” would be exempt from these requirements. The Central Water Commission (CWC) would be the designated authority to collect relevant data and submit flow monitoring-cum-compliance reports on a quarterly basis to the National Mission for Clean Ganga, according to the notification.

Minimum flow directive inadequate

This is likely to become a template for notifications on other rivers of the country. But does this mean we will never see the Ganga dry ever as claimed by Nitin Gadkari, union water resources minister? No, say legal, water and environmental experts who deliberated on this at the India Rivers Week 2018 held at the World Wildlife Fund, New Delhi on November 24-26, 2018.

The forum discussed the impacts of hydropower projects, interlinking of rivers, waterways, dredging, river-front development, unsustainable sand mining, encroachments into the river and extraction of groundwater. It was of the view that the government had made little effort to assess the impact of these interventions on the river.

River needs unobstructed and not just continuous flow

“E-flow is a regime of flow in a river that mimics the natural pattern and is about maintaining the river’s hydrological integrity. It is not just a flow of water, but of nutrients and sediments. Because a lot of our rivers are already regulated, the challenge is to put in place a meaningful e-flow,” says Jagdish Krishnaswamy, ATREE, Bangalore.

Prof. Vinod Tare, Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur who was involved in the preparation of the Ganga River Basin Management Plan as a part of the consortium of seven IITs says, “The government hasn’t disclosed the existing ecological flows at various stretches but has gone ahead and set the minimum levels, which are not place-specific.” Earlier, the B.K. Chaturvedi committee had recommended the release of 20 to 30 percent of water from hydropower projects as an interim measure until the IIT consortium suggested the desired e-flows.

IIT consortium study ignored

The IIT consortium, in turn, had recommended the release of about 50 percent of water as e-flows for maintaining the wholesomeness of the river. Tare was disappointed that the recommendations of the IIT consortium were ignored and the government went ahead with the 20-30 percent flow figures without any public discussion. The study by IIT consortium was exhaustive and suggested site-specific limits on e-flow. Agreeing with Tare, Shashi Shekhar, former secretary of the water resources ministry says, “The targets for the minimum flow are way below what’s needed for the ideal health of the river. Water is both a part and product of riverine ecology. If you remove the product, the part gets destroyed.”

Shekhar points to the decline in the baseflow in the Ganga river basin. This is also corroborated by a study by IIT-Kharagpur published recently in Scientific Reports magazine that points to “unprecedented low levels of water in several lower reaches” in the last few summer seasons. The study suggests that this was “possibly related to the groundwater depletion in the Gangetic aquifers, which is also impacting the riverine ecology and food security of the people”.

In the notification, the government has brushed aside the need to halt construction activities along the Ganga. Without this, it is difficult to maintain the Gangatva or the essence of the Ganga,” says Manoj Misra of Yamuna Jiye Abhiyaan. “The Centre’s Namami Gange programme is about cleaning up the river focusing on "nirmaldhara" (unpolluted flow) at the cost of the other important related aspect of "aviraldhara" (uninterrupted flow).

The scientific concept of longitudinal connectivity i.e., the need to modify the design of hydroelectric projects and dams to ensure water flowed continuously, as well as of lateral connectivity with the floodplains during monsoon has been ignored. “The free migration of aquatic species has been completely ignored by the notification. Keystone species in the river such as Mahseer or Snow Trout need to be preserved in all seasons,” says Suresh Babu, director, River Basin Programme, World Wildlife Fund.

E-flow implementation process dubious

Questioning the central government’s recent notification on environmental flow, Himanshu Thakkar of South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People (SANDRP) points to a joint report of the Ministries of Environment & Forests and Water Resources of 2015 that presents the scientific methodology on assessment of e-flows in a river. “The present notification does not have a scientific basis and is ad hoc. Further, it is alarming that the notification mandates minimal flows three years from now,” says Thakkar. He raises doubts on the e-flow implementation process as the notification says that the minimal flows have to be ensured by the project developers and the Central Water Commission, totally oblivious of the conflict of interest involved. The notification also leaves the technical modifications needed to comply to the e-flow levels with the developers.

The government has also come up with a draft Ganga Protection Bill that does not unambiguously list the adverse impacts of various interventions like dams, hydropower projects and waterways on the river. Nor does it entail oversight by a Ganga council as suggested by Prof. Agarwal. “Setting aside 20-30 percent flows of a river for e-flow is a contentious decision and looks like an allowance to free up the rest of the waters. The fear is that the planners will begin to build more and more hydroelectric dams in the upper reaches and dams in the middle stretches across the river to extract the remaining 70-80 percent water. This could be a way to fool people and make way for more dams,” says Mallika Bhanot of Ganga Ahvaan, an Uttarakhand-based NGO working for the protection of river Ganga.

“Without the downscaled data available at the district level, discussions about e-flow are meaningless. Such data needs to be pooled together and a generally agreed modelling exercise can give the state of water availability in the Ganga basin and a reasonably accurate idea of e-flow,” says Dhruba Das Gupta, project director at SCOPE, Kolkata.

The government has had a spotty environmental record and has been swinging back and forth on its decisions. Instead of coming up with a significant policy change, what the government has done is to bring out a half-baked e-flow, going back on its promise to step up the "aviralta" and the "nirmalta" of the Ganga. What is required is a credible roadmap map to clean the Ganga and restore its flow.

Uday Mandrekar (40) is a popular boatman on the Chorao island of Goa. He is known for his formidable knowledge on birds in the area so much so that he is often referred to as the bird man of Chorao. He is a private boatman and a tourist guide who can take you deep into the mangroves and waterways of the island.

Chorao island is just five km away from the capital city of Panaji. Along the Mandovi river, it is one of the largest islands in Goa. The island has a unique ecosystem. It has one of the best mangrove forests and houses most of the mangrove species found in Goa.

Uday has dedicated his life towards protecting the flora and fauna of the island. During his bird watching trips, he educates tourists about the harmful effects of garbage on avian and aquatic life. On days when he is free, Mandrekar goes about cleaning the garbage thrown in the mangroves.

The film “Birdman of Chorao” by Shashank Bhosle was one among the selected documentary films that were screened during the eighth edition of Quotes from the Earth—an Environmental Film Festival 2018 held at New Delhi from December 6-8. The film festival was organised by Toxics Link and India International Centre with support from the Swedish Society For Nature Conservation. The film is about Uday Mandrekar's efforts.

About the filmmaker:

Shashank Bhosley is a passionate photographer and an award-winning filmmaker who endeavours to raise awareness on environmental issues through his photographs and films.