Groundwater 2024: Top ten Actions by Governments

February 14, 2025February 18, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: A water conservation message painted on a wall in Dehradun. BS Rawat/SANDRP, May 2024)

The fourth part of annual overview covers the top ten actions taken by central and various state governments regarding conservation and recharge of groundwater India in 2024. The 1^st part of the yearend round documents important studies and the 2^nd part and 3rd part highlights reports on the proverbial toxic-berg, rising contamination and depletion of groundwater quality in India. The fifth part covers top ten judicial interventions dealing with groundwater issues during 2024.

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DRP News Bulletin

DRP NB 100225: EAC & MoEF’s shocking decision to clear Teesta 3 Dam raises a stir

February 10, 2025February 10, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Teesta III HEP dam was washed away on the intervening night of Oct. 3-4, 2023 on account of a GLOF. The flood in the downstream was magnified by the dam disaster. Photo: Mayalmit Lepcha/Source: Sanctuary Nature Foundation)

The decision of Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF)’s Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) on River Valley Projects on Jan 10 2025 has understandably raised a stir and earlier the EAC and MoEF reviews and reverses this decision, better it will be. The decision is shocking on a number of counts. The EAC itself had raised a number of issues related to the project in its earlier meeting, but decided to clear the project without getting satisfactory resolution of the issues.

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Yamuna River

Yamuna Manthan 050225: River Needs Attention beyond Politics & Elections

February 5, 2025February 5, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Yamuna river downstream Okhla barrage in Delhi on Jan 29, 2025. Bhim Singh Rawat/SANDRP)

Political blame games surrounding the Delhi assembly election have brought Yamuna in focus for about past one month. Disappointingly, the central and all state govts in basin are responsible for continual degradation of river and none of the parties have offered practical solutions to improve the condition of the river in the national capital.

It’s a fact that the pollution from Haryana drains, namely Dhanaura Escape in Karnal, Drain No 2 in Panipat and Drain No. 6 and 8 in Sonipat have been bringing untreated effluents in increasing amounts in the river upstream of Delhi, ultimately severely crippling the Wazirabad barrage based potable water supply in the city. In addition to diversion of river waters for industrial, irrigational and potable demands from Hathni Kund Barrage, increasing unsustainable mechanized mining for about past eight years have been ruining lean season flows in the river in upper segment. The concerned central govt departments and Haryana government are required to address these issues effectively as part of a solution to improve the health of river in Delhi.

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Wetlands

World Wetlands Day 2025: Ten Positive Stories from Urban India

February 4, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Dharmesh Barai, who leads the NGO Environment Life Foundation (ELF), began the “Mangrove Clean-Up Drive” on August 15. Source: TIE)

This compilation highlights ten positive efforts put in to protect the lakes, waterbodies and mangroves in urban India by individuals and environmental groups during 2024. The top ten stories come from five metros: Delhi (3), Mumbai (2), Bengaluru (2), Chennai (2) and Kolkata (1). We are sure such positive actions also happened in other cities in 2024, but we could not find them.

We have also compiled the top ten positive wetlands reports from the countryside here. Also see overviews on the worsening plight of Ramsar wetlands, deteriorating situation of wetlands in India in general and some important judicial interventions concerning protection and management of wetlands in the country that have taken place during the past one year.

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Dams

DRP NB 030225: Water Anarchy in Gujarat in Narmada water allocation?

February 3, 2025February 3, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

A report this week quotes a Govt of Gujarat (GOG) insider saying that GOG is giving 16.7% of SSP (Sardar Sarovar Project) water for industries (with more in pipeline) against planned allocation of just 2% (0.2 Million Acre Feet or MAF). Similarly, against planned allocation of zero for Urban areas in Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Vadodara, Kheda and Bharuch, most large urban areas are getting Narmada water. However, the insider says, the area irrigated by the SSP is only 33% of the targeted area, with largest water quantities going to already irrigated central Gujarat. Similarly, with the Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal (NWDT) asked Gujarat to provide water for the SSP Downstream areas from its allocated share, but Gujarat keeps claiming it has no water for this and asks other states to provide water for the downstream areas from common pool. It seems the worst fears of the project critiques are coming true. The insider has in fact characterized this state of affairs as water anarchy in Gujarat.

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Wetlands

World Wetlands Day 2025: Top Ten Positive Actions & Reports

February 3, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Villagers plant mangrove saplings in an island off Kudikadu village in Tamil Nadu’s Cuddalore district. Credit: The Print)

Marking the World Wetlands Day 2025, this article carries top ten positive reports from 2024 on protection and conservation of wetlands in India. The overview highlights some remarkable steps taken by individuals, community groups, governments for restoration of wetlands, lakes, waterbodies and mangroves in the country during the past year. We have also published three overviews on the issue including the situation of Ramsar wetlands, other wetlands and important judicial decisions regarding management of wetlands in the country.

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Wetlands

World Wetlands Day 2025: More Judicial Decisions, Less Actions by Govts

February 2, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Part of a marsh land already covered by residential buildings in Asan river basin in Dehradun being filled up further in May 2024. BS Rawat/SANDRP)

In third part of annual overview, we compile top ten judicial decisions taken during 2024 by various courts regarding protection and conservation wetlands in India. The first part of the overview has covered the looming threats on Ramsar sites and the second part has highlighted the deteriorating condition wetlands in the country.

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Wetlands

WWD 2025: Failing to Protect Wetlands for Common Future

February 2, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Machhi Talab in Dehradun chocked by solid waste, vegetion in May 2024. BS Rawat/SANDRP)

While we celebrate World’s Wetlands Day 2025 with theme of “Protecting Wetlands for Our Common Future”, the top ten reports from 2024 show that the plight of wetlands in India remains miserable making the future of the waterbodies and dependent people uncertain. While govts continue to be lethargic in identifying and notifying the wetlands in the country, the govts initiated developmental plans, projects are further making them vulnerable to extinction. Amid this the threats from encroachment, siltation, pollution and climate change are only increasing. Also see the first part of the overview highlighting the deteriorating situation of Ramsar wetlands in India.

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Beas · Culture · Fish Sanctuaries · Wetlands

Rewalsar Lake: Where Faiths, Ecosystems and Communities Meet

February 2, 2025February 2, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

Rivers and lakes of the Indus basin have been at the crossroads of civilizations, trade routes, and ecosystems for centuries. They are surrounded by stories and songs from many religions, languages and tribes. One such river is Beas, celebrated as Vipash[1] or the ‘breaker of chains’ in the Rigveda, circa 1500 BC. Beas originates at 4361 meters near Rohtang Pass[2] and flows through the Himalayan state of Himachal Pradesh before meeting River Sutlej in the plains of Punjab, literally “the land of five rivers’. Beas flows for about 470 kms to water some of the most fertile valleys in the world.

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Wetlands

World Wetlands Day 2025: Govts Projects, Apathy Damaging Ramsar Wetlands

February 1, 2025February 3, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: A road is being laid allegedly by a private realtor inside the Perumbakkam marshland. Photo Credit: TNIE, June 2023)

‘Protecting Wetlands for Our Common Future’ is the theme for World Wetlands Day 2025. Wetlands are ecosystems, in which water is the primary factor controlling the environment and the associated plant and animal life.

Indian government seems focusing more on increasing Ramsar wetlands number than ensuring the protection and conservation the existing Ramsar sites in country. Over the past one decade the numbers of Ramsar wetlands in India have sharply gone up from 26 in 2014 to 89 as of January 2025. Amid the thrust to increase the number, several existing or even recently declared Ramsar wetlands across the country have been facing multiple threats mainly due to governmental projects and constant negligence from the concerned authorities as can be seen from the reports from 2024 in this annual overview.

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