In this overview of 2023 issues related to Dams, Rivers and People in Bangladesh, we see how rivers dominate the discourse in one of the most river intense nations of the world. As expected, as India and Bangladesh share the rivers in so many ways, the bilateral issues also dominate. These includes fisheries, power sharing, navigation, besides of course water sharing. As expected, Teesta water sharing issue dominates more than others.
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GW Overview 2023: Top Ten Judicial Actions
(Feature Image: Filled with untreated industrial effluents Drain No. 6 in May 2023, passing through Kundli industrial area in Sonipat and causing groundwater pollution along its course. Bhim Singh Rawat/SANDRP)
This third and concluding 2023 yearend overview on Groundwater in India, compiles top ten judicial interventions dealing with the depletion and contamination of groundwater. The SC asking Punjab govt to review groundwater conservation law in the face of air pollution crisis in Delhi is the biggest judicial development of 2023. The Kerala HC directing state govt to bring selling of well water under Food Safety & Standards Act 2006 & Regulation 2011 comes next.
The NGT too on its part has taken note for groundwater depletion and contimination across the country and issued notices to central and state governments. Following NGT orders, there have been action against commercial and industrial units extracting groundwater without permission in Delhi and NCR areas. In another ongoing noteworthy case, the NGT has asked MoJS consider prohibiting groundwater use for cricket ground maintenance.
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GW Overview 2023: Top ten Govt actions
(Feature Image: Drona Sagar Taal in Kashipur, Uttarakhand being filled with tubewell water in April 2023. Bhim Singh Rawat/SANDRP)
This second part of yearend overview on Groundwater issues in India lists top ten Government actions. While the groundwater has become backbone for all types of consumption including domestic water supply, irrigation, industrial use; depletion of the finite resource continue; the government efforts particularly of central government have been limited to mapping and monitoring. There is neither a recognition that groundwater is India’s water lifeline, nor is there any serious attempt at effective bottom up, decentralised regulation of groundwater.
The aquifer mapping scheme ongoing since 2012 has been extended till March 2026. The govt has planned to increase the number of monitoring wells and equipped them with digital sensors. Meanwhile the Parliament panel report has revealed that the National Water Mission (NWM) lacks adequate funds and autonomy. Several state governments have taken respective measures for protection of groundwater sources however they have largely shown no noteworthy results so far.
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India Groundwater 2023: Reaching Depletion Tipping Point?
Like previous years, 2023 too has not seen any significant governmental decisions addressing the two key problems of ongoing contamination and depletion of groundwater resources across the country. On the contrary, the new reports and studies published during the year indicate some areas reaching depletion tipping points, land subsidence and climate change impacts compounding the situation.
This first part of yearend overview through top ten developments highlights the status of existing and emerging problems related to groundwater in India. The second and third parts will focus on government and judicial actions related to the subject during 2023.
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DRP 150124: The Catchment degradation in Cauvery Basin
The study by Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore has brought to light one of the key reasons for the water problems of Cauvery basin: 12850 Sq km of Cauvery basin has lost natural vegetation over the fifty years between 1965 and 2016. The trend is likely to have continued, possibly at an accelerated pace in the eight years since 2016. It may be useful to assess the hydrological implications of this massive destruction of the Cauvery basin.
SANDRP has been highlighting that the reason for the more frequent floods and followed by water scarcity and drought, in spite of somewhat increased rainfall under changing climate is exactly this, the degradation of the Cauvery catchment, including destruction of local water bodies, groundwater recharging mechanisms and natural vegetation.
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DRP 080124: Supreme Court stays Sham post facto clearances
(Feature Image: A Ramganga tributary before joining the river at Marchula, Ramnagar in Nov. 2022. Bhim Singh Rawat/SANDRP)
Post facto environment clearances are indeed a sham as the Hindustan Times Edit has said. It is welcome that the Supreme Court of India has stayed, on Jan 2, 2024, the MoEF memorandums allowing such post facto environmental clearances. Following a petition filed by the Mumbai based environmental group Vanashakti, the sham practice that has been going on since March 2017. Such clearances are clearly contradictory, in letter and spirit to the prior environment clearances as required under the EIA notification of 2006.
The Sham practice should have been stayed much earlier, for example when the Madras High Court gave an interim stay on the MoEF notification of 2017. But unfortunately, the Supreme Court then interpreted that the Madras High Court order will only be limited to Tamil Nadu. Or it may have been stayed earlier by NGT.
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SC & NGT Reject Delhi Police’s Plea for Construction on Yamuna Floodplain
(Feature Image: Part of Yamuna river & its floodplain downstream Geeta Colony bridge in Delhi in June 2023. Bhim Singh Rawat/SANDRP)
In a welcome decision, the Supreme Court of India has rejected Delhi Police’s petition seeking permission for construction of the Police trainees’ accommodation in the floodplains of Yamuna River in Delhi. The plea was rejected by the Bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan on January 2, 2024.
The Bench was hearing the Civil Appeal (No. 000002 of 2024 (Arising out of Diary No.44256 of 2023) by Commissioner of Police Delhi which was represented by Mukesh Kumar Maroria, Senior Government Advocate against National Green Tribunal (NGT) dismissal of same proposal on 28 September 2020.
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2023: Fly Ash Bund Breach Incidents in India
During 2023, we have found two incidents of fly ash bund breach in India. The first incident occurred in Waregaon under Kamptee taluka of Nagpur, Maharashtra in morning hours of July 19, 2023. The fly ashy pond belonged to Khaparkheda Thermal Power Station (KTPS) which is owned by Maharashtra State Power Generation Co Ltd (MAHAGENCO) a state-run power company.
The fly ash pond was brimful following heavy rainfall when a portion of its wall collapsed around 08:00 am. Resultantly, about 15 agricultural farms were flooded with toxic slurry damaging the crops. About 100 acres of agricultural land were filled with fly ash sludge which also entered the Kanhan River.
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2023: Safety & Sustainability Concerns On Dams & Hydro Power Projects in India
(Feature Image: Drone image from the site of the Teesta III dam in Sikkim, looking towards Chungthang town. Image by Praful Rao of Save the Hills, Source: The Landslide Blog by Dave Petley.)
In this fourth part of annual overview, SANDRP compiles the issues affecting the safety and sustainability of dams and hydro power projects in India during 2023. The report starts with governance and management issues of dams and hydro power projects as highlighted in our weekly Dams, Rivers & People News Bulletin (DRP NB) and blogs all through the year amid rising concerns and disasters on these structures across the country. It then covers some relevant judicial interventions and governments decisions on the issue.
Please also see part one of the series compiling dams and hydro projects related disasters in India in 2023; part two on peoples resistance against destructive dams and hydro projects, part three on dam induced flood incidents in 2023. In the fifth and final part, we have tracked the important dams and hydro projects related decisions taken by Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) and Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) during 2023.
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2023: Incidents of Dam Induced Floods in India
(Feature Image: Flooded streets of Ankleshwar, Bharuch district, Sept. 19, 2023. Photo: Kalpesh Gurjar/India Today)
In this third annual overview on dams and hydro power projects, we have compiled the reports on flood disasters caused by unscientific or improper operation of dams, hydro and barrage projects in India in 2023. The report highlights criminal negligence by SSNNL and BBMP resulting in massive flood destruction in parts of Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.
Similarly, the sudden discharges from hydro power dams in Assam, Himachal and Uttarakhand have caused flash flood deluge damaging human properties along the respective rivers. The report also covers some incidents of barrage induced flood events along Ganga in Uttar Pradesh and along Yamuna in Delhi. The first part of the series on Hydro and dam related accidents and second part on People’s Protests against Hydro & Dam Projects in India in 2023 can be seen here and here respectively.
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