DRP 180923: Floodplain loss, the biggest in Asia, disaster in the making

September 18, 2023February 27, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Ongoing ghat work along Yamuna at Qudsia ghat, ISBT Dellhi. SANDRP, June 2023)

A floodplain, according to the US Federal Emergency Management Agency, is “any land area susceptible to being inundated by floodwaters from any source”. According to the report “Human alterations of the global floodplains 1992–2019”, over 460,000 sqkms of floodplain area was lost to agriculture, while another 140,000 sqkms was redeveloped to new areas over the existing floodplain. Continent-wise, Asia lost the biggest area of floodplains — a little over 200,000 sqkms — among all the continents. It was followed by South America (92,000 sqkms) and Africa (73,000 sqkms).

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Dam floods

Unaccountable Sardar Sarovar operators again bring avoidable floods in downstream Gujarat

September 17, 2023September 21, 2023 SANDRP1 Comment

Late, lethargic and unaccountable actions of Sardar Sarovar Project (SSP) Dam operators have once again contributed to huge and largely avoidable downstream floods in Gujarat. The water level at Golden Bridge in Bharuch is approaching HFL (Highest Flood Level) today on Sept 17, 2023, but these floods could have been significantly lower and much less disastrous both for SSP upstream and downstream areas if SSP authorities had taken action earlier based on actionable information available and based on sound reservoir operation principles of following a rule curve.

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Rainfall

High Rainfall days in India’s districts in August 2023

September 16, 2023 SANDRPLeave a comment

An analysis of the daily district wise rainfall data from India Meteorological Department (IMD) for the month of Aug 2023, shows that there were 500 (667 in Aug 2022[i] and 431 in Aug 2021) instances when district rainfall of a day in a district was above 50 mm. Such high rainfall instances included 424 (553 in Aug 2022 and 371 in Aug 2021) instances when rainfall was 50-100 mm, 67 (98 in Aug 2022 and 48 in Aug 2021) instances when it was 100-150 mm, 5 (13 in Aug 2022 and 11 in Aug 2021) times it was 150-200 mm and 4 (3 in Aug 2022 and 1 in Aug 2021) above 200 mm. Interestingly, in June 2023 [ii] and July 2023 [iii] there were 451 and 855 instances when rainfall was above 50 mm, while in June 2022 [iv] and July 2022 [v] there were 462 and 809 instances when rainfall in a district was above 50 mm. The July 2023 [vi] and June 2023 [vii] rainfall over India was 13.1% above normal and 10.1% below normal respectively, while the July 2022 [viii] and June 2022 [ix] rainfall all over India was 16.8% above normal and 8% below normal respectively.

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DRP News Bulletin

DRP 110923: Another independent institution-CEC destroyed

September 11, 2023February 27, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Ramganga River near Marchula. SANDRP 08 Sept. 2023)

The Govt of India’s Sept 5 2023 notification reconstituting the Central Empowered Committee completely destroys the independent nature of this institution of accountability and course correction. This institution, set up by the Supreme Court in 2002 and reconstituted in 2008, worked as eyes and ears of the Supreme Court on environmental issues. The new committee has no independent members, it will be constituted by the MoEF, MoEF itself has such an abysmally poor track record.

The notification, reports said, diluted the CEC’s autonomy on four key counts: the committee will report to the ministry, instead of the SC; the ministry will pick all the members and the SC will have no role in the process; the ministry, and not the court, will fund the committee; the provision of having two NGOs in the committee has been done away with.

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DRP News Bulletin

DRP 04092023: Will National Ganga Mission too fail to clean up Ganga?

September 4, 2023February 27, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Untreated industrial effluents being dumped in Drain No. 6, Sonipat in May 2023.)

More than 7 years have passed since the central government launched Rs. 20, 000 crores Namami Gange Programme in May 2015 replacing Ganga Action Plan (GAP) and created National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) a nodal agency to implement the programme.

The NMCG has already missed the target of cleaning the Ganga by 2019 and then by 2020 due to improper planning and Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) as accepted by G. Asok Kumar, Director General (DG), NMCG in an interview to The Week in January 2023 further extending the target to 2026.

Though Namami Gange aimed to adopt a basin wise approach with focus on e-flows, afforestation, revival of tributaries, biodiversity conservation in participatory manner; so far it has extensively worked on creation of sewage treatment infrastructures in the states along the main stem of the river.

Despite that the ground situation is far from improving as shown in the The Hindu report below which reveals that about 80 percent of the overall budget is being spent on sewage infrastructure creation and by 2026, the treatment plants capacity would be able to treat at the most 60 percent of sewage generated only along the main stem of the Ganga river.

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Rainfall

June Aug 2023: District wise rainfall in in India’s SW Monsoon

September 1, 2023September 3, 2023 SANDRPLeave a comment

In the just concluded month of Aug 2023, India received just 162.7 mm (263.8 mm in Aug 2022, 3.5% above the normal [i]) or 36.2% below normal rainfall against Aug normal rainfall of 254.9 mm as per India Meteorological department (IMD). In Aug 2021, the rainfall was 195.9 mm [ii], about 24.13% below normal and in Aug 2020, the rainfall was 327 mm [iii], or about 26.6% above normal.

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DRP News Bulletin

DRP 140823: A year after Karam dam disaster: people suffer, engineer set free, contractor building more dams

August 14, 2023February 27, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Breach in Karam dam, Madhya Pradesh. Source:- Social Media)

It was on Aug 13, 2022, a year ago when the Karam dam wall in Dhar district in Madhya Pradesh started leaking water. Two days later it collapsed. The people who suffered during the disaster continue to suffer. The engineers who were supposed to ensure proper construction of the dam, following all the norms, did not do that, were supposed to be suspended, but got reinstated elsewhere. They kept quiet in the courts. The black listed contractor continues to build more dams.

A clearer evidence of the nexus that supports unwanted, destructive, costly, corruption ridden and disastrous dams would be difficult to find. As the destruction due to dams and such other unaccountable infrastructure development plays out in Himachal Pradesh & elsewhere this year, the nexus that thrives on opaque, unaccountable and non-participatory governance continues to happily grow even as the changing rainfall patterns bring greater disasters before our eyes.

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Rainfall

High Rainfall days in India’s districts in July 2023

August 7, 2023 SANDRPLeave a comment

For July 2023, an analysis in this article of the daily district wise rainfall data from India Meteorological Department (IMD) shows that there were 855 (809 in July 2022 and 717 in July 2021) instances when district rainfall of a day was above 50 mm. Such high rainfall instances included 660 (663 in July 2022) instances when rainfall was 50-100 mm, 149 (107 in July 2022) instances when it was 100-150 mm, 34 (28 in July 2022) times it was 150-200 mm and 12 (13 in July 2022) times above 200 mm. As noted in detailed article[i], the July 2023 rainfall all over India was 13.5% above normal.

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Dams

DRP 070823: Forests & Biodiversity amendments: Gap between intent & application

August 7, 2023February 27, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Dense Dudhatoli forest range near Peethsain in Thalisain block of Pauri Garhwal. Feb. 2023/ SANDRP)

As editorial comments in two different national newspapers given below shows, the biodiversity and forest conservation amendment bills passed by the Parliament last week weaken the cause of biodiversity and forest conservation, when it is most pressingly required to strengthen them.

Both amendments pave the way for ease of doing business and reducing role of local communities, both in terms of legal norms and practical implications.

The need for conservation of these resources was never more urgent than now considering the impacts of climate change on them and their importance for not only livelihood security of vast millions, but also for hydrological implications, food security, protection against increasing frequency and intensity of disasters, but also for adaptation in the context of changing climate. We hope against hope that better sense will prevail sooner rather than later to ensure the amendments do not lead to destruction of forest and biodiversity resources.

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Rainfall

June July 2023: District wise rainfall in in India’s SW Monsoon

August 4, 2023August 4, 2023 SANDRPLeave a comment

In the month of July 2023, the second month of India’s South West 2022 monsoon, India received 318.4 mm (327.7 mm in July 2022 [i]) rainfall, 13.5 % above (16.8% above normal in July 2022) the normal July rainfall of 280.5 mm as per India Meteorological department. In July 2021, the rainfall was 266.1 mm [ii], about 6.7% below normal and in July 2020, the rainfall was 257.1 mm [iii], or about 9.9% below normal.

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