DRP 041223: Groundwater recharge increased in India?

December 4, 2023February 27, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Cover photo of the National Compilation of Dynamic Ground Water Resource Assessment Report by CGWB)

There are at least two headline numbers of Government of India’s Dynamic Groundwater Resource Assessment Report 2023 released by Union Minister on Dec 2 2023, that seem counter intuitive and misleading. These are exactly the issues we also raised about the 2022 report too. Firstly, the PIB Press Release that accompanied the report release says India’s annual groundwater recharge in 2023 has increased by 11.48 BCM compared to the same in 2022.

Secondly, it says the groundwater situation has improved in at least 226 of the 6553 assessment Units across the country. Both seem counter intuitive and possibly misleading in the face of increasing groundwater use, depleting levels, worsening quality of groundwater and our increasing over dependence on groundwater.

Continue reading →

DRP News Bulletin

DRP 271123: India Rivers Week 2023

November 27, 2023February 27, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(IRW 2023 organizers, participants visiting Pun RFD project on Nov. 26, 2023. Image Source: India Rivers Forum)

The Tenth India River Week function was organized at BAIF, Pune on Nov 25-26, 2023, with participation of over a hundred people. The focus of the event was on Pune River Front Development (RFD), being pushed by Pune Municipal Corporation, and RFD in other cities around India, and it was strongly critiqued and opposed at the meeting, including by Bhagirath Prayas Samman winners Sarang Yadwadkar and Jeevit Nadi. A field visit of the participants was also organized to the proposed site of the work of the project. (Also see: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/pune/greens-criticize-approval-rfd-project-pune/articleshow/105523479.cms)

Continue reading →

Fish, Fisheries, Fisherfolk

WFD 2023: Untreated Effluents with Non-existent Regulation Killing Inland Fish En-Masse

November 21, 2023November 22, 2023 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Fish in large number killed in Krishna river in Sangli in March 2023 due to untreated industrial effluents discharge. Image Source: ToI)

On occasion of World Fisheries Day 2023, incidents of mass fish death in rivers and water bodies in India during past one year are compiled here. The report highlights how untreated effluents from industrial and domestic sources with non-existent regulation have been primarily responsible for most of the en masse fish kill incidents across the country. In the first part of the series, we have covered the positive developments related to fish, fisherfolks and fisheries. And in the second part, we have covered the ongoing resistance and struggles of Indian fishers against developmental projects endangering their survival and livelihoods.

Continue reading →

Fish, Fisheries, Fisherfolk

World Fisheries Day 2023: Resistance and Struggles of Fisherfolks

November 21, 2023November 22, 2023 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: A Konda Reddi tribe rowing a Dhone, a traditional boat, in the Godavari near the Papikonda hills in Alluri Sitarama Raju district. Photo Credit: T. Appala Naidu/ The Hindu)

On occasion of World Fisheries Days 2023, this compilation of important developments from 2023 highlighting the ongoing resistance and struggles of inland as well as coastal fisherfolks in India whose lives and livelihoods have been significantly affected by destructive developmental projects including dams & hydro power projects, increasing pollution and encroachments of water bodies, mechanized mining of sand from rivers & coastal areas, unsustainable fishing and invasive fish species.

The compilation first lists ten most remarkable developments on the issue and then covers the other relevant incidents in section wise manner. In the first part of the series we have highlighted ten positive stories on river fish and fisherfolks of India. The third part has covered the mass fish death incidents in India that have occurred during past one year.

Continue reading →

DRP News Bulletin

DRP 201123: Inland fisheries need attention: World Fisheries Day 2023

November 20, 2023February 27, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Recreational fishers catching fish in Yamuna river downstream Wazirabad barrage in Delhi in June 2023. Image: BS Rawat, SANDRP.)

On the World Fisheries Day, celebrated on Nov 21 every year, there is urgent need to focus attention on the well-being of one of the poorest and socio-economically weakest and much neglected section of population: Inland fisherfolks. They are in huge number, more than 2 crore directly dependent on inland fisheries, many others indirectly dependent. They, unfortunately have no voice in development discourse or decision making processes, nor any even in mitigation measures. Creating an inland fisheries policy, department and institute in every state and at centre can be an important step forward.

Continue reading →

DRP News Bulletin

DRP 131123: Another Himalayan Disaster: 40 workers trapped in a tunnel in Uttarakhand

November 13, 2023February 27, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Ongoing rescue work inside Badkot-Silkyara tunnel in Uttarkashi. Image Source: HT)

In yet another disaster in the Himalayas, at least 40 workers are trapped in an under-construction tunnel being constructed by National Highways & Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd. (NHIDCL), among others. The Hindustan Times has wrongly named the construction company as Hydroelectricity Investment & Development Company Limited (HIDCL) possibly of Nepal govt. Some people at the location have informed us that it may take another day before the workers are rescued.

NHIDCL was not even sure of the total of number of workers, as they gave the number as 36, which was corrected by the district administration later on to 40. It is also strange to see the work going on even on a Diwali day. Another disturbing aspect is that all the workers are reportedly mostly from outside Uttarakhand, when Uttarakhand villagers are known to migrate in large numbers to outside the state for employment. This disaster thus raises a lot of questions, which will need answers once the workers are rescued safely. The workers are still trapped over 30 hours after the disaster. The work at the 4.5 km long tunnel is being built under Char Dham Road Widening project since over 4 years, and violations have been happening in the work since then, as we reported in 2019.

Continue reading →

DRP News Bulletin

DRP 061123: Dam Disasters bring focus on Dam Safety Governance in India

November 6, 2023February 27, 2026 SANDRP1 Comment

(Feature Image: Location of washed away Teesta Urja dam. Source: Ka Shlem)

Is the Dam Safety Panel (DSP) report dated Nov 1 2023 on Medigadda barrage on Gadavari in Telangana, a self-indictment of the Dam Safety Mechanism in India?

The report concludes: “it is construed that the I&CAD (Irrigation and Command Area Development) Dept. has nothing to submit about instrumentation data, pre-monsoon &post monsoon inspection reports, completion reports, quality control reports, condition of gates and many other inputs sought in the list therein”.

How and why did the NDSA (National Dam Safety Authority) allow such a state of affairs to continue for such an important dam that has huge implications for life and economy as the report itself says? What steps did the NDSA take before this disaster struck to ensure that all these basic dam safety measures were indeed in place and functioning? What is NDSA doing to ensure that all such basic steps and measures are in place at all the large dams in India? What did NDSA do to ensure that this dam, important from the point of view of life and economy, was also listed in CWC’s National Register of Large Dams? What has NDSA done to ensure that CWC’s National Register is indeed updated every year with inclusion of all large dams of India (Large dam as per its definition) and all their salient features? What has NDSA done to ensure that all Dam Safety information is in public domain promptly?

Continue reading →

DRP News Bulletin

DRP 301023: Top scientist Rajeev Raghavan emphasizes need to conserve River Fish

October 30, 2023February 27, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image:- Fish catch from a Ramganga stream in Pauri in June 2022. Bhim Singh Rawat/SANDRP)

It is rather rare when we hear the sane voice of a scientist like Rajeev Raghavan neglect of riverine fish conservation in India, from government, research bodies to down to grassroots level. Rajeev Raghavan, incidentally is among the 2% top scientists of the world by the Stanford University, USA. The over emphasis on fish in food, on marine fish, on exotic fish that has such a huge adverse impact on our biodiversity and lack of effort towards conservation of riverine fish are some of the key issues Raghavan emphasizes in this interview. He says most of the fish in the IUCN red list are riverine fish and yet there is so little understanding or effort to conserve such fish or their habitat.

If we see the discussions in the minutes of the meetings of the MoEF’s Expert Appraisal Committee on River Valley Projects in spite of there being permanent presence of a representative of Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute, we see non-existence of any concerns about the impact of the project in riverine fisheries or those who are dependent on them for livelihoods. In fact, we see the shocking spectacle of CIFRI scientists working as consultants to the hydropower companies, working to justify such projects on the highly biodiverse rivers including those of North East India.

Continue reading →

DRP News Bulletin

DRP 231023: Need to be a little serious about Dam Safety, Flood Forecasting, Use of Early Warnings

October 23, 2023February 27, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Landslide warning board at Lakhwar dam site on Yamuna river. SANDRP, June 2015)

India need to relook the Dam Safety Act Experts say the Sikkim incident exemplifies blind spots in both legislation and implementation. The DSA does not promote risk-based decision-making and fails to incentivise transparency. Himanshu Thakkar, an environmental activist and coordinator of South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People, says that the frequency and scale of such disasters reveal a pattern of neglect: “It keeps happening regularly, people face disastrous consequences and we call these ‘natural disasters’. But there’s nothing natural about them.”

A robust DSA should allow different stakeholders to access information easily, but India’s framework falls short. “Dam safety is a public purpose function. Everything about dam safety, functions of all the institutions and committees and authorities, their reports, decisions minutes and agendas, everything should be promptly available to the public,” says Mr. Thakkar. “But nothing is in the public domain.” He adds that transparency is further obstructed when national and State bodies comprise government employees and engineers who worked on these projects, compromising objective decision making and lacking “people with a proven track record of taking independent decisions.”

Continue reading →

Cloud Burst

Uttarakhand: Cloudbursts in SW Monsoon 2023

October 18, 2023November 6, 2023 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: A ‘cloudburst’ incident damaging crops, farmlands & threatening Majju Gawad tok of Syun village in Dasholi block, Chamoli on August 06, 2023. Source: Raftaar news)

Since 2018, SANDRP has been documenting the increasing ‘cloudburst’ related disasters taking place in the Himalayan states. This report details the occurrence of such incidents in Uttarakhand during South West monsoon 2023. Our previous report on the subject for Uttarakhand can be seen here: 2022; 2021; May 2021; 2020; 2019 & 2018.

Continue reading →