Save the Nu/Salween river

China's plan to build a series of dams over southeast Asia's second largest river has evoked a strong response from environmental, human rights …

A dark tunnel

Twenty-nine workers were killed in a landslide at the Tehri dam. The contractor building the dam has blamed the "weak mountains" for …

Tipaimukh Dam in Manipur driving a wedge?

Imphal, Manipur's capital, came to a grinding halt on August 28, with a strike being called. Imphal's people are habituated to bandhs, and most …

30,000 farmers demand Hirakud dam water

Western Orissa is witnessing an upheaval. In the eye of the storm is the Hirakud dam. Over 300,000 farmers dependent on its water for irrigation …

Lava-ka-Baas: The blame game

When one contests the dominant, it is of utmost importance that all actions and their outcome be above doubt. There isn't the faintest margin of …

Book review: Waterlines by Amita Baviskar

Rivers are wellsprings of life. They give birth to civilisations, sustain livelihoods and sometimes even trigger wars. Rivers inspire awe and …

Waters of life

Tarun Bharat Sangh of Alwar is well-known for its work on reviving traditions of waterharvesting. But few know about the economic advantages of …

Solar power is the only viable alternative

K R DATYE has been associated for years with grassroots organisations such as the Pani Panchayat and the Mukti Sangharsh, which has spearheaded …

Polavaram fraud

The Polavaram dam on the Godavari could displace 400,000 people and submerge nearly 4,000 hectares of forestland. Most of the people threatened …

Wooing back the salmon

International experiences in effective environmental management have their foundation in strict adherence to legal statutes. In this context, …

'I cannot be a mute spectator to the carnage of Ganga'

As Uttarakhand grapples with the task of repair and restoration, octogenarian environmentalist G D Agarwal's fast to free Ganga of dams continues.…

A midsummer dream

Anyone will tell you that follow-ups are not a story. Journalism is not about following stories of specific villages and how they fare year after …

Short circuit

On the face of it, the ambitious Sethusamudram project to bridge the east coast with the west coast of the country seems a great idea. The …

A watershed plan

Recurrent droughts and floods coupled with mass poverty, chronic unemployment and pervasive malnutrition are the major challenges before India. …

Saga of two villages

Sukhomajri was a dirt-poor village in Haryana. It started pulling itself out of its hole in the late 1970s, making a dizzying ascent to …

The past and present of rivers

Author(s): Karuna Futane We are a generation that has turned flowing fresh water rivers to rivers of sewage and garbage. We have lost rivers. …

There are alternatives to dams, but we are not talking about them: experts

India is the third largest dam-building nation in the world after China and the US, but despite that its annual per capita water storage capacity …

At least 24 out of India’s 123 reservoirs are full: Central Water Commission

Situation precarious for Karnataka and Maharashtra, where ‘heavy’ to ‘very heavy’ rainfall is predicted in some parts;…

Only a sixth of India’s reservoirs full: Central Water Commission

Reservoirs in Rajasthan, Punjab, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Madhya Pradesh have less than normal storage 

India’s reservoirs now have 155% more water than last yr

Live storage in 123 reservoirs is at 66.372 billion cubic metres (BCM) or 39 per cent of total live storage capacity

Old ‘Temples of Modern India’: Can India decommission ageing dams it has been warned about?

Dams have affected new ways of land use and life so much that many societies cannot think of a life beyond them anymore

Power struggle

Nepal's controversial Arun III dam becomes the first World Bank-bankrolled project taken up for re-scrutiny by the Bank's new Inspection Panel …

Integrated risk assessment of dams required to prevent human-made disasters: Experts

Ministry of Jal Shakti said in a press release recently that data on flooding caused due to faulty operations of reservoirs is not maintained …

CWC tells states to keep close watch on 15 dams

Central Water Commission asks dam officials to release water according to the rule curve and standard operating procedure  

Hydropower dams can harm coastal areas far downstream

A study in Mexico on four rivers finds that damming rivers has measurable negative ecologic and economic effects on coastal regions more …