Bleeding blue: Fast fashion is now poisoning African rivers

Untreated or partially treated effluent from textile factories, usually blue / indigo in colour, is killing African rivers

As told to Parliament: Over 1,000 groundwater units in India over-exploited

All that was discussed in the House through the day

Microplastics time-bomb: Why we should not reuse plastic water bottles

Whether microplastic particles cause long-term damage is uncertain but reducing our exposure to them will be wise.  

Access to drinking water, sanitation improve across states, urban-rural divide remains: NFHS-5

Despite progress on sanitation front, several states reported every third or fourth person having no access to improved facilities

India’s coal power sector continues to disregard water norms: CSE report

CSE surveyed over 154 GW coal power capacity and found about half of freshwater-based power plants were non-complying with 2015 water norms; most …

Security ring: How MGNREGA rejuvenated tanks of a Tikamgarh village

A network of 55 tanks that get filled up one after the other when it rains, has cured this village of droughts

Jal Jeevan Mission Urban launched in Union Budget 2021-22

An outlay of Rs 50,011 crore was announced for the urban and rural water supply scheme, over 4 times the revised budget for 2020-2021

First real-time digital platform to monitor rice fields can bolster food security

Researchers are developing the first real-time monitoring platform for rice fields, which will give information about the quantity of rice …

Book Excerpt: How Odisha achieved the seemingly impossible feat of ‘Water for All’

A state once infamous for drought is now providing international standard drinking water to lakhs of homes, with an aim to do so for every household

Book Excerpt: An ancient legend explains why the Chambal is India’s cleanest river

King Rantideva performed a sacrifice in which thousands of animals were slaughtered and their blood turned the river red, making it ‘unclean&…

Rainwater harvesting and wastewater treatment best options for Bengaluru: T V Ramachandra

The IISc professor who famously ‘saw the future of Bengaluru’ a decade ago, speaks to Down To Earth about where the city went wrong …

Moon River: The Chenab, a symbol of lovers, today symbolises pain of partition & consumerism, says Surjit Patar

Down To Earth speaks to prominent Punjabi poet about the Chenab as the inauguration date of the bridge over it nears

Simply Put: The black river

Decades of underfunding, blockade have weakened Gaza’s health system — the siege has pushed it into abject crisis

It is uncertain what the health system of Gaza will look like in the future 

Alarm bells ring as groundwater levels dip in 10 districts in Bihar during monsoon

Nearly 48 per cent rainfall deficit till date in state

The heat is on: Reservoir, groundwater levels dip in Bihar amid high temperatures, poor pre-monsoon

Bihar has recieved 99% less than normal rains during the first week of June

Simply Put: Wilting Arctic, wallowing Yamuna

Book Excerpt: Listen to the land

India's rich, diverse landscapes are brought nearly to waste by misguided decisions in name of development. The cracks in the land hold valuable …

World Environment Day 2023: Springs need urgent revival for water security in the Indian Himalayas

The neglect of springs and aquifers in the context of rivers and watersheds has led to large gaps in developing a national response to spring …

Aquatic animals will grow larger, not shrink in size, in warming waters: Study

The findings contradict the theory that aquatic animals such as fish will shrink due to global warming  

Guinea worm: A nasty parasite is nearly eradicated, but the push for zero cases will require patience

The final push to full eradication requires patience and faith on the part of institutions and governments supporting the effort; also, people …

The earliest humans swam 100,000 years ago, but swimming remains a privileged pastime

This year the OECD reported that only one in four people in low-income countries can swim

Resource wise: This panchayat head in Tamil Nadu uses tech to curtail water and power wastage

K Kanchana Kannaperumal installed sensors in eight villages of her panchayat; the move has benefitted 750-odd households

Gandhian Sanitation: How Kolhapur combined toilet design, biogas to treat faecal sludge

Almost 75 per cent of the district depends on properly designed septic tanks; around 25 per cent of it uses biogas-linked toilets at …

World Rivers Day: Does a river exist for us only when it floods?

It’s important to spread river education in its totality, before dams and canals take over ‘rivers’ in the perception battle