Full Coverage: Water/sanitation

26.06.2006 With the worldÂ’s urban population set to exceed rural dwellers for the
first time next year, slum dwellers are as badly if not worse off than
their rural cousins in terms of health, literacy and prosperity,
contradicting general assumptions, according to a landmark study issued by the United Nations.

23.06.2006 Climate change and falling water tables are having a dramatic effect on the worldÂ’s water resources, says Satu Hassi of the Worldwatch Institute. She also cites the grassroots movement for rainwater harvesting in India and a phenomenon generating hope in these circumstances.

23.06.2006 Across much of India, the rains that should have come with the annual four-month monsoon have been lighter than usual - so suicide rates among India's 700 million farmers, many burdened with drought-related debt, are high.

23.06.2006 Community leaders from Mehdiganj in north India began a hunger strike to demand the closure of the Coca-Cola bottling plant. The leaders have accused the Coca-Cola bottling plant in Mehdiganj of creating severe water shortages affecting over twenty villages, polluting agricultural land and groundwater, illegally occupying land, evading taxes and treating workers unfairly.

22.06.2006 A new book has been recently launched that shows the way forward on
integrated water resources management (IWRM) with suggestions for the key organisational and managerial changes required at the macro and micro levels. The book Charting a New Course: A Strategy for Sustainable Management of India's Water Resources in the 21st Century by GN Kathpalia and Rakesh Kapoor goes beyond the acerbic debate on water resources between the 'pro-environment' groups and NGOs on the one hand and the 'pro-development' engineers, contractors and government officials on the other. Priced at Rs 75, (US $7) the book is Crown size and 64 pages.

22.06.2006 The Tamil Nadu government's approach to restoring traditional waterbodies in the state doesnÂ’t hold water as the tanks that are being restored by government agencies do not have a single drop of water.

20.06.2006 Living in a Bhandup slum for the last 10 years, for Sunil and Kaushala, life is a daily struggle. But early this month, when their four-year-old elder son Baadal was admitted to hospital with symptoms of malnutrition, their little world came crashing down.

20.06.2006 In a major breakthrough for the campaign to hold Coca-Cola accountable, the newly elected state government of Kerala has assured community leaders that the government will take proactive measures against the Coca-Cola bottling plant in south India.

13.06.2006 Almora in Uttranchal, India, is facing an acute water crisis, which has been exacerbated by rapid, unplanned urban growth and the mismanagement of vital natural resources that has led to the drying up of natural sources of water. A critical piece by Bidisha Kumar in CSE's Science and Environment Magazine 'Down To Earth'.

12.06.2006 Villagers in Mehdiganj, 20 km from Varanasi have been on an indefinite dharna outside and Coca Cola bottling plant since March 23, 2006 demanding the closure of the plant. The plant, in operation since 1999, has caused a fall in water table to the extent of 50 feet forcing farmers to deepen their tubewells. The farmers fear that if the plant continues to function itÂ’ll soon create a situation where there may not be any water left. In addition the quality of water has also deteriorated. An AidIndia Press Release.

06.06.2006 Vikas Adhyayan Kendra takes up why the privatisation of water supply could spell doom for the nation in general and the residents of K-East Ward, Mumbai in particular, and also examine some of the myths surrounding this crisis.