Situation alarming: More than one-third population hit by drought   The country is facing severe drought for the second consecutive year. Conservative estimates from official sources show that over a quarter of rural habitations are facing drinking water scarcity. Although both India Meteorological Department and Skymet have predicted a more than normal rainfall during June-September, 2016, the water storage available in 91 major reservoirs of the country has declined from 22 percent...

-Livemint.com The ministry for water resources, river development and Ganga rejuvenation has also placed a draft of the national groundwater management improvement programme New Delhi: The Centre has placed two draft bills for water conservation in the public domain for feedback as the country battles a water crisis. The government has also released a draft of a programme to improve groundwater management in the country. Comments have been invited on the two...

-Down to Earth A recent report shows how energy requirement of women differ in various states and in different occupations and how limiting the current scenarios are SEWA Bharat and SELCO Foundation together formed a “Stree Shakti Consortium” to promote the inclusion of women in energy access supply chain. The consortium, yesterday, conducted a workshop to present a report called “Energy Access and Women's Livelihood” that articulates on-ground stories of 300...

-Livemint.com The study says that only 7.73 million hectares in India, compared to a potential 69.5 million hectares, were covered under micro-irrigation by March 2015 New Delhi: Farming uses over 90% of India’s fresh water, but despite the potential savings micro-irrigation can offer, its penetration is abysmally low, shows a recent study. Just 7.73 million hectares in India, compared to a potential 69.5 million hectares, were covered under micro-irrigation by March 2015, shows...

-The Telegraph 15 such banks have been opened in Vijayapura district Vijayapura (Karnataka): In times of drought, cattle drive to a goshala (cattle shed) to feed them and driving them back may prove cumbersome. That explains the reason for the declining demand for goshalas in some of the drought-affected districts in the State. If the developments in the drought-affected districts are of any indication, the goshala concept seems to be becoming redundant...