-Down to Earth India’s tribal communities have been pushed away from alluvial plains and fertile River Basins, into the harshest ecological regions, the report notes   India’s tribal communities form 8.6 per cent of the country’s population according to the 2011 Census. But they are at the bottom of the country’s development pyramid even after 75 years of independence, according to a new report released November 28, 2022. The Tribal Development Report 2022,...

-Down to Earth blog Sustainable vision is key to balancing current needs and future demands March 22 is celebrated as ‘World Water Day’ every year. The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in 1992 gave this call. Since then, this day has been celebrated globally, adopting a new theme each year. The theme chosen for 2022 was ‘Groundwater: Making the invisible visible’. The theme appealed to governments and stakeholders to diagnose current...

-Hindustan Times These plantations will include riverfront development programmes, afforestation, and agroforestry schemes, according to a report on the overview of detailed project reports for rejuvenation of major rivers through forestry interventions prepared by the environment ministry. New Delhi: India intends to grow plantations over 4,68,222 sq km, an area larger than the entire state of Rajasthan, by 2027 in 13 major River Basins to meet its international commitment to sequester carbon...

-The Hindu Average precipitation tendency has been decreasing, especially the monsoon rains: IMD official Chandigarh: The hill state of Himachal Pradesh has been gradually witnessing lesser snow in the past decade and the area under the snow is also decreasing. The trend triggered by climate change has alarmed environmentalists, considering the importance of seasonal snow cover as a major input in controlling the hydrology of the River Basins in the ecological fragile...

-Down to Earth As the geography of arsenic contamination spreads, there is an urgent need for governments to reorient mitigation measures. That’s because the focus till now has only been on drinking water, but new research says arsenic has contaminated our food chain Arseic contamination in groundwater is one of the most crippling issues in the drinking water scenario of India. According to the latest report of the Central Ground Water Board...