Resources about water in India
Resources by type:
Human Development Report 2006
Beyond Scarcity: Power, Poverty, & The Global Water Crisis
[PDF]
Published for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the 2006 Human Development Report examines the global water crisis in light of the Millennium Development Goals (internationally agreed set of time-bound goals for reducing extreme poverty, extending gender equality, and advancing opportunities for health and education).
“For some the global water crisis is about absolute shortages of physical supply. This report rejects this view. It argues that the roots of the crisis in water can be traced to poverty, inequality and unequal power relationships, as well as flawed water management policies that exacerbate scarcity.” – Human Development Report 2006
Compiled by Melissa Rhodes
India Untouched: The Forgotten Face of Rural Poverty
by Abraham M. George
[link]
In India Untouched, Dr. George provides a compelling, first-hand account of one man’s struggle against a well-entrenched system to make a difference. He offers fresh insight and incisive analysis into why previous attempts to improve the quality of life in rural India have failed, and what must be done in the future. His book is the story of suffering, cruelty, disease, and illiteracy, of corruption, waste, prejudice, and superstition. It is the story of fifty years of poor governance, and a stunning rebuke to the myth that globalization alone will distribute wealth to where it’s most needed.
Compiled by Melissa Rhodes
Removal of Iron from Drinking Water – An Easy and Appropriate Technology
Central Mechanical Engineering Research Institute – Durgapur, India (2002)
[link]
High concentration of iron in ground water is one of the major problems in certain regions of India. Different agencies have developed technology to reduce iron concentration to make it potable. A lowcost and easily maintainable improved iron removal (IR) Plant has been designated and developed by CMERI and installed at different fifteen iron-prone sites in different blocks of Bankura district, West Bengal. By analyzing the results of the treated water with these improved IR plants and their performance studies, it has been observed that the CMERI designed plant has the basic advantage of eliminating the soluble iron at ground water and trouble-free continuous operation.
Compiled by Melissa Rhodes
Clean Drinking Water for All
Richard Fahey for Civil Engineering
[link]
In the past 20 years, a public health problem of enormous magnitude has developed in West Bengal, India, and in neighboring Bangladesh. Following a vast increase in the use of groundwater in the region, elevated concentrations of arsenic present in much of the water supply have affected millions of area residents, resulting in such problems as gastrointestinal disorders, skin lesions, internal organ malfunctions, and, in extreme cases, poisoning and death. Many efforts are under way to counteract the problem, which is among the largest epidemics of this nature in the world. Because the condition is widespread and affects so many, no one solution can alleviate the terrible outcomes associated with drinking arsenic-laden water. Fortunately, organizations are taking steps to address the problem, in some cases literally one village at a time. This article details a program that works to reduce arsenic concentrations in groundwater used by villagers in West Bengal the program also forms part of a broader effort to educate participants in ways to improve hygienic practices.
Compiled by Melissa Rhodes
India - Comparative Review of Rural Water Systems Experience: The Rajasthan Water Supply and Sewerage Project, and the Rural Water Supply and Environmental Sanitation Projects for Maharashtra and Karnataka
The World Bank
[link]
Databases
Other websites with good directories of NGO’s and information
Major water-related diseases
A listing and description of all the major water-related diseases compiled by Tim and Jessie from the WHO’s Water and sanitation related diseases fact sheets
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India Water Portal
Everything you need about water in India. Honestly.
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