Search

The article discusses the global water crisis and the unsustainable management of water resources. It highlights the increasing frequency and duration of extreme hydrometeorological events due to climate change. The lack of long-term political priority given to water management by policymakers is identified as a major problem. The article also emphasizes the importance of sustainable groundwater management and the need for policies to reduce the decline of groundwater levels and contamination. The negative consequences of unregulated groundwater extraction in countries like the United States and India are discussed. The article concludes by mentioning other papers in the journal that cover various water-related topics. [Extracted from the article]

This paper outlines the importance of multiple time step optimization (MTO) in river basin allocation. The principal novelty of the work presented here is to provide a methodology for how to use MTO solutions in river basin planning and real-time operation. Two approaches for using the MTO results were tested on Damodar River basin in India and are presented in the paper. Using the proposed approach, the model managed flood flows without exceeding the downstream full bank channel capacity in 35 years of available historical data, while at the same time increasing generated hydropower on average by 63% annually, and supplying an additional 350 million m3 to irrigation and industry compared to the historical levels. The results presented in this study were obtained using the new Web-based Basin Management (WEB.BM) water management model, the only water allocation model with full Linear Programming (LP) optimization capabilities available online free of charge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the adverse effects of growing water scarcity on the lives and livelihoods of poor people have become a major policy concern in India. This paper reviews the effectiveness of macro-level policies for rainwater conservation and critically examines micro-level local community institutions for the sustainable management of traditional water bodies. Using Ostrom's design principles and qualitative data from three different multipurpose tanks, the study finds that management decisions at the local level have benefited few influential members of local communities and deprived a large number of poor households from resource uses, making the local institutions ineffective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Community management has been widely criticized, yet it continues to play a significant role in rural drinking water supply. In India, as with other ‘emerging’ economies, the management model must now adapt to meet the policy demand for ever-increasing technical sophistication. Given this context, the paper reviews the history and concepts of community management to propose three typologies that better account for the changing role of the community and external support entities found in successful cases. It argues that external support entities must be prepared to take greater responsibility for providing ongoing support to communities for ensuring continuous service delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Three versions of the National Water Policy (NWP) have failed to make any perceptible difference in improving water management in India. The excuse that water is a state subject and thus central government cannot do much is not valid. States have always been a party to the formulation of the NWP. They have the freedom to modify the NWP to suit their individual requirements. Many states have adopted a state water policy. Even such state-level policies have failed to make any significant impact in improving their water management practices. Neither the NWP nor the state water policies have made any impact on practice. Reasons for the NWP basically being a paper exercise are many, including lofty drafting and policy prescriptions that are divorced from reality; lack of courage at the Water Ministry to take a firm stand on any of the provisions at either the drafting or the implementation stages; the practice of keeping specialists away from policies; and the dominance of generalists who have neither a demonstrable understanding of the complexities of the water sector nor a long-term commitment to it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The area around the city of Vijayanagara saw a large-scale expansion in irrigation works between the mid-fourteenth and late sixteenth centuries. Of these, reservoirs or ‘tanks’ played an important role in extending farming into areas beyond the reach of perennial irrigation. Reservoirs were linked to Hindu temples, not only through networks of patronage, but also physically, in aspects of form and decoration. Indeed, reservoirs can be thought of as temples themselves, as well as statements of power and authority, functional objects, and tangible connections to larger social and conceptual worlds. This paper presents reservoirs in four ways: as agricultural features, as (political) monuments, as oceans, and as temples. This juxtaposition is made possible only because of the intersection of textual representation and material form, different modes of representation which may be critically evaluated and compared. Reservoirs formed one part of a complex rural landscape of devotion that included field shrines, hero stones, and even archaeological sites of earlier eras. Through the long-term use-lives of reservoirs, we can see the ways in which rural devotion and practice both responded to the specifics of local histories and, over time, reshaped regional landscapes. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Copyright of Hydrological Sciences Journal/Journal des Sciences Hydrologiques is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This study uses the Just–Pope approach to investigate the effects of seasonal weather variables and extremes on the mean yield and yield variability of rice, bajra, chickpea, groundnut and sugarcane in India during the period 1990–2015. Results reveal that changes in rainfall and evapotranspiration across seasons largely affect mean yields for most crops, including bajra, chickpea and groundnut. However, high summer rainfall and low monsoon evapotranspiration extremes reduce groundnut and chickpea yield variability. Considering the importance of water availability to crop yields, this study suggests improving irrigation and water reallocation and management to reduce the severity of seasonal climate effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Semi-arid farming systems in India are facing an increasing frequency of climate change-induced extreme weather events. With the aim of improving their climate resilience, we retrospectively assess climate resilience in two case studies in Maharashtra, India. We considered a 15-year period and multiple interventions in both. The systems showed improved climate resilience when agricultural productivity-enhancing interventions were combined with those related to water management, soil health, livelihood diversification, and food and nutrition security. Further, we recommend embedding a monitoring, evaluation and learning component within the design of all interventions to help with adaptive decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

River systems are vital for both civilization and biodiversity. The rising threats to it is due to the rapid industrialization and urbanization, resulting in heightened wastewater discharge. This study delves into the Ramganga River watershed in India, conducting a comprehensive assessment of its water quality for both drinking and irrigation purposes. A total of 84 water samples were collected from three streams, further categorized into two clusters, involving the evaluation of 30 water characteristics. To measure water suitability, the CCME-WQI was computed, revealing distinct categorizations during the Dry Season (DS) and Wet Season (WS) in the year 2019-20. Cluster 1, comprising Sampling Sites-1 (S-1), Sampling Sites-3 (S-3), and Sampling Sites-5 (S-5), fell within the fair category during DS, shifting to marginal during WS. Cluster 2, encompassing S-2, S-4, S-6, and S-7, remained in the poor category during DS, transitioning to marginal during WS. IWQI was employed to assess water quality for irrigation. Notably, S-1 and S-3 consistently fell under the high suitability category, while S-2 exhibited high suitability during DS and medium suitability during WS. S-4 remained in the medium suitability category for both seasons. In contrast, S-5, S-6, and S-7 demonstrated medium suitability during DS and high suitability during WS. Cations and anions assessment unveiled an alkaline dominance Calcium (Ca2+) and Magnesium (Mg2+) exceeding alkalis Sodium (Na+) and Potassium (K+), while anions depicted weak acid Bicarbonates (HCO3-) and Carbonates (CO3-) surpassing strong acid Sulphate (SO42-) and Chloride (Cl2-), with an exception at S-4 during DS. The USSL diagram indicated medium-high salinity and low sodium levels, signifying potential irrigation suitability. The study extends to heavy metal concentrations, indicating adherence to standard limits, except for elevated iron levels. These findings furnish invaluable insights for policymakers and stakeholders in water resource management, providing a nuanced understanding of challenges and opportunities in sustaining water quality in the Ramganga River watershed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainable water resource management is the immediate priority as the rapid depletion of water resources is aggravating drought conditions in many regions worldwide. One of the possible approaches to recover from such a condition is through water resource balancing. The water balance studies require knowledge of water availability for various sectors' present and future requirements to balance the water resource. The present study uses the Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI) for water balancing. It evaluates the soil moisture deficit or surplus with spatial and temporal changes for the Marathwada region consisting of eight districts for 1957–2017. The analyzis shows water surplus from July to September and water deficit from November to May. The study observes that the Marathwada is drought-free during the Kharif season and water deficit in Rabi season. This study analyzes the need for crop-shift to avoid crop damage during drought. Based on the analyzis, all the urban system sectors need to augment short-term and long-term policies to overcome the water crisis for a balanced water resource. The Self-Calibrated PDSI (ScPDSI) is calculated based on PDSI, which gives more freedom in analyzing the drought period. Highlights Water balancing approach can effectively help in modelling the rapid depletion of water resources. This work expands the use of drought indicators for water balancing by evaluating the soil moisture deficit or surplus with spatial and temporal changes for the Marathwada region for 1957–2017. Urban system sectors may augment short-term and long-term policies based on the framework to overcome the water crisis for a balanced water resource. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Hydrological Sciences Journal/Journal des Sciences Hydrologiques is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

India has developed a national biofuel policy to increase energy security, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and stimulate rural development. In this policy, the government has set blending targets for mixing ethanol and biodiesel with gasoline and diesel, respectively. In India, ethanol is produced from irrigated sugar-cane while biodiesel is produced from jatropha, which is said to require no irrigation. This paper analyzes the possible impacts of an increase in sugar-cane and jatropha production on water management and use. It finds that India's biofuel policy is likely to place additional pressure on scarce water resources. Although the development of biofuels may be necessary, care must be taken to anticipate its likely impacts on water resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper shows how multidisciplinary research can help policy makers develop policies for sustainable agricultural water management interventions by supporting a dialogue between government departments that are in charge of different aspects of agricultural development. In the Jaldhaka Basin in West Bengal, India, a stakeholder dialogue helped identify potential water resource impacts and livelihood implications of an agricultural water management rural electrification scenario. Hydrologic modelling demonstrated that the expansion of irrigation is possible with only a localized effect on groundwater levels, but cascading effects such as declining soil fertility and negative impacts from agrochemicals will need to be addressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Hydrological Sciences Journal/Journal des Sciences Hydrologiques is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

As the number of studies on remote sensing data for water management and governance increases, few articles reflect on their application in practice. This article shares learnings from the application of Water Accounting Plus (WA+) in a federal river basin in India. WA+ was applied to the Cauvery basin to contribute to solving transboundary water-sharing issues by providing a source of transparent data obtained through reproducible methods. By analysing how WA+ results and methodology were received, we show how data and models are also political and question the assumption that more data automatically lead to more equitable decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rice is a staple food for the vast majority of the world's population and one of the world's largest consumers of freshwater. Unfortunately, climate change will further worsen the demand for blue water demand, particularly for rice cultivation needs to be closely monitored. Our study assessed the spatial water footprint (WF) of rice for the valley region of Manipur using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectro-radiometer Evapotranspiration (MOD16) and Climate Hazards Group Infrared Precipitation with Station (CHIRPS) datasets. In addition, rice's economic water productivity of green and blue water was evaluated. Results showed an average spatial WF ranging from 772.14 to 1456.23 m3/tonne. According to data comparing the national average, 90% of the valley area has a lower WF value than the country as a whole. The green and blue WF of rice ranges from 596.62 m3/tonne to 673.42 m3/tonne and 65.79 m3/tonne to 767.65 m3/tonne, respectively. The spatial variation of the blue WF is due to the amount of rainfall and irrigation application within the study area. The green economic water productivity is getting lower than the blue economic water productivity due to green water's lesser economic scarcity than blue water. This study can help plan crop allocation in favour of water availability by water management authorities on economic value calculations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For decades, the artificial glaciers in Ladakh, North India, have been trumpeted as useful water-harvesting devices for subsistence farming communities. In this context, the massive masonry structures link low-tech, vernacular hydrological thinking with design innovation to create a popular climate-adaptive design solution. While these interventions appear to provide promising new strategies for water harvesting in this dry desert region, very little data exist to substantiate, quantify, or contradict the project claims. This paper interrogates these structures through the lens of the design disciplines and considers the functional aspects of a prototypical artificial glacier system. Six different artificial glacier systems were studied over a period of two summer months, revealing a variety of design and construction approaches. These findings give rise to a number of engineering patterns that may be found in an archetypical artificial glacier system. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Arsenic (As) contamination in ground water is raising concerns due to indiscriminate irrigation for a large variety of crops. Therefore, it is a challenge to reduce As uptake in relation to safe human consumption either by reducing water supply or by improving water quality without major yield losses. The experiment was laid out in Randomized Block Design (RBD) replicated four times with five water management treatments viz. T1 = 100% shallow tube well (STW), T2 = 25% STW + 75% pond water (PW), T3 = 75% STW + 25% PW, T4 = 50% STW + 50% PW andT5 = 100% PW with broccoli (cv. Green Magic) as a test crop in an As-affected village of Ghetugachi, West Bengal, India. Plant and soil samples were collected during harvesting. The calculated hazard quotient (HQ) suggests that despite having higher yield, As content in broccoli under T1 is unfit for human consumption. T2 having a low HQ (0.564) and moderate crop water productivity (CWP) and irrigation water productivity (IWP) values (5.46 and 8.07, respectively) is marked as safest. T4 with moderately high HQ (0.776) and fairly high CWP and IWP (5.62 and 8.31, respectively) can be considered for areas having relatively less contamination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of the study is to assess the non-uniformity in precipitation patterns spread over the lower Mahanadi River basin (LMB). Methodology/approach: Characterization of precipitation patterns was studied using an Eigen-based spatial pattern analysis resembling PCA (Principal component analysis). Pattern identification using DBSCAN (Density-based spatial clustering of applications with noise) implementation, and the results were confirmed and accomplished using intra-cluster and inter-cluster distance (silhouette index). Homogeneity characterization of the identified patterns, accomplished using L-moment and Probability weighted moment (PWMs) based heterogeneity measures. Research motivation/gap: Improvement over spatial clustering and attribution of non-uniformity present in precipitation over different timeslot segments. Findings: DBSCAN implementation results in a combination of Epsilon (ε)=4.1, and minPts = 6 with 4groups (170, 7, 11, 6) and 36 noise points. The measure of spread for LMB with large variations in precipitation magnitude is identical in small seized clusters. Heterogeneity (H1) assessment; cluster-2 with H1 - 1.21 (Possibly Heterogeneous), cluster-3 with H1 - 0.22 (acceptably homogeneous), and cluster-4 with H1 - -1.77 (Possibly Heterogeneous). Cluster-4 experienced more extreme events during segments-1 (1901-1939) and 2 (1940-1978). Cluster-4 had > 46% of precipitation above the mean-annual precipitation of the Mahanadi basin (>1572 mm) during segment-3 (1979-2017). A noticeable decrease in the spatial pattern variability of the 2nd component, i.e., 36.07% to 28.09% during segments 1 and 3. Similarly, segment-2 identified three components sharing a good amount of variability (30.35%, 31.36%, and 15.86%). Implications: The identified sub-regions of the precipitation obtained using DBSCAN approaches have separate applications and uses. The future prediction of rainfall can be simplified for water resource management in regions with known precipitation variability. Similarly, regions with known precipitation regimes are helpful in activities, including agricultural planning, farming calendar, planting time of different crops, and rain-fed and dry farming practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

World is facing acute water scarcity owing to growing freshwater demand, rainfall aberrations and miserable management of water resources. Selection of site for water harvesting structure is crucial for water management in basin. SWAT and AHP techniques applied for decision making at HRU level. AHP technique was used for delineation of sites using soil type, slope, runoff ratio and land use land cover criteria. Model R2 ranged from 0.85 to 0.92, NSE ranged from 0.85 to 0.92, RSR ranged from 0.28 to 0.38 and PBIAS ranged from -14.68 to 0.79 for calibration while R² ranged from 0.68 to 0.80, NSE ranged from 0.70 to 0.81, RSR ranged from 0.30 to 0.40 and PBIAS ranged from -12.7 to 0.57 for validation. upper region of basin has the highest potential of water harvesting, which can be managed efficiently by specific water harvesting structure. The tools and techniques can be adopted worldwide, for water resource planning at HRU level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Direct-seeded rice has the potential to address labor and water shortage problems, and avoid possible deleterious effects of puddling on sequence crops. However, the integrated effect of irrigation and nitrogen management on crop and water productivity is not well understood in alluvial soils of India. Therefore, a field study was conducted to evaluate different irrigation thresholds and N split applications on water use and productivity and N use efficiency in DSR. Treatments were established in a split-plot design with three replications. Main plots compared irrigation thresholds based on soil water tension: (i) 0 kPa; (ii) 10 kPa; (iii) 20 kPa; and (iv) 40/10 kPa). Sub plots evaluated N management practices: (i) no N application, (ii) 120 kg N ha−1 as three equal splits, and (iii) 120 kg N ha−1 as four equal splits. Irrigation at 0 and 10 kPa recorded the highest biomass accumulation which decreased by 10-16% with higher water stress. However, irrigation water productivity increased with an increase in water stress. Irrigation at 10 and 20 kPa combined with four N splits resulted in grain yield similar to when irrigation was applied at 0 kPa with three or four N splits. There was a saving of irrigation water up to 17 to 36%, 30 to 46% and 54- 61% with 10 kPa, 20 kPa, and 40/10 kPa, respectively. It was concluded that irrigation at 10 and 20 kPa, and four N splits were beneficial for increasing grain yield and water productivity of DSR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interlinking rivers (ILRs) is a recent global initiative towards sustainable and equitable distribution and utilization of water resources. However, there are diverse, uncertain, and conflicting viewpoints of various water resource planning and management stakeholders towards ILR approach and its outcomes. On one hand, policy makers are seeing ILR as advantageous to the economic development of the nation; on the other hand, there is a growing concern about the negative environmental impacts of ILR. To ensure sustainable development, watershed planners across the globe need a decision support system (DSS) to effectively plan the implementation of ILR projects while considering the diverse stakeholder's perspectives and conflicting socio-economic, environmental, and several technical criteria. Therefore, it is essential to identify and mathematically evaluate the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) of ILR projects to achieve economic and environmental objectives. It is indeed a challenge for watershed managers to simultaneously address the uncertainty associated with multiple criteria and group of decision-makers (stakeholders) involved in developing the SWOT model. To address these concerns, the present study proposes an advanced entropy-based SWOT fuzzy decision support system to evaluate the feasibility of ILR on a case study of 'Ken-Betwa project', India. The novel aspect of the advanced approach is its ability to devise seven hybrid mechanisms, which give the flexibility to reach the best solutions along with nominal, optimistic and pessimistic perspectives of the stakeholders while addressing uncertainty issues. Results demonstrate that adopting measures to minimize impact on biodiversity and climate change and implementation of sustainable construction techniques are pivotal for successful implementation of ILR project with a score of 0.12 and 0.11, respectively. The DSS provides a platform to the state and federal agencies to systematically achieve socio-economic and environmental objectives while incorporating suggestions of all decision-makers towards ILR projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agricultural water demand (AWD) and irrigation water demand (IWD) were assessed (2009–2018) over India using geostationary and polar orbiting satellites. A novel concept of satellite based composite crop-coefficient was introduced to address bulk AWD from mixed agricultural landscape. Significant spatio-temporal variation of AWD was observed over India. The decadal mean of annual AWD was found to be 1521 km3 contributing around 52% (789 km3) and 48% (732 km3) in kharif and rabi seasons, respectively. The decadal average IWD over India was found to be 360 km3. At annual scale, around 75% of AWD was found fulfilled by effective rainfall and the rest 25% is the IWD. The decadal trend of AWD and IWD showed significant increasing trend over Indian region. The study provides a baseline reference for regional agricultural water management policy over diverse agro-climatic regions of India with an opportunity to optimize AWD and IWD at different locations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyses the hydro-political behaviour of riparian countries in the Mekong River Basin (MRB) vis-à-vis India's attitude towards the Brahmaputra and upstream China. It analyses transboundary water cooperation in the MRB and the active participation of the stakeholders and then compares it with the Brahmaputra River Basin (BRB). It argues that the water management practices in the MRB are comparatively more 'effective' while the BRB is receding in this regard. It analyses various aspects of promoting the North East Region (NER) as a paradiplomatic agent in the BRB in a way Yunnan is performing in the MRB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assessment of consumptive water use (CWU) and water productivity at the regional scale is important to diagnose vulnerable zones to improve water use efficiencies in cropland to achieve the sustainable development goal 6.0 prescribed by the United Nations. The present study was carried out to segregate and quantify CWU into agricultural green (CWUg) and blue (CWUb) water use and water productivity (AWP) on seasonal, annual, and decadal (2009–2018) scales over the Indian region using satellite remote-sensing data from geostationary and polar-orbiting platforms. A logical algorithm was used to determine partitioned water use from a combination of satellite-based estimates of key variables such as agricultural water demand (AWD), actual evapotranspiration (ETa), and effective rainfall (ER). Satellite-based estimates of CWU were evaluated with respect to ground reference that showed underestimation of the order of 15–32% but with a strong Pearson's correlation coefficient (r = 0.80–0.99) and coefficient of determination (R2 = 0.64–0.98). The reasons for this difference and uncertainties in satellite-based inputs have been explained. The decadal mean of CWU at annual scale showed wide spatial variation over India with 84% and 16% share of CWUg and CWUb, respectively, in kharif season and 27% and 73%, respectively, in rabi season. A non-significant increasing trend in CWUg,kharif (0.57%) and a decreasing trend in CWUb,kharif (–5.18%), CWUg,rabi (–2.81%), and CWUb,rabi (–1.77%) were observed over 10 years. A decreasing trend in green AWP (AWPg) (–0.18%) in kharif season reveals a lack of sustainable adoption of green water management practices while a significantly increasing trend in AWPb (2.65%) in rabi season reveals sustainable adoption of efficient irrigation management practices over 10 years. These long-term estimates would help in smoothing out trade-offs of water use versus water productivity, reducing the vulnerability and aiding in decision-making for water savings, controlled water allocation, strategic policy formulations for water, and food security especially through sustainable management practices in rainfed agriculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Locally nuanced community-based shallow groundwater management interventions have proven important in saline and sodic monsoonal regions. A mixed methods approach characterizes achievement of regeneration of the formerly degraded socio-ecological system of Laporiya village in the semi-arid Salt Lake region of Rajasthan state (India), with a focus on locally adapted chauka systems. Local people are key participants and agents as well as principal beneficiaries of innovative nature-based management interventions. Technological innovations and governance are adapted to environmental processes and local livelihood priorities, resisting imposed engineered solutions. Findings are transferrable to dryland areas facing similar challenges of declining water and livelihood security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seasonal dynamics of snow cover is an essential area of research for hydrological modelling and water resource management. With the increased availability of remote sensing data, the timely information of the spatiotemporal distribution of snow cover is feasible at regular intervals. The primary objective of this study is to assess the effect of pansharpening in the accuracy of snow cover change detection in mountainous regions using freely available Landsat-8 multispectral data. In mountainous regions at the medium resolution, the changes at the mountain ridges are seldom identified. The incorporation of pansharpening in the change detection framework facilitates an improvement in the snow cover change detection at the ridges. For pansharpening, the PanNet architecture based on convolutional neural networks was adopted. A study area around Dhundi in the state of Himachal Pradesh in India was selected for the analysis. The experiments were carried out using a subset of Landsat-8 multispectral data acquired in the autumn and the winter seasons of 2017 and 2018, respectively. An improvement of 0.184 and 0.267 in the kappa coefficient was observed for the overall changes in the snow cover and at the ridges, respectively, based on the results from the proposed approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the scheduling of nutrient supply programs, analysis of plant nutrient status has been found to be useful to prevent the deficiency or toxic effects of nutrients in any horticultural crop. So the present study was framed to assess the foliage nutrient content and vegetative growth under different irrigation and fertigation combination modules. Recently apple (Malus ×domestica) orchards in the state Himachal Pradesh of India have converted from the traditional royal delicious orchard at 6 × 6 m spacing with rainfed/basin irrigation to early spur varieties on dwarfing rootstock with drip irrigation, both with or without fertigation. An experimental field trial was started at the end of 2018 in a 'Super Chief'/MM106 orchard at an experimental farm of the department of Soil Science & Water Management, Dr. YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan (HP). A factorial experiment with 16 treatment combinations of 4 irrigation levels viz. I1 – drip irrigation at 100% ETc, I2 – drip irrigation at 80% ETc, I3 – drip irrigation at 60% ETc, I4 – conventional irrigation, and four fertigation levels viz. F0 – No fertilizer application (absolute control), F1 – 100% of AD (NPK), F2 – 75% of AD (NPK) and F3 – 50% of AD (NPK) were replicated thrice with 3 plants in each replication. Vegetative growth parameters and leaf nutrient contents were affected by both fertilization and water rate. Irrigation and nutrient levels and their interactions exhibited significant effect on leaf N (3.10%), P (0.28%), K (1.77%), and S (0.44%) contents. Significantly maximum contents were observed in the irrigation level I1 (DI at 100% ETc). Among fertigation level, F1 [100% AD (NPK)] recorded highest contents of leaf N (3.17%), P (0.29%), K (1.80%), S (0.46%). Interaction I1F1 registered maximum leaf N (3.36%), P (0.36%), K (1.92%) and S (0.63%). With an increase in the water volume and an increasing dose of NPK, vegetative growth parameters, i.e., tree height, plant spread, tree volume, trunk girth, and annual extension growth were noted to increase proportionately. Treatment DI at 100% ETc (I1), increased the tree height by 9.41, plant spread (EW by 32.0, NS by 16.3), tree volume by 61.36, trunk girth by 8.05, and annual extension growth by 14.22% over conventional irrigation (I4). Drip fertigated trees with F1 [100% AD (NPK)] reported the highest growth parameters. The results of two years apple trial suggested a positive effect of fertigation on enhanced effectiveness of fertilization and improved foliage nutrient content and vegetative growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The historical water catchments of India's capital city were foundational to the flourishing of settlements that spanned centuries. Today, those water features are held up as 'wise' models of water stewardship for the people who criticise the Indian government's water management shortcomings. This article investigates historical imaginations of infrastructures past with attention to how their example leads to demands for 'smart(er)' water management regimes. It also shows how efforts to revive past water catchments can make meaningful contributions to water stewardship, but that they still risk perpetuating the water access inequalities and middle-class priorities that are identified in a growing body of scholarship on India's water politics. Since the existing scholarship predominantly focuses on exploitative rural-to-urban and inter-urban water flows, this text argues that water politics – including political ecologies of water – are also poignantly revealed in the study of seemingly proactive solutions such as the expansion of urban water catchments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is very limited scientific evidence to support some of the ideas in the water sector that guide India’s government policies in these sectors. Further, the interdisciplinary perspective required for the design of economic instruments, institutions, and laws and regulations to implement existing policies is lacking in social scientists. This article discusses the growing debate on water management options for India, the tone and tenor of policy debate and the inconsistency. It summarizes 10 scholarly articles from various authors which reflect the multiplicity of views on water issues and solutions for water management in the country. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article is a critique of the report of the committee chaired by Dr Mihir Shah on restructuring the Central Water Commission and Central Ground Water Board of India. It shows that the recommendations of the committee are not based on any sound understanding of the federal nature of water administration in India, water-sector performance or the problems confronting it. The ‘paradigm shift’ in the suggested approach to water management is based on flawed analysis of the performance of surface irrigation systems and outdated concepts of irrigation efficiency, and reflects the professional bias of its members against large water infrastructure and wishful thinking about what schemes like aquifer mapping can achieve. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article discusses the bias of the growing constituency of civil society activists in India against conventional water management solutions implemented by the government, and the ‘alternatives’ they champion, which force the government to enter into an endless debate with these groups. The article goes into the fundamental reasons for this bias, and identifies four types of civil society activist: ‘professional’, ‘ideologue’, ‘romantic’ and ‘doomsday prophet’. The article also argues that water bureaucracies in India should adopt evidence-based policy making, subjecting the ‘alternatives’ to the same degree of scrutiny as the conventional ones, to end the policy dilemma, while enhancing the overall quality of design, execution and management of projects for better outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The time of the imperial Guptas (c.fourth to sixth centuries CE) represents a pivotal moment in the development of ‘mature Hinduism’. This was characterised by many changes, but most conspicuously by the establishment of institutional worship in temples. Clear archaeological signatures were inscribed across the cultural and physical landscapes of India in the fourth and fifth centuries: away from zones of urbanisation, numerous settlement areas retain sculptural and architectural vestiges in stone, most of them religious in nature. These vestiges, anchored and distributed in space, and with site-specific contexts, reveal much about the production and reproduction of sacred and socio-economic space, which were inextricably tied to water and the environment. For the purpose of this special issue, this article focuses on the archaeological landscapes of Baḍoh-Paṭhāri (Vidiśā District, Madhya Pradesh), an historical site which developed as an important population centre from at least early historic times onwards, if not before, and was connected to the political, trade, and defensive networks of the upper Betwā Basin. Some important remains from Gupta and later Gupta times are found in the immediate surroundings of this place. Their study provides an interesting basis upon which to explore issues relating to the conception and spatiality of new devotional, institutional, and socio-economic domains; and the integration, articulation, and transformation of natural features and local geography in the making of gods’ territory during this crucial period. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Copyright of Hydrological Sciences Journal/Journal des Sciences Hydrologiques is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

India has had a history of famines because of rainfed agriculture and rapid population growth. After the era of Green Revolution that began in the 1960s, India never experienced a famine-like situation; it did, however, experience a drought of the century in 1987. Northern states (Punjab, Haryana and western UP) with a high level of irrigation are contributing almost all of wheat and two-thirds of rice to the central pool of India. Punjab has the largest area (97%) under irrigation, with a corresponding contribution (60% of wheat and 40% of rice) to the central pool. Large-scale cultivation of rice and its early transplantation facilitated by early (in the month of June) regular supply of electric power to tubewells are currently the major factors responsible for the fall of water table and indebtedness of farmers in Punjab. Shifting rice transplantation from June 10 to June 30 can arrest about two-thirds of the water-table fall. Technologies for making efficient use of irrigation water and enhancing groundwater recharge are available. Shifting of subsidy from input (subsidized power to tubewells) to output (increase in procurement price or bonus on agricultural marketable produce) would encourage farmers to use irrigation water more efficiently. To feed India's projected population of 1.35 billion in 2025, agricultural production would have to be increased by ∼25%. Agricultural production in Punjab, Haryana, and western UP might not be sustainable unless major steps are taken for improved management of groundwater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the water supply crisis in Imphal, India and compares the potential of several supply mechanisms using the criteria related to quantity and reliability of supply, water quality, equity in access, environmental impacts and cost-recovery and sustainability. The evaluation is grounded on data from household surveys, visits to water production, treatment and distribution facilities and interviews with local officials. Results suggest that planning and investment options for drinking water in developing countries should not be limited to centralized solutions, instead decentralized, community-based approaches should be supported and promoted.

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue on topics including the importance of water management, the impact of climate change in South Africa, and the operation of reservoir systems in India.