Following the interlinking of the Krishna and the Godavari rivers, the devilfish or sucker catfish, which has so far been alien to Telangana waters, has made its way into the Musi river from the Krishna river. The fish which has never been sighted in any of the rivers, streams or lakes in Telangana is becoming a danger to native species as it eats away commercially important fish species causing huge loss to farmers. The fish entered the Godavari a few years ago and in 2015, after the interlinking of the Godavari and Krishna rivers, it made its way into the Krishna through Pattiseema lift irrigation project.
Under the Namami Gange programme, the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) has approved eight projects worth Rs 700 crore for the Ganga river rejuvenation. Out of the eight projects, four pertain to sewage management in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal, three are related to treatment of drains through bioremediation and one for inventorisation and surveillance of Ganga river. The water ministry has also launched an interactive web page on the (NMCG) online platform to facilitate private companies take up activities for the revival of the river as part of their corporate social responsibility.
On the occasion of the fifth India Water Week, the Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Nitin Gadkari has announced that 285 new irrigation projects will be taken up by the next year to provide irrigation for one crore 88 lakh hectares of land, along with making drip irrigation and irrigation through pipeline the priority areas. He has also shifted the deadline of Ganga rejuvenation from 2018 to 2019. It has also been announced that the government has prepared a strategic plan for ensuring drinking water supply in all rural areas by 2022.
The union cabinet has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Morocco government for enhancing cooperation in the field of water resources development and management. The domains included in the MoU are conception, realisation and maintenance of the hydraulic infrastructure; integrated water resources management; flood and drought management; sustainable development and management of groundwater resources; harvesting and valuation of rainfall water; and resilience and adaptation to climate.
Nearly 36 years ago, four wetland reserves of Jammu province--Pargwal, Sangral, Kukrian and Nanga--were notified under the provisions of J&K Wildlife Protection Act, 1978. However, none of them have yet been formally handed over to the wildlife protection department by the revenue department for their proper conservation. Moreover, both departments are unaware of the actual area of the wetlands and to what extent they have been shrunk in these 36 years.
This is a roundup of important news from October 10 - 17, 2017. Also, read the policy matters this week.
Lead Image Source: Subhash Chandra via Wikipedia