NMMC agrees to supply 20 mld to resolve Panvel’s water crisis.
The residents of Panvel City Municipal Corporation (PCMC) are heaving a sigh of relief as they have finally got some respite from the severe water scarcity they have been facing for the past three months.
We haven’t decided on the duration or the cost to be paid for supplying the water.
Dr. Ramaswamy said, “The water in the catchment area of PCMC is turbid as mud has got mixed due to heavy rainfall in the past two days.
With the NMMC now sharing its water, supply will be normal soon.” Dr. Sudhakar Shinde, PCMC administrator and commissioner, said, “The water supply will provide great relief to the residents staying within PCMC limits, especially people living in Old Panvel.” Mangesh Ranawat, a resident of Panvel, said, “I have an office in Old Panvel.
For the last two days, the water being supplied was slightly muddy.
Areas falling under PCMC, but receiving services from the City and Industrial Development Corporation of Maharashtra such as Kharghar, Taloja, Kamothe, New Panvel and Kalamboli will receive 120 to 130 mld of water every day though the actual requirement is 150 mld.
Old Panvel gets 8 mld of water from Dehran dam, 9 mld from Maharashtra Jeevan Pradhikaran and 10 mld from the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation.
Mr. Shinde said, “Old Panvel has a population of 1.5 lakh and the total water requirement is 30 mld.
Mr. Shinde said, “It is difficult to predict till when we would require additional water from the NMMC.

Water level dips in major reservoirs in Vellore.
After the water level in the Rajathoppu reservoir hit the zero mark, officials of the Public Works Department (PWD) say the present water situation in the two other reservoirs – Mordhana Dam near Gudiyatham and Andiappanur Odai near Tirupattur — and 519 tanks maintained by the department across the district is extremely poor.
According to the PWD, Rajathoppu reservoir, with its total storage capacity of 20.52 mcft of water has nil water as on June 27.
Mordhana Dam has 47.34 mcft of water as against its total storage capacity of 261.36 mcft, while Andiappanur Odai, which has a total capacity of 112.20 mcft, has 14.23 mcft of water as of now.
“Many of these tanks have only about 10% water of the total storage capacity.
The water level in majority of the water bodies is poor, and we are waiting for the northeast monsoon to end the crisis,” an official said.
The rains had also helped recharge more than 350 of the 519 tanks then.
This included one of the biggest tanks in the district — Sadupperi — that reached its full storage capacity.
“Farmers are facing acute water scarcity, and agriculture has taken a beating.
There is no water even after digging for 1,200 feet for sinking a borewell in Ambur Taluk.

Chennai water crisis: With reservoirs drying out, where will the city get its water from?.
Things are going to get difficult for residents in Chennai as the four reservoirs from where the water-starved city sources its water are likely to go dry in a few days.
Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) will also cut its supply from 500 million litres per day to 420-470 million litres per day in the next few weeks.
The Red Hills reservoir, located in the Thiruvallur district of Tamil Nadu, is also likely to dry out by the end of the week with storage at 33 McFt against the full capacity of 3300 McFt.
A senior official at Metrowater told the News Minute that the water situation in Chennai is "bad" and added that the city would face a crisis if the south-west monsoon fails.
From where will Chennai get its water?
The water supply will depend on how much of groundwater is available at the Metrowater sources in Tiruvallur and Neyveli.
Our 100 MLD desalination plants at Nemmeli and Minjur are running at full capacity," a senior Metrowater official told TOI.
After the Red Hills reservoir dries out by the end of this week, water is expected to be sourced from the Neyveli basin, Tiruvallur farms and rainwater stored in Sikkarayapuram quarries, which account for around 270 million litres of water per day.
Metrowater officials also considered pumping water through a pipeline from these sites to the Chembarambakkam treatment plant to be distributed to residences in Chennai Central.

Emir Appeals to Bauchi Govt to Make Potable Water Available.
The Emir of Bauchi, Alhaji Rilwanu Suleiman Adamu, has appealed to the state government to look into the acute water scarcity bedevilling residents of Bauchi metropolis with a view to making it readily available for domestic purposes.
Adamu, who was speaking Tuesday when he paid homage to Bauchi Government House tagged ‘Hawan Daushe’ as part of the Eid-el fitr celebrations, noted that the acute water shortage had defied successive administrations in the state.
He also called on the state government to intimate the federal government on the need for a new prison yard in Bauchi to replace the decades’ old, outdated and congested one located in the heart of the township.
The emir explained that his emirate council has for some years now been pleading with the relevant federal authorities for a new prison in Bauchi in conformity with the modern trend.
Emir Adamu also complained about the high fare of this year’s hajj to Saudi Arabia, as he similarly want the state government to reduce the cost of fertiliser which it pegged at N5,500 per bag to enable peasant farmers boost food production.

To stop farmer suicides, this group from TN is helping make agriculture profitable.
We had sessions with farmers, we spent the month of February understanding the problems of the farmers; we met farmers who use chemicals, and also organic farmers,” said Naveen Subramanium, a member of FFI.
Currently, the team is working with farmers in three villages near Chennai: Irumbedu near Arani, and Gumbli and Edur near Gummidipoondi.
We have been laying the groundwork, making them understand the soil, how to make it fertile, how to reduce the input cost, etc,” Naveen explained.
FFI has also been calling in experts to help the farmers cultivate in a profitable manner.
The group has not only been conducting sessions with farmers, but also helping them sell their yield to customers.
Other than this, they have also started the ‘4F campaign – For Farmer, For Family’.
Water scarcity being one of the major issues for the farmers in the state, FFI has been working with the government in lake and water restoration.
Asked about the reason for high farmer suicides in the state, Naveen explains: “High input cost and low yield is one of the major problem.
That is why we are promoting organic farming as it requires lesser input cost and gives more yield.”

20 MW Solar Power Plant to come up at Phey.
Leh,June 27, (Scoop News)- In connection with installation of a mega Solar Power Plant of the capacity of 20 Megawatt on 800 kanals of land at Phey through JKPDC, the Ladakh Affairs and Cooperative Minister, Chhering Dorjey visited Phey village today to discuss the matter and other way out with the people in terms of providing land for the project and other issues such as lifting of irrigational water from Indus and drinking water which are proposed to be provided to the Phey villagers under Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) of PDC.
As such, Minister said that it is high time to do this pending work under Corporate Social Responsibility of PDC that would considerably solve the problem of water scarcity in the village besides getting a dependable drinking water supply scheme to the villagers.
The Minister told to the villagers that work on this Solar Power project and lift irrigation system shall be simultaneously started from this working season and as such Mr. Dorjey keeping in mind maximum benefit to the Phey villagers from this project urged them to extend fullest cooperation to the Power Dev.
Corporation in realizing the project in a smooth way.
The Minister also indicated of installing few more hydel power projects of bigger capacity in Nubra, Lalok and Leh and hoped to start the works on these projects within few years.
The Minister also assured to the Phey villagers that he would make efforts to adopt Phey village under CSR of PDC that would tremendously help for overall development of the village.
The villagers put forth few demands to the Minister that include black topping of the approach road, completion of internal road and installation of a motorable bridge over the Indus in place of the foot suspension bridge connecting other side of the Indus which was washed away by the flood in 2010.
The Councilor area, Phuntsog Dorjey and Exen.
JK PDC , Shiv Kumar also accompanied the Minister during his visit to Phey.

VFF USA announces its annual gala ‘Recipe for Empowerment’.
The Vicente Ferrer Foundation USA (VFF USA) has announced its annual Recipe for Empowerment event that will be held on October 6 from 7 p.m. till 11 p.m.
The event will host top chefs from Spain, India, and the US to showcase the interconnectedness cuisines from different countries.
It would feature Jaleo, La Boqueria, Rasika, Bombay Club, and the Kitchen a Blue Creek, among others.
“This year we hope to raise $300,000.
“Previously, the event was held at the Former Residence of the Spanish Ambassador, but this year we anticipate a much larger crowd and have outgrown the space,” Klouthis said.
The funds raised last year were spent alleviating the conditions of more than 300 victims of human trafficking and domestic violence in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh.
“All funds raised from this event will be sent to India to help with some specific projects,” Klouthis said.
As one of its initiatives to espouse the development of rural Andhra Pradesh, VFF USA regularly organizes free tours to the state.
The stay can be of few days or a couple of weeks, depending upon the convenience of the traveler.

UN Projects Tackle Desertification in the Mid-East, Asia and Africa.
June 2017: The China-UN Peace and Development Trust Fund and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) have launched land restoration initiatives that may also help countries progress towards sustainable energy, agriculture and water management.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) is supporting the conversion of desert to cultivable land in Egypt, while the China-UN Peace and Development Trust Fund launched a project on Juncao Technology that could be tailored to countries’ needs across the Middle East, Africa and Asia.
The agency also notes that agriculture in the region uses “around 85% of the total available freshwater,” with more than 60% of water resources flowing from outside national and regional boundaries.
Graziano da Silva called looming water scarcity in the MENA region is a “huge challenge requiring an urgent and massive response.” To disseminate agricultural technologies, reduce hunger, enhance sustainable energy and address soil erosion in African and Asian countries, the China-UN Peace and Development Trust Fund launched the Juncao Technology project in May 2017.
According to remarks by China’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Liu Jieyi, Juncao, the technology is an agricultural approach that replaces wood with grass and can be used to grow edible and medicinal fungi, feed livestock, produce clean energy and prevent erosion.
In the dry Ningxia region of northwestern China, it is estimated that Juncao technologies helped to raise farmers’ annual income from US$80 in 1998 to US$1,024 in 2007.
According to Chinese news sources, China will contribute $200 million to the UN over 10 years to the UN Peace and Development Trust Fund to support peace and security and implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The Fund was launched in May 2017.
[Website of the FAO Near East and North Africa Water Scarcity Initiative] [SDG Knowledge Hub Story on WDCD 2017] [Xinhua Story on Launch of the Juncao Technology Project] [Remarks by Liu Jieyi] [State Council of People’s Republic of China Press Release]

Nairobians to go thirsty as water rationing intensifies.
By STELLAR MURUMBA Nairobi residents will continue to spend more on water as the utility provider signalled increased rationing after the levels at main reservoir Ndakaini Dam dropped to an all-time low.
Intensified rationing of the commodity by the Nairobi City Water and Sewerage Company (NCWSC) will see households dig deeper into their pockets as they seek expensive water from private vendors.
Vendors charge Sh20 or higher for 20 litres of water or 0.02 cubic meters, reaping a huge profit from the supply shortage.
This is steep compared to the Sh53 per 1,000 litres that NCWSC charges households.
“This has been necessitated by the below average rainfall experienced in the short and long rains of 2016 and 2017 respectively.” The company started rationing water in January due to depressed water levels at the Ndakaini dam in Murang’a County – the capital city’s main water source.
It was expected that long rains starting late March would lift water levels at the dams and ease the rationing.
However, the heavy rains have delayed and left around 2.7 million people in need of food aid after a dry spell in October and November.
A new dam is being built in Muranga to feed Nairobi’s growing population with water and cut reliance on Ndakaini.
Water scarcity last month forced flower firm, Primarosa Flowers, to stop operations at its Athi-River base and relocate to its Nyahururu farm.

The announcement of a new joint venture agreement in China is the latest development in a string of expansions pursued by Rubicon Water. After the Chinese deal was signed, Rubicon chief executive Bruce Rodgerson left for India, where he met with the national water minister. The company sees opportunities for water efficiency technologies in a country with high demands on water use, but with some different infrastructure issues. The Shepparton factory employs technical and trades staff to manufacture the automated irrigation gates and the radio-based technology to remotely control and manage the operation. The company now sells into 10 countries and has offices in New Zealand, the United States, India, Spain and China. Mr Rodgerson said one of the big impacts for the Shepparton factory would be a more even production schedule with steady export contracts evening out the peaks and…