An Enquiry into Equity Impact of Groundwater Markets in the Context of Subsidised Energy Pricing: A Case Study

In India, groundwater over-extraction is often linked with subsidized electricity in the agricultural sector. Proponents of electricity subsidy argue that such a subsidy helped even the resource-poor farmers to have had access to groundwater irrigation. This article explores inter- and intra-generational equity implications of groundwater markets in the context of subsidized electricity where the market enables even non-well owners to access groundwater for irrigation. The study is based on survey data collected from two districts in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. The sample includes farmers who use electricity- and diesel-powered pumps to lift groundwater. The structure of the existing water market is examined through the determination of the water price–cost ratio. The article finds that, in the short run, water markets improve accessibility to groundwater irrigation, particularly for marginal and small farmers. With the help of this, farmers are able to mitigate water-scarcity-related vulnerabilities. However, in the long run, electricity subsidy may have negative dynamic implications by causing over-exploitation of groundwater that reduces the volume of groundwater available for future agricultural use. In other words, this article finds that, in the initial phases of the development of the water markets, there are intra-generational equity implications. However, in the advanced phases, the unsustainable extraction of groundwater could lead to inter-generational inequities

Farmers’ Willingness to Pay for Improved Irrigation Water — A Case Study of Malaprabha Irrigation Project in Karnataka, India

In principle, the approach toward irrigation management in India has gradually shifted from a government dominated, supply-side paradigm toward a user-preferred, demand-side paradigm. Yet, decisions regarding water allocation and irrigation charges do not adequately incorporate farmers' preferences and their willingness-to-pay (WTP) for improved irrigation. Since public investment on irrigation projects is sizeable and the opportunity cost of irrigation water is increasing, there exists a need to estimate the economic value of irrigation water in order to utilize it in an efficient manner. This paper presents results of a contingent valuation (CV) study conducted in a semi-arid region, namely, the Malaprabha Irrigation Project in Karnataka, India, which elicited farmers' preferences and their WTP value for improved irrigation. The results suggest that farmers predict a significant increase in agricultural benefits due to additional irrigation and they are willing to pay significantly higher than what they are currently paying to secure these benefits. It implies that improved irrigation increases not only the farmers' benefits but could potentially increase the government's revenue, resulting in a win–win outcome

Swachh Bharat Mission: Groundwater Contamination in Peri-urban India

The Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) was announced on 2 October 2014 with the objective to achieve universal sanitation and make India open defecation free by 2019, the 150th birthday of Mahatma Gandhi. The SBM is the latest sanitation programme, in a long line of programmes, going back to the First Five Year Plan in 1954 when the rural sanitation programme was first introduced. The SBM has arguably been more visible to the public than its predecessor,the Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan. The SBM programme is being implemented by the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation (2014) (MDWS) for the rural (Gramin) segment and the Ministry of Urban Dev elopment (2014) (MOUD) for the urban segment. Under the SBM (Gramin), for example, there has been a rise of nearly 16% in households with toilets since 2014, and over 1.2 lakh villages have self-declared to be open defecation free. Similarly, under the SBM (urban), almost 28 lakh individual and community toilets have been constructed and 405 cities are open defecation free.1 The SBM, therefore, offers a promising solution to address the issues of sanitation and water in rapidly urbanising areas. However, the groundwater and sanitation nexus, in the emerging periurban regions, needs a detailed discussion in order to understand its implications for the SBM

Do household surveys estimate tap water use accurately? Evidence from pressure-sensor based estimates in Coimbatore, India

Quantifying domestic water use at the household scale is crucial for any policy interventions towards ensuring adequate, equitable and safe water access. In developing country contexts, piped water supply is often one of several sources from which households access water and this is often unmetered. The most common approach to quantifying household water use from multiple sources is through household surveys. But there is no evidence that household surveys accurately estimate water use. This study utilized high-resolution pressure sensor data as a reference to evaluate the effectiveness of conventional household survey methods through a sample of 82 households in Coimbatore city in South India. The pressure sensors produced detailed, continuous and accurate information on all sources of water accessed through the household storage infrastructure, but they were expensive and intrusive. Compared with pressure-sensor derived estimates of tap water use, household surveys alone fared very poorly. However, household surveys and well designed water diaries of supply and pumping coupled with simple one-time field measurements emerged as a valid approach to quantifying household water use from taps under multiple source dependence

A successful pregnancy occurred after isolating the offending antibody(s) and choosing appropriate sperm donor of similar phenotype

Sensitization against Rh(D )is the most common cause of haemolytic disease of fetus and newborn (HDFN). Now a days, a widespread use of antenatal and postnatal Rh immunoglobulin has resulted in marked decrease in prevalence of Rh(D) alloimmunization. Fetal loss due to other red cell antigens gain importance as there are no prophylactic immunoglobulin are available. Here, we present a case of primary infertility associated with non Rh(D) alloimmunization which was detected in a 30 year old housewife during her ongoing infertility treatment. The antibody identification workup showed patient is having multiple alloantibodies , probable anti-c, and anti-Fya. The extended phenotype shows that the husband is mismatched with the wife's phenotype in “c” and Fya. Also the probable antibody in the mother's serum are anti-c and anti-Fya which are noted to cause HDFN as per literature

In Mukherjee, A. (Ed.). Groundwater of South Asia. Singapore: Springer

Private investments in groundwater have emerged as the main pathway through which smallholder farmers in India access irrigation. This paper discusses the role of groundwater in agrarian growth in West Bengal, India. It finds that agricultural growth in the state has stagnated since mid-1990s, after an initial period of growth in the 1980s and early 1990s. We hypothesize that this stagnation was a direct result of slowdown in growth in groundwater irrigation. The reason for this slowdown was, in turn, government policies related to groundwater and electricity. The paper then goes on to discuss the Groundwater Act of 2005 as well as electrification policies of the government of West Bengal and locates these policies within the broader backdrop of groundwater resource endowments in the state. By juxtaposing groundwater policies and resource realities, the paper questions the relevance of current regulations and suggests some policy alternatives - alternatives that are likely to propel the state and its smallholder farmers on a path of higher agricultural growth

Isolation of Pure Compound R/J/3 from Pluchea Indica (L.) Less. and its Anti-Amoebic Activities Against Entamoeba HGistolytica

The plant Pluchea indica is known for its anti-inflammatory, anti-ulcer, anti-pyretic, hypoglycemic, diuretic and antimicrobial activities besides many other pharmacological activities. We have isolated and purified seven compounds from the methanolic root extract of this plant by column chromatography. The compounds were identified by spectroscopic analyses. The anti-amoebic activities of the pure compound R/J/3 was investigated against the HM1 strain of Entamoeba histolytica. The compound, R/J/3 showed the most pronounced anti-proliferative activity at a dose of 50 mg/ml. It also showed a marked activity on cell lysis of trophozoites, 4 h after administration. The cell lytic activity was compared with metronidazole (5 mg/ml) as positive control

A novel approach to baseline water quality assessment at local and catchment scale: a case study from Berambadi, India

Optimal design and maintenance are necessary for the sustainability of wastewater treatment systems. In this study, we present the outcome of a novel approach to baseline assessment conducted prior to the design and deployment of a decentralized wastewater treatment system at a school in rural India. The baseline water quality monitoring protocol was deployed to assess (a) the quality and quantity of wastewater (greywater and blackwater) flows from the school and (b) the status of surface water and groundwater quality in the catchment. Hourly greywater flows and water quality trends were monitored across four seasons at the school. Average freshwater consumption at the school was 518 ± 322 L/day for hand washing and 287 ± 97 L/day for cooking meals. Greywater generation showed high hourly variations in COD levels. Greywater generated from hand wash and kitchen sources contributed to 110 g/day and 96 g/day of BOD5 respectively and 214 g/day and 141 g/day of COD respectively. Based on additional data from a self-reporting sanitation survey, the organic contaminant load generated from the toilet was estimated to be 1.5 ± 0.1 kg COD/day. At the catchment scale, both groundwater and surface water quality were monitored seasonally to assess the impact of raw sewage and stormwater inputs. Compared with borewells, high nitrate–N levels (> 10 mg/L) were observed in the village hand pump samples throughout the year. Maximum nitrate–N (16 mg/L) and fecal coliforms (3.9 log MPN/100 mL) levels were observed in surface waters during monsoons, indicating the impact of sewage and surface runoff on water quality. The proposed approach is useful to estimate data on freshwater use and wastewater generation at the school and hence to make the case for, and design of, a sustainable water management intervention