A Vidarbha-like situation is looming over the Marathwada region in Maharashtra where two poor monsoons have taken a toll on the lives of the people.

The Japanese government will provide Rs3.49 billion for supply of drinking water to Mansehra city and its adjoining areas.

CHERRAPUNJEE (MEGHALAYA): On the way to Cherrapunjee, at a tiny town called Mawmihthied, girls line up near a water tap with a long queue of empty buckets. As one nears what was once ranked the world's wettest place, there are more such groups waiting to fill up for the day.

Laribinglin, 26, one of those hanging around the tap -- they are called 'platform' here -- says scrounging for water has become part of daily schedule. "Sometimes we get proper drinking water once in three days," she complains. "The source is one and half hours away. It is not possible to walk there every day."

Rainwater harvesting, installing pumpsets, generators and RO systems, part of the plan

A Rs.40-crore contingency plan has been worked out to face the impending water scarcity during summer, the District planning Committee was informed on Thursday. Rajendra Prasad, Assistant Director, Panchayats, said that apprehending serious drinking water shortage during March-April, District Collector Jayashree Muralidharan had utilised various funds solely for tackling the issue. As much as Rs.37 crore had already been spent for drinking water facilities alone.

The onslaught of drought and the alleged shortage of pumping time have put the residents of Fort Kochi in dire straits with the area reeling under acute water shortage for the past few weeks.

The situation has worsened during the past few days, said Fort Kochi councillor Antony Kureethara, who presented the issue at the Corporation Council.
The irregularity in pumping time was the reason behind the acute water shortage in areas like Chirattapalam, Pattalam and Kunnumpuram, the councillor said. “Currently, water is only being pumped for one-and-a-half hours each in the morning and evening. Most of the time, sufficient water is not pumped, thanks to load shedding. Despite frequent reminders to the Kerala Water Authority officials, the situation remains unsolved,” he said.

A severe drought across Maharashtra is forcing leopards out of their forest habitats and pushing them into areas inhabited by people, leading to human-animal conflict.

According to forest officials leopards are straying out of forests as water bodies dry up and often enter agricultural areas. So far, incidents of leopards straying into inhabited areas have increased in Western Maharashtra, which is facing severe drought this year.

Filling It Artificially Will Save Animals, Say Officials | A Wrong Move: Experts

Bangalore: The government’s proposal to artificially replenish water holes in national parks, sanctuaries and tiger reserves has drawn flak from wildlife experts. The proposal was floated last month due to drought-like condition and water crisis in forest areas. In a letter to Dipak Sarmah, the principal chief conservator of forests (PCCF) and chief wildlife warden, Karnataka forest department, the experts said it’s disastrous to have water tankers enter wildlife reserves

Hard hit by consecutive droughts, in the last two years, taluks in Malnad region, have not been able to meet the drinking water shortage.

Such has been the distress situation that MLAs of the Malnad and eternally drought-hit Chikballapur district, dread facing the people in the constituency during the coming elections for fear of incuring their wrath. Janata Dal (Secular) MLA Sunil V Hegde of Haliyal constituency, Uttara Kannada district, N Sampangi of Bagepalli constitutency, Chikballapur district, and Congress MLA Kimmane Rathnakar of Thirthahalli raised the issue in the Legislative Assembly on Wednesday participating in the discussion on drought and drinking water shortage.

District panchayat chief says allocated sum insufficient

District panchayat president S. Jayamohan has said that in the backdrop of Kollam being declared drought hit, the State government should make an emergency allocation of Rs.50 crore to solve the district’s drinking water problem. In a statement here on Tuesday, Mr. Jayamohan said the amount was urgently required to meet the expenses for transporting drinking water, pipeline extension, cleaning of freshwater wetlands, compensation to farmers who had suffered crop loss on account of the drought, renovation of the Kallada Irrigation Project (KIP) canals, and repair of pumps owned by the Kerala Water Authority.

Lawyers’ statements come in handy for Opposition to corner the govt

Launching an attack against the State government for “suddenly changing its stand” with regard to the notification of the final award of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT), the Opposition parties have demanded that the government should submit a detailed explanation on the matter. A day after the Supreme Court pronounced its verdict directing the Centre to notify the 2007 award of the CWDT, Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Siddaramaiah alleged in the Assembly that the BJP government had abruptly made a U-turn.