India Habitat Centre and Jor Bagh Metro Station
Jor Bagh Metro Station Exhibition Preview 16th March – 29th June India Habitat Centre Photography Exhibition 6th April – 6th May
Agriculture,
Archive,
Bidur,
Dhulikhel,
Exhibition,
India,
Kathmandu,
Kempty,
Location,
Mussoorie,
Nainital,
Nepal,
News,
Pahar,
Palampur,
Projects,
Seasonality,
Shimla,
Sources,
Theri,
Tibet,
Urbanisation,
Water Sacred, Life Affirming and Disappearing
Published in the Guardian on December 27th, 2017 – LINK HERE Rapid urbanisation, dwindling groundwater reserves and changing rain patterns are driving a water crisis in the lower Himalayas of India and Nepal. Photojournalist Toby Smith took part in a research project charting the shifting demands on this fragile landscape Photographs by Toby Smith/University of Cambridge Text by Professor Bhaskar Vira and Eszter Kovacs
Agriculture,
Bidur,
Dhulikhel,
Exhibition,
India,
Mussoorie,
Nainital,
Nepal,
News,
Shimla,
Water for drinking, domestic and agricultural use
Villages of the Himalayas depend on surface water
Agriculture,
Bidur,
Dhulikhel,
Exhibition,
India,
Location,
Mussoorie,
Nainital,
Nepal,
News,
Projects,
Shimla,
Sources,
Water Water is not just physical systems
The delivery of water is not just about the construction of physical systems, but also creating suitable social and political infrastructures that can support the appropriation, management and distribution of resources to people. Creating water management systems that are environmentally sustainable and socially just requires the inclusion, participation and representation of all social layers. During May 2017, Nepal held its first local council elections in almost twenty years. At Dhulikhel, water provision to all areas of the town is a highly political issue, with candidates campaigning and competing on this issue to secure the votes of their constituents. Water politics did influence the outcome – a new mayor was elected who is committed to locally sourcing affordable water for town residents through low intervention...Democracy in Dhulikhel
In May and June 2017, Nepal held its first local government elections since 1997, an outcome of far-reaching political changes that were galvanised by the disastrous 2015 earthquake. Our ESPA research started in Nepal in early 2014. In this period, we have observed and documented first-hand a series of under-reported and examined, yet highly contested ‘political’ elections that have been taking place for years even in the absence of a formal Municipal Council or government. These elections have been taking place within communities for the direct control and management of natural resources – and particularly of water. Over the past two decades, water’s importance as a resource across the Himalayas has grown. Local communities have had to overcome increased scarcity and consumption, as water...
