Democratisation of Water/edited by B.K. Thapliyal, S.S.P. Sharma, P. Shiv Ram and U. Hemant Kumar. New Delhi, Serials Pub., 2008, xiv, 656 p., tables, figs., ISBN 81-8387-162-4. 

    Contents: Preface. Acknowledgements. I. Water policy: problems and prospects: 1. Democratisation of water: concept, status and issues/B.K. Thapliyal and others. 2. The right to water towards democratisation and participatory governance/C.R. Bijoy. 3. Pathway to the water democracy in India/H.M. Desarda. 4. Rising population, water scarcity and conflicts in rural India/S.S.P. Sharma. 5. National Water Policy options on interlinking of rivers--dimensions and issues/V. Madhava Rao, R.R. Herman and P. Keshav Rao. 6. Inequity in water distribution and interventions towards security/T.K. Giri and Upadhyaya. 7. Irrigation, water management and drought risks in Orissa: some policy issues/B.K. Sahu. 8. Water resources planning through non-conventional methods: a study on inter-basin transfers in Peninsular India/D. Rudrappan. 9. Decentralised management of water resources strategies for sustainable development in N E Region/N. Upadhyaya and T.K. Giri. 10. Sustainable approaches to water resources management/R. Murugesan. 11. Conflict resolution and institutional arrangements for trans boarder rivers: a case of Kosi Basin/NMP Verma. 12. Legal regime of ground water in India/Sujit Koonan. 13. Public-private partnerships in water and sewerage: an African perspective/Reto Theonen. II. Management of irrigation: 14. Development and management of irrigation water/S.K. Rau. 15. Democratizing irrigation management and reforming water pricing system in India/Mamta Swain. 16. Participatory irrigation management in India--policy and practice/Deepak Kumar Das. 17. Minor irrigation in Andhra Pradesh--equity and other issues/Rahul A. Shastri. 18. Economic and institutional aspects of irrigation--water rates in Andhra Pradesh/U. Hemanth Kumar. 19. Pricing of canal irrigation and service delivery--an empirical study in Fatewadi Canal command area in Gujarat/Sonal Bhatt. 20. Institutional mechanism for traditional and modern practices in the maintenance and management of irrigation water/V. Ragupathy. 21. Tank irrigation in India: status, trends and issues/A. Narayanamoorty. 22. Participatory management of lift irrigation in Haryana/C.S. Singhal. 23. Market pricing of ground water in agriculture in Karnataka/P.S. Srikanthamurthy and others. 24. Sustainable management of ground water use for irrigation: a village study/Sarah Ahmed. 25. Irrigation and equity: a regional analysis/Ch. Radhika Rani. III. Development and management of drinking water: 26. Access to drinking water in India--state and market interventions/Samantha Sahu and Rajashree Padhi. 27. Decentralisation of drinking water and role of Panchayats/Y. Bhaskar Rao. 28. Management of drinking water supply system by rural local self governments/A.C. Jena and E.V. Prakash Rao. 29. Drinking water accessibility in rural areas--the case of West Bengal/Dilip Kumar Ghosh. 30. Government initiatives in rural and urban water supply--a study in three districts of KBK Region in Orissa/P. Sivaram, R.R. Herman, A.V. Yadappanavar and T. Vijay Kumar. 31. State society partnership in drinking water management--the case of Jalanidhi Project in Kerala/T.M. Joseph and Jos Chathukulam. 32. Public-Public and Public Private partnership in maintenance of drinking water/G. Palanithurai and R. Ramesh. 33. Community initiatives and participation of the community in drinking water supply: basic lessons and emerging issues/V. Annamalai and E.V. Prakash Rao. 34. Household participation in community based rural water supply systems: Kerala experience/K.R. Nisha. Index. 

    "With increasing population, food production and industrial activities, demand for multiple usage of water is multiplying every year. More over due to human activities, water pollution is becoming a major problem. Though more than 70 per cent of the surface area of the earth is covered by water, less than of three percent of all available sources of water are safe for consumption.

    In India, though sweet water resources are in abundance, their distribution across the geographical area is not uniform and therefore some areas have frequent floods while some other parts face frequent droughts. India which is developing on a faster pace, has also nearing to a situation where water stress is being felt. This is also leading to make water a marketable commodity and may cause serious problem to the poor, specially in rural areas. It is in this context, "Democratisation of Water" is gaining importance.

    Unless we manage our water resources efficiently and judiciously, and ensure equitable access to the water by all sections of the population, we may face water crises in different parts of the country, specially in water scarce regions. 

    The time has come to take water management seriously. The National Institute of Rural Development which is an apex organization of the Government of India for Training and Research in all aspects of Rural Development, takes up such issues from time to time for discussion at the national and international levels through workshops and seminars, specially during Institutes Foundation Day celebration.

    For NIRD's Foundation Day Celebrations during 10-12 November, 2006, "Democratisation of Water" was selected as the subject for the seminar in which more than 100 academicians, experts, activists and professionals from across the country, concerned with water and environment participated, and many of them presented papers based on their research, experience and observations. This volume is the outcome of the papers presented and discussed in the seminar on "Democratisation of Water"." (jacket)  

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