Feature Article

Hydropower has been the backbone of energy supply in Uttarakhand, which is endowed with several rivers and mountains. State-owned generation utility, Uttarakhand Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited (UJVNL) is the leading company responsible for tapping the huge hydropower potential, of over 18 GW, in the state. As the state nodal agency for the development of small-hydro power (SHP) plants.

Biomass-based power project developers have been facing challenges such as increasing raw material costs, low tariffs, inadequate power evacuation infrastructure etc. While the developers have sought tariff revisions, the issues related to evacuation facilities has not been on the priority list of state governments.

This paper reviews the progress of SHG-Bank linkage programme at the national and regional levels, and examines its impact on the socio-economic conditions of SHG member households. The programme has grown at a tremendous

The Planning Commission, Government of India has set a target of 20 per cent blending of diesel with bio-diesel by the year 2012 to reduce the wide gap between demand and supply of petroleum products. This requires cultivating bio-diesel

This article is a systematic documentation and analysis of events that motivated development of irrigation in Madras Presidency in general and Krishna district in particular. In Krishna district, when the anicut was built in 1855, the phase-wise excavation of canals determined the phases of development of irrigation (1855-1900; 1900-1965 and 1965-2001) leading to three agro-climatic regions in the district viz., delta, moderate and dry regions (taluks).

This paper presents a brief account, based primarily on available secondary sources, of the current status of drinking water supply and sanitation in rural Madhya Pradesh. With a discussion on the lopsided hydrogeological attributes of water availability and shortages, a regional analysis of issues of access, quality of water and sustainability has been attempted. A brief discussion on the poor sanitation coverage of rural households in the State has been attempted.

Modern agriculture practices have been great promise for economic development of nation. Farm productivity is directly proportional to use of agrochemicals as observed from the first green revolution. Improper and unsafe use of these agrochemicals, especially pesticides is not only harmful to environment but also human health. Pesticides cause 14 per cent of all known occupational injuries in agriculture and 10 per cent of all fatal injuries.

This paper addresses the mass supply and use of butterflies for live exhibits, discusses the risks to biodiversity which this creates, and the educational opportunities it presents. Over the past 30 years a new type of insect zoo has become popular worldwide: the butterfly house. This has given rise to the global Butterfly House Industry (BHI) based on the mass production of butterfly pupae as a cash crop. Production is largely carried out by privately-owned butterfly farms in tropical countries, notably Central America and Southeast Asia.

The Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park in southern Sumatra (Indonesia) has been on the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites since 2004. Home to tigers, elephants, and rare Sumatran rhinos, the Park is also home to numerous squatters since the early 1970s. Part of the Park was restored after forcible evictions in the 1980s. However, since the end of General Suharto's authoritarian rule in 1998, the number of squatters has been on the increase.

While relationships between indigenous groups and protected areas have been extensively documented internationally, research on Native Americans and US National Parks is surprisingly sparse. Based on in-depth interviews with Blackfeet Indians, this article examines the complex contemporary relationship between the Blackfeet and Glacier National Park. According to the Blackfeet, tribal relationships with the park landscape are sustained through on-site practices that provide an interwoven and inseparable set of material, cultural, and spiritual benefits.