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The Stage Nepal’s geography has unique features. As the crow flies, about 150 kms from north to south the country covers about six geological and climatic belts varying in altitude from above 8,000 m to just 95 msl (mean sea level): the... more
The Stage Nepal’s geography has unique features. As the crow flies, about 150 kms from north to south the country covers about six geological and climatic belts varying in altitude from above 8,000 m to just 95 msl (mean sea level): the Tibetan plateau, the high Himalaya, the midland hills, the Mahabharat Lekh (range), the Chure and the Tarai. In addition the presence of valleys and terraces in between further confirms its uniqueness. Indeed the landscape of Nepal covers 118 ecosystems, with 75 vegetation types and 35 forest types. In this paper we refer to this landscape as the Himalayan mountain system (HMS). Broadly HMS consists of three ecological zones: high mountains (35% of Nepal’s area), middle mountains (42% of total area), and the lower altitude Chure/Tarai range (23% of total area). Land-locked, Nepal is one of the poorest countries in the world (per capita income of US$ 472). Of the country’s 30 million population 25% lives below the poverty line which varies across geog...
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PowerPoint presentationMeeting: Adapting to Climate Change and Water Security in Asia, International Development Research Center (IDRC), 18-20th June 2013National programmes do not reach the local level for effective action and hence will... more
PowerPoint presentationMeeting: Adapting to Climate Change and Water Security in Asia, International Development Research Center (IDRC), 18-20th June 2013National programmes do not reach the local level for effective action and hence will not reach the most vulnerable people. Nepal is fourth in terms of international climate change vulnerability. In terms of local adaptation planning action (LAPA), the presentation advocates for a systems approach to help understand power balance and imbalances and social differentials; to generate and integrate ideas; and to engage in constructive dialogue
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The role of disasters in building and maintaining the cycle of poverty and undermining development progress is increasingly recognized as a major global challenge. While many recent disasters are related to geophysical events... more
The role of disasters in building and maintaining the cycle of poverty and undermining development progress is increasingly recognized as a major global challenge. While many recent disasters are related to geophysical events (earthquakes, tsunamis, etc.), approximately 70% are weather related and this proportion is likely to grow as climate change processes increase the variability and intensity of weather events. As a result, cost-effective strategies for reducing disaster risk are central both to meeting development goals and responding to the challenges climate change will present all sectors of society, particularly the poor, women and other vulnerable groups. The purpose of this chapter on methodologies is to present practical approaches for identifying, prioritizing and ultimately demonstrating the costs and benefits of tangible interventions to reduce disaster risks, particularly those likely to emerge as a consequence of climate change. Such practical approaches are essenti...
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The paper explores the links between the MDGs and Sustainable Development Goals. In addition, it examines the interconnection between climate vulnerability, water, sanitation and health in Nepal. The study seeks to interrogate these... more
The paper explores the links between the MDGs and Sustainable Development Goals. In addition, it examines the interconnection between climate vulnerability, water, sanitation and health in Nepal. The study seeks to interrogate these issues within a framework of sustainable livelihood conditions.
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Ajaya Dixit's paper deals with floods in South Asia. He argues that if one move away from the structural flood control and disaster relief activities that charaterise conventional approaches to flood mitigation and focus more on the... more
Ajaya Dixit's paper deals with floods in South Asia. He argues that if one move away from the structural flood control and disaster relief activities that charaterise conventional approaches to flood mitigation and focus more on the root caused of vulnerability the points of leverage for mitigating disaster that could prove more effective. Key words: Floods; flood mitigation; disaster relief; South Asia Water Nepal Vol. 12, No. 1&2, 2006 Page: 207-226
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Research Interests: Environmental Science, Environmental Economics, Limnology, Nepal, Landslides, and 11 moreStakeholder participation, Disaster Preparedness, Mountains, Watershed Management, Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment, Extreme weather, Document, Watershed, Stakeholder, Cost Benefit Analysis, and Adaptive capacity
The authors argue that vulnerability present inherent challenge to water management throughout South Asia. Conventional water management strategies attempt to reduce the inherent variability in water availability by controlling flows,... more
The authors argue that vulnerability present inherent challenge to water management throughout South Asia. Conventional water management strategies attempt to reduce the inherent variability in water availability by controlling flows, developing storage facilities and diversifying water supply sources. They argue that the first two strategies are both inadequate and risky in South Asian context. Variability and the characteristics extreme events have embedded uncertainly that has fundamental implications for water management strategies. Their paper also document some of the key factors responsible for variability of hydrologic systems in South Asia s well as the uncertainty that underlies water management with focus on Nepal's Himalayan region. Keywords: water management; diversifying water supply sources; water management strategies; Nepal Water Nepal Vol. 12, No. 1&2, 2006 Page: 227-260
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ABSTRACT This article was submitted without an abstract, please refer to the full-text PDF file.
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The Indo-Gangetic Basin comprises one of the world’s most important aquifers. The basin is home to approximately 1 billion people and encompasses northern and eastern India, much of Bangladesh, parts of southern Nepal and the most... more
The Indo-Gangetic Basin comprises one of the world’s most important aquifers. The basin is home to approximately 1 billion people and encompasses northern and eastern India, much of Bangladesh, parts of southern Nepal and the most populous areas of Pakistan. Despite the presence of large rivers, much of the basin’s population are dependent on groundwater for drinking water, and the groundwater resource is highly exploited through an estimated 20 million boreholes to support a globally important agricultural industry. The security of supply from this aquifer is threatened by environmental change and increased abstraction. The groundwater resources have undergone major changes in the past 200 years: from (1) equilibrium conditions where groundwater was recharged by rainfall and river flow in before 1850; to (2) large scale river irrigation leading to rising groundwater levels and salinisation (1860-1960s); (3) increased abstraction of shallow groundwater throughout the basin (1960s – ...
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... Vishwas S. Kale analyses the geomorphic effects of monsoon floods in Indian rivers. ... A Bangladeshi perspective on regional cooperation in flood management in the Ganges–Brahmaputra–Meghna (GBM) catchments are presented by QK Ahmad... more
... Vishwas S. Kale analyses the geomorphic effects of monsoon floods in Indian rivers. ... A Bangladeshi perspective on regional cooperation in flood management in the Ganges–Brahmaputra–Meghna (GBM) catchments are presented by QK Ahmad and Ahsan Uddin Ahmed. ...
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ING FROM DIVERSITY Water problems are as diverse as the human settlements that depend on water availability. In a region as large as Asia, the number of water-related problems is so vast that it is impossible to engage with any crisis,... more
ING FROM DIVERSITY Water problems are as diverse as the human settlements that depend on water availability. In a region as large as Asia, the number of water-related problems is so vast that it is impossible to engage with any crisis, whether flood or drought, pollution or displacement, without paying homage to water. The region spans every known climatic and hydroecological zone, including deserts, tropical floodplains and tundra. The challenge of providing varied human dwellings in such diverse habitats with safe and reliable water, for both human consumption and economic activities promoting general well-being, will have to engage the sum total of known global ingenuity. Despite this diversity, it is necessary to identify and address common problems if we intend to forge any intelligent plan for collective action to solve water and settlementrelated problems. This effort will require us to step back from specifics, which are different in every hamlet and town in every clime, and deduce general lessons. It is precisely in drawing such lessons that those of us engaged in redressing social or environmental wrongs face our biggest challenge. Water problems, especially those that pertain to social equity and environmental sanity are often very local concerns that demand actions at the local level, but regional and global cooperation on such local issues are difficult to define unless the problems have been generalised for a global audience. This generalisation is not an easy thing to do, but without it, no agreement is possible on how to proceed forward with collective action. Social and environmental activists are intimately in touch with their grassroots and they function most effectively in local situations. But, in all honesty, they are not very effective at the global level where they have to confront problems abstracted to several levels above the grassroots. Often, activists find themselves confronting a situation in which the issues that they have dealt with at the field level have been re-cast in such a manner that they are hardly recognisable. In some cases of resetting, sharp multinational