Jhelum and Pashmina: A River Woven into a Shawl

February 18, 2026February 19, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

“Quae loca fabulosus lambit Hydaspes“
What places the magnificent Jhelum washes!

Ode 1.22, Horace, Circa 3rd BC[i]

With these lines begins M. Aurel Stein’s authoritative Ancient Geography of Kashmir, written in 1899.[ii] Stein was deeply smitten by Kashmir and its rivers and was the first to translate Kalhana’s epic Rajatarangini—literally River of the Kings—into English[iii].

Jhelum—or Behat, Vyeth, Vitasta, Hydaspes—has indeed washed some legendary places like Srinagar, Baramulla, Anantnag and Sopore. But it has also “washed” something very particular, something that is as much the fruit of the Jhelum as it is of Kashmir itself: the feather-light Pashmina shawl.

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Urban Water Bodies

Hyderabad Lakes 2025: Degradation Continues Amid HYDRAA Efforts

February 17, 2026February 17, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Lakes in Hyderabad are infested with heavy growth of hyacinth and algae, reflecting the terrible condition of the water bodies. Surya Sridhar/Telangana Today)

The historic network of lakes in Hyderabad city has been under stress from increasing pollution and encroachment for past many years. In response, the govt in July 2024 formed Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA) to protect lakes, nalas and public assets from encroachments and address urban flooding problems. Since then, the agency is actively involved in lakebed reclamation, demolition of illegal structures, desilting, flood-management interventions and selected lake rejuvenation projects. So far, it has attracted both support for removing encroachments from several lakes and criticism for lacking holistic approach and sustainable outcome.

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Dams, Rivers & People

DRP 160226: National River Research Centre Welcome, will it help the cause of rivers?

February 16, 2026February 16, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

The news this week that the Union Ministry of Jal Shakti, not known for any concern for rivers, has set up the National River Research Centre (NRRC) is welcome with usual caveats. The fact that NRRC has been set up under the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), a body under Union Environment Ministry is not necessarily as positive sign since MoEF too is not known for any concern for rivers. Moreover, setting up of NRRC through NMCG and NRCD also does not provide any hopeful sign for the same reason. WII, where the NRRC has been situated for now itself has had at best mixed track record as far as rivers are concerned.

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Yamuna River

Complaint against damage to Yamuna floodplain forested patch by dumping of concrete debris & rocks at ITO Chhath Ghat, Delhi

February 13, 2026February 16, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

Date 12 Feb. 2026

To,

1 Sh. Tanmay Kumar,

Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change (MoEF&CC)

secy-moef@nic.in

2 Sh. Rajeev Kumar Mital,

Director General, National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG)

dg@nmcg.nic.in

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Urban Water Bodies

Bengaluru Lakes 2025: Buffer Zone Amended, Pollution Rising

February 10, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Garbage and untreated sewage have reduced Ulsoor Lake, a major water body in Bengaluru, to a sewage pond. Source)

Bengaluru’s lakes, once central to the city’s water security and flood control have been under stress due to rapid urbanization, rising pollution and weak governance. The year 2025 has seen no major change in the scenario. This overview presents top ten reports from the yearlong developments affecting the water bodies including proposed amendments which could reduce lake buffer zones, prevalent encroachments, delay in restoration projects and deteriorating water quality in most of the lakes.

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Dams, Rivers & People

DRP 090226: NGT Critiques Shoddy CGWA report

February 9, 2026February 9, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

The criticisms of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on January 30 about the report of the Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA), set up under the Environment Protection Act 1986 in late 1990s is rather mild and seems symbolic, but it has the potential of open up a pandora’s box since CGWA has essentially totally failed in doing anything effective about groundwater regulation in India.

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Urban Water Bodies

2025: Mumbai’s Wetlands & Mangroves Need Urgent Proactive Governance

February 8, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Residents & activists gather at Lotus Lake pledging to protect the wetland from illegal dumping. Source)

Like previous years, the structural failures in the governance of Mumbai’s wetlands, lakes, and mangroves were laid bare in 2025 also. While citizens demonstrated extraordinary vigilance and courts delivered occasional relief, the action and inaction of state developmental agencies continued enabling their degradation.

The declaration of DPS Flamingo Lake in Nerul as a Conservation Reserve in April 2025 was indeed a hard-won victory. Yet, this achievement was swiftly undermined when CIDCO passed a resolution to pursue de-reservation of the very same wetland.

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Urban Water Bodies

Delhi’s Waterbodies Going Extinct Under Govt. Watch

February 7, 2026February 7, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: A wetland near Jharoda in Wazirabad has been destroyed by dumping of municipal waste over past two years. Source)

This overview tracking wetlands related developments in Delhi shows that the plight of water bodies, lakes, village ponds has only worsened over the past year. Of the 1,367 water bodies officially recorded, only 674 are visible on the ground, underscoring the failure of govt departments to protect these vital resources. Even the surviving water bodies are under threat, gradually being lost to brazen encroachments, waste dumping and unregulated construction under the watch of the very agencies responsible for their upkeep. And the systematic destruction is happening amid multiple ongoing judicial interventions particularly in the NGT.

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Wetlands

WWD 2026: Top Ten Judicial Interventions to Protect Wetlands in India

February 3, 2026 SANDRP1 Comment

Marking the World Wetlands Day (WWD) 2026, this overview presents top ten interventions by judiciary to protect the wetlands in India during 2025 so far. Apart from this, there have been several wetlands protection related court cases going on across the country during the year and reports of some of the relevant matters can be seen here. The judiciary has also been pursuing cases pertaining to conservation of several Ramsar wetlands in the country as covered in the first part of the overview here.

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Dams, Rivers & People

DRP 020226: Karnataka High Court Monitored Probe into sand mining menace?

February 2, 2026February 2, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

An interesting sequence of events in Karnataka has led to the High Court Chief Justice taking up a suo moto case and suggesting a court monitored probe into the illegal sand mining menace in the state. One hopes this leads to a proper independent investigation, monitored by the High Court, culminating in ensuring community have the key role in monitoring and compliance of sand mining in their respective area, since that is the most important missing link in governance of sand mining.

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