Back to news
29 Jul 2015 | News

Springshed development in the Himalayas discussed

1 min Read

70% Complete

With the aim to raise the importance of springshed management and bring visibility and outreach on spring and ground water management, the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) and Springs Initiative India held meetings in New Delhi on 10 July 2015.

The meeting was attended by officials of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD), and Department of Land Resource (DoLR), Government of India.

The two ministries recognized spring protection using the spring hydrogeology concepts, and its importance in forest management and watershed management programmes. As a follow up and way forward, MoEFCC suggested to look into the National Working Plan code and look into the possibilities of dovetailing springs hydrogeology under working plan Chapter 1 (Part 1) dealing with geology, rocks, and soil as well as in the water resource management prescription (Chapter 2).

Springs Initiative and ICIMOD were asked to develop a strategy to engage front line staff to understand hydrogeology and recharge areas and ways to implement springshed approaches at the field level. Similarly, MoRD suggested to share a list of areas and districts where applied research on spring hydrogeology has been tested involving local communities. Learning from these pilot sites could help DoLR to consider integration of hydrogeological parameters in watershed management.

The MoRD Joint Secretary also expressed interest to visit the pilot sites in Uttarakhand and observe springshed conservation work in the field. Since there is a data gap on springs in the Himalayan context, ICIMOD and Springs Initiative have agreed to work with partners in the region. This should give an opportunity to promote awareness on importance of springs, and build capacities to protect and develop springsheds across the Himalayas.

Stay current

Stay up to date on what’s happening around the HKH with our most recent publications and find out how you can help by subscribing to our mailing list.

Sign Up

Related Contents

Continue exploring this topic

25 May 2015 News
Value chain and participatory appraisal orientation in Bhutan

As part of Support for Rural Livelihoods and Climate Change Adaptation Programme (Himalica), an orientation workshop was organized on Value ...

19 Dec 2016 News
ICIMOD partner receives award for Resilient Mountain Village

The Center for Environment and Agricultural Policy Research, Extension and Development (CEAPRED) received the Adaptation at Scale Prize, Protsahan ...

Yak Festival 2017

The festival took place in Phalelung rural municipality in Panchthar district, an area bordering Sikkim and the Indian territory of ...

5 Apr 2016 News
China and ICIMOD’s Growing Alliance

Strategic Cooperation between NSFC and ICIMOD The bilateral workshop ‘NSFC-ICIMOD Strategic Cooperation’ was held 31 March - 1 April following a ...

10 Feb 2015 News
Climate Change in Downstream Areas of the Indus River Basin: Local Perceptions and Adaptation Measures

Likewise, indirect impacts like losses to agriculture and livelihoods due to erratic rains in high altitudes may result in increased ...

13 Dec 2017 News
Field excursion to Sikkim’s spring revival sites

The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) organized a filed excursion for 15 Bhutanese representatives to spring revival sites ...

14 Jun 2016 News
World Environment Day 2016

The WED 2016 campaign aims to raise awareness of the far-reaching nature of wildlife crime. The slogan for this year’s ...

28 Dec 2016 News
ICIMOD Scientist Receives Young Scientist Award from NAST

Santosh Nepal, a water and climate specialist at ICIMOD, has been awarded the prestigious ‘Young Science and Technology Award’ by ...