Integrated River Basin Planning – Replicable ... - India Water Portal

Integrated River Basin Planning: India and the EU share experience on policy and practice
INTRODUCTION
the so-called Roadmap for Pamba River that was delivered to the Government of
Kerala in December 2010. The aim of the Pamba Pilot Project was to deliver policy
support to integrated river basin management which contributes to the continuing
EU-India policy dialogue in the water sector. Although the Roadmap for Pamba
River was produced in a format allowing replication in other states within India, it
was felt that a separate and more generalized document on Integrated River Basin
Planning, using the Pamba River Pilot as a case study, would be appropriate. The
present document is the result thereof. The following themes have been addressed.
• Principles of Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) and planning
processes
• Existing water and environmental policies in India, with relevance to IWRM
• The Pamba River Pilot in which problems and solutions for river basin
management were identified and converted into decisions and actions
leading to the preparation of the Roadmap, and lessons learned
• Finally, linkages are being outlined to relevant legislation and experience built
in the European Union
1.2 The Pamba River IWRM Pilot
Integrated Water Resources Management is recognised as a set of principles for
achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The Plan of Implementation
adopted at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg in
2002 called for countries to develop Integrated Water Resources Management and
Water Efficiency Plans by 2005. These plans are milestones in recurring and longterm
national water strategy processes.
The implementation of a policy on integrated management of water resources is
now a universally recognized goal. It is in this context that the Government of Kerala
developed “an Act to provide for the constitution of an Authority in the State for the
conservation of water resources of the Pampa River and its basins as an integral
unit and for the management of allied activities and matters connected therewith or
incidental thereto.” 1
The Pampa River Basin Authority Act of 2009 goes further by recognizing the need
for a “Pampa Action Plan” by the Government of Kerala “for the conservation of the
Pampa River and its reservoirs by averting pollution through the projects undertaking
integrated planning, monitoring, management and development of water sources”.
The establishment of the Pampa River Basin Authority is supported by an ambitious
Water Policy that identifies the need to “create greater social awareness about the
rights and responsibilities in the use of water and to put in place better management
practices in the utilization of this invaluable resource. It is also necessary to ensure
people’s participation in water sector within the framework of decentralized
democratic institutions and to evolve suitable frameworks and strategies for the
continual up-gradation of water environment”.
1 The name of the river concerned is in documents spelled as either Pamba River or Pampa River.
In accordance with the spelling used in “the Roadmap”, the present document uses the wording
Pamba River as well.
IWRM provides the means of balancing and meeting the needs for use of water
resources to ensure equitable and sustainable use of the water resource. It is based
on the principle that, in order to maximise the benefits of the water resource and to
ensure equitable use of water, all water use and discharges in the catchment need
to be balanced. In achieving this, the following results were aimed at:
• increased awareness on the importance of an environmental approach and
considerations in IWRM;
• increased access to relevant IWRM information and tools;
• targeted training for key managers and decision makers in the water sector;
• development of a Roadmap for the implementation of IWRM concepts in
future planning processes;
• guide the Pamba River Basin Authority to spearhead the implementation of
IWRM plans and inclusion of IWRM in decision making;
• prospect for implementation of a baseline study for the development of an
IWRM Action Plan by local specialized organisations; and
• documentation on best practices, case studies and guidelines to enhance
replication.
The Pamba Pilot Project strived to promote and support this process by guiding
and giving support to the development and implementation of an IWRM plan for the
Pamba River Basin by developing a Roadmap towards this purpose. The project
respected the widely acknowledged approach that IWRM, based on effective
stakeholder engagement, provides a direct link to MDGs, addressing poverty,
hunger, gender equality, health, education and environmental degradation.
The pilot project has encouraged and used a participative approach to develop
identification of issues and outcomes to formulate and establish consensus
on visions, strategies, outputs, activities and external factors for the different
components of the project, as well as formulating and identifying the various factors
influencing the long-term sustainability of the programme. Workshop facilitation was
provided by APSF-TA team members and qualified water management experts.
To promote joint ownership of this work, stakeholders were motivated to act upon
the conclusions and recommendations during a final event organized by the APSF
team to expose and discuss identified actions and recommendations based on
analysis of outcomes assembled throughout the Pilot Project.
At the beginning of the project, the Consultant developed an overall Stakeholder
Involvement Plan (SIP), which started with a stakeholder mapping exercise. The SIP
tackled involvement of stakeholders on the regional and local level for the duration
of the project. The SIP was produced with the aim to including specific objectives
for stakeholder participation at the different project stages; assure appropriate levels
of participation for the various target groups (information provision, consultation,
or active involvement); and establish needs and characteristics of each working
session.
The Pamba Pilot Project has been implemented through six workshops guiding the
participants through a process of identifying the main issues related to water as
well as the main issues related to the management of water resources by different
institutions. Analysis was conducted taking the Pamba River Basin as one single
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