[Reader-list] Invitation for a symposium on 'South Asian Water Commons' - Saturday, 22 March 2014, New Delhi

[Rakhi Sehgal]

Dear Friends,

 Please mark your calendars.  A line of confirmation would be appreciated
at <psaarc.india at gmail.com>.

Please distribute widely.


*On the occasion of World Water Day 2014 *



*A SYMPOSIUM ON*



*SOUTH ASIAN WATER COMMONS:*

*PEOPLE'S VISIONS ON TRANSBOUNDARY RIVER SHARING*



*22 MARCH 2014*

*9.00am-5:30pm *



*Constitution Club*

*New Delhi*





*Organised by*



*People's SAARC-India*

*South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People & *

*ActionAid India *



 *The South Asia region is characterised by numerous river basins,* *that
do not coincide with national boundaries. Many of these basins* *are shared*
 *between countries of unequal size and power*. Sharing waters of
transboundary river systems has been a source of ongoing tensions and
conflicts in the region for more than half a century. Further, China's
growing use of the eastern Himalayan waters is a source of concern.



Nearly all the water in Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Bhutan comes from
a river shared with at least one other South Asian state. India's
trans-boundary riparian policies affect four countries - Pakistan, Nepal,
Bhutan and Bangladesh - on four river systems - the Kosi, the Indus, the
Ganga and the Brahmaputra. China's riparian policies affect nine countries
to the south - Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand,
Cambodia and Vietnam - on five river systems - the Indus, the Ganga, the
Brahmaputra, the Salween and the Mekong.



Bhutan, India and China are planning inter-basin water transfers to feed
their rapid economic expansion through hydropower dam constructions.
Hydropower and dam projects impact local communities in upstream and
downstream, livelihoods, cultures, lands, rivers, forests, biodiversity and
disaster potential of the river basins. There are no credible - project
specific or basin level - impact assessments, mitigation plans or
compliance systems in place with free, prior and informed involvement of
the basin communities. These impacts are accentuating the climate change
impacts and adaptation capacity of the communities. Whatever benefits are
generated from these projects, they are largely going to outside the
affected region.



The onging inter-state conflicts over water have not necessarily addressed
issues that impact ordinary people of South Asia - their access to water
and impact on livelihoods for example. The Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna Basin
covering North Eastern and Eastern India, Bhutan, Nepal and Bangladesh, in
addition to upstream China, Nepal, and Bangladesh has been dubbed South
Asia's "poverty square", with substantially more people below the
dollar-per-day poverty line than in all the countries of sub-Saharan Africa
combined.

There is an urgent need to evolve a regional policy and mechanism on water
commons that work transparently, with accountability, and with
participation of local people and impacted people, (especially the more
vulnerable such as dalits, women, minorities, farmers and peasants) along
with ensuring sustainability of the water commons, ecology and biodiversity.



The SAARC's energy policy is also pushing for harnessing hydropower on
these rivers, sometimes with UN funding of hydropower and other projects
under the UNFCCC's Clean Development Mechanism and funding from other
bilateral and multilateral aid agencies, so there is need to evaluate and
propose an alternative approach, maybe a 'South Asian Water Commons
Convention' that takes into account equity, justice, sustainability and
livelihood concerns.



It is in this context that People's SAARC-India, South Asia Network of
Dams, Rivers and People (SANDRP) and Action Aid (Natural Resource and
South-South Knowledge Hubs) are organizing a symposium on 22 March 2014 at
the Constitution Club, New Delhi from 9 am to 5:30 pm.



*Date: 22 March 2014, Saturday*

*Location:  New Delhi*

*Venue: Constitution Club*

*Time: 9 am - 5:30 pm*



If you need any additional information about the meeting please feel free
to email us at psaarc.india at gmail.com.



We look forward to your participation in this important symposium.



Regards,



Rakhi Sehgal          PSAARC-India



Himanshu Thakkar       SANDRP



Bratindi Jena   AA-Natural Resource Hub



Benny Kuruvilla AA-South-South Hub







*TENTATIVE AGENDA*



9:00 - 9:30 am            Registration & Tea



9:30 - 10:30 am          Opening Plenary



10:30 - 11:45 pm        Session 1: Kosi River Basin

                                            Discussion with affected people
and resource persons




11:45 - 1:15 pm          Session 2: Barak & Brahmaputra River Basin

                                             Discussion with affected
people and resource persons



1:15 - 2:00 pm            Lunch



2:00 - 3:15 pm            Session 3: Ganga & & Teesta River Basins

                                             Discussion with affected
people and resource persons



3:15 - 3:30 pm            Tea



3:30 - 4:45 pm            Session 4: Indus River Basin

                                  Discussion with affected people and
resource persons



4:45 - 5:30 pm             Concluding Plenary



-- 
People's SAARC (PSAARC) India Secretariat
O-63, Second Floor, Lajpat Nagar II
New Delhi 110024
Ph: 41328040
Email: psaarc.india at gmail.com
Blog: www.psaarcindia.wordpress.com <https://psaarcindia.wordpress.com/>