Details of Grant 

EPSRC Reference:	EP/C519094/1
Title:	Sustainable Groundwater Management in Rural India - Geoenvironmental/Health/Social aspects
Principal Investigator:	Thomas, Professor HR
Other Investigators:	Wehrmeyer, Dr W Seetharam, Dr S Chalabi, Dr Z Chenoweth, Dr J Stephens, Professor C
Researcher Co-Investigators:
Project Partners:
Department:	Sch of Engineering
Organisation:	Cardiff University
Scheme:	Overseas Travel Grants Pre-FEC
Starts:	29 April 2005	Ends:	28 April 2006	Value (£):	12,376
EPSRC Research Topic Classifications:	Assess/Remediate Contamination Water Engineering
EPSRC Industrial Sector Classifications:	Water
Related Grants:
Panel History:
Summary on Grant Application Form
India faces a multitude of problems with regard to groundwater resource management- This is due to the rapid growth in population and urbanisation coupled with the fact that the groundwater resource is improperly managed- Groundwater accounts for over 80% of the rural domestic water supply and 45% of the irrigation water supply in India, although current estimates indicate that only 30% of the total potential groundwater reserves are being exploited- Nevertheless, greater reliance on groundwater resources is leading to the depletion of aquifers around the country- Contamination of groundwater from leaching of agro-chemicals and trace minerals has led to a reduction in the utilizable water supply in many areas and threatened the health of both humans and the natural environment. Further, some aquifers are contaminated with naturally occurring minerals such as arsenic, iron, sulphur and fluoride-Associated with this is the obvious impact of water quality on public health and socio-economic problems. For instance, arsenic contamination has plagued parts of West Bengal and has led to severe illness among the population, while high levels of fluoride have affected the health of nearly half a million Indians- Gender and class issues have restricted freshwater access for the marginalised members of society-In the UK we have scientific/technological expertise in the field of Geoenvironmental Engineering, Sustainability and Public Health Science and to deal with the problems associated with water management- We are equipped with the right knowledge to develop mutually beneficial partnerships, which will lead to collaborative research programmes and raise awareness of the quality of research in the UK via this INTERACT - INDIA programme-This visit aims to disseminate information via a national workshop to be held at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore and tours and lectures to be given at 6 renowned institutions, including meetings with the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India- It is believed that the outcome of this visit would provide the UK academia to gain wider recognition in India, in addition to the direct benefits as outlined under section L--
Key Findings
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Potential use in non-academic contexts
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Impacts
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Organisation Website:	http://www.cf.ac.uk