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Indigenous Knowledge and Traditional Practices for Water Resource Management in Rajasthan, India

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Traditional Ecological Knowledge of Resource Management in Asia

Abstract

The native people of any place have been the first responders to the area's environment, precisely and carefully building the ways to sustain, protect and maintain the resources available. Rajasthan, the largest state in India, housing 5.67% of the country's total population and only 1.16% of the total surface water, suffers from chronic water scarcity, especially in the western Rajasthan’s Thar desert due to it being one of the driest regions in the country. Indigenous knowledge and traditional practices play a substantial role in preserving the available resources while sustaining their use. This study explores the growing application of indigenous practices in the recent environmental planning for water management in Rajasthan. The study focuses on investigating the foundational steps and strategies used to conserve the water resource in the region using a qualitative approach. The study reveals that in western Rajasthan, several traditional rainwater harvesting systems have been developed by the locals for example Bawari (Baori), Jhalara, Talab, Nadi, Taanka, Khadin, Kund and Johad. Out of these, Talab, Nadi, Taanka, Kund, and Johad and Khadin are based on surface runoff harnessing, while Bawari and Jhalara are to sustain groundwater. These traditional water harvesting systems have been withstanding the test of time due to their complementary management techniques with the local climate, building materials, construction methods, etc. The spatial distribution of these water resource management systems in Rajasthan indicates diversity and control of space and environment and social values suggesting the degree of influence of the geographical factors alongside cultural and historical instead of the orientation of indigenous engagement efforts toward various water resource management techniques. The study concludes that environmentalists, policymakers and governments need to open resource management processes to stakeholders and allow the local and indigenous knowledge and traditional practices to be studied and applied for environmental sustainability and resource management practices.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of General and Applied Geography, Dr. H.S. Gour Central University, Sagar, 470003, India

    Pawan Kumar Sharma, Sonal Srivastava & Mahima Chandauriya

Authors
  1. Pawan Kumar Sharma
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  2. Sonal Srivastava
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  3. Mahima Chandauriya
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Correspondence to Pawan Kumar Sharma .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography, Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi, New Delhi, Delhi, India

    Suresh Chand Rai

  2. Department of Geography, Shivaji College, University of Delhi, New Delhi, Delhi, India

    Prabuddh Kumar Mishra

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Sharma, P.K., Srivastava, S., Chandauriya, M. (2022). Indigenous Knowledge and Traditional Practices for Water Resource Management in Rajasthan, India. In: Rai, S.C., Mishra, P.K. (eds) Traditional Ecological Knowledge of Resource Management in Asia. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-16840-6_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-16840-6_9

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