The focus of the study is to make a harmonious hydrometeorology system for Sundarban landscape covering both the parts namely India and Bangladesh so that continuous real time measurements of different hydrodynamic parameters like tidal range fluctuations, waves, currents, sediment loads, saline water ingress along the rivers and creeks in different seasons and in varied tidal regimes, freshwater input (especially for Bangladesh Part) etc. can be carried out in future for preparation of a robust database for this otherwise fragile landscape due to climate change and Sea Level Rise.
... See More + Sundarbans, the coastal part of Ganga-Brahmaputra Delta (GBD), is located on the western side of the delta and was covered previously in totality by mangrove forest, spreading over India and Bangladesh. However, since 1770, it was partly reclaimed for human habitation and agriculture in both the countries. Sundarbans have been best described by O’Malley in the District Gazetteer of 24-Parganas District. ‘The Sundarbans are a network of tidal channels, rivers, creeks and Islands. Some of these islands are mere swampy morasses, covered with low forest and scrub wood jungle, but those to the north, which are embanked grow rich crops of rice. As one approaches the coast, the land gradually declines to an elevation which throughout many hundred square miles is scarcely raised above high-water mark. This seaboard area is a typical specimen of new deltaic formation. It exhibits the process of Land-making in an unfinished state and presents the last stage in the life of a great river, the stage in which it emerges through a region of half land, half water, almost imperceptibly, into the sea.’
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The Sundarban mangrove wetlands occupy the western part of the lower Ganga–Brahmaputra delta (GBD), Bangladesh and India. Formation of the Bengal basin, the cradle of the GBD, started in the Jurassic with initiation of rifting of the Pangaea and completed by the Miocene with docking of eastern India with the Burma platelet.
... See More + Sedimentation of the basin started almost contemporaneous to rifting and occurred in the three geotectonic provinces of continental shelf, deeper basin areas, and Chittagong-Tripura Fold Belt. The GBD originated with the opening of the Rajmahal, Garo gap in the Plio-Pleistocene. It acquired its present form during the late Holocene 8 after the sea level neared its present position. The Holocene history of the delta was characterized by fluctuations in monsoon-related sediment discharge, land, and seaward 10 migrations of depocenters and at least five switching during the Brahmaputra. Future planning for the region must accept the transformations that are brought into the system by the humans and strike a balance between the requirements of the nature and the needs of the people.
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This study finds that natural shocks -- storms in particular -- are a significant and often leading cause for power supply disruptions. This finding is based on 20 years of high frequency (i.e. daily) data on power outages and climate variables in 28 countries -- Bangladesh, the United States and 26 European countries.
... See More + More specifically: (1) Natural shocks are the most important cause of power outages in developed economies. On average, they account for more than 50 of annual outage duration in both the US and Europe. In contrast, natural shocks are responsible for a small share of outages in Bangladesh, where disruptions occur on a daily basis for a variety of reasons. (2) Outages due to natural shocks are found to last significantly longer than those due to non-natural shocks in -- e.g. more than 4.5 times in Europe. Reasons include the challenge of locating wide-spread damages, and the sustained duration of storms. (3) Several factors can reinforce the adverse effect of natural shocks on power supply. In the US, forest cover is shown to significantly increase the risk of power outages when storms occur. (4) There are significant differences in network fragility. For instance, wind speeds above 35 km/h are found to be 12 times more likely to cause an outage in Bangladesh than in the US. This difference may be explained by a range of factors, including investments in infrastructure resilience and maintenance.
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Policy Research Working Paper WPS8897 JUN 17, 2019
Maruyama Rentschler,Jun Erik; Obolensky,Marguerite Anne Beatrice; Kornejew,Martin Gunter MichailDisclosed
Open data and open government data have recently attracted much attention as a means to innovate, add value, and improve outcomes in a variety of sectors, public and private.
... See More + Although some of the benefits of open data initiatives have been assessed in the past, particularly their economic and financial returns, it is often more difficult to evaluate their social and political impacts. In the public sector, a murky theory of change has emerged that links the use of open government data with greater government accountability as well as improved service delivery in key sectors, including health and education, among others. In the absence of cross-country empirical research on this topic, this paper asks the following: Based on the evidence available, to what extent and for what reasons is the use of open government data associated with higher levels of accountability and improved service delivery in developing countries? To answer this question, the paper constructs a unique data set that operationalizes open government data, government accountability, service delivery, as well as other intervening and control variables. Relying on data from 25 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, the paper finds a number of significant associations between open government data, accountability, and service delivery. However, the findings suggest differentiated effects of open government data across the health and education sectors, as well as with respect to service provision and service delivery outcomes. Although this early research has limitations and does not attempt to establish a purely causal relationship between the variables, it provides initial empirical support for claims about the efficacy of open government data for improving accountability and service delivery.
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Policy Research Working Paper WPS8873 JUN 04, 2019
The focus of this Guide is on the design and implementation of digital ID systems that provide people with proof of legal identity, which is commonly needed to access basic services, rights, and protections.
... See More + This primarily includes foundational ID systems—such as civil registries, national IDs, population registers, etc.—that are created to serve as authoritative sources of legal identity information for the general population and to provide proof of identity for a variety of public and private sector use cases. In addition to foundational digital ID systems provided centrally by the government, the Guide also covers government-recognized forms of digital ID that may be provided in partnership with the private sector. However, it does not discuss many other types of digital ID systems, such as those provided by the private sector solely for customer identification (e.g., for social media).
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StAR—the Stolen Asset Recovery Initiative—is a partnership between the World Bank Group and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) that supports international efforts to end safe havens for corrupt funds.
... See More + This paper presents an overview of the benefits and challenges associated with transitioning from paper-based to electronic filing. While many of the experiences and practices presented can be relevant to experts from countries across all regions and income levels, the primary audience is policymakers, asset declaration/anti-corruption experts, and practitioners in middle-income countries, with a focus on countries in Europe and Central Asia. This paper provides an overview of the topic and does not aim to discuss all technical issues exhaustively.
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The development objectives of the Assam Inland Water Transport Project for India are to: (a) improve passenger ferry infrastructure and services in Assam, and (b) improve the institutional capacity and framework.
... See More + Some of the negative impacts and mitigation measures include: (1) employment to at least one member per affected family in the project or arrange for a job in such other project as may be required after providing suitable training and skill development in the required field and at a rate not lower than the minimum wages; (2) subsistence allowance of rupees 3,000 per month for a period of one year to affected households who require to relocate due to the project; (3) transportation assistance of rupees 50,000 for affected households who require to relocate due to the project; (4) an alternative house for those who have to relocate, as per PMAY-G specifications in rural areas and a constructed house or flat of minimum 50 square meters in urban areas; (5) compensation at scheduled rates without depreciation for structure with 1-month notice to demolish affected structure; and (6) 3-month notice to harvest standing crops or market value of compensation for standing crops.
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