Sustainable watering of the watershed: a qualitative analysis of the Choral River Revival Project in Narmada Basin, India

Abstract

This article focuses on understanding watershed development practices in adherence to target 6.6 to protect water-related ecosystems and target 6.b for community participation in water management under Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs) 6. A watershed treatment-induced case of Choral River revival signifies localised socio-political scalability of water source protection and resource use measures in India’s Narmada River basin. The article uses a qualitative research methodology to analyse factors ensuring and affecting local community participation during and after the watershed programme implementation. It concludes by arguing that sustainability in watershed-based sustainable action requires intertwining participatory community engagement with adaptive water management policies and practices. © 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.