India, July 14 -- As climate change makes rainfall more erratic and water increasingly uncertain, Jharkhand's next generation of water governance must move beyond delivering water schemes to securing water systems

Dhanbad is rarely associated with water. It is known as India's coal capital, a landscape of mines, industries and expanding urban settlements. Yet, beneath this industrial identity lies another Dhanbad, one where aquifers sustain millions, ponds continue to recharge groundwater, streams silently carry the burden of urbanisation, and communities negotiate water every single day.

Over the past several years, my work with Megh Pyne Abhiyan (MPA) across rural and urban Dhanbad has convinced me that the district is much more than ...