The study is an attempt to bring to  the fore a Commons perspective of agriculture,livestock and rural   livelihoods  in  the  dryland and tribal areas of  India.  Would  agriculture,  livestock and  rural livelihoods sustain in  the absence  of the support  provided  by  Commons.

In finding an answer to this,  This explores  the potential role of  the Commons (land and  water resources)  in strengthening the  viability  of the agro‐pastoral production  systems and the resilience of  household livelihoods.

Every year most parts of India are affected by drought.But the Centre and State has failed so far to diagnose the drought phenomenon and to come up with a long term solution. Declaration of drought is a sensitive issue. The nature of drought is such that it does not occur in the same intensity across the Country and State and also has differential impacts. Unless this complexity is understood drought declaration will always be controversial and not transparent.

The desert areas of the country had remained backward in many respects due to difficult physiography varying agro-climatic conditions and distinct socio cultural features. Since the people living in these areas were facing hardships owing to geo-climatic conditions, the desert development programme was introduced as a centrally sponsored scheme in 1977-78.

“The great opportunity of the Anthropocene is that we can choose to learn the lessons of the past and steer a new course to a safer future.” Soils are the most significant nonrenewable geo-resource that we have for ensuring water, energy, and food security for present and future generations while adapting and building resilience to climatic change and shocks. But soil’s caring capacity is often forgotten as the missing link in our pursuit of sustainable development.

A conceptual flash flood early warning system for developing countries is described. The system uses rainfall intensity data from terrestrial microwave communication links and the geostationary Meteosat Second Generation satellite, i.e., two systems that are already in place and operational. Flash flood early warnings are based on a combination of the Flash Flood Guidance method and a hydrological model.