| Abstract | When Pani Panchayats (Water Users Association) were introduced in Odisha, there was a lot of resistance from common people, and quite justifiably so. Though focus of these WUAs was on irrigation, the whole concept needs to be studied from a macro perspective of management of what we may call “water commons”. In fact, it is quite similar to the concept of “river commons”. The focus of this paper is on analyzing the overall concept of water commons in Odisha, with particular emphasis on irrigation. We believe that the attitude towards WUA would have varied depending on the characteristics of the localities. We would analyze whether the attitude towards WUA and its success have been different between industrial and non-industrial districts. In the course of our research, we would look at the traditional conflicts – that have been far more pronounced in recent times - between water-allocation for agriculture vis-à-vis industry. |
