These springs in the Godavari region have been under stress for varied reasons, including the in-migration of people into the region, the increasing demand for water in Kathmandu Valley, and a long-term decline in rainfall in the area.
Drainage density analysis indicates a greater contribution of the Godavari watershed to the base flow of its rivers than that of the Chapakharka watershed to its rivers. Some high-discharge springs are a combination of different types. The types of springs found were depression springs, fracture springs, and karst springs, or a combination of these based on the geological conditions in which they occur. Of these forty, eleven critical springs were assessed in detail. Forty springs were mapped over an area of 23.8 km 2 in the Godavari and Chapakharka watersheds, in Lalitpur and Kavrepalanchok districts respectively, following the springshed approach. Communities here depend largely on these springs for drinking, and for domestic and agricultural use. Godavari, situated in the southern part of Kathmandu Valley, is home to high-discharge perennial springs. The new policy framework should be founded on bottom-up approach that embodies gender responsive community, sustainable, climate smart and regenerative practices while putting the nature-based solutions on the center stage. Springshed needs due recognition for developing new layer of scientific database and policy measures that are well aligned with the local development planning for sustaining water resources. The big technocratic projects of groundwater pumping approach to water provisioning are not only expensive, problematic and unsustainable but also jeopardize the community-led action andĬlimate adaptive actions. Existing integrated water resource management approach tends to oversee the springshed from top-down perspective while the springshed conservation requires bottom-up interventions with research and database building as entry points to overcome the aforementioned problems. Inadequate knowledge on springshed and misplaced policy priority led to focus on watershed, thus, leaving the springshed issues unaddressed. Rapid landuse change including road building and other infrastructures coupled with adverse impacts of changing precipitation pattern are identified as the primary factors affecting sustainability of springs. Recent studies revealed deteriorating situation of these vital sources, thus, jeopardizing the lives and livelihoods of the dependents. Lifeline of millions of the mountain dwellers. The natural springs across the Hindu Kush Himalaya serve as the
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