Ranjan Kishor Panda, popularly known as Water Man of Odisha and also as Climate Crusader, was awarded with the first “Green Hero” by NDTV. Recently he was also profiled as “Odisha’s Conservation Master” by Hindustan Times. Very recently, he has been recognized as ‘Mahanadi River Waterkeeper’ by the New York based global ‘Waterkeeper Alliance’ On 15th May 2016, the New Indian Express featured him in its Sunday Express Magazine’s Cover Story “The Aqua Guards.”

USA’s SPAN Magazine featured him as a leading environmentalist of India in its historic 75th Anniversary Issue, commemorating 75 years of Indo-US

Ranjan Kishor Panda has more than two and half decades of experience in leading several environmental initiatives in the state of Odisha and in India. He has devoted himself to the cause of environment and intends to drought proof the perennially drought prone regions of the country. Towards this he has been promoting initiatives both at the grassroots and at macro levels.

While as a Masters Student in the department of Sociology at the Sambalpur University in 1988, he founded a civil society group that worked in western districts of Odisha in promoting management and development of natural resources.

Ranjan has since graduated from the local group and has spread his activities to the entire nation.

In fact, he has expanded his work horizon to many other activities.

He is now devoting his complete time to promote the informal yet active network “Water Initiatives Odisha” that he founded about two decades ago.

As Convenor of Water Initiatives Odisha and a freelance researcher, writer and journalist he is known in the world – among people and institutions working on water, environment and climate change issues – as the most active environmentalist and water activist of this region.

His work has been recognized at local, state, national and international levels.

He also convenes a national level network called “Combat Climate Change Network”; a network of media and development professionals called “Development Media Collective” and the “Save Odisha’s Rivers Campaign.”

Recently he has also initiated a citizen driven campaign “Healthy Rivers, Happy Cities.”

Ranjan is a known water expert in the nation and also a senior freelance journalist.

Ranjan has coordinated several media fellowship programmes, workshops, trainings and exposure programmes starting from state level to national level.

Ranjan bagged the first Green Hero Award given away by NDTV -TOYOTA in 2010. He received this award from the President of India.

He has been profiled as the Climate Crusader by NDTV and commonly known as the water man of Odisha. Many organisations and media houses have time and again profiled him by that distinction. In fact, the ETV profiled him as “Jala Purusha” in its special programme “Margadarshi”.

Very recently, for the sustained campaign for conservation of Mahanadi, the New York based global alliance ‘Waterkeeper Alliance’ has recognized him as ‘Mahanadi River Waterkeeper’.

Many Odia TV News Channels have profiled him time and again as the ‘most popular water and environment activist of Odisha.’

He has written a book on Traditional Water Harvesting Practices of Western Odisha and edited a bi-monthly newsletter called Panira Dagara that dealt exclusively on water and climate change issues. He is also editing a Factsheet Newsletter “Saharare Nadi.” Besides these Ranjan also writes regularly for several state, national and international publications and web sites on water, environment, climate change and general development issues. Some of the publications for which Ranjan has been writing are Down To Earth, Terra Green, The Asian Age, Deccan Herald, Infochange India and many more prestigious publications.

Recognising his and his organisation's efforts in water conservation and awareness building, the UK based INGO Water Aid, UK and UNICEF have felicitated him for his outstanding contribution.

Ranjan has toured several countries in connection with his work.

Some of the trips which he feels have been very important are as follows:

Civil society groups of UK invited him to lecture on Climate Change and Environment at various places and institutions.

Among others, he got a chance to address Labour Party MPs and intellectuals during a side event at the National Convention of the Labour Party. During this he shared the dias with British Deputy PM David Miliband among others. He was also invited by various TV and radio stations including the BBC World Service to speak on climate change and water issues during that visit. During this trip, Ranjan was invited to several schools to talk about water problems of India to UK school children.

Ranjan was invited by the US Department of State to visit five cities and interact with several individuals and institutions including leading research and government institutions, under the International Visitors Leadership Programme on "Environmental Protection and Sustainable Development". The exchange alumni community includes 385 current or former heads, 63 Nobel Laureates and countless leaders from the private and nonprofit sectors. India has over 15000 exchange alumni including six former and current leader of state, over 35 former and current MPs and 11 former and current CMs. Atal Bihari Bajpayee (IVLP 1960), Indira Gandhi (IVLP 1961) and K R Narayanan (IVLP 1969) are a few distinguished to name.

He has also visited the University of Geneva as “guest visiting faculty” to lecture on "Water harvesting and Drought proofing" to the Masters and Doctorate students and faculty.

Recently, during the India Water Forum, a global event held in New Delhi, he was invited as a Special Speaker on “Water and Climate Change in South Asia” under the Into-German Round Table.

He has contributed several research papers on climate refugees, water conflicts, and other related issues.

He has also organized, co-organized and participated in various state, national and international workshops and seminars.

A known photographer, Ranjan has bagged the Photographer of the Year 2006 from the Clean Water Alliance, a global organization based at China. Ranjan is in advisory committees of several high level institutions and networks and has been recognized and awarded at various levels.

Ranjan has been one of the active contributors to the Approach Papers on Water and Sanitation to the Planning Commission during the process of formation of the 12thFive Year Plan. He has played an active role in the recently held Global Forum on Sanitation and Hygiene organized by World Water Supply and Sanitation Council.

At the South Asia level, he is taking an active and leading role in water issues through networks such as the NGO Forum on ADB in which Ranjan is a Lead of its Water Core Group.

Under this he is leading a Research Project on 6 River Basins across Asia.

Recently he has attended the ADB’s Annual Board of Governors meeting and have presented his paper on Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM).

He was also in Bonn recently to participate in the UNFCCC civil society side event on Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), where he presented his issues related to CDM in India to the UNFCCC panel.

Ranjan has been at the forefront of water, environment and climate change awareness and action in the state of Odisha as well as in the country.

He is determined to take his war against water woes and climate change to new heights and seeks support of all sections of the society.

Currently, he has founded and spearheading a unique and first of its kind citizen driven initiative to build peace around a interstate river water dispute between two major riparian states of India’s sixth largest river i.e. Mahanadi.

The initiative called ‘Mahanadi River Basin Peace Initiative’ is engaging with citizens, policy makers, academia, farmer organisations and others in both the states to ensure a dialogue way to resolve the water conflict.

Ranjan’s contact details are as follows:

Cell: +919437050103

Email: ranjanpanda@gmail.com

Follow him on twitter @ranjanpanda and @MahanadiRiver