The marginalised community of Agariyas, the salt workers in the Little Rann region of Gujarat, produce 30 percent of India’s inland salt. They live in dire circumstances as the state government refuses to recognise their legal rights. Now, a proposed freshwater lake in the area could swamp everything the region stands for: salt, prawn trade and the habitat of the near-threatened wild ass.
10 years after the project came up, the villagers of Charanka, the project site, are still waiting for clean drinking water, free electricity, and irrigation. Against the promise of 1,000 permanent jobs, only 60 people in the village have been employed as security guards, grass cutters and for washing panels, with no scope for jobs for women, making families who did not have land or sons the worst victims of the solar park.
Heat in Delhi is known to have a spatial distribution and is more in certain areas as compared to other. More focus on peripheral and vulnerable populations such as poor households and women and children, expansion of green spaces and improved access to electricity among the vulnerable populations can go a long way in coping with the effects of rising heat in the city in the years to come.
More than 40 percent of potential landscapes for oil palm cultivation in India overlap with biodiversity-rich landscapes. Converting small rice fields to palm oil can be a viable alternative to dismantling forests and grasslands for palm oil, says a latest study. It said that exploring and implementing fine-scale local plantation strategies by the government can satisfy the projected national demand for palm oil without threatening high biodiversity landscapes.
Activities related to natural resource management under MGNREGS can capture 249 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2030, finds a study. Drought-proofing activities like plantations, forest restoration, make up 40 percent of the total carbon sequestered through MGNREGS.The scheme already offers financial and ecological resilience to the most vulnerable against the climate crisis besides cushioning impact of emergencies like economic lockdown due to Covid-19
While the new draft policy is a big positive, its focus on targeted fleet renewal for maximum emissions gains is still weak. The proposed policy puts the entire onus of incentivising fleet renewal on the state governments. They have been advised to waive off a big chunk of road tax and registration fees on replacement vehicles. Given the fact these are important sources of state revenue, the reaction of the state governments is still not known
In 2016, Patna was declared as the sixth most polluted city in the world according to a report by the WHO. Even as there is no robust data supporting the efficacy of smog towers, the Bihar government is considering introducing one in Patna to tackle air pollution. In 2019, several civil society organizations in collaboration with the Bihar government released a comprehensive “Clean Air Action Plan” for Patna. The idea of a smog tower was not even mentioned in the plan. In November 2019, the Union environment secretary itself raised doubts over the efficiency of smog towers
THE TOP 20% of high-expenditure households in India are responsible for seven times the emissions traceable to the poor who spend less than Rs 140 a day. The mean carbon footprint of every Indian was estimated at 0.56 tonne per year--0.19 tonne per capita among the poor and 1.32 tonne among the rich. Food and electricity are the two areas of spending that account for most emissions in India across socio-economic groups while western India emits the most carbon
The impact of climate crisis on people across the world is highly disproportionate but no other group is as vulnerable as children in low income families of developing countries. Children are not emotionally and physically capable of understanding the dangers during extreme weather events and are dependent on adults for their survival. They are more susceptible to water and vector borne diseases, malnutrition and they are forced into labour due to economic challenges induced by climate crisis.
Climate crisis is real and a serious threat to India’s ambition to become a $5 trillion economy. India’s targets form the basis of the country’s action plan but contradictory decisions continue to derail it. Funds meant for climate have been diverted, access to land resources misused and renewable energy achievements are unreliable. There are many other policy responses that question the very commitment of the Indian government to climate concerns
Besides heavy rainfall, human activities such as construction of roads, buildings and railways, mining and quarrying, and hydropower projects damage hilly slopes and impact natural drainage by removing soil and vegetation, loosening soil and gravel and making the hills more susceptible to landslides. In India, 420,000 sq km, or 12.6% of the total land, is landslide prone. Last year, 264 people died in landslides and over 65% of these fatalities happened in the Himalayas and the Western Ghats
Uranium is a vital mineral for India’s ambitious nuclear power programme. Out of the seven states with uranium reserves, Jharkhand and Andhra Pradesh have currently operating mines. In Jharkhand’s Jaduguda region, which has India’s oldest uranium mines, local communities narrate stories of suffering due to degrading health and the environment. The government, however, denies any ill-impact of uranium mining on people. The Indian government is aiming to increase uranium exploration and mining. This photo essay features images of residents of villages around uranium mines
ये एक महान नदी के तिल तिल मरने की कहानी हैं। वह नदी जिसे इस देश के करोड़ों लोग अपनी माँ कहते हैं। वह नदी जो एक पूरी भाषा, एक पूरी संस्कृति की जननी है, क्या आप मान सकते हैं कि मर रही है? ये किताब उस लम्हे को बयान करने की कोशिश है कि जब गंगाजल सिर्फ गंगोत्री में बचेगा, बनारस में नहीं। बाकी जगह सिर्फ पानी होगा, गंगाजल नहीं, जिसके बारे में कहावत थी कि गंगाजल कभी सड़ता नहीं । इस किताब को हमारे तथा कथित गंगा के बेटों को ज़रूर पढ़नी चाहिए। गंगा माँ का सही सम्मान कैसे होगा, शायद यह किताब उन्हें समझा सके। इस किताब तक पहुँचने की मेरी यात्रा एक यूट्यूब चैनल से शुरू हुई। हरनंदी कहिन एक छोटी सी नदी हिंडन की कहानी कहता है, जोकि पश्चिमी उत्तर प्रदेश के क्षेत्र से होती हुयी यमुना में मिलती है
Environmental Impact Assessment sets in place a legal framework for regulating activities that impact the natural resources and people. Many environmental activists call the draft detrimental towards protecting the already deteriorating environment. The draft allows a freer reign to industrial projects while limiting public consent and interference. Some of the major changes include post facto clearance which means industries can start projects and get environmental clearances later, reduction in minimum notice period for public hearing and no scope for public complaint about violations
In 2018, the factory had submitted a Rs 168 crore proposal to the Union Ministry of Environment to expand its production capacity by another 250 tonnes per day (tpd) -- from the current 415 tpd. This permission was recently granted. Acute (short-term) exposure to styrene in humans results in mucous membrane and eye irritation and gastrointestinal effects. Long-term exposure results in impacts on the central nervous system leading to headaches, fatigue, weakness, depression, hearing loss, and peripheral neuropathy.
Birds are declining significantly with 52 percent of species showing clear declines over the past decades, said a new report State of India’s birds 2020. The report analysed 867 bird species from over 10 million observations collected by over 15,500 birdwatchers across the country. It also identified 101 species with high conservation needs. The take-home message is that urbanisation is the biggest culprit behind avian decline. Most of our common birds like house sparrows and bulbuls are declining
बीमारी और पर्यावरण का सीधा नाता है। प्रकृति का संतुलन बनाए रखना हमारे अस्तित्व के लिए ज़रूरी है, यही आज की आपदा का संदेश है, भविष्य के लिए। कोरोनावायरस से पहले ऐन्थ्रैक्स, जीका, ईबोला और निपाह जैसे वायरस पिछले कुछ सालों में फैले हैं। यह सब वायरस जानवरों से इंसानों में आए हैं और वो भी सबसे ज़्यादा जंगली जानवरों से । कईं जानवरों के शरीर में वायरस और बैक्टीरीआ घर बना लेते हैं उन्हें बिना नुक़सान पहुँचाए पर इंसानों में यही वायरस महामारी का रूप ले लेते हैं। सड़क, बाँध, खनन, खेती या लकड़ी के लिए जंगलों की कटाई की वजह से इंसान और जंगली जानवरों का मिलना ज़्यादा होने लगा है । कभी वो हमारी बस्तियों में आते हैं तो कभी हम या हमारे पालतू जानवर जंगली इलाक़ों में जाते हैं और यहीं से वायरस एक जन्तु से दुसरे में चले जाते हैं।
Whales and dolphins are especially vulnerable to underwater noise as they depend almost entirely on pulsed and tonal sounds for long-distance communication, finding food, navigation, and sensing their environment. Dredging for waterways in Ganga can lead to stress among river dolphins by physical and bio geochemically disturbing riverbed sediment and impacting fish prey. Dolphins show a three-fold increase in dive times during dredging indicating stress levels and tendency to avoid dredged channels
Paddy stubble burning in Punjab is often blamed for air pollution in north India. The government has been introducing alternatives over the years but these are yet to make a substantial impact on the ground. High operational cost of machines weighs heavy on the already indebted farmers. Additionally, lack of training in machine-use results in higher input cost and lower production. Local solutions and traditional collaborations with herders are some of the low-cost ways that need to be promoted which may help farmers move away from the practice of straw burning.
Under the Paris agreement of 2015, 196 countries came up with nationally determined contributions (NDCs). India’s NDCs, however, fail to make any big commitments and may trample upon people’s rights over natural resources. India said that coal will remain our main source of energy and gives no limit or target date by which the peak emissions will come down. It also says that 40 percent of electricity in India will come from non-fossil sources by 2030.
A recent study by IIFM found that 10 select tiger reserves of the country provide economic benefits worth Rs 5.96 trillion. Globally, efforts are being made to assess the benefits of conservation on economy and various methods and formulas have been devised to evaluate these aspects. Critics, however, believe that ecosystem valuation can lead to commodification of nature and its sale to the highest bidder. We talk to Dr Madhu Verma, lead researcher of IIFM study and an expert in field of ecosystem valuation.
ये सच है कि जंगल साफ़ करके खेत बनाने की प्रवत्ति किसानों में बहुत पुरानी है। आदमी और जानवरों की लड़ाई भी बहुत पुरानी है। लेकिन इस सब में हम ये भूल जाते हैं कि बहुतायत भारतीय किसान अपने उत्पादन का अधिकतर हिस्सा घरेलू जरूरतों के लिए इस्तेमाल करते हैं। लेकिन औपनिवेशिक काल के ये उद्योग किसकी भूख को ध्यान में रख कर बनाये गए थे, क्या इसमें हमें कोई हिस्ट्री क्लास चाहिए? जिस औद्योगिक नीति से औपनिवेशिक काल में अंग्रेज़ों ने हमारे संसाधनों का शोषण किया, उसका असर अब तक ख़त्म होना तो दूर, बढ़ ही रहा है । मान लीजिये आप एक वनवासी हैं, और सरकार आपके जंगल में ऐसा एक पेड़ लगा देती है, जिसका इस्तेमाल आपको पता ही नहीं
Increase iin number of tigers is a cause for happiness, but it has come with high social, economic and ecological costs for the tribal communities that have been living in the forests for generations. Forest management that relies on no intervention is not necessarily the best practice, since it can lead to changes in the forest structure, spread of invasive species and increased human-wildlife conflict. Forests have been appropriated from local people for conservation now and timber production in the past. The economic and social costs of such a squeeze are enormous.
In 2013, there were 2.6 million deep tubewells and/or borewells (deeper than 70 m) in India irrigating 12.68 million ha of land. However, around 12% of these borewells had either dried up or supplied less water than expected. Expenditure on borewells is one of the reasons for mounting farm debt. This is why artificial recharge of aquifers is essential. But exhaustive awareness campaigns promoting crop water budgeting and better market links for traditional crops are also required to ensure that the water saved is also used well.
Agriculture in Bihar has languished primarily because of high input costs, especially that of energy due to inadequate grid electricity supply and a high price of diesel. Rural electrification through grid supply is not happening in Bihar due to lack of public investment. Also, the existing groundwater markets are neither increasing irrigation nor achieving equity. So, there is a need for an alternative. The Bihar government launched a scheme for solar irrigation in 2008—Bihar Saur Kranti Sinchai Yojana—as a solution to the lack of adequate electricity for irrigation.
The hilsa fishermen of Howrah district in West Bengal are struggling against declining catch, stiff competition from mechanised trawlers and non-traditional fishermen entering the lucrative occupation. The hilsa fishermen get about six months to fish hilsa, considered a delicacy in West Bengal and Bangladesh. Mid-July to mid-September is the season for larger hilsa that fetch high prices. Mid-September to mid-October is the spawning season and there’s a ban on hilsa fishing.
Fourteen years ago, in 2004, a Supreme Court order had banned mining in many parts of the hill ranges, but it was blatantly violated by illegal miners with the connivance of the government that turned a blind eye. The systematic plunder of the Aravallis continued despite numerous government reports documenting it. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India’s report earlier this year had highlighted that 98.87 lakh metric tonnes of minerals were excavated illegally in the years between 2011 and 2017. The ranges are considered to be among the oldest in the world.
The entire Western Ghats was proposed as an ecologically sensitive area (ESA) with a graded or layered approach to conservation. These concerns were largely ignored by the governments of six states, including Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, that come under Western Ghats. Several protests were held and private funders lobbied against the report. The Union government appointed another panel — the Kasturirangan committee — which proposed that only one-third of the Ghats be designated as ecologically sensitive.
With certain rules around extraction of resources, including ban on cutting of trees, these sacred groves contribute significantly to wildlife protection, soil conservation, groundwater recharge, and as a good source of herbs, fruits and other economic resources to local people. But practices around these spaces differ with location and may not always abide by the concept of unaltered, pristine state of forests. The contours tend to respond to the socio-cultural changes around them.
The beautiful Mandovi or Mhadei river is a bone of contention between Goa and Karnataka for last over 15 years. The rivers flows for the first 35 kilometers through Karnataka and enters Goa through a pristine forest range of Western Ghats. While Goa calls it a lifeline which keeps the salty sea water away from the agriculture belt, Karnataka wants to build 12 dams to divert water, claiming it will serve its dry central region where farmers are dependent on rains and various villages are fed by tankers.
As the Himalayan Region warms up faster than other places of the world, erratic weather puts geographically-vulnerable places such as Kinnaur in Himachal Pradesh at greater risk. Rains are increasing, snowfall is declining, and temperatures are rising, which all have great impacts on an area prone to landslides and fed by glacial melt. On April 16 this year, Kinnauris woke up to a snowfall which had a dusty tinge to it. While a few experts suggest particles from a dust storm in the northern plains might have travelled to Kinnaur and mixed with the unseasonal snowfall, the jury is still out on this.
India is celebrated as a democracy, but its environmental policies are controlled by a centralised bureaucracy. Forest-dependent people are shut out of the policy process and cannot hold India’s bloated and ineffective bureaucracy to account. As a result, agencies engage in maneuvers such as categorizing urban gardens and commercial tree plantations as “forests.” This disguises losses of natural forestland and exaggerates the government’s conservation record
The recent audit report on environmental clearance and post-clearance monitoring lists many such instances of violations from development projects across India. Inadequate environmental impact assessments, irregularities in public hearings, not meeting promises and unregulated use of natural resources are just a few of the points raised by the audit team. Companies also routinely went back on their promises made during public hearings whether that included compensatory afforestation, installation of instruments for pollution monitoring, rainwater harvesting, dust management systems or effluent treatment plants.
यह कल्पना करना मुश्किल है कि एक समय था जब यह नदी और जंगल सूख चुके थे। कुओं में कटीली झाड़ियां उग आई थी। बरसात के पानी से जो थोड़ी बहुत फसल होती थी, उसमें लोगों को गुज़ारा करना मुश्किल हो रहा था। पैसों की कमी के चलते लोगों को गाय भैंस का चारा खरीदना भारी पड़ रहा था, इसीलिए वे उन्हें बेच कर बकरियां रखने लगे। वहीं रोज़ी रोटी के लिए लोगों को मजबूरन यहां से पलायन करना पड़ रहा था। लेकिन आज यह इलाका न केवल प्राकृतिक रूप से समृद्ध है बल्कि आर्थिक रूप से भी संपन्न हो चुका है। आज यहां सब्जियों के खेत लहलहा रहे हैं, कदम, ढोंक और खेजड़ी की शाखाएं फूलों और पत्तियों से लदी हैं। पिछले दो वर्षों में कम बरसात के बावजूद आज कुओं में पानी 40-50 फीट पर उपलब्ध है।
Going by his fame, I had imagined somebody with people running around him, at least a couple of computers on display and cell phones caroling frequently. But here was a man working without a cellphone or a computer, surrounded by letters people wrote to him. A couple of wooden almirahs adorned with old postcards and images of famous personalities from Gandhi ji to Sunita Narain, stood in his room. Gandhi Marg, the bi-monthly periodical Anupam ji brought out, was another extension of his personality. It does exceptionally well to make Gandhian philosophy relevant for today’s world.
This document is a valuable resource that comprises important legal changes and events of last three years with reference to previous laws. Written by well known practitioner Kanchi Kohli, the e-book lists down steps that can be taken to secure people’s rights over land, forests, water and biodiversity. And all this is explained through instances where common men and women explore the nitty gritties of environmental laws. So, we have Sarita tai worried about construction of railway line through a forest and Kavita who is intrigued by a company official asking for her village land to do compensatory afforestation for a distant project
विश्वव्यापीकरण के नक्शेकदम पर चलते हुए हम अपने शहरों को अगला शिंघाई और दुबई बनाने में जुटे हैं और इसके चलते हम अपनी मजबूत सांस्कृतिक पहचान पीछे छोड़ते जा रहे हैं। वास्तुकला में यह बदलाव परंपरागत, अनूठे और उस जगह की जलवायु के हिसाब से बने हुए से लेकर आधुनिक, नीरस और सामान्य घरों के रूप में पहले के मुकाबले अब तेजी से हो रहा है। उदाहरण के लिए अगर हम पहले के समय को देखें, जब आंख बंद करके दूसरों की नकल करने की बजाय हम अपनी खुद की अद्वितीय वास्तुकला विकसित किया करते थे
The Chennai floods of December 2015 had little to do with nature’s fury and more about city’s flawed urban planning and decades of improper garbage management. Chennai generates between 4,500- 4,800 tonnes of waste every day, and about 1.8 million tonnes a year. However, the city seems to be learning its lessons pretty quickly, and the effort of some responsible citizens has culminated into the Plastic Waste Rules 2016, and the Solid Waste Management Rules 2016. These rules have, for the first time, recognised the informal sector as a big player in waste management.
यमुना एक्शन प्लान गंगा एक्शन प्लान पर आधारित है। और समस्या दोनों प्लान में एक ही रही है, कि उनकी स्थिति को समझे बिना उनका हल ढ़ूंढ़ने का प्रयास किया गया है। आपने नदियों को समझा नहीं और बिना समझे उनकी सफाई में जुट गए। नदियां कोई नहर नहीं हैं। वे जीवित तंत्र हैं। जब तक आप उसके जीवन को वापस नहीं लाएंगे, नदियां वापस नहीं आ सकतीं। मात्र एसटीपी (सीवरेज ट्रीटमेंट प्लांट) बना देने से या फिर सीवरेज को नदियों में गिरने से रोक देने से नदियां साफ नहीं हो सकतीं। लेकिन यह सब भी ऐसा नहीं हुआ जिस पर संतुष्ट हुआ जा सके। केजरीवाल सरकार फरवरी में बनी और जनवरी के महीने में एनजीटी (नेशनल ग्रीन ट्रिब्यूनल) ने यमुना के पुनर्जीवन के लिए एक रोड मैप बनाया था। लेकिन नहीं लगता कि उसको लेकर किसी भी विभाग के द्वारा कोई प्रगति हुई है
It's not without reason that the Third World War is predicted to be triggered by water scarcity. The numbers themselves give us enough reason to be worried- by 2025, 60 per cent of India is expected to be living in towns and cities. Bore wells are getting deeper, urban areas brimming with population, and some already suffer from water shortage. However, success stories of humble organisations like the Rain Centre in Chennai let the results speak for themselves, and keep hope alive. Chennai owes the success of its rainwater harvesting to Dr. Raghavan, and the work done through his Rain Center.
नदी का विज्ञानं क्या है और बढ़ते जल प्रदूषण , बाढ़ और सूखे के संदर्भ में यह कहाँ बैठता है? बता रहें हैं प्रसिद्ध पर्यावरणविद् और लेखक अनुपम मिश्र। यह व्यख्यान उन्होंने 28 नवंबर, 2015 को नई दिल्ली में जल नीति विशेषज्ञ स्व: रामास्वामी आर अय्यर की स्मृति में दिया । ‘सबको पानी’ के नारों से ले कर बड़ी वाटर वर्क्स की योजनाओं तक, अनुपम जी पानी से जुड़े सभी सामाजिक और राजनीतिक आयामों को छूते हुए नदी के अविरल स्वभाव को चित्रित करते हैं
जिस पेड़ की शाख पर बैठे हो उसी को काटने की मूर्खता करते व्यक्ति की कहानी लगभग सभी ने बचपन में पढ़ी है। वर्तमान परिदृश्य में, इस दुनिया के लिए यह कहानी सच प्रतीत होती दिख रही है। काल के इस पल में मानव एक बहुत ही खतरनाक दौर से गुजर रहा है जिससे उसका अस्तित्व ही खतरे में आ गया है । यह संकट स्वनिर्मित है । जलवायु परिवर्तन की पृष्टभूमि पश्चिम की औद्योगिक क्रांति के साथ शुरू हुई पर आज बढ़ते उपभोक्तावाद के दौर में भारत (7%) भी ग्रीन हाउस गैसों के तीसरे सबसे बड़े प्रदूषक के रूप में उभरा है । चीन (25%) और अमेरिका (15%) पहले और दूसरे स्थान पर है । जलवायु परिवर्तन जैसे गंभीर विषय के कई आयाम है जो विकासशील देशो के लिए अत्यंत महत्वपूर्ण है किन्तु सभी महत्वपूर्ण मुद्दों पर अंतर्राष्ट्रीय सम्मेलनों में चर्चा हो ऐसा जरूरी नहीं है
If you frequent villages, ‘Jal, jungle, zamin’ is the commonest refrain you hear. While we city dwellers are acquainted to land and water, forest often remains a distant resource for us. But in many places of the world, there are people who are one with the forests. India is home to many such tribes who treat trees and shrubs as their extended family. The film, “I cannot give you my forest’, gives a glimpse of such a tribe, the Kondhs of Odisha. Made to the rhythm of a folk song, ‘Tinba Dumbro Puyu’ (Come, my pristine flower), the film starts and ends with visuals of insects, small in size yet big contributors to the whole ecosystem.
The devastating impacts of big hydel projects, including submergence of habitats, alteration of river ecosystem, and displacements, are well known. Alternatively, India has been harnessing hydropower through small, community-based set ups which range from traditional water flour mills of the hills called gharats to the modern projects which generate power between 0-100 kw. These plants, being decentralised and community controlled, offer a viable option to habitations which are off the conventional grid system.
Forest Rights Act proposes to do away with historical injustices done to those living in and around forests. It might be a tribal sourcing out forest foods and cultivating the land or a non-tribal using the wood for building own house, the Act gives powers back to the people not only for using the resources but also for conservation and protection. But there's still a lot of ground to be covered and we should not miss trees for the wood. Here's the data and voices from the ground that tell us more about this.
Man has always been on quest of building new things. Even when there were no big machines and qualified engineers, the world had expert builders who shaped the earth into various forms to meet needs of the society. Kuhls of Himachal Pradesh are one such example of engineering brilliance. Kuhl is name given to a channel which carries glacial melt through gravity from nearby streams to the fields thus making irrigation possible even on steep hills. Kangra valley has the most extensive network of kuhls dating as far back as 17th century.
Around a thousand families of Thalangi tribal hamlet in Coimbatore district received free television sets from the Tamil Nadu government in 2006. But these were of no use as the houses had no electricity supply. Kerosene was the main source of lighting. Today, it is interesting to see how the hamlet has met all its energy needs and also attained complete sanitation through a biodigester. Though biodigesters have conventionally been used to generate biogas for cooking fuel, examples are cropping up across India to use the same gas for electricity generation, especially in far flung areas.
Last month, Delhi Metro launched its first rooftop solar power plant at Dwarka Sector 21 metro station, which would generate enough energy to meet the requirements of the station and is the largest rooftop plant in terms of capacity in the national capital region. DMRC plans to expand such installations to other stations in order to meet its requirements and reduce its carbon footprint. In Bihar, Patna has the world’s biggest off-grid solar market that does an annual business of Rs 500 crore thanks to the shortage in power supply to the amount of 1,905 MW.
In 1801, a city was born on the banks of the oldest and purest river of India- Ganga. The city went by the name of Cawnpore back then. Untouched by the cruel hands of industrialisation, the people prayed and used the pious river in minimal ways. There was an order, and it was good. It is not good now. It has been more than two hundred years and the city stands as the largest in the state, second largest in northern India. But all this happened at a cost that destroyed the purity of Ganga.
Rajkumar needs no urging to talk about Sundari. She is evidently a favourite of his. When we met, he regaled me with stories of her beauty, her smartness and her incredibly sweet nature. When he finally brought her out to meet me, I failed to see any signs of a winning personality or of towering intelligence. "Well," I rebuked myself, "you've only met her for two minutes. Rajkumar knows her since she was an egg." The Sarnath turtle hatchery is an interesting place. It is one of two hatcheries in Uttar Pradesh (the other is in Kukrail, Lucknow district).
The nuclear plant accident in Japan earlier this year marked the 25th anniversary of world’s worst nuclear disaster at Chernobyl in Ukraine. Both the incidents, though separated in time, are grim reminders to the world that we need to apply brakes
Spread over 65,000 km and ferrying 2.8 million tons of goods plus 24 million passengers daily, Indian Railways can be called the most populous Indian city on wheels. And just like any other city, railways also eats up resources and generates waste on the way.
Visit Mata Karni Devi Temple at Deshnoke village near Bikaner and you won't be surprised by the rats scurrying freely in the shrine's precincts. Travel shows, including those on Discovery and National Geographic channels, have already covered the uniqueness extensively. The rodents, regarded as reincarnations of
Rise in sea-surface water temperature and salinity besides change in rainfall and seasonal patterns, tidal action, turbidity et al are adversely impacting the livelihood of fishers, especially those operating at small scale.
In India, where economic paradigm has changed quite drastically in last 20 years, the term 'development' is getting synonymous with exploitation. The 2011-12 yearbook of the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) also follows this paradox to the hilt.
Image 1: More than 30 bulldozers and 100 JCBs ply incessantly on a hill in Murbad tehsil of Maharashtra, excavating a huge foundation and simultaneously levelling the land to build a dam for which forest clearance has not been sanctioned yet. The project
Villagers in Hirakud area of Odisha routinely face a peculiar problem. Their standing crops burn to cinders due to toxic fumes emanating from the aluminum smelter of the Hindalco Industries Ltd – a flagship company of the Aditya Birla Group.
At the confluence of Subarnarekha river in Orissa, the average fish catch has fallen by 20-30 per cent over the past few years while input cost to run a power boat and maintain a good net has risen. In 2008 winter, standing crops in 16 districts in Rajasthan were damaged
Even as the Forest Survey of India (FSI) released its report on India’s receding forest cover, leading carmaker Rolls Royce announced that the interiors of its newest model will be made of teak straight from Malabar forests. According to the FSI’s latest report
National water policies are extremely important legal and institutional tools as they reflect the basic intent and direction that the government is planning to take regarding water resources. To ensure that this is a direction acceptable and beneficial to all, open
Assam's Rhinos have almost always spelt good and bad news for wildlife officials. The doggedness with which conservation has been pushed ahead in the last few decades is paying off. The present count of the great Asian one-horned rhino in Kaziranga
North East India has long been ignored by policy makers who usually blame the difficult terrain for non-delivery of essential services. However, for last few years, both the bureaucrats as well as corporates are making a beeline to the region offering development.
August 12, 2011: The National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) decides to take legal action against multinational seed firm Monsanto for accessing local varieties of eggplant and using it to develop genetically modified bt brinjal. Though the action may appear
Leather pollution is the third largest pollution threat in the world. May be that's the reason why when the issue of massive pollution generated by 538 leather tanneries in Kolkata was raised, the Supreme Court was quick to order shifting of these units
There is a strong perception that the crisis of policy implementation runs deep across all the levels of governance from the Union to the State and further to the local government level. This perception is reinforced in the recent findings of the Comptroller and Auditor
Keshari Sahu is a happy farmer. When scanty and irregular rainfall resulted in heavy damage to the Kharif paddy crop at his village in Balangir district of Odisha last year, he decided to grow Gurjee millet on his three acre farm instead of cotton.
“Pawan guru, pani pita, mata dharti mahat (Air is the guru, water is father and earth is mother)”, the closing shalok of Japuji Sahib given by first Sikh guru Guru Nanak Dev has a special significance for Punjab. Being the only state with a name
In the times when tapped water supply is considered an absolute sign of development, the traditional water harvesting systems are losing their age-old relevance. This is why the Lakholaav pond in Rajasthan assumes greater significance.
Deforestation is the biggest problem rural India is facing today because agriculture is completely dependent on a good forest cover in the neighbourhood. Not only the forests help sustain the rivers, streams and springs, they also prevent floods during monsoon.
Ghaziram's family has been living at Ekalpaar village of Jaisalmer district for ages but managed to build a pucca house only recently. Besides rearing livestock, he owns 50 bigha of agricultural land which earned him Rs 2 lakh last year.
