Page 147 - Environment
Parts of Ker hit by soaring mercury; 36 sun burns cases
Several parts of Kerala have been hit by soaring mercury with 36 cases of sun burns being reported, official sources said Tuesday. Kollam and Alapuzha districts accounted for the maximum sun burn cases of six each of the 36 reported till Monday, the Health department said. Among other districts, Pathanamthitta saw five people seeking treatment for sun burn cases while Ernakulam and Kannur districts reported four cases each, it said. According to the India Meteorological Department here, maximum temperature was very likely to be above normal by 3 to 4 degree Celsius inAlappuzha, Kottayam, Palakkad, and Kozhikode districts Tuesday and by 2 to 3 degree Celsius in the next two days. Vellanikkara in Thrissur district recorded a maximum of 40.4 degrees Celsius while Palakkad 39.2 C as per the readings this morning. The temperature was very likely to be above normal by 2 to 3 degree Celsius in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Malappuram, Kannur ..
HC refuses to hear 2G plea unless all trees planted
The Delhi High Court on Tuesday said it will not proceed with the 2G spectrum hearing until the accused, including Swan Telecom's Shahid Usman Balwa, complied with its earlier order and completes a plantation drive.
Hubble captures birth of giant storm on Neptune: NASA
In a first, the Hubble Space Telescope has beamed back images documenting the birth of a giant storm on Neptune, a finding that may reveal insights on the inner workings of the poorly-understood ice giant planets, NASA said. Like Jupiter's Great Red Spot, Neptune's Great Dark Spots are storms that form from areas of high atmospheric pressure. In contrast, storms on Earth form around areas of low pressure. Scientists have seen a total of six dark spots on Neptune over the years. Voyager 2 identified two storms in 1989. Since Hubble launched in 1990, it has viewed four more of these storms, NASA said in a statement. Researchers analysed Hubble's photos of the ice giant taken over the past several years and chronicled the growth of a new Great Dark Spot that became visible in 2018. By studying companion clouds that showed up two years before the new Great Dark Spot, the researchers conclude dark spots originate much deeper in Neptune's atmosphere than previously thought. The Hubble ...
928 elephants died unnaturally since 2009 including 565 due to electrocution alone:RTI reply
As many as 928 elephants have died since 2009 due to reasons like train accidents, poaching, or poisoning while electrocution alone caused over 60 per cent of these deaths, revealed a data obtained under the Right to Information (RTI) Act. Since 2009 till December 31, 2018, 565 elephants have died due to electrocution, according to the data by the Project Elephant Division of the Ministry of Environment and Forests. Another 151 elephants died to train accidents, while 150 were poached and killed, the ministry stated in a written response. Poisoning too claimed the life of 62 elephants, the response added. Noida-based lawyer Ranjan Tomar had sought an year-wise data from the ministry on the number ofelephantswho have died due to various reasons since 2009. "The total budget outlay for financial year 2018-19 under centrally sponsored scheme 'Project Elephant' to protect elephants, their habitat and corridors, to address issues of non-elephant conflicts and welfare of captive elephants ..
BSES urges Delhi consumers to 'switch off' during Earth Hour on Saturday
Power distribution company BSES on Monday urged its over 42 lakh consumers to "switch off" during Earth Hour on March 30, a symbolic initiative to conserve energy that will be observed across several countries. In a statement, the company said that it is actively and whole heartedly supporting and promoting the 'Earth Hour' initiative. The discom and its consumers are once again gearing up to take up the challenge and take the initiative to greater heights, it stated. The World Earth Hour will be observed by switching off lights between 8.30 pm and 9.30 pm on March 30. "We sincerely appeal to our consumers to make the right and sustainable choices 'Give Up To Give Back' - for the planet and for the future generations that will inherit it. "As conscientious corporate citizens of India, we also urges consumers to look towards the sun and join our over 1500 other BSES roof-top consumers in harnessing the power of the sun," a BSES spokesperson said in a statement. BSES Rajdhani Power ...
Chinese leader Xi in France to sign multibillion deals
Chinese President Xi Jinping was expected to sign multibillion-dollar deals Monday on energy, the food industry, transport and other sectors as well as a bilateral statement on climate change during a state visit to France. Xi was being welcomed by French President Emmanuel Macron at the Arc de Triomphe monument in Paris, before a meeting and a state dinner at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris. A top official at the French presidency said about 30 deals were expected to be signed in a ceremony at the Elysee, half of them business contracts for a global amount reaching multibillion dollars and others being bilateral agreements. China last year opened its market for French beef products following Macron's state visit in the country in January 2018. France now expects similar opening for its poultry industry, the official said. Other expected deals involve French companies specialised in transports, renewable energy and city infrastructures. The official was speaking anonymously in
Adani Power got nod to set up power SEZ on Feb 25
Days before the Lok Sabha election dates were announced, the government paved the way for Adani Power Limited (APL) to set up India's first power sector special economic zone (SEZ) by amending guidelines.
Vijaywada rly station gets Gold Rating
Vijayawada railway station, one of the busiest railway junctions in the country, has received the Gold Rating by the Indian Green Building Council. Council Chairman Meka Vijaya Sai presented the gold rating shield to Divisional Railway Manager R Dhananjayulu on Monday. The IGBC-CII, with the support of the Environment Directorate of Indian Railways, developed the Green Railway Stations Rating System to facilitate adoption of green concepts, thereby reduce the adverse environmental impact due to station operation and maintenance and also enhance the overall commuter experience, a railway release said. The rating system helps to address national priorities like water conservation, handling of waste, energy efficiency, reduced used of fossil fuel, lesser dependence on usage of virgin materials and health and well being of occupants, it said. The DRM said that Vijayawada Railway Station was ranked fourth in the Indian Railways for cleanliness among A-1 category stations. He
Loan waiver, free power supply not going to help farmers in long run: Venkaiah Naidu
Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu on Monday said that measures like loan waiver and providing free power supply are not going to help farmers in the long run as they only provide short term relief.Addressing a gathering at Vaikunth Mehta National Institute for Cooperative Management (VAMNICOM), he said, "I have always been stating that populist measures like loan waiver and providing free power supply are not going to help farmers in the long run. They provide only short term relief. A farmer does not need freebies but proper marketing conditions to sell his produce."The Vice President advocated that officials and students of agriculture should spend time with farmers and visit the fields as well."The extension officials should be made to spend at least half their time with the farmers. Similarly, it should be made mandatory for students of agriculture to visit fields and stay with families of agriculturists to understand firsthand the problems of farmers," he added.Emphasising on the ..
ISRO to launch EMISAT, 28 foreign satellites on April 1
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Monday said it will launch EMISAT and 28 satellites of international customers, including those from the USA and Spain, on April 1 from the spaceport of Sriharikota. The 436-kg EMISAT and other satellites would be launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, over 100 km north of Chennai, onboard the space agency's workhorse Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) C-45, ISRO said in a statement here. The launch would be subject to weather condition, it added. Earlier, the launch was scheduled for March 21 but had been deferred to April 1. Weighing about 436 kg, EMISAT based on ISROs Indian Mini Satellite-2 (IMS-2) bus platform. The satellite is intended for electromagnetic spectrum measurement, the statement said without giving any further details including the end-user of EMISAT. ISRO officials, when contacted, declined to disclose the details. The 28 international customer satellites were from Lithuania, ...
Jammu smallholders harvest crop prematurely for Modi's rally
Farmers in a nondescript hamlet on the outskirts of Jammu harvested their crop prematurely to pave the way for the venue of a mega rally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in their village on March 28. A number of smallholders jointly harvested their wheat crop spread across several hectares of land in Malpur hamlet of Jammu district over the last two days. "We are so happy that Modiji is coming to our village. It will become famous after his visit. We do not want to lose this opportunity and offered our farmland for the venue of his rally. The nearby ground set aside for his rally earlier does not have much space," a farmer, Kalu Ram, said. He said the smallholders offered their land for the rally by "speedily harvesting semi-ripe wheat crop", which was to be harvested towards April-end. "We could not have harvested several hectares of farmland by ourselves, so many villagers came forward to help. The village will go down in history once Modi ji arrives here," another farmer, Daleep ...
TKM meets Bidadi plant's 87% energy requirement through renewable sources
Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) Monday said it has sourced 87 per cent of electricity requirements at Bidadi manufacturing plant from renewable sources till January this fiscal. The auto-maker, which sells popular models like Innova and Fortuner, has been moving from non-renewable to renewable sources of energy across its business operations. "Business can play a significant leadership role in accelerating the transition to a lower-carbon economy, we see renewable energy to be a key component of climate action efforts," TKM Managing Director Masakazu Yoshimura said in a statement. Over the years, the company has been stringently working towards reduction of dependency on non-renewable energy resources by implementing various energy management procedures to achieve environmental sustainability, he added. "During October 2018, we achieved 100 per cent renewable power source for our energy requirements. Through such significant goals, TKM could effectively contribute towards emission ...
SC refers to other bench plea against eviction of forest dwelling tribals in Chhattisgarh
The Supreme Court Monday referred to another bench a fresh plea seeking a direction to authorities not to evict any forest dweller in Chhattisgarh and to set up an SIT to look into the alleged illegal acquisition of tribals' land. A bench comprising Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Deepak Gupta sent the plea filed by Chhattisgarh-based Tarika Tarangini Larka to a bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra, which is already seized of a similar plea relating to eviction of alleged illegal forest dwellers. "List this matter before the bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra," the bench said, adding that in any case, the February 13 order, directing 21 states to evict 11.8 lakh illegal forest dwellers, has already been stayed by the bench concerned. Lawyer M L Sharma, appearing for Larka, submitted that the issues raised in the PIL were of larger interest for forest dwellers and hence, the notice be issued. The apex court had on March 5 taken cognisance of another plea filed by Larka, seeking .
Switch off during Earth Hour: BSES to clients
Delhi power distribution company (discom) BSES, here on Monday, urged its 40 lakh plus consumers to "switch off" electric appliances during Earth Hour on March 30, to show their concern for the environment.
Public transport permit mandatory for electric 3W, 4W to avail FAME-II sops: Govt
Starting April 1, electric three and four wheelers will need a valid permit from government agency stating that the vehicle will be used only for public transport purposes to avail incentives under the Rs 10,000-crore FAME India scheme, as per an official notification. The Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid) and Electric Vehicles (FAME) scheme in its second phase starting next week, spanning three years, will support 5 lakh e-rickshaws (e-3W) having ex-factory price of up to Rs 5 lakh with an incentive of Rs 50,000 each. It will also offer a sop of Rs 1.5 lakh each to 35,000 electric four-wheelers (e-4W) with an ex-factory price of up to Rs 15 lakh with an aim to boost clean mobility in mass transport. According to operational guidelines for delivery of demand incentives under FAME-II notified by the heavy industry ministry, a dealer will have to ensure that the demand incentive is not passed on to individuals, using vehicles for private use in case of three wheelers and ...
Sri Lanka imposes daily 4-hour power cuts due to dry weather
Sri Lanka's government is imposing daily four-hour power cuts as dry weather lowers the output of hydropower plants. The state-run Ceylon Electricity Board announced Monday that electricity will be shut off for three hours during the daytime and one hour at night. The board said dry, hot weather has caused energy demand to rise while water levels in reservoirs have fallen, forcing it to "restrict electricity generation from hydropower plants to save the water for drinking and irrigation requirements." Sri Lanka depends largely on hydropower to generate electricity. During the dry season, the country faces power cuts when water levels go down, making it difficult to generate power.
Stalagmite holds key to predicting droughts, floods in India: study
Stalagmites can help scientists predict droughts and floods in India, a recent study suggests.To unlock some secrets about climate change, a team of researchers went to an unusual cave in India.By studying the last 50 years of growth of a stalagmite from Mawmluh Cave in the northeastern Indian state of Meghalaya, an area that experiences so much summer monsoon rainfall that it is called the rainiest place on Earth, they found an unexpected connection between winter (dry season) rainfall amounts in northeast India and climatic conditions in the Pacific Ocean.Winter rainfall following weak monsoon years in India can alleviate water stress for farmers. This distant link between land and ocean records could aid in predicting dry season rainfall amounts in northeast India.Each year, monsoon rains between June and September provide water for roughly 1.5 billion people in India. Changes in monsoon strength and the timing of its onset or withdrawal can trigger either drought or flooding, with
Switch off during Earth Hour, BSES urges consumers
Delhi power distribution company (discom) BSES on Monday urged its over 40 lakh consumers to "switch off" their electric appliances during Earth Hour on March 30, 2019, to show their concern for the environment.
Lightning kills birds worth $5 mn in UAE
Fifty rare species of birds worth over 20 million dirhams ($5 million) were killed when a farm in Abu Dhabi was struck by lightning, the media reported on Monday.
GSFC gets green nod for expansion of fertiliser unit in Gujarat
Gujarat State Fertilisers and Chemicals (GSFC) has received green nod for expansion of its fertiliser unit in the state that will entail an investment of about Rs 8.75 crore, according to an official document. The state-owned firm has proposed adding an ammonium sulphate production unit with a capacity of 1,46,000 tonnes per annum at Fertiliser Nagar in Vadodara district. The GSFC's proposal was first vetted by a green panel Expert Advisory Committee (EAC) constituted by the union environment ministry. Based on its recommendation, it gave environment clearance (EC) to the project. The proposed expansion will cost about Rs 8.75 crore and is likely to provide employment to 70 people directly and indirectly, as per the EC certificate despatched to the GSFC. The green nod to the project is subject to compliance to certain conditions. The shares of GSFC were trading down 2.89 per cent at Rs 99.30 apiece on the BSE.
