Page 242 - Environment
MHA to get satellite from ISRO to strengthen border security
A satellite for exclusive use by Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) will be launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)The satellite will be used for the purpose of utilising space resources for security, operational planning and border infrastructure development.The project is slated to strengthen island and border security and facilitate the development of infrastructure in border and island areas.The report of task force approved by Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday, had identified island development, border security, communication and navigation, GIS and operations planning system and border infrastructure development for use of space technology, according to a Ministry statement.The report was finalised after MHA had a consultation with all stakeholders including Border Guarding Forces (BGFs), ISRO, National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS) and Ministry of Defence (MoD).The task force would be headed by Joint Secretary (Border Management) and would have members
India to train 45 countries in nano-satellite making
India will train 45 countries in nano-satellite making through a new capacity building programme, a top space official said on Thursday.
China's moon cotton experiment ends in freezing lunar night
A cotton seedling that sprouted on the moon has been left to die as China's historic lunar lander continues a freezing night-time nap that will last as long as two earth weeks, scientists said. The Chinese space agency announced earlier this week that the seed had germinated inside a special canister aboard the Chang'e-4 probe, after the spacecraft on January 3 made the first-ever landing on the far side of the moon. The mini biosphere - which operated for over 212 hours - was shut down as planned on Saturday, said Chongqing University, which designed the experiment. The lander also carried potato and arabidopsis seeds - a plant of the mustard family - as well as fruit fly eggs and yeast. Temperatures inside the ecosystem were expected to plunge below minus 52 degrees Celsius (minus 61.6 degrees Fahrenheit), and the organisms will be "in a frozen state", the university said in a statement on Tuesday. The experiment ended hours before Chang'e-4 entered "sleep mode" on Sunday as the ...
Mineral sand mining: Talks fail, agitaion to continue
Conciliatory talks to end the agitation by locals against mineral sand mining in coastal Alappad panchayat Kerala failed Thursday with the protesters refusing to accept the state government's interim proposal of partial halt to the mining activities. Industries Minister E P Jayarajan told the anti-mining People's Protest Council, spearheading the over two month long agitation, that sea washing, a method of mineral sand-mining, would be stopped for one month till the proposed expert committee submitted its impact study report. A high-level meeting, convened by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, on Wednesday had decided to set up the committee to study the impact of mineral sand-mining in Alappad. The meeting had also decided to temporarily halt the process of sea washing or surface mining of sand. Seeking to save their remaining villages, the people of Alappad and nearby hamlets under the banner of the protest council have been on a relay hunger strike at Vellanathuruthu ..
Haryana governor bats for livestock development
New schemes should be implemented for development of livestock, which will help in doubling the income of farmers in Haryana, Governor Satyadeo Narain Arya said Thursday. Arya was interacting with Animal Husbandry and Dairying Minister O P Dhankar and senior officials after releasing a booklet 'Prakritik Pashu Chikitsa Padhti' at Raj Bhawan here, an official release said. The booklet has been published by Haryana Pashu Chikitsak Parishad and the Animal Husbandry and Dairying Department. The governor said Haryana has immense possibilities of livestock development. Keeping in view these possibilities, the department has done commendable job in the field of cattle breed improvement and other areas, as a result of which Haryana is at the second position in terms of per capita milk availability, he said. Arya said about Rs 24.98 crore is being spent under Cattle and Buffalo Breeding and Dairy Development Programme, which would improve the breeds of Sahiwal and Gir, and double the income of
Rs 3 cr worth garments seized by customs in Bengal
Customs officials on Thursday seized garments worth Rs 3 crore after intercepting a trawler which attempted to smuggle out goods to Bangladesh through the Sunderban riverine route.
Australian Open results - collated
Collated results from Day 4 of the Australian Open on Thursday: Men's singles, 2nd round Kei Nishikori (JPN x8) bt Ivo Karlovic (CRO) 6-3, 7-6 (8/6), 5-7, 5-7, 7-6 (10/7) Borna Coric (CRO x11) bt Marton Fucsovics (HUN) 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 Pablo Carreno-Busta (ESP x23) bt Ilya Ivashka (BLR) 6-2, 6-3, 7-6 (9/7) Fabio Fognini (ITA x12) bt Leonardo Mayer (ARG) 7-6 (7/3), 6-3, 7-6 (7/5) Joao Sousa (POR) bt Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER x32) 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (7/4), 5-7, 6-4 Pierre-Hugues Herbert (FRA) bt Chung Hyeon (KOR x24) 6-2, 1-6, 6-2, 6-4 Milos Raonic (CAN x16) bt Stan Wawrinka (SUI) 6-7 (4/7), 7-6 (8/6), 7-6 (13/11), 7-6 (7/5) Denis Shapovalov (CAN x25) bt Taro Daniel (JPN) 6-3, 7-6 (7/2), 6-3 David Goffin (BEL x21) bt Marius Copil (ROU) 5-7, 7-5, 6-2, 6-4 Daniil Medvedev (RUS x15) bt Ryan Harrison (USA) 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 Filip Krajinovic (SRB) bt Evgeny Donskoy (RUS) 6-4, 7-6 (10/8), 7-6 (7/2) Alexei Popyrin (AUS) bt Dominic Thiem (AUT x7) 7-5, 6-4, 2-0 retired Alex Bolt (AUS) bt Gilles Simon (FRA .
Centre approves Rs 4,405 crore highway to connect west UP to Delhi: Manoj Tiwari
Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari Thursday said a six-lane highway connecting western Uttar Pradesh with his constituency of North East Delhi has been approved by the Centre. The foundation of National Highway-709 B will be laid on the January 26, Tiwari said at a press conference. "Union minister Nitin Gadkari has approved the six lane NH-709 B of 155 km length connecting Baghpat, Shyamli, Saharanpur, Geeta Colony and Khajuri Khas, which will cost Rs 4,405 crore," he said. The highway after its completion will solve the problem of traffic congestion on several roads in the city, Tiwari said.
Hitachi halts UK nuclear project as energy supply crunch looms
LONDON/TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's Hitachi Ltd put a $28 billion nuclear power project in Britain on hold on Thursday, dealing a blow to the country's plans for the replacement of ageing plants.
Delhi's air quality severe, CPCB slaps Rs 1 crore fine each on civic bodies
Delhi's air quality deteriorated further on Thursday to severe category due to reduced wind speed that prevented the dispersion of pollutants even as the CPCB slapped Rs 1 crore fine each on three civic bodies of Delhi. According to the Central Pollution Control Board data, the overall air quality index (AQI) in the city was 443, which falls in the severe category. The CPCB has asked Reliance Industries why a fine of Rs 1 crore should not be slapped on it and prosecution not initiated over non compliance of the National Green Tribunal order on installation of anti-pollution "vapour recovery" systems (VRS) at fuel stations. The CPCB slapped Rs 1 crore fine each on three civic bodies of the city over open burning, dumping of waste, illegal running of plastic industries in non-conforming residential areas. In three separate notices to the East Delhi Municipal Corporation, the South Delhi Municipal Corporation and the North Delhi Municipal Corporation, the CPCB said it was observed that
Delhi's air turns 'severe'; relief likely from Saturday
Contrary to pollution forecast, the overall air quality in Delhi and adjoining areas turned 'severe' on Thursday with toxic PM2.5 and PM10 being the major contributors.
Delhi, Gurgaon air show presence of alarming levels of heavy metals: Report
Air quality tests done in Delhi and Gurgaon in the last two months showed presence of alarming levels of toxic heavy metals, according to a new report released Thursday. The report, titled 'Death in Every Breath', released by NGO Lung Care Foundation, analysed results of seven air quality tests taken in New Delhi and Gurgaon. The PM2.5 levels - fine particulate matters in the air with a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometers - in all the seven tests were above statutory limits, the report said. "The PM2.5 levels ranged from 90.3 ug/m3 to 563.5 ug/m3 and were between 1.5 and 9.4 times higher than standards prescribed by the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC)," it said. The levels of manganese in five of the seven tests exceed the US EPA Reference Concentration for exposure to manganese (0.05 ug/m3) and the World Health Organisation annual health-based guidelines value of 0.15 ug/m3. There are no standards in India for manganese in ambient air, the report ...
Need to focus on alternative fuels: Gadkari
Union minister for transport Nitin Gadkari Thursday stressed the importance of moving towards the alternative fuels like methanol, ethanol and electric and said that it will reduce the dependency on fossil fuels costs less. Gadkari was speaking at a symposium on 'empowering mobility - the safe and intelligence way', organised by Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI). "Our crude oil import bill is of Rs 7 lakh crore and this cost is creating big economic problems for the country and at the same time, the use of fossil fuels are creating pollution. As there is a lot of agriculture raw material waste, there is a need to convert it into energy through waste and move towards the alternative fuels like methanol, ethanol, bio- fuels and electric," he said. He added that the prime minister has already declared that by 2022, we will have to reduce the import bill of crude oil by 10 percent. He said that his priority is for the agriculture. "We are facing all the urban
Major farm measures likely in coming weeks: Agri Min
Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh Thursday indicated announcement of major measures in the coming weeks to address farm distress across the country, a move that will come ahead of Lok Sabha elections. The agriculture ministry has prepared a cabinet note on "addressing income deficit syndrome of small and marginal farmers" proposing various steps, including a financial package and interest waiver for timely crop loan repayers, according to sources. A draft note has been finalised after several meetings with officials of Prime Minister's Office, the Niti Aayog, agriculture and finance ministries, the sources added. Asked if the government is ready with a big farm package, Singh said: "When it will be announced, everyone will get to know. ...Every year before or during the budget, we have announced something new for farmers. Definitely, there will be something for farmers this time too." The speciality of the NDA government has been that it has announced something new every year for
CPCB slaps Rs 1 cr fine each on EDMC, SDMC and North DMC over violation of pollution norms
The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) slapped Rs 1 crore fine each on three civic bodies of the city over open burning, dumping of waste, illegal running of plastic industries in non-conforming residential areas. In three separate notices to the East Delhi Municipal Corporation, South Delhi Municipal Corporation and the North Delhi Municipal Corporation, the CPCB said it was observed that open dumping of garbage contributes approximately 13.1 per cent and open garbage burning contributes to approximately 11.1 per cent in the air pollution incidents in Delhi NCR region. The CPCB said an environmental compensation of Rs 1 crore has to be paid by the three bodies by January 31, failing which prosecution will be initiated in accordance with law. In its notice dated January 16 to EDMC, SDMC and North Delhi Municipal Corporation, the CPCB said during inspections it was found that incidents of burning of plastic and garbage were more prominent. "Illegal industrial activities were seen .
Hitachi freezes UK nuclear project as energy supply crunch looms
LONDON/TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's Hitachi Ltd decided on Thursday to freeze a 3 trillion yen ($28 billion) nuclear power project in Britain, dealing a blow to UK plans for the replacement of ageing plants.
Impose fine on Uttarakhand for violating laws on Gairsain assembly building: NGT to SEAC
The National Green Tribunal has directed imposition of environmental compensation on Uttarakhand government for initiating construction of a new legislative assembly building at Gairsain in Chamoli district without mandatory clearances. A bench headed by Justice Raghuvendra S Rathore passed the order after noting that construction was commenced without environmental clearance on the grounds that it is less than 20,000 sq metres. However, the said construction has now exceeded 20,000 sq. metres and is totalling to about 25,000 sq metres, it noted. The green panel asked the State Level Expert Appraisal Committee (SEAC) to examine the proposal as a case of violation of environmental law in respect of construction of building after taking into consideration all the facts and circumstances, particularly the size and nature of the building, its construction and the surrounding conditions at the place where the structure has come up. "Accordingly, SEAC would impose appropriate conditions, ..
TERI School of Advanced Studies organizes the 2nd ICBESD 2019
TERI School of Advanced Studies (TERI SAS), the pioneer institution of international importance in sustainability research, provided a platform to like-minded researchers, experts, academicians, policy-makers and corporate leaders by hosting the "2ndInternational Conference on Business, Economics and Sustainable Development (ICBESD-2019)" to discuss issues and challenges facing businesses and economies to meet the goal of sustainable development through new and innovative solutions, without compromising on growth, profitability, and competitiveness.The conference was organized in collaboration with the Government of India Rooftop Solar Technical Assistance Program supported by The World Bank. The conference comprised three panel discussions on emerging themes of health finance, circular economy, and solar rooftop systems and 16 parallel paper presentation sessions with eminent academicians, corporate leaders and policy-makers chairing the sessions on various themes relating to the ...
Volkswagen to pay Rs 100 cr fine for violating emission norms
In response to the NGT's direction to deposit Rs 100 crore within 24 hours for violating vehicular emission norms, the Volkswagen group on Thursday said although the green court's order is still pending with the Supreme Court, it will comply with the order.
Accelerate resources to fortify fiscal position, NE states told
The 15th Finance Commission Chairman N.K. Singh on Thursday suggested the northeastern states to accelerate resources and revenue to strengthen fiscal position.