Page 27 - Environment
NTPC bags 40 MW solar projects in UPNEDA's auction
State-run power major NTPC Tuesday said it has won 40 MW solar energy projects in an auction conducted by Uttar Pradesh New and Renewable Energy Development Agency (UPNEDA). "NTPC participated in UPNEDA's tender for 500 MW Solar capacity with two bids of 20 MW each at Auraiya and Rihand," the company said in a statement. Reverse auction was carried out on June 25 and NTPC won entire 40 MW of solar capacity at a levellised tariff of Rs 3.02/kWh applicable for 25 years, it said. The projects shall be set up under EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) mode and shall add to the installed capacity of NTPC, the statement said. With these projects, NTPC has won aggregate solar capacity of 545 MW under tariff based competitive bidding tenders of states/SECI (Solar Energy Corporation of India).
Ahead of Monsoon, Kejriwal urges officials to ensure 'no inconvenience' caused to Delhiites due to water logging
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday directed the senior officials to take all possible effective measures to ensure that residents of Delhi do not face any inconvenience due to water logging during Monsoon season.The Chief Minister's direction came during the programme to launch the Flood Control Order report for the current year, in presence of his cabinet colleagues and all the top officers of the Delhi government and civic agencies.Kejriwal directed the Chief Secretary Vijay Dev to ask all the concerned departments to provide a list of all the already identified vulnerable water logging points across Delhi within next seven days, along with the status report of what has been done to prevent water logging and problem areas, if any, before the Monsoon sets in."All departments do a good job in implementing flood control measures in Delhi, but let us be clear that there are shortcomings in tackling water logging during Monsoon. Vulnerable water logging points are known and .
Scientists successfully transfer 1st test tube rhino embryo
Scientists in Europe say they've successfully transferred a test tube rhino embryo back into a female whose eggs were fertilized in vitro, as part of an effort to save another nearly extinct sub-species of the giant horned mammal. Thomas Hildebrandt of the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research in Berlin said Tuesday the procedure was performed last month on a southern white rhino at Chorzow Zoo in Poland. Hildebrandt is part of an international team trying to save the northern white rhino. The team is hoping to get permission from Kenya to harvest eggs from the last two surviving female northern white rhinos soon. He told reporters that "this is the first positive proof that the entire procedure we've developed in theory can be successful.
NTPC wins bid for 40 MW solar projects of UPNEDA
Reverse Auction was carried out on 25 June 2019 and NTPC has won entire 40 MW of Solar capacity bid by it at a levelised tariff of Rs. 3.02/kWh applicable for 25 years.
Delhi forest dept proposes developing 11 city forests in 2019-20
The Delhi government's forest department Tuesday proposed developing 11 city forests in the national capital in the financial year 2019-20. Officials of the department made the proposal during a meeting with Delhi's Environment and Forest Minister Imran Hussain, who directed them to develop six of these forests in the monsoon season itself and to submit a detailed action plan in this regard. Principal chief conservator of forest, conservator of forest and deputy conservators of forests of various divisions attended the meeting. The minister also directed the officials to submit a proposal for a mega tree plantation drive, to be organised in the last week of July in association with various greening agencies. The Delhi government had earlier said it has set a target of planting more than 23 lakh trees and shrubs in the financial year 2019-20. The number is around 10 lakh lower than last year's target.
No shortage of any Fertilizer in the country: D.V. Sadananda Gowda
Availability of fertilizers has been more than the sales
PM Modi to hold bilaterals with Trump, Macron on G20 sidelines
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold about 10 bilateral meetings, including with US President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron, on the sidelines of the G20 meeting in Japan this week, sources said Tuesday. Modi, who will attend the 14th G20 summit in Osaka from June 28-29, will also participate in the Russia-India-China (RIC) and the Japan-America-India (JAI) trilaterals, as well as in the meeting of BRICS leaders. The prime minister will have about 10 bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the summit, including with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Trump and Macron, the sources said. Modi's likely meeting with US President Trump, the first since his re-election last month, is set to attract a lot of attention amid strengthening of strategic ties between the two countries. Former Union minister Suresh Prabhu would be India's Sherpa at the meeting of the world's top economies. The issues under discussion at the summit will ..
Run for Ocean unites 85k runners
Global sports brand Adidas' Run for Ocean campaign has united 85k runners across India, helping spread awareness on marine plastic pollution. The aim of producing a landmark 11 million pairs of shoes from up-cycled marine plastic waste the campaign united large number of runners across several locations in the country. The movement witnessed an overall participation of 87,490 individuals running on the Runtastic app, clocking a total of 175060.81 kms and clearing over 238 tonnes of plastic waste as part of the beach clean-up drives. The money raised helped educate and empower 100,000 youth and their families who are living in coastal areas and are affected by plastic pollution. The partnership saw five million pairs of shoes created, using recycled ocean plastic.
Leopard strays from forest in J&K, captured by wildlife dept
A leopard strayed from a forest to a road in Jammu and Kashmir's Kishtwar district following which it was captured by the Wildlife Department, officials said. A video went viral on social media Monday, showing the big cat walking along a road in Chingam village of Chatroo surrounded by a lush, green forest. Some men can be seen walking close behind it while capturing the unusual sight on their mobile phones. The leopard is seen moving peacefully, unmindful of the presence of humans, and even walks past some cars whose occupants observe the animal from close quarters. A department officials said the leopard was captured two days ago and it is presently under observation. "The animal is sick and is undergoing treatment at trauma centre in Kishtwar. It is under observation and is showing signs of recovery," the official. District Development Commissioner (Kishtwar) A S Rana appealed people to exercise caution in such a situation in order to ensure their safety as well as the safety of ...
MCF, Raebareli emerges as railways' most green unit
The Modern Coach Factory (MCF) at Raebareli is the most green unit of the Indian Railways, according to the CII's GreenCo rating, the first such workshop of the national transporter to have achieved this milestone, officials said on Tuesday. The GreenCo Rating System of the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) is a first-of-its-kind rating system in the world that facilitates companies in improving their overall green performance. Over the last three years, the MCF, which has received the "Platinum" rating, has reduced its fresh water consumption by 64 per cent per coach, energy consumption by 53 per cent per coach and paper usage by 54 per cent, according to official data. The factory has developed six rainwater harvesting pits consisting of 12 borewells in its workshops and 13 rainwater harvesting pits in the township. It has also developed six artificial waterbodies with an approximate capacity of 60,000 kl to collect surface runoff and use it for recharging groundwater and ...
22 Villages in Mizoram yet to be electrified: Minister
There are 22 villages in Mizoram which are yet to be electrified, Power and Electricity minister R Lalzirliana told the state Assembly on Tuesday. The minister said these 22 villages would be electrified within next six months. In a written reply to a question by the lone BJP member Dr B D Chakma, the minister said that the government proposed to electrify all the villages in the state by this year. He said that 26,502 households including BPL and non- BPL households were given electricity connections under Saubhagya Yojana in the state. The electricity connection provided under Saubhagya Yojana was free of costs, he said, adding, however, that monthly electricity consumption bill would be borne by the beneficiary.
Karnataka told to release Cauvery water for June, July to TN
The Cauvery Water Management Authority on Tuesday directed Karnataka to release 9.19 TMC feet of water for June and 31.24 TMC feet of water for July to Tamil Nadu as per the monthly schedule finalised by the water Tribunal and modified by the Supreme Court.The decision was taken at a meeting of the CWMA presided over by Chairman Masood Hussain, which decided that in respect of quatam of water to be released to Puducherry the existing arrangement between Puducherry and Tamail nadu will continue.Hussain told the media later that the authority reviewed the hyderometrological situation in the Cauvery basin and it was observed that the rainfall has been deficient. Monsoon has got delayed and the overall rainfall this year has also been deficient, he said.It was noted that the rainfall was deficient during the period from June 1 to June 20 in the catchments of Krishnaraja Sagar and Kabini reservoir.It was also observed that during the period, the four reservoirs of Karnataka received ...
K'taka: Farmers' strike enters day 5; Irrigation Min says 'nothing in our hands'
The indefinite strike by the Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS) members demanding Cauvery and Hemavati waters to be channelised for saving standing crops entered the fifth day on Tuesday.Farmers in Mandya have been demanding diversion of Cauvery and Hemavati waters to their canals in order to save their produce.Water resources minister DK Shivakumar was forcefully stopped by the agitated farmers to lay down their demands before him.After listening to the farmers, the minister responded saying, "Nothing is in our hand. Management is handling water issue and I will speak to them."On Monday, Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy had asked the Centre to direct the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) to resolve the issue, as water crisis deepened in the state."Now the Central government has already constituted Cauvery Water Management Authority which had asked Karnataka government to release 9 TMC of water to Tamil Nadu," Kumaraswamy had told ANI, adding, "There is a shortage of water in ..
S Korea mulling additional aid to global agencies for helping N Korea
South Korea on Tuesday said that it is considering to give an additional grant to global aid agencies for assisting the people of North Korea who are facing health issues.South Korea's unification ministry said in its report to the lawmakers that donations could be made to agencies like the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) for their assistance projects in North Korea, which has been facing severe food shortages due to a multitude of global sanctions imposed on its stagnant economy and unfavourable weather conditions.Last year, the reclusive communist state's crop output plunged to its lowest level since 2008 and about 40 per cent of the population need urgent access to proper food, according to the World Food Programme (WFP) and the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), Yonhap News Agency reported.The two agencies said that North Korea will require an estimated 1.36 million tons of grain this year to plug the gap on food shortage.South
SpaceX launches hefty rocket with 24 satellites
SpaceX launched its heftiest rocket with 24 research satellites Tuesday, a middle-of-the-night rideshare featuring a deep space atomic clock, solar sail, a clean and green rocket fuel testbed, and even human ashes. It was the third flight of a Falcon Heavy rocket, but the first ordered up by the military. The Defense Department mission, dubbed STP-2 for Space Test Program, is expected to provide data to certify the Falcon Heavy and reused boosters for future national security launches. It marked the military's first ride on a recycled rocket. Both side boosters landed back at Cape Canaveral several minutes after liftoff, just as they did after launching in April. But the new core booster missed an ocean platform, not unexpected for this especially difficult mission, SpaceX noted. NASA signed up for a spot on the rocket, along with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Air Force Research Laboratory, the Planetary Society and Celestis Inc., which offers memorial ...
Here's how Kalaburagi youth are battling scorching heat
With the mercury soaring in the region, a group of locals, consisting of doctors, engineers, students, and government employees, among others, are planting saplings across the district to help lower the temperature in the region.The youngsters have flagged off a mission named "10k warriors" to make the district greener and are reaching out to volunteers to participate in increasing the green cover in the district.Speaking to ANI, Dr. Naganth Yadgir, a member of the environmental group, said, "We have been planting saplings for the past three years. When we were young, the temperature here was around 34-35 degrees and now we are seeing temperatures up to 47 degrees Celcius."As per Yadgir, the group began the plantation drive in 2017 and managed to plant 1000 saplings that year. In the subsequent year, he said 1400 saplings were planted by the youth.The group's new mission has been advertised on social media to gather volunteers and make this mission a fruitful one."I came to know about
Govt taking steps to protect indigenous breeds of cow
The government has taken a series of steps to protect indigenous breeds of cow under the Gokul Mission and in the next five years local breeds will be on par with foreign ones, Animal Husbandry Minister Giriraj Singh said. Replying to a query raised by actor Ravindra Shyam Narayan Shukla (Ravi Kishan) in the Question Hour, Singh said steps are being taken to increase productivity of cows. The minister said animal husbandry is more profitable than farming. He said steps like progeny testing programmes and pedigree selection programme for production of high genetic merit bulls of indigenous breeds, establishment of embryo transfer technology and in-vitro fertilisation laboratories have been undertaken. Sexed semen production facility for production of females calves by eliminating male calves has also been undertaken, he said. "In the next five years, indigenous cow breeds will be on a par with foreign breeds," he said. Replying to another question on stray cattle, Singh ..
One killed due to electrocution in UP village
One person was killed due to electrocution in Hardia Lakhwalia village in Sikandarpur area when a high tension electricity wire fell on him, police said Tuesday. The incident took place on Monday when Ramchandra Rajbhar (48) and others were sitting under a tree, they said. While Rajbhar died on the spot, two others were injured in the incident.
Scores ill, schools closed in Malaysia due to toxic fumes
Scores of people have fallen ill and hundreds of schools have been closed in Malaysia due to toxic fumes believed to have come from a chemical factory, authorities said Tuesday. It was the second serious incident involving poisonous gas in Pasir Gudang district, in southern Johor state, in three months after thousands of people became sick in March when waste was dumped in a river and emitted noxious fumes. Residents first noticed the fumes wafting across the industrial area late last week and many people, including schoolchildren, started vomiting and developing breathing difficulties. Johor chief minister Sahruddin Jamal said 75 people had so far been sent to hospital for treatment, according to official news agency Bernama. Authorities have now ordered the closure of all 475 educational institutions in the area until Thursday, including three institutes of higher education, 111 public schools, 14 private schools and 347 kindergartens. The latest incident is not believed to be ...
U'khand: Gupta family to pay entire cost of waste disposal in Auli
The Gupta family has deposited Rs 54,000 with the Municipal Corporation here and has also agreed to pay the entire cost of cleaning up after their mega Rs 200 crore wedding functions left the town of Auli with major waste management problems.The Municipality has deployed 20 workers to clear the waste lying around in the area.The High Court has also instructed the District Administration and Pollution Control Board to submit a report by July 7 on the harm caused to the environment due to the waste.The next hearing in the matter is scheduled for July 8."The Gupta family had deposited Rs 54,000 as user charge. Over 150 quintal waste has been cleaned up till now. After the cleaning work is complete the total bill of all the expenses, including manual labour and vehicles, will be sent to them. The family has agreed to pay the entire bill and also provide a vehicle to the Municipality," said Shailendra Panwar, Municipality President.The wedding celebrations of Suryakant, son of Ajay Gupta, .