Page 273 - Environment
PM Modi's remarks on loan waiver incorrect: K'taka CM
Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy on Sunday said that the remarks made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Karnataka farmers' loan waiver are "incorrect and thus very unfortunate for the nation.""Farmers' crop loan waiver is a commitment our government has made to the farmers of the state to safeguard their interest and the process has already begun. We have made significant payments and despite that it is very sad that he (Prime Minister Modi) sees it as a 'cruel joke on farmers', misleading the people of the nation without obtaining the full facts about the scheme," he said.Sharing updates, Karnataka Chief Minister Kumaraswamy said: "The Prime Minister may kindly note certain updates and facts about the farmers' crop loan waiver before making such incorrect statements. Crop loan waiver is an open book and information available online unlike any other state.""The Government of Karnataka is handling honest taxpayers' public money with caution to reach true farmers. It is ensured .
Make enough financial allocations to make crop insurance schemes attractive for farmers: Par Panel
Noting that there were several "problems", including lack of transparency, in two crop insurance schemes run by the government, a parliamentary panel has suggested making adequate financial allocations so that the schemes attract participation from a greater number of farmers. The parliamentary panel, chaired by senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi has also recommended re-formulation of agricultural insurance scheme in order to suit the needs of farmers who engage in organic farming, while also suggesting inclusion of multi-cropping system under it. The Committee on Estimates (2018-19) in its 30th report on performance of the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) under the Union Environment Ministry said the the National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture "lacks" in focusing on farmers while taking initiatives for sustainable agriculture. It noted that agriculture as a sustainable occupation can remain viable only if the farmers are given chance to sustain themselves and ...
Bangladesh polls: Indo-Bangla trade stops for two days
THe India-Bangladesh trade would be stopped for two days - Sunday and Monday - following general election in that country's parliamentary polls, official said.
Telangana CM to review growth food processing industry
Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao will hold a high-level review meeting on the growth and expansion of the state's food processing industry on Monday.In the meeting, an action plan will also be devised to promote food processing industry in the state. Officials from Departments of Industries, Agriculture, officials and scientists of Agriculture University, Horticulture University have been invited to attend the meeting.The Chief Secretary, Principal Secretaries of Agriculture, Finance, and Industries Departments will also attend the meeting.A press release issued from the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said Telangana government has taken up the construction of irrigation projects at a large scale, which would provide ample water for irrigation."With this, there will be an increase in the cultivation of crops and produce. The government has targeted to establish food processing units in the states to provide minimum support price to the produce," the release further stated.
Novel powder to help cut CO2 emissions
Scientists have created a novel powder that can capture carbon dioxide emissions from factories and power plants. The powder, created by researchers at the University of Waterloo in Canada, can filter and remove CO2 at facilities powered by fossil fuels before it is released into the atmosphere and is twice as efficient as conventional methods. The process to manipulate the size and concentration of pores could also be used to produce optimised carbon powders for applications including water filtration and energy storage, according to the research published in the journal Carbon. "This will be more and more important in the future. We have to find ways to deal with all the CO2 produced by burning fossil fuels," said Zhongwei Chen, a professor at Waterloo. CO2 molecules stick to the surface of carbon when they come in contact with it, a process known as adsorption. Since it is abundant, inexpensive and environmentally friendly, that makes carbon an excellent material for CO2 ...
Projects unveiled in Andamans would help develop several sectors: Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday hailed the people of Car Nicobar for their spirit and hard work in rebuilding the islands after the 2004 tsunami and said that projects unveiled in the island city would go a long way in developing several sectors.
Innovations to be at display when PM inaugurates Science Congress in Punjab next week
A number of innovations, including a solar-powered driverless bus, will be on display at the upcoming Indian Science Congress which will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi here on January 3.Renewable energy is expected to be the key focus of the five-day 106th edition of the Science Congress with the theme 'Future India: Science and Technology'.The Congress, which will bring innovators and scientists under one roof, will be held on the premises of Lovely Professional University (LPU).The University will showcase its own innovation in the form of a solar-powered driverless bus, according to officials of the university.This eco-friendly heavy vehicle will ferry passengers to the aerodrome, housing societies, industrial complexes, and educational institutions, they said.The design of this solar bus has been made in accordance with the available Indian infrastructure. The bus, which will cost Rs. 6 Lakh each, can have seating capacity between 10-30 and can run at the maximum ..
China's lunar probe changes orbit to land on dark side of moon
A Chinese space probe entered a planned orbit Sunday to prepare for the first-ever soft landing on the dark side of the moon, authorities said. This is the first time an attempt is made to explore the far side of the moon. Since the moon's revolution cycle is the same as its rotation cycle, the same side always faces Earth. The other face, most of which cannot be seen from Earth, is called the far side or "dark side" of the moon, not because it is dark, but because most of it is uncharted. The Chang'e-4 probe has entered an elliptical lunar orbit, with the perilune at about 15 km and the apolune at about 100 km, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) said. Chang'e-4 entered the lunar orbit on December 12. The control centre will choose a proper time to land the probe on the far side of the moon, according to CNSA. The Chang'e-4 probe, including a lander and a rover, was launched by a Long March-3B carrier rocket on December 8 from the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in Sichuan
NLC conducts boiler light-up test for NNTPP's first unit
State-owned NLC India Sunday said it has achieved a critical milestone towards commissioning of 1,000 MW Neyveli New Thermal Power Project (NNTPP) by successfully conducting the boiler light-up test for the first unit with secondary fuel. In a filing to the BSE, the company said that this is the first 500 MW lignite fired power plant in the country which can generate 10,00,000 units of power in one hour. The power project will replace the existing more than five decades old TPS-I (600 MW) at Neyveli, it said. "NLC India Limited has achieved a critical milestone towards commissioning its 1,000 MW (2X500 MW) of Neyveli New Thermal Power Project (NNTPP) by successfully conducting the boiler light-up test for the First unit with secondary fuel on December 28, 2018 at Neyveli," the company said. The time for boiler hydro test and light up was scheduled for 6 months, but with the vigorous efforts, Unit-I boiler hydro test was completed on December 22, 2018 and boiler light up successfully .
Albino Croc carcass retrieved from Bhitarkanika National Park
Carcass of a 12-foot-long albino estuarine crocodile was retrieved from Khola riverbed in Bhitarkaika national park in Odishas Kendrapara district, a Forest official said Sunday. The body of the adult albino species bore injury marks and it was suspected to have been caught in the fishing net, the official said. The carcass has been sent for post-mortem and the exact cause of its death could be ascertained after the autopsy report is available, he said. Noting that the animal is accorded 'protected' status under wildlife legal provisions, the official said a case under Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 has been registered. It is suspected that the croc might have fallen prey to fishing activity in water-bodies and got entangled in fishing nets before dying, sources said. Four decades ago when the Central Government and United Nations Development Programme thought of saving crocodiles, there were hardly three to four nests detected in the area while the population of ...
Tiger found dead in Umred-Karhandla Wildlife Sanctuary
A tiger was found dead in the Umred-Pauni-Karhandla Wildlife Sanctuary in Bhandara district of Maharashtra on Sunday morning, a forest official said. A tourist visiting the sanctuary informed authorities around 8 am about a tiger lying motionless in the Pauni range of the sanctuary, Pench Tiger Reserve's field director Ravikiran Govekar said. Following the information, the range forest officer (wildlife) of Pauni visited the spot and confirmed the striped cat's death, he said. The cause of the tiger's death was yet to be ascertained, Govekar said. The Umred-Pauni-Karhandla Wildlife Sanctuary is spread across Nagpur and Bhandara districts of Maharashtra. The state has nearly half-a-dozen tiger reserves and prominent among them are Pench, Melghat, Tadoba-Andhari and Sahyadri. There are nearly 165 striped cats inhabiting these reserves.
'15,000 tonnes of uranium needed to achieve supply security of fuel for nuclear plants'
A stockpile of 15,000 tonnes of uranium is required for achieving supply security of fuel for nuclear plants in the country, the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), which manages atomic energy installations, has told a parliamentary panel. The panel report, which was tabled before the Lok Sabha in the on-going Parliament session, also recommended that necessary steps should be taken to ensure new uranium mines are opened as soon as possible to reduce the dependance on the imported uranium. Currently, a major portion of domestic production of uranium comes from the Jaduguda mines of Jharkhand, which are "old" and the ore is found at "great depths." Moreover, the high extraction cost makes it "unviable" as compared to imported uranium, the panel noted. Besides the Jaduguda mines, the uranium is extracted from the Tummalapalle mines in Andhra Pradesh. Apart from Jaduguda, uranium reserves are available in Meghalaya, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. India has ..
Govt working to ensure better facilities for Andaman: Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday congratulated the people of Car Nicobar for overcoming the impact of Tsunami, which struck the Island in 2004, and said the government is working to provide better facilities to the people of the Andamans. Hailing the joint family system prevalent in the island, the PM said the people there can set an example for the other parts of the country. He also assured the people that their security is one of the top priorities of the government "The people here have been demanding a solution to the problem of sea erosion for a long time. I am glad to announce that the government has decided to erect a sea wall to deal with the problem, the foundation of which was laid today," he said during his public address at BJR Stadium here. The PM maintained that work will go in full swing to get build the wall at an estimated cost of Rs 50 crore. Talking about the initiatives taken by his government for the farmers here, he said Minimum Support Price (MSP) of ...
Annual bird census of Chilika lake to be carried out on Jan 4
Annual bird census in Chilika, the biggest brackish water lake in the country, is slated to be carried out on January 4, a senior Forest officials said. Besides wildlife personnel, several experts of different organisations in and outside of the state will be engaged in the mammoth exercise, the official said. On eve of the actual head count, a training programme of the enumerators will be held at the Wetland Training and Research Centre (WTRC) in Chandraput near Balugaon on January 3, he said. As many as 100 experts from different organisations will take part in the census work, said Divisional Forest Officer (DFO), Chilika Wildlife Division, Bikash Ranjan Das. "We will form 20 groups for enumeration of the birds in the entire lake, spread over about 1100-sq km," he said. Experts from organisations like Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), Wild Odisha, National Board of Wildlife, Regional Museum and Natural History, Chilika Development Authority (CDA) and different ...
Reliance, BP get key ship on KG-D6 for expediting gas output
?Reliance Industries and its partner BP plc of the UK have brought a deepsea pipeline laying ship to their Bay of Bengal block KG-D6 to help bring newer gas finds to production by 2020-21, the British firm said. Reliance-BP are targeting to bring to production the R-Series and satellite fields in KG-D6 block by 2020, just around the time KG-D6 block's currently producing Dhirubhai-1 and 3 (D1 and D3) fields cease to produce. These fields along with the ultra deep MJ find are to produce 30-35 million standard cubic metres per day of peak natural gas. McDermott's DLV2000 vessel will install deepsea pipelines to connect the R-Series and satellite cluster discoveries to production system. "2019 will see work pick up speed, three projects on track to bring gas on shore," BP India tweeted and attached a blog on DLV2000. DLV2000 is a class 3 dynamic positioning vessel combining a 2,200-tonne revolving crane with a deepwater underdeck S-lay pipeline system configured to install pipelines with
Govt rice procurement reaches 238.8 lakh tons so far
The government has procured 238.8 lakh tonnes of rice in the current 2018-19 marketing season so far, with the buying in Punjab and Haryana almost over, according to official data. Rice procurement target for the current season (October-September) has been fixed at 375 lakh tonnes. In the previous year, total rice procurement stood at 381.8 lakh tonnes. Procurement is undertaken by state-run Food Corporation of India (FCI) and state agencies for the central pool to meet the requirement of food security law. Rice is purchased at the minimum support price (MSP). According to FCI data, rice procurement has reached 113.3 lakh tonnes in Punjab, 39.09 lakh tonnes in Haryana and 22.42 lakh tonnes in Chhattisgarh so far. Rice procurement has touched 22.46 lakh tonnes in Telangana, 13.28 lakh tonnes in Uttar Pradesh and 10.7 lakh tonnes in Andhra Pradesh so far, the data showed. A Food Ministry official said the procurement operation in Punjab and Haryana is almost complete. The buying in ...
In 2019 UN will continue to bring people together to create space for solutions: Guterres
In the new year, the United Nations will continue to bring people together to build bridges and create space for solutions, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said Saturday, setting the world body's agenda for 2019. Guterres in his new year message listed out some of the top challenges being faced by the world today including climate change, extremism and increasing intolerance. Last New Year, I issued a red alert, and the dangers I mentioned still persist. These are anxious times for many, and our world is undergoing a stress test. Climate change is running faster than we are, he said. Geo-political divisions are deepening, making conflicts more difficult to resolve, he said, adding record numbers of people are moving in search of safety and protection. Inequality is growing. And people are questioning a world in which a handful of people hold the same wealth as half of humanity, Guterres said. Noting that intolerance is on the rise, the UN secretary General said trust is on the ..
Odisha: Similipal tiger reserve loses 75 tigers in 12 years
Odisha's Mayurbhanj district holds the major population of the tiger within the state. Sustainable protection measures and management initiatives have resurrected the dwindling population of tigers.According to the Odisha government, last census of tigers conducted by the use of both pugmark and camera trap techniques in the year 2016 showed presence of 28 tigers in Mayurbhanj's Similipal tiger reserve, which is famous for Black tigers and is the only place in the world that houses the source population of the melanistic tigers.The Wildlife Society of Odisha (WSO) claimed that Similipal had 101 tigers in 2006 but now the population has gone down to 28 due to a spike in poaching cases."The reserve has lost 75 tigers. This is not a good sign because, in the past decade, crores of public money has been spent alone in Similipal for protection of tiger conservation," Biswajit Mohanty, Secretary of WSO told ANI."Every year central government is spending Rs. 5-6 crore for Similipal Tiger ...
After four years of sunny outlook, solar sector struggles to keep growth intact (2018 In Retrospect)
India's solar sector, one of the top three markets globally, witnessed a slowdown in growth of installations during the current year as it struggled, on the back of policy and execution challenges, to sustain the spectacular rise it had experienced in the last four years, experts said.
'Prohibited materials in idols behind spike in heavy metal concentration in Yamuna after immersion'
Rampant use of prohibited synthetic materials and toxic paints in idols led to manyfold increase of heavy metal concentration in the Yamuna following idol immersion, a monitoring committee overseeing the cleaning of the river said. After being apprised by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) that idol immersion following Ganesh Chaturthi and Durga Pooja, and religious activities during Chhat Pooja cause extensive damage to the river, the panel said it "unacceptable and dangerous". The monitoring committee has said the Yamuna is "fighting to stay alive" and it would not be possible to rejuvenate the river unless minimum environmental flow is provided as it is "virtually reduced to a trickle and remains dry in some stretches for almost nine months of the year". The panel has proposed legal action and imposition of heavy fine against those violating the norms that led to pollution in the river. The monitoring committee, formed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT), noted that ...