Page 277 - Environment
Do not fear pulling up officers when it comes to work: Gadkari
Water Resources Minister Nitin Gadkari Thursday said he does not fear pulling up officials when it comes on work even as he heaped praise on officers working on the Namami Gange project. "I do not fear pulling up (officials) when it comes to work. And I don't listen to anyone. But I review the work on Ganga...our secretary U P Singh, our (National Mission for Clean Ganga) Director (General Rajiv Ranjan) Mishra and their team have worked very hard for the last six months," he said at an event here. His remarks come days after he emphasised the virtues of accountability of leaders at a lecture here. Gadkari said the mandate of cleaning the Ganga's tributaries was taken up with the launch of the Namami Gange programme. He said that with these projects, the release of sewage water into the Yamuna river, the most important tributary of the Ganga, would be stopped. On the Lakhwar multi-purpose project between six states, the minister said that once the project was complete the uninterrupted
Gadkari emphasizes cooperation between governments to free Delhi of pollution
All stakeholders and the governments need to work together to free Delhi from water and air pollution, Union Minister for Water Resources Nitin Gadkari said on Thursday as he laid the foundation stone for nine projects for the Yamuna rejuvenation under the Namami Gange Programme here.
Centre to call meeting of TN, Karnataka CMs on Cauvery project
A meeting of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu Chief Ministers will be convened by Union Water Resources Ministry to discuss the issue of controversial Cauvery river project at Mekedatu, Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy said on Thursday.
India consistently conveys its concerns to China on activity over Bramhaputra: Govt
India has consistently conveyed its concerns over the Bramhaputra river to China and urged the country to ensure that interests of downstream states are not harmed by any activities in the upstream areas, the government informed the Lok Sabha Thursday. Minister of State for Water Resources and River Development Arjun Ram Meghwal was replying to a question on whether the water of Brahmaputra was being diverted towards Xinjiang province by construction of a 1,000 km tunnel by China. "As per the information provided by MEA, government has seen media reports in this regard. The government has also noted that the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a public statement rejected such media reports as untrue," he said in a written response. "As a lower riparian State with considerable established user rights to the waters of the trans-border rivers, the government has consistently conveyed its views and concerns to the Chinese authorities, including at the highest levels, and has urged them
No shortage of urea in Punjab: Govt
There is no shortage of urea in Punjab as 85 per cent urea has already been made available to farmers during the current Rabi season, a state government spokesman said here on Thursday. "Punjab requires 12.50 lakh metric tonnes of urea in current Rabi season till 31st of January, 2019 against which 10.60 LMT of urea has already reached the state. "Another 40,000 metric tonnes of urea shall arrive in the state in the next four days. Balance quantity of urea has already been tied up to arrive in the days to come, he said. Sufficient quantity of urea has already been made available in cooperative societies of the state, he said. During the current rabi season, wheat has been sown in about 35 lakh hectares in Punjab and the application of urea in wheat continues up to January 31. State government is closely monitoring the supplies and sales of urea to the farmers in the state and there is no question of any shortage, the spokesman said. Notably, reports in a section of media had said that
Delhi's air quality turns severe again, no additional measures for now
Delhi's air quality turned severe again on Thursday due to unfavourable meteorological conditions like low wind speed that prevented dispersion of pollutants, authorities said. The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data showed the overall air quality index (AQI) in the 'severe' level at 410, while the Centre-run System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting (SAFAR) recorded an AQI of 372, which falls in the 'very poor' category. According to CPCB data, 22 areas recorded severe pollution, while 13 areas witnessed 'very poor' air quality. In the NCR, Ghaziabad and Faridabad recorded 'severe' air quality, while Gurgaon and Noida recorded 'very poor' quality air. The overall PM2.5 level (fine particulate matter in the air with a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometre) was recorded at 310 and the PM10 level at 475 in Delhi, the CPCB said. The national capital recorded its second highest pollution level of the year on Sunday with an AQI of 450. The air quality remained 'severe' on Monday
PM to ride on solar-powered bus prototype at science congress
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will ride on a prototype of a driverless solar-powered bus during his visit to a university here to inaugurate the 106th Indian Science Congress next week, the varsity said Thursday. The science congress will attract over 20,000 delegates, including 3000 acclaimed scientists and researchers. Students of different departments of the university have designed and built the driverless solar-powered bus. The first prototype will be used to ferry Modi to the venue of the Indian Science Congress at the campus on January 3, a statement from Lovely Professional University said. Once launched commercially, the bus will be used at airports, housing societies, industrial complexes and educational institutions, the statement said. The design of the bus has been made keeping in mind Indian conditions and the vehicle will cost Rs 6 lakh. Since the engine is both battery-and-solar powered, its running cost is almost negligible. The bus has a maximum speed of 30 kmph and ..
44,000 tube well connections to be issued to farmers in six months: Hry govt
The Haryana government Thursday said about 44,000 tube well connections pending since January 1, 2014, will be issued to farmers of the state in the next six months. Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said the government will issue demand notices for the pending tube well connections by March 31, 2019. The move is seen as an attempt by the BJP government to woo farmers ahead of the next year's Assembly and Lok Sabha polls. Assembly polls in Haryana are due to be held in October 2019. Polls to Lok Sabha are scheduled in May next year. About the reforms in the Power Department during the last four years, Khattar told reporters that a target has also been set to issue 50,000 new solar energy connections in the state. Tenders have been floated for 15,000 connections already, he added. The use of solar energy in tube wells reduces power consumption by 30 per cent, the chief minister said. He said 468 agricultural tube wells falling under the 'Vayama Feeder' of Karnal block and the 'Saspur .
AP CM lays foundation for Kadapa steel plant
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu Thursday laid the foundation stone for the establishment of a steel plant in Kadapa district. The plant had been a contentious issue between the State and the Central governments with the former accusing the latter of not honouring the commitment made in the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014. The Rs 18,000 crore project was taken up only to prove a point to the Centre that the State government had the capacity to set up the steel plant despite the formers non-cooperation, the chief minister said on the occasion. The Centre has been maintaining that modalities of investment for the steel plant would be finalized "keeping the best interests of the people of the state in mind" once state-run consultancy firm MECON prepared the feasibility report. The state government has to acquire over 1500 acres for the steel plant in Mylavaram mandal of Kadapa district while another 1500 acres of government land is available. State .
Bhangar power grid project to be commissioned by end of
The power grid project in South 24 Parganas districts Bhangar is likely be commissioned by the end of January next year, a senior official of the Power Grid Corporation of India said on Thursday. Enquired by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee about the progress of the work at the proposed power grid in Bhangar, the official of the Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd informed that work was about to be completed and the plant would be commissioned by next month-end. "Why is the work delayed at the power grid? If you need employ more workmen to complete it. We have solved the problem," Banerjee told state Power secretary Sunil Gupta at the meeting. "The work is going on and we are hopeful that we will be able to commission it by January-end," the official of the PGCIL informed the chief minister. The work at the Bhangar power grid project started last August 14, but it was halted in early 2017 after protests by villagers in the area. Five people were killed and ...
Mini sewage treatment plants to be built across Delhi: CM
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal Thursday inspected a beautified water body in southwest Delhi's Rajokri area and said mini sewage treatment plants (STPs) will be built across the national capital. Talking to reporters after the inspection, the chief minister said a walking track has been built around the beautified water body in an eco-friendly manner and the government will soon make available swings for the children and an open gym in the vicinity. He said there are many slum colonies around the water body and all the dirt, mud, sewer of these settlements used to accumulate there, causing breeding of flies and mosquitoes in the entire area. "The water body is now rejuvenated and beautified. A mini waste STP has been built which treats the generated waste water. Its daily-treating- capacity is 6 lakh litres," he said. Kejriwal, who is also the chairman of the Delhi Jal Board (DJB), said the government's focus is on creating mini STPs across the city. "In view of the waste water ...
Israel Chemicals says Dead Sea units have fixed assets of $6 billion
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Potash producer Israel Chemicals (ICL) said on Thursday its Dead Sea units have fixed assets worth $6 billion, according to an independent valuation.
62-yr-old woman mauled to death by tiger in Rajasthan
An elderly woman was mauled to death by a tiger in Sawai Madhopur's forest area on Thursday, police said. The incident occurred in the afternoon when Naroti Bai (62) along with another woman went inside the Ranthambore National Park to fetch some water, they said. She was dragged for nearly 500 metres into the forest, police said. Forest official Ajit Saxena said the two women had entered the area in an unauthorised manner and one of them was caught by the tiger. The body was recovered and handed over to family members after postmortem.
Sloth bear rescued in Tumkur
A sloth bear trapped in a 40-foot-deep well was rescued on Thursday in a two-hour-long operation in Tumkur in Karnataka, conservation non-profit Wildlife SOS said here. On Wednesday morning, officials from Karnataka Forest Department made an emergency call to the Wildlife SOS team in Bannerghatta, Bengaluru, about a sloth bear that had fallen into a well in Tumkur, according to a statement by Wildlife SOS. The well is almost 700 metre from a neighbouring forest, which is home to a plethora of wildlife species. On hearing the distressed cries of the animal, the land owner instantly reported the incident to the forest department who in turn contacted Wildlife SOS. A four-member rescue team led by Nithin Gowda of Wildlife SOS along with forest department officials rushed to the spot with necessary equipment. After preliminary assessment, the sloth bear was tranquillised to proceed with the rescue operation. A large safety net was lowered down the well and the animal was safely ...
China's BeiDou satellite navigation system starts global service
China's BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS), touted as a rival to the widely-used American GPS, has started providing global services. The construction of the BDS-3 primary system had been completed, BDS spokesperson Ran Chengqi said Thursday. "This signifies that BDS has officially entered the global era as the BDS expands from a regional system to a global navigation system. From now on, no matter where you go, BDS will always be with you," Ran said at a media conference here said. The positioning accuracy of the system has reached 10 metres globally and five metres in the Asia-Pacific region. Its velocity accuracy is 0.2 metres per second, while its timing accuracy stands at 20 nanoseconds, he said. Pakistan has become the first country to use the BeiDou system ending its reliance on the Global Positioning System (GPS). Named after the Chinese term for the 'Big Dipper', the BeiDou system started serving China in 2000 and the Asia-Pacific region in 2012. It will be the fourth ..
Delhi's air quality turns severe again
Delhi's air quality turned severe again on Thursday due to unfavourable meteorological conditions like low wind speed that prevented dispersion of pollutants, authorities said. The Central Pollution Control Board data showed the overall air quality index (AQI) at the severe level of 403, while the Centre-run System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting (SAFAR) showed an AQI of 372, which falls in the 'very poor' category. According to CPCB data, 22 areas recorded severe pollution, while 13 areas witnessed 'very poor' air quality. In NCR, Ghaziabad and Faridabad recorded severe air quality while Gurgaon and Noida recorded 'very poor' air quality. The overall PM2.5 level - fine particulate matter in the air with a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometer - was recorded at 322 and the PM10 level at 485 in Delhi, CPCB said. The national capital recorded its second highest pollution level of the year Sunday with an AQI of 450. The air quality remained 'severe' on Monday and Tuesday. There was
Israel Chemicals signs five-year supply deal with India Potash
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel Chemicals (ICL) said on Thursday it had signed a five-year supply agreement with Indian Potash Ltd (IPL), India's largest importer of potash.
Asia Rice: India rates scale four-month peak on rising procurement costs
BENGALURU (Reuters) - Rice export prices in India rose for a second straight week to the highest in four months on higher procurement costs for paddy, while Thai rates eased with no fresh demand in sight.
Elephant electrocuted to death in Jharkhand
An elephant died after being electrocuted in Jharkhand's West Singhbhum district early on Thursday, officials said.
Delhi launches electric bus between Anand Vihar and Mehrauli
In a move to combat rising pollution levels in the national capital, the Delhi government on Thursday flagged off an electric bus between Anand Vihar ISBT to Mehrauli.