Page 327 - Environment
G-20 Summit endorses multilateral trade system, WTO reforms
The G-20 Summit concluded here on Saturday, with members endorsing the multilateral trading system, and calling for reforms to the World Trade Organization (WTO), the global trade oversight body.
Outcome of UN climate summit should be balanced, inclusive: Harsh Vardhan
The outcome of the upcoming UN climate summit in Poland should be "balanced and inclusive", Union Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan Saturday said. The minister also asserted that India expects the conference to frame guidelines, which are pragmatic and give due consideration to the challenges and priorities of developing nations. The 24th meeting of Conference of Parties (COP-24) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will be held at Katowice, Poland from December 2-14. COP-24 is very significant as it is expected to finalise guidelines for the implementation of the Paris Agreement. "India expects that COP-24 should give due consideration to challenges of developing countries inter alia different starting points as compared to developed countries, their vulnerabilities, development priorities like eradication of poverty, food security, energy access, providing health infrastructure etc," the minister said. "COP-24 should give equal focus to all agenda ..
PM Modi discusses bilateral issues with Jamaican, Spanish, Netherlands counterparts
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday met his Netherlands counterpart Mark Rutt, Spanish premier Pedro Sanchez and Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Michael Holness on the sidelines of the G-20 summit here and discussed several issues of bilateral interest like climate change, river rejuvenation and renewable energy. The G-20 is a grouping of the world's 20 major economies. Calling Rutt as his "friend", Modi said they discussed issues related to economic and cultural ties between India and the Netherlands. He also invited Netherlands to participate in river rejuvenation and inland waterways infrastructure projects in India. "Happy to meet my friend, @MinPres Mark Rutte. Our talks today focussed on boosting economic and cultural ties between India and the Netherlands," Modi tweeted. Following the meeting between the two leaders, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Ravish Kumar tweeted, "Nurturing warm relations...PM invited Netherlands to participate in river rejuvenation & ...
All G20 leaders agreed on need to reform WTO - Russian finance minister
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - All the leaders of the Group of 20 industrialized nations, including U.S. President Donald Trump, have agreed on the need to reform the World Trade Organization (WTO), Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said on Saturday.
MBS mingles with G20 leaders as Trump fuels summit tensions
Fissures on trade, climate change and Ukraine divided world leaders Friday as US President Donald Trump came under sustained fire and Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler came in from the cold at G20 talks. The leaders of countries representing four-fifths of the global economy opened a two-day meeting in Argentina facing the deepest fractures since the first G20 summit convened 10 years ago in the throes of financial crisis. Trump was attacked for destroying the group's past unity on trade and climate change. But he won a breakthrough with the signing of a new trade pact for North America and, having ignited a trade war with China, touted "good signs" ahead of a dinner Saturday with President Xi Jinping. In remarks to the summit relayed by the Xinhua news agency, Xi reaffirmed his pledges of economic reform "with increased efforts in intellectual property rights protection and more imports." If that was designed to soothe Trump, Xi more generally urged his fellow G20 leaders "to stick to ...
Delhi's air quality poor, CPCB issues notices to SDMC, EDMC for inaction
While Delhi's air quality recorded slight improvement due to favourable meteorological conditions on Saturday, pollution watchdog CPCB has issued showcause notices to SDMC and EDMC for failing to control air polluting activities under their jurisdiction. The overall air quality index (AQI) of Delhi was 299, which falls in the poor category, according to CPCB data. Increased wind speed helped in dispersion of pollutants, authorities said. The Central Pollution Control Board said the air pollution level was "very poor" in 16 areas and it was "poor" in 15 areas. In two separate notices issued on November 29, CPCB asked for explanation why action should not be initiated for prosecution of the commissioners of South Delhi Municipal Corporation and East Delhi Municipal Corporation for failing to control air polluting activities under their jurisdiction. CPCB chairman S P Singh Parihar sought a response to the same within 48 hours. In its notice to SDMC, the CPCB said that out of 866 ...
Bengal accuses Centre of delaying green clearances for coal mining
West Bengal government on Saturday accused the Centre of delaying environmental and forest clearances in order to commence coal mining activities in allotted mines and also sought supports from "clean energy fund" to stimulate green energy generation in the state.
Planet Earth working on 3 Mars landers to follow InSight
As Mars' newest resident settles in, Planet Earth is working on three more landers and at least two orbiters to join the scientific Martian brigade. NASA's InSight spacecraft touched down on Mars on Monday. InSight the eighth successful Martian lander should be wrapping up two years of digging and quake monitoring by the time rovers arrive from the U.S., Europe and China. NASA's Mars 2020 will hunt for rocks that might hold evidence of ancient microbial life and stash them in a safe place for return to Earth. The European-Russian ExoMars also will sniff out possible past life. The Chinese Mars 2020 will feature both an orbiter and lander. The United Arab Emirates, meanwhile, aims to send its first spacecraft, an orbiter, to Mars in 2020.
Rs 50,000 fine each on 2 Delhi contractors for dust pollution
The Delhi government on Saturday imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 each on the contractors at two under-construction sites for violation of environmental rules, as the city struggled with 'very poor' quality air.
101 swine flu deaths in Maha till Sep this year: Minister
The Maharashtra government has told the Legislative Assembly that 101 persons died of swine flu in the state till September this year. As many as 1,167 persons were detected with swine flu till September, Health Minister Deepak Sawant said in a written reply, adding that instances of dengue, cholera and gastroenteritis were also on the rise. The minister informed the House that an Epidemic Management System was set up in April 2015. In a written reply to another question, Sawant said infant mortality rate due to malnutrition in the state had come down by 11 points from 24 in 2008 to 13 in 2016.
Gadkari unveils 3 national highway projects in Karnataka
Union Minister for Road Transport Nitin Gadkari on Saturday laid the foundation stone for three National Highway (NH) projects in Karnataka's Hassan district, officials said.
DES a viable solution to India's ever-growing energy demand
With the development of modern District Energy System (DES), which offers heating and cooling services through a blend of technologies, India can combat the ever-growing primary energy demand in cities.According to experts, DES supplies "heating and cooling services by using technologies and approaches such as combined heat and power (CHP), thermal storage, heat pumps, and decentralised energy." District energy basically creates synergies between the production and supply of heat, cooling, domestic hot water and electricity and can be integrated with municipal systems such as power, sanitation, sewage treatment, transport and waste.Modern district energy can reduce primary energy consumption for heating and cooling of urban buildings by an impressive 50 per cent. This powerful technology cuts emissions to achieve global climate goals reduces pollution resulting to saving lives and health expenditure, especially considering the present scenario where the air quality is hitting a new ...
NASA InSight landed 4 degrees tilted on Mars
Though NASA's InSight landed safely on the surface of Mars, but the spacecraft sits about 4 degrees tilted, the US space agency said.
Guj: Farmers in "dark zone" can get power connection without
The Gujarat Government said Saturday that farmers in 57 'Dark Zone' talukas, where groundwater level is critically low, will not need to adopt micro-irrigation for obtaining electricity connections. The decision was taken in view of insufficient rainfall this monsoon which has created a drought-like situation in many areas, said an official press release. "It will not be mandatory for farmers in 57 talukas under the Dark Zone to adopt drip or sprinkler method of irrigation for getting electricity connections for farms," it said. In 2003, the government decided that no electricity connection will be given to farmers in 57 talukas due to critically low groundwater levels in these areas. In 2012, the government said it will provide connections, provided the farmers used micro-irrigation systems to limit the water consumption. These talukas fall in the districts of Ahmedabad, Banaskantha, Bhavnagar, Kutch, Kheda, Mehsana, Rajkot and Sabarkantha. The government earlier this ..
After criticism, Punjab re-nominates environmentalist Seechewal to PPCB
Having drawn flak from various quarters for its decision to remove noted environmentalist Balbir Singh Seechewal as member of the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB), the state government on Saturday ordered his re-nomination.
Leopard found dead in well in Madhya Pradesh's Soeni
The body of a leopard was Saturday found in a well in Madhya Pradesh's Seoni district, a a Forest department official said. It seems the leopard fell into the 30-feet deep well in Damjhir village two days ago while chasing some animal and then drowned, said D K Vasnik, Seoni Forest Development Corporation divisional manager. The leopard was about 5-6 years old, he said. Its main body parts, skin, teeth, nails, hair and paws were found intact and, therefore, hunting was ruled out as a cause of death, Vasnik informed. While the animal's viscera was sent for forensic testing, its body was consigned to flames as per laid down rules, Vasnik added.
Punjab to set up water regulation and development authority
The Punjab government will set up a water regulation and development authority (WRDA) for conservation and management of state's water resources. Chief Minister Amarinder Singh has directed the water resources department to immediately finalise the modalities to set up WRDA, an official release said here Saturday. The proposed authority will be empowered to issue tariff orders for charges to be levied by all entities supplying water for any purpose except agriculture, the release said. Singh, who reviewed the ground water situation in the state with the chief secretary and officials of the water resources department on Saturday, directed them that the proposal to set up WRDA should be presented before the cabinet, scheduled to meet Monday, for approval, it said. The authority will have the mandate to fix tariffs after hearing the entities concerned and the public. It will also be empowered to issue directions and guidelines for conservation and management of all the water ...
CM has ordered inquiry into complaints of excess power bills:
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has directed Energy Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule to look into complaints of excessive billing by Adani Electricity in Mumbai, a BJP legislator said. The company said that higher bills were the result of seasonal change in electricity consumption patterns. Local MLA Ashish Shelar said he met Fadnavis Saturday to convey people's concerns over sudden and steep increase in power bills in suburban Mumbai, where Adani Electricity is the electricity distributor. "The chief minister immediately ordered the energy minister to conduct an inquiry," Shelar said. Shelar demanded that an audit of past three months' billing process be carried out, and the company be asked to provide evidence that billing was based on actual meter reading and not on average consumption. If there is excess billing, the money should be immediately refunded with interest, Shelar said. The Legal Metrology Department should carry out random audit of ...
Farmers block highway in Malegaon over declining onion prices
Farmers Saturday held a protest on the Mumbai-Agra National Highway against declining onion prices, leading to a traffic jam, police said. Some of the farmers also tonsured their heads as part of the protest, an official said. Police teams rushed to the site of the protest at Tehare Phata here and arrested several farmers and cleared the highway for traffic, the official added. Agitating farmers said onion prices were on the decline over the past fortnight, leading to heavy losses to cultivators, and the state government was unable to arrest the slide. The protesting farmers later submitted a memorandum of their demands, including procurement of onion by the state government at remunerative prices, to Sub Divisional Officer Ajay More, said officials.
Nepal wants to develop friendly ties with neighbours on basis of equality, justice: Oli
Nepal wants to develop friendly ties with neighbouring countries on the basis of "equality and justice", Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli said Saturday while inaugurating a summit attended by countries in the Asia-Pacific region, including India. The Asia-Pacific Summit 2018 organised by the South Korea-based Universal Peace Federation and supported by the Government of Nepal will be attended by the leaders from the Asia-Pacific region, including India, Cambodia, Myanmar, Malaysia, Pakistan and Philippines. Climate change has emerged as a major threat to humanity and we need to forge cooperation and collaboration to fight it back, Oli said, while inaugurating the four-day summit on the theme "Addressing Critical Challenges of Our Time: Independence, Mutual Prosperity and Universal Values." "Nepal wants to develop friendly relations with neighbouring countries on the basis of equality and justice," said Oli and sought support and cooperation from friendly countries for establishing peace ..