Page 335 - Environment
Haryana govt to incentivise consumers for installing solar home system
With a view to promote renewable energy in Haryana, consumers in the state would now be provided with a 'solar home system' under the 'Manohar Jyoti Yojana'. "...the state government would provide subsidy of Rs 15,000 to consumers for installing this system," an official release said here on Wednesday. Thesolar home system would be equipped with lithium battery which does not require maintenance and has long life. "This system would be able to run a ceiling fan and three LED lights. Apart from this, this system would have a mobile charging port," it said. "The system is being made available on subsidy to consumers of the state so that they may not face any inconvenience related to power and lights in their houses. It is the priority of the state government thatuninterruptedpower supply is ensured in each and every household of the state," the release added. The 'Manohar Jyoti Yojana' was launched in Haryana by the government last year, under which a target had been kept to set up one .
Hybrid warfare doing more damage to Pakistan than to India: Army chief
Terming hybrid warfare -- using non-state actors against an adversary nation -- as "not the best option", Army chief General Bipin Rawat on Wednesday said this tactic was causing more damage to Pakistan than to India.
ST Commission to investigate American tourist killing
National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) would visit the Andaman & Nicobar Islands from December 4-6 to investigate the killing of American tourist John Allen Chau allegedly by an isolated Sentinelese tribe in the Andamans last week, Tribal Affairs Ministry said on Wednesday.
Agri Ministry withdraws report from Parliamentary panel on impact of note ban on farmers
The Agriculture Ministry has withdrawn from the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance its report that suggested the government's shock decision to demonetise old Rs 500/1,000 notes in November 2016 affected farmers' community, according to some committee members. A panel chaired by senior Congress leader M Veerappa Moily had met Tuesday where RBI governor Urjit Patel had made a presentation on the state of the economy. Some members on the panel belonging to opposition parties said that the ministry had on November 20 presented a report before the panel saying farmers had to face difficulties in purchase of seeds and fertilisers due to demonetisation. But the ministry has apparently withdrawn its November 20 report and has now presented a new one before the panel, the opposition members said. The new report has stated that there was no impact of demonetisation on farmers, they added. On November 23, Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh had denied claims that demonetisation ...
NGT panel says Tamil Nadu government overreached by closing Vedanta smelter
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - An Indian court-appointed panel said on Wednesday that there were insufficient grounds to permanently close Vedanta Ltd's copper smelter and a Tamil Nadu government decision to shut it amounted to administrative overreach.
Trump says studying auto tariffs after GM restructuring
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday said auto tariffs are "being studied now" after General Motors Co this week announced U.S. layoffs and plant closures, saying it would help boost U.S. production.
Green Pool raises 2018/19 global sugar surplus forecast
LONDON (Reuters) - Analyst Green Pool said on Wednesday it had raised its forecast for an anticipated global sugar surplus in the 2018/19 season to 3.60 million tonnes, raw value, from a previous projection of 3.22 million.
Insight: Two U.S. pipelines rack up violations, threaten industry growth
MEDIA, PENNSYLVANIA (Reuters) - Energy Transfer LP and its Sunoco pipeline subsidiary have racked up more than 800 state and federal permit violations while racing to build two of the nation's largest natural gas pipelines, according to a Reuters analysis of government data and regulatory records.
India's heaviest communication satellite to orbit in space on Dec 5
India's heaviest communication satellite with high throughput GSAT-11 will be put into orbit by Ariane-5 rocket of Arianespace from French Guiana on December 5, 2018, the Indian space agency said.
CO2 emissions on the rise for first time in three years, UN agency warns
Global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions rose again during 2017 after a three-year hiatus, highlighting the imperative for countries to deliver on the historic Paris Agreement to keep global warming to below 2 degree Celsius above pre-industrial levels, a new report by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) said. The 'Emissions Gap Report' comes just days before the key UN climate change conference known as COP 24 in Katowice in Poland, which starts on Sunday and will last for two weeks, with UNEP urging nations to triple their efforts to curb harmful emissions. The key objective of the meeting will be to adopt an implementation plan for the 2015 Paris Agreement. The UNEP report comes hot on the heels of the watershed Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report on global warming, released in October, which cautioned that emissions had to stop rising now, in order to keep temperature increases below 1.5 degrees Celsius, and reduce the risks for the well-being of the planet and ...
Bengal to have pollution monitoring stations at 78 places
West Bengal Environment Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Wednesday said the government will put in place pollution monitoring stations at 78 places across the state. Adhikari said in the assembly that the state will be divided into four zones in terms of pollution monitoring -- Haldia, Siliguri, Asansol and Kolkata. "We are taking stern action to control pollution in the city... There will be pollution monitoring stations at 78 places. In 105 places, there will be a system to monitor pollution in rivers," he said. The minister admitted that the amount of pollution in Kolkata and New Delhi on Diwali were at par. Adhikari, who is also the state transport minister, said a new rule would be introduced in districts, too, to stop 15-year-old buses from plying on roads. In Kolkata, 15-year-old commercial vehicles are banned but the rule was not applicable for buses and trucks registered in districts. The state government will procure 80 electric buses over a period of time, ...
Thick haze envelopes Delhi, air quality 'very poor'
Delhi's air quality remained in the 'very poor' category for the third consecutive day Wednesday due to "unfavourable meteorological conditions" that slowed down dispersion of pollutants even as thick haze engulfed the city, authorities said. The overall air quality index (AQI) of Delhi was recorded at 323, according to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data. An AQI between 0 and 50 is considered 'good', 51 and 100 'satisfactory', 101 and 200 'moderate', 201 and 300 'poor', 301 and 400 'very poor', and 401 and 500 'severe'. The CPCB said 25 areas of Delhi recorded 'very poor' air quality while 11 areas recorded 'poor' air quality. The level of PM2.5 -- particles in the air with a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometres -- was recorded at 179 and the PM10 level was recorded at 338, it said. In NCR, Ghaziabad, Faridabad and Noida recorded 'very poor' air quality while Gurgaon fell into the 'poor' category, the CPCB data showed. According to the Indian Institute of Tropical ...
UN report says fragile climate puts food security at risk
Feeding a hungry planet is growing increasingly difficult as climate change and depletion of land and other resources undermine food systems, the UN Food and Agricultural Organisation said Wednesday as it renewed appeals for better policies and technologies to reach "zero hunger." Population growth requires supplies of more nutritious food at affordable prices, but increasing farm output is hard given the "fragility of the natural resource base" since humans have outstripped Earth's carrying capacity in terms of land, water and climate change, the report said. About 820 million people are malnourished. The FAO and International Food Policy Research Institute released the report at the outset of a global conference aimed at speeding up efforts to achieve zero hunger around the world. "The call for action is very clear. It is possible in our lifetime and it is also realistic to end hunger and malnutrition," Inonge Wina, vice president of Zambia, told the gathering. Food security remains
CPCB lists nearly 6 lakh old diesel, petrol vehicles that will not be allowed to ply in Haryana
The Central Pollution Control Board has come out with a list of nearly six lakh diesel and petrol vehicles that are over 10-years-old and will not be allowed to ply in Haryana. The lists gives details of the registration mark series, name of the authority and registration numbers of these vehicles plying in Haryana, including NCR cities of Gurgaon, Sonipat and Bahadurgarh. As many as 2,87,613 petrol vehicles that were older than 15 years have been listed while 3,07,453 diesel vehicles more than 10-years-old have also been named, the CPCB said on its website. In October, the Transport department issued a notice warning that petrol vehicles that are 15-year-old and 10-year-old diesel vehicles plying on the city roads in violation of the Supreme Court and the National Green Tribunal (NGT) orders will be impounded. In its 2015 order, the NGT had banned the plying of petrol vehicles older than 15 years and diesel vehicles older than 10 years in the national capital region (NCR). It also ...
RAP may be reimposed in North Sentinel islands; 44 violations by foreigners in Andamans
The Restricted Area Permit (RAP), which forbids people from visiting prohibited locations without permission, may be reimposed in the North Sentinel island where an American was killed by members of a highly protected and reclusive tribe, officials said Wednesday. The central government has also found that 44 incidents of violation of rules and regulations, other than RAP, by foreigners have taken place in the Andaman and Nicobar islands in the recent past, even as a delegation of the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) will visit the union territory on December 4 to assess the situation arising after the killing of John Allen Chau by the Sentinelese tribes a couple of weeks ago. The Home Ministry has received a report of the Andaman and Niocobar islands administration on the incident, a home ministry official said. A worst-case scenario would be reimposition of the RAP in the North Sentinel island along with a few other islets, the official said. The North Sentinel island
EU sets goal to be 'climate neutral' by 2050
The European Union on Wednesday urged government, businesses, citizens and regions to join it in an ambitious plan to cut emissions and make the bloc carbon neutral by 2050. "True, there are many challenges on the road," warned EU climate commissioner Miguel Arias Canete said. "But status quo is not an option." According to Canete, if Europe retains its current targets it will only reduce net carbon emissions by 60 per cent by mid-century, not enough to meet the bloc's pledges under the 2015 Paris climate accord. Delegations from more than 200 countries are due in Poland next week for the latest COP24 climate summit, aimed at renewing and building on the Paris deal and limiting global warming. The EU, whose 28 members together form one of the world's biggest and hence most polluting economies, is keen to play its part and become the first major world player to be "climate neutral". But the "strategic long-term vision" unveiled on Wednesday relies on member states to take action. "We ..
Closure of Sterlite plant at Tuticorin not sustainable, against natural justice: Committee to NGT
A committee constituted by the National Green Tribunal to decide mining company Vedanta's plea challenging closure of its Sterlite copper plant at Tuticorin Wednesday told the green panel that the shutdown is not sustainable as it is "against the principles of natural justice". The committee, headed by former Meghalaya High Court Chief Justice Tarun Agrawal, said no notice or opportunity of hearing was given to Vedanta before the closure. "The impugned orders cannot be sustained as it is against the principles of natural justice. No notice or opportunity of hearing was given to the appellant. The grounds mentioned in the impugned orders are not that grievous to justify permanent closure of the factory. Other issues raised also does not justify the closure of the factory even if the appellant was found to be violating the conditions/norms/ directions," the committee told a bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel. Taking note of the report, the NGT directed that the ...
Maha mulls raising compensation to kin of tiger attack victims
The Maharashtra government Wednesday announced in the Legislative Assembly that it was contemplating to increase to Rs 15 lakh the financial aid to the kin of those killed by tigers. Forest Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar made the announcement while replying to a debate on the issue of killing of tigress Avni in the Lower House raised through a calling attention notice. Presently the financial compensation is Rs 10 lakh, he said. "Similarly, the compensation for killing of cattle by a tiger is being proposed to be raised from Rs 40,000 to Rs 60,000," he added. Avni, who was believed to have turned man-eater and killed 13 people in the last two years in Yavatmal district's Pandharkawda area, was shot dead in Borati forest there earlier this month. The killing of T1, as the tigress was officially known, led to outrage among animal lovers and wildlife organisations. NCP leader Jayant Patil said it is being alleged that the tigress was killed to facilitate setting up of a ...
NGT forms committee to prepare scrapping of banned diesel, petrol vehicles
The National Green Tribunal has taken note of absence of a policy for dealing with scrapping of banned petrol and diesel vehicles and formed a committee to prepare it. The tribunal noted that the Delhi government has deregistered 40 lakh vehicles, which include petrol vehicles that are 15-years-old and 10-years-old diesel vehicles, and they are being dumped in Mayapuri scrap market here. The green panel directed the Delhi chief secretary to take steps and prepare an action plan for shifting the scrap yards from busy localities of the city to other appropriate locations, within three months. It directed the chief secretary and the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to furnish their separate report with regard to the action taken by March 31 next year. It also said that after the scrap is shifted to a suitable location, the same may be handled, processed and disposed of as per the guidelines of the CPCB, which may issue such guidelines by January 31. A bench headed by NGT ...
Solo cycle expedition to raise awareness on river conservation
A first-of-its-kind solo cycle expedition that began from Leh in Jammu and Kashmir, aimed at raising awareness about conservation of river, has reached Delhi, officials said Wednesday. It started on November 8 and will end in Kanyakumari traversing a distance of 5,500 km in approximately 90 days touching more than 40 rivers en route, they said. "The expedition is the first-of-its-kind and started from Leh in Ladakh for spreading the message of 'Save River and Conserve Water'," state-owned National Insurance Company (NIC), a partner in the event, said in a statement. "While covering this journey that includes high mountains of Ladakh and Kashmir Valley with Indus and Zanskar, touching Jamuna in Delhi then going towards Chambal, Narmada, Tapi and further south touching Godavari, Krishna and Cauvery, the solo cyclist will be explaining to people about the importance of clean rivers and conservation of water to get access to basic drinking water and protecting the environment," it said.
