Page 35 - Environment
Maharashtra: farmers sow HT cotton to protest ban on GM crops
Members of Shetakari Sanghtana, a farmers' organization, Thursday sowed aherbicide-tolerant (HT) variety of cotton which is banned in India by way of "civil disobedience" in Jalna district of Maharashtra. The Sanghatana had announced that it was going to sow HT cotton to protest the ban on genetically modified (GM) crops. HT cotton was sown at Revgaon in Jalna tehsil of the district, followed by a sit-in protest, the Sanghatana said in a statement. HT cotton does away with the need of manual weeding as farmers can use herbicides instead and save on labour charges. Agriculture department officers took samples of the cotton that was sown to asecertain if it was a banned variery. HT varieties of bothcotton and brinjal are banned by the Maharashtra governmentsince2015 for fear that GM crops may have harmful impact on humans and the environment. Santosh Mohite, a member of the Sanghatana, argued that GM cotton and brinjal are permitted in many countries as they benefit ...
Kaleshwaram lift irrigation project to be inaugurated by Telangana CM tomorrow
The world's largest lift irrigation scheme Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation project will be inaugurated on June 21 by Telangana Chief Minister K Chandra Shekar Rao at Kannepalli Village here, said B Srinivas Reddy, Director, Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Limited (MEIL) on Thursday.Speaking to ANI, Reddy said, "MEIL has successfully engineered the world's biggest pumping scheme in India. To achieve that, we used world-class technology involving the best agencies that have delivered quality.""The Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation (KLIP) Project would cater irrigation water to 37.08 lakh acres of land; another 18.82 lakh acres of command area will be stabilized with it. The project requires 7152 MW of electricity to pump 3 TMCs of water daily," Reddy said."In the first phase, 4992 MWs of electricity is being used for pumping 2 TMCs of water. A total of 43 machines are being established for Medigadda, Annaram, and Sundilla Pump Houses, each having 40 MWs capacity. These three pump houses ...
Centre will spend Rs 25 lakh crore to enhance agricultural productivity: President Kovind
In order to enhance agricultural productivity, an investment of Rs 25 lakh crore will be made in the coming years, said President Ram Nath Kovind while addressing the joint sitting of Parliament on Thursday."Only on the foundation of a strong rural economy, it is possible to build a strong national economy. Our farmers are the pillars of the rural economy. All possible efforts are being made by the Central government to provide adequate assistance to the States for agricultural development," said Kovind."Large scale investments have been made to strengthen rural India. In order to enhance agriculture productivity, an investment of Rs 25 lakh crore will be made in the coming years," he said.He said that to double the income of farmers by 2022, several steps have been taken in the last five years. Kovind said that the government has made the agriculture policy both production-centric as well as income-centric."Be it the decision to increase the MSP, or approval for 100 per cent FDI in ..
Avg power usage spikes by 25 per cent in Delhi this summer: Study
The hotter it gets, the more power we use to run air conditioners, which in turn, puts all climate change mitigation and energy security actions in the red, a study has revealed. A study by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) on Thursday said the average power consumption in the national capital during peak heatwave days in June increased by 25 per cent compared with the season's average. Environment experts suggested that buildings must be designed for thermal comfort to minimise the use of mechanical cooling systems. The CSE's new study, "A Midsummer Nightmare", based on eight-year trend analysis of electricity consumption in Delhi, said, "Average electricity consumption in Delhi during the peak heatwave days of June 7-12, 2019, increased by 25 per cent compared to the season's average. This trend is expected to worsen nationally as the heat index and climatic stress are continuously increasing." CSE Executive Director (Research and Advocacy) Anumita Roychowdhury said if ...
Kerala says TN 'rejected' its offer of 20 lakh litres drinking
The Kerala government Thursday said it expressed willingness to provide 20 lakh litres drinking water to Tamil Nadu, which is facing a water crisis, but the latter has declined it as there was "no need for the help at present." However, Tamil Nadu government denied it has turned down the offer and said Chief Minister K Palaniswami will discuss it at a review meeting being held Friday and announce "an appropriate decision" even as DMK chief M K Stalin urged it to work with Kerala to help the people. Earlier, a release issued by the Kerala Chief Minister's Office in Thiruvananthapuram said: "Since the major water bodies of Chennai has been facing acute water shortage, the Kerala government decided to extend an helping hand." Though chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan's office contacted the Tamil Nadu CMO on the offer, the neighbouring state informed that "at present there is no need for the help, it said. Kerala was prepared to transport 20 lakh litres of drinking water from .
Rooftop solar panels at Aqua Line stations to save over Rs 4 crore annually
Noida Metro Rail Corporation (NMRC) is in the process of installing rooftop solar panels at its all 21 stations and power generation through these will help it save approximately Rs 4.37 crore annually, officials said Thursday. Currently, the NMRC is purchasing power from Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Ltd (UPPCL) at Rs 6.81 per unit to meet its daily requirements. The cost per unit, once the energy is derived from the solar panels, will be Rs 3.25 per unit, which will result in a direct saving of Rs 3.56 per unit, the officials said. "The estimated annual power generation expected by NMRC through solar panels is 1, 22, 89,754 kWh. The estimated solar capacity of the panels to be installed in the entire network, including the depot, is around 10.021 MWp out of which around 6.811 MWp will be from all 21 stations and 2.5 MWp will be from the depot," NMRC Executive Director P D Upadhyay said. "Currently, the NMRC receives power supply from two sub-stations located at Sectors 83 and 148,
TWAD officials review water situation in 7 districts
Tamil Nadu Water and Drainage Board (TWAD) managing director C N Maheswaran Thursday convened a meeting here to review the water situation and problem in seven districts of the region. The TWAD officials from Coimbatore, Erode, Tiruppur, Nilgiris, Salem, Namakkal and Karur districts participated in the meeting in which Maheswaran suggested organising meetings to create awareness among the public on the importance of the water, its management and judicious use. As the state received 60 per cent lesser rain this year, the officials from Corporations to Gram Panchayat-levels should arrange to distribute water-starved areas by taking the commodity from water-surplus regions, he said. Also, he suggested carrying out works like repairs of broken pipelines and motor for pumping water on warfooting so that the people should not suffer and ensure that the drinking water reached the most remote areas in the region.
Turkey sends new ship to search for gas off Cyprus as tensions mount
Turkey on Thursday sent a new ship to search for oil and gas off Cyprus, in a move expected to escalate tensions after the EU called on Ankara to stop its "illegal drilling activities". The region near the divided island is believed to have rich natural gas deposits, triggering a race between Turkey and Cyprus's internationally recognised government, which also plans to ramp up its exploratory activities in the eastern Mediterranean. Turkish officials said the new vessel is the 229-metre-long (750-feet) Yavuz, which has previously drilled in the waters off several countries including Kenya, Tanzania and Malaysia. Reporters were taken onboard the vessel docked in the port of Dilovasi near Gebze, southeast of Istanbul, before it sailed. It carried the colours of the Turkish flag -- a white crescent and a star on a red background. The European Union on Tuesday lashed out at Turkey over its plans to drill in the area, warning it was preparing "appropriate measures" in response. But Turkey
Rain lashes Ranchi, Ludhiana
With temperatures soaring and heatwaves being declared in various states in the past, Ludhiana and Ranchi woke up to showers of rain, giving a much-needed respite from the scorching heat.Nonetheless, southwest monsoon paved its way in Kolkata, New Delhi and some parts of Bihar as well, reported Skymet.The advancement of monsoon has taken place in view of the formation of a low-pressure area in the Bay of Bengal, which is currently over Northeast Bay of Bengal: Skymet added.Some spells of rain were also seen in parts of South Konkan and Goa.Last week, Ludhiana struggled with a massive heatwave with the mercury rising up to 42 degree Celsius.Along with Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, Ranchi is no exception from the severe water crisis. This year, various ponds and hand pumps dried up in the capital city of Jharkhand due to the underground water falling deeper than ever in the state.
TN demands immediate release of 9.19 TMC Cauvery water
Tamil Nadu on Thursday demanded that 9.19 TMC feet of water should be released immediately in accordance with the recent decision of the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee.Participating in a meeting of the committee, chaired by its head Naveen Kumar, officials from Tamil Nadu said the Cauvery Water Management Board on May 21 had recommended release of 9.19 TMC (Thousand Million Cubic) feet of water without delay."This should be implemented immediately," they said.Officials of Karnataka, Kerala and Puducherry also participated in the meeting.
Narmada, Yamuna, Mahanadi etc will be cleaned on lines of Ganga: President
The Centre is committed to the cleaning up major rivers like Cauvery, Periyar and Narmada on the lines of its ambitious 'Namami Gange' programme for river Ganga, said President Ram Nath Kovind on Thursday."On the lines of river Ganga, the government will also endeavour to clean up other rivers such as Kaveri, Periyar, Narmada, Yamuna, Mahanadi and Godavari," he said in his address to the joint sitting of Parliament.Kovind said that the Central government is fully committed to ensuring the uninterrupted flow of river Ganga and making it pollution-free."Under the Namami Gange scheme, my government will further accelerate the campaign for the closure of drains releasing effluents in the river Ganga," he added.The Namami Gange programme or the Clean Ganga Mission is an integrated mission for Ganga rejuvenation. It has a comprehensive multi-sectoral intervention with multi-stakeholder involvement and adopts a basin based approach which includes Ganga and its tributaries.The initiative aims
Karnataka: Kiran Mazumdar Shaw holds discussions with CM HD Kumaraswamy over infrastructure development
Biocon Chairman Kiran Mazumdar Shaw met Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy on Thursday to discuss the infrastructure development in Bengaluru.In the meeting, Shaw raised many questions on road safety and management of infrastructure and held discussions on civic issues in the city like garbage, mobility and poor infrastructure.Shaw also gave suggestions to improve the infrastructure on high traffic congestion on the roads, drainage and sewage system management.Moreover, she also highlighted the far-reaching impact of the poor drinking water facility in the city.Distressing over the current scenario of transportation in the capital, Shaw also urged the Chief Minister to take the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) restructuring proposal on board that is to build a proper suburban railway network, as soon as possible.The idea of the formation of a Metropolitan Planning Commission in the state was also proposed by Shaw.The issue of water logging and improper management of ...
NHPC to finalise supply of 2.5 GW for short term through stressed thermal projects
State-owned hydro power giant NHPC Ltd is set to finalise in a couple of months the supply 2,500 megawatt (MW) through various coal-based thermal power plants for short term at a tariff of Rs 4.41 per unit discovered in a reverse auction. NHPC has been appointed as an aggregator by PFC Consultancy through e-tendering for Pilot Scheme-II of the power ministry. The scheme is to facilitate the procurement of power for three years from coal-based power plants that are already commissioned and do not have power purchase agreements (PPAs). Since a PPA is a prerequisite for getting coal linkage, these plants are under stress. A senior NHPC official said, "The tariff of Rs 4.41 per unit was discovered under this scheme through e-reverse auction. As many as 15 bidders were finalised under auction at this tariff. We are in the process of finalising quantum of power to be supplied to different states. This would be completed in couple of months." According to the scheme, NHPC is supposed to tie .
The Ramco Cements bags 'Green Award 2018' for its Ramasamy Raja Nagar Unit
The company's Ramco Vidyalaya School situated at Ramasamy Raja Nagar Unit had been awarded "Green Award 2018" for Educational Institutions of Tamil Nadu. Green award is being conferred by Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board to educational institutions in Tamil Nadu in recognition of their excellent contribution towards protection of environment. Special focus is given to best practices adopted in Green belt development, rain water harvesting, water conservation measures, waste water management, energy conservation measures, solid waste management, environmental awareness programmes and use of renewable source of energy.
Punjab govt to plant 75 lakh saplings to mark birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev
As part of the year-long celebrations to mark the 550th birth anniversary of Sikhism founder Guru Nanak Dev, the Punjab government will plant around 75 lakh is villages of the state. The government has targeted to plant 550 saplings in every village. Around 75 lakh saplings would be planted across the state, which had over 12,500 villages, Punjab Forest Minister Sadhu Singh Dharamsot said Thursday. So far, 2,000 villages had been covered under the initiative, he said. The minister informed that the state government had distributed over two crore saplings of various type free of cost among people of the state in the past one year under the Tandarust Punjab Mission. The mission aims at taking care of the state's air and water quality besides ensuring safe food to ensure a good living environment for residents. Dharamsot said the state government was fully committed to provide a clean and pollution-free environment to the people of the state. "As part of this commitment, over 2 crore ...
Natural farming could help double farmers' income: Rawat
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat Thursday said natural farming could be an effective tool to realise Prime Minister Narendra Modi's dream of doubling farmers' income by 2022. After inaugurating a workshop on zero budget natural farming here, Rawat said agriculture continues to be the main source of livelihood in India, with 64 per cent of the country's population dependent on it. "We need to focus on reducing the cost of production and increasing the yield to achieve the prime minister's vision of doubling the income of farmers by 2022," the chief minister said. The Palekar model of zero budget natural farming could be an effective instrument to achieve the goal of doubling the income of farmers by 2022, he said, adding it could be especially effective in hilly areas where bio waste is more easily available for preparing compost. It will reduce the production cost burden on farmers and increase high quality yield. Zero budget natural farming model of Palekar is a ...
Airbus signs MoU with Pawan Hans to introduce 2 new categories of helicopters
Airbus Thursday said it has signed an MoU with Pawan Hans Limited (PHL) in Paris for collaboration in introducing two new categories of its helicopters - H145 and H225 - in the latter's fleet sometime in the future. The Airbus also said according to the MoU, signed on Wednesday evening, it would provide "predictive and scheduled maintenance" for the repair, maintenance and overhaul of PHL's existing fleet of AS365N Dauphin helicopters. Government-owned PHL is the largest customer in the world for Airbus Dauphin helicopters. It currently has 37 Dauphin units deployed for offshore oil and gas operations, VIP transportation and other utility duties. "The MoU stipulates that Airbus Helicopters will support PHL in growing its onshore, offshore and inland travel markets by introducing the best-in-class H145 and H225 rotorcrafts (helicopters) into their fleet," Airbus said Thursday. The H145 and H225 are multi-role helicopters, ideal for supporting PHL's wide range of missions across the ...
HPCL installs reactor at AP refinery under expansion project
Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) on Thursday said it has installed country's largest reactor at its Visakh refinery in Andhra Pradesh as part of the refinery modernisation project. As a part of the Visakh Refinery Modernization Project (VRMP), India's largest full conversion hydrocracker unit (FCHCU) with a capacity of 3.053 million tonnes per annum is being set up. The licensor for this unit is Universal Oil Products (UOP) and the Project Management Consultant is Engineers India Limited (EIL), the company said in a statement. HPCL is expanding the Visakh refinery capacity from present 8.33 million tonnes per annum to 15 million tonnes a year at a cost of Rs 20,928 crore by July 2020. "The first and second stage reactors are the heart of this unit. The First Stage Reactor which is heaviest in India, with an erection weight of 1,646 tones (1,858 tones including internals), has a wall thickness of 254.5 mm and stands 55.6 meters tall. The Second Stage Reactor weighs in at 454 tonnes,
Cong attacks BJP govt in Haryana over AIIMS Rewari project
Opposition Congress Thursday attacked the BJP government in Haryana over the setting up of AIIMS in Rewari district, after reports claimed that a central panel had turned down the project. The Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) of the Union Environment, Forests and Climate Change Ministry had termed the proposed AIIMS site at Manethi village in Rewari "non-specific" as it is part of the Aravalli Plantation Area (APA) and any diversion will result in honeycombing of the only forest patch on the landscape. The Union Cabinet had in February approved the setting up of the new AIIMS at a cost of Rs 1,299 crore. "In 2015, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had promised that AIIMS would be set up in Manethi. In 2019, the Centre changed its idea," senior Congress leader and Kaithal MLA, Randeep Singh Surjewala said. "Without any planning, a false announcement was made people's sentiments have been hurt," he said in a tweet. With Haryana assembly polls due in October, Surjewala said, "People of ..
Legislature's nod for expansion of MMRDA into Raigad, Palghar
Both houses of Maharashtra legislature Thursday approved a proposal to bring parts of Palghar and Raigad districts under the jurisdiction of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), Minister of State for Urban Development Yogesh Sagar said. The state Cabinet had taken the decision to expand the MMRDA's jurisdiction by 2,000 sq km in February. "The proposal to expand the MMRDA's jurisdiction was moved and passed in the Assembly and the Council," Sagar told reporters. The entire Palghar tehsil and parts of Vasai in Palghar district and parts of Panvel, Pen, Khalapur and Alibaug tehsils of Raigad excluding the "scheduled areas" will be incorporated in the MMRDA, he told reporters. It will not infringe on the rights of local municipal corporations, municipal councils or gram panchayats, he said. "There has to be a balanced and speedy development of the projects in the region, such as trans-harbour link, Navi Mumbai International Airport. The MMRDA will be