Page 448 - Environment
2 more lions dead in Gir; toll reaches 23
Two more lions, shifted to a rescue centre during a screening drive in Gujarat's Gir Sanctuary, died Tuesday, taking the death toll to 23 since September 12, an official said. "Two lions, rescued earlier, died today morning due to infection," said Additional Chief Secretary of the Forest Department Rajiv Kumar Gupta. Eleven lions had died in the forest due to reasons such as infighting and infections between September 12 and 19, while 10 more died between September 20 and 30 after they were shifted to a rescue centre. With the latest deaths, the toll of lions that have died since September 12 has reached 23, Gupta said. Chief Minister Vijay Rupani termed the deaths as "very unfortunate". "It was a very unfortunate incident. 20-22 lions inhibiting in one forest range have died due to infection. To make sure that other lions are alright, we have called in doctors from Delhi and Pune to examine them," Rupani told reporters in Porbandar Tuesday. "We are also probing whether the officers ..
PM calls for 'One World One Sun One Grid' for flow of solar energy across borders
Stressing that India would generate 40 per cent of power from non-fossil fuels by 2030, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Tuesday called for connecting solar energy supply across borders giving the mantra of 'One World One Sun One Grid'. "We have a dream One World, One Sun One Grid. We generate round the clock electricity from Sun as it sets in one part of the world but rises in another part. Sun never sets for entire earth," Modi said addressing inaugural function of 2nd Global RE-Invest meeting of Indian Ocean Rim Association and the first assembly of International Solar Alliance here in the capital. The same event also marked the inauguration of the second IORA Renewable Energy Ministerial Meeting, and the 2nd Global RE-Invest (Renewable Energy Investors' Meet and Expo). United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was also present on the occasion. Modi said he saw the 121-country International Solar Alliance as the future OPEC for meeting energy needs of the world. Oil cartel OPEC
India targeting 40% of power generation from non-fossil fuel by 2030: PM
India is targeting 40 per cent of electricity generation from non-fossil fuel-based resources by 2030 as it looks to tap vast solar and wind potential to replace reliance on polluting coal to meet its energy needs, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Tuesday. Modi said he saw the 121-country International Solar Alliance as the future OPEC for meeting energy needs of the world. Oil cartel OPEC led by Saudi Arabia currently meets close to half of the world's oil needs. Speaking at the first Assembly of the ISA here, he said the solar power will play the same role that oil wells have played over the past few decades in meeting global energy needs. Humans have in the last 150-200 years relied on resources trapped below the earth's surface for meeting energy needs. But for a secure future, resources available above the ground like solar and wind energy need to be harnessed, he said. Stating that the focus must be on renewable sources for meeting energy needs, he said India wants to bring all
Carmakers and green groups see flaws in German diesel plan
BERLIN (Reuters) - The German government presented plans to cut pollution from diesel vehicles by asking carmakers to offer owners trade-in incentives and hardware fixes, prompting objections from environmental groups and grudging concessions from the industry.
Chandigarh residents relieved as waste collectors resume door-to-door collection
The people of Chandigarh heaved a sigh of relief as private waste collectors resumed door-to-door collection from households on Tuesday, three weeks after they went on strike to protest Chandigarh Municipal Corporation's (MC) move to take over waste collection duties from private players in the city. The city reeled under garbage crisis during this period as arrangements made by the municipal authorities to collect waste from households failed to provide relief. The door-to-door garbage collectors decided to resume work after the Municipal Corporation on Monday agreed to follow the old system of lifting garbage from households for three months till a new system was adopted. The decision was taken after Chandigarh Mayor Davesh Moudgil and senior officers held discussions with representatives of the door-to-door waste collectors. The MC has decided to start a special awareness campaign regarding segregation of dry and wet waste by involving the door-to-door collectors. The private ...
Punjab govt tasks 10 administrative secretaries with checking stubble burning
The Punjab government Tuesday deputed 10 senior administrative secretaries to check stubble burning and make people aware about the harmful practice. The officials have also been asked to review paddy procurement on a daily basis. Kahan Singh Pannu, the nodal officer for the Anti-Stubble Burning Campaign, in a release said Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has issued directives to all agencies and officials engaged for this task to ensure seamless operations of paddy procurement. He said that elaborate arrangements have been made for procuring 200 lakh metric tonnes of paddy in a prompt and hassle-free manner and for ensuring basic amenities to facilitate farmers in mandis. Pannu said that the chief minister has asked the senior administrative secretaries to effectively coordinate to contain stubble burning in the districts allotted to them. Additional Chief Secretary, Taxation, MP Singh and Secretary, Technical Education,DK Tiwari would coordinate the campaign to ...
India essential component of multipolar world: UN Secretary General
Multilateralism has not been under so much fire as it is today and India will be the essential component if the world has to become multipolar, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said on Tuesday.
German diesel deal draws fire from carmakers, green groups
BERLIN (Reuters) - The German government presented a plan on Tuesday to cut pollution from diesel vehicles by offering owners trade-in incentives and hardware upgrades, prompting swift objections from both the car industry and environmental groups.
Bengaluru celebrates Gandhi Jayanti with plog run
A host of events ranging from plog run, operation clean-up, spinning the charkha (wheel) and a photo expo marked the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi in this tech hub on Tuesday.
Punjab waste management society partners with PPCB
The Punjab Plastic Waste Management Society, a consortium of 26 FMCG companies, has collaborated with the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) to launch a five-year programme for effectively managing post-consumer multi-layered packaging (MLP) in the state. Punjab Environment Minister O P Soni inaugurated the initiative along with PPCB Chairman Satwinder Singh Marwaha. Senior representatives from the member companies of the consortium signed a pledge committing to support the management of post-consumer MLP in the state. The Punjab Plastic Waste Management Society consists of 26 member companies, including PepsiCo India, Perfetti Van Melle, Nestl India, Dabur India, DharmpalSatyapal Group, Haldiram, Hector Beverages, P&G, Patanjali,Godrej Consumer Products, Tata Chemicals, Cremica, among others. "We are delighted to see so many companies come together to work with us and take joint responsibility for managing multi-layered packaging waste. This initiative is a unique ...
Rural Nagaland declared Open Defecation Free
On the day of Gandhi Jayanti, rural Nagaland was declared Open Defecation Free (ODF) on Tuesday. The formal declaration was made by Public Health Engineering (PHE) Minister Jacob Zhimomi during a function on the Swachhata Diwas. The minister said the ODF declaration is for all the 1,122 villages of the state and does not cover urban areas. He asserted that the PHED would cooperate with the Urban Development Department towards achieving ODF in the urban areas. "The onus lies with the Urban Development Department to achieve the goal," he said. The minister expressed hope that the state along with the entire nation would become ODF by October 2 next year, the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. "As we declare the state ODF, the job of every citizen should be to care for the infrastructure created and sustain the development," he said. The minister also gave away awards to 112 villages for best sanitation practices.
Hry govt to develop zoological park in Rewari's Massani barrage area
The Haryana government is planning to develop a nature and zoological park in the Massani barrage area in Rewari district to attract tourists, especially from the National Capital Region (NCR). "It is expected that after the development of the Massani barrage as a nature and zoological park about 20 lakh tourists would visit the site annually," a spokesman of Forests and Wildlife Department said here Monday. Besides the development of the nature and zoological park, various facilities have been planned which include demonstration of agro-forestry models for arid and semi-arid regions, development of farm tourism facilities and development of lake and water bodies for birds, he said. The Massani barrage is located about 60 km from Dhaula Kuan in Delhi and 40 km from Gurgaon on the Gurgaon-Jaipur National Highway, he said. The Massani Barrage was constructed by the Haryana Irrigation Department on Sahibi river during late 1970s. "It is located on the golden triangle map of India ...
CBI starts probe in Forest Dept officials' role in Uttarakhand Tiger deaths
The CBI has initiated a preliminary enquiry into the alleged collusion of forest department officials in tiger deaths and poaching cases reported from protected areas of Uttarakhand during the past five years. The agency has set up multiple teams of officials from its Wildlife Wing to look into the deaths and possibly complete its probe within three months, the sources said. During its probe the agency will cover deaths and killing of tigers and leopards reported from the protected areas of Joshimath, Rajaji National Park, Corbett Tiger Reserve, Pithoragarh, Almora, Haldwani and Kumaon range among others. The agency has started the inquiry against unidentified officials of Uttarakhand forest department and others to look into their alleged "criminal misconduct, complicity, involvement, collusion" in the incidents of poaching and deaths of wild cats reported in the state. Some of the teams have already reached at some of the crime scenes to begin their investigation while some are ...
Satisfied with IIT-Roorkee report, NGT okays Purana Qila lake revival
The National Green Tribunal has given its nod to the revival of the iconic Purana Qila lake here by laying impermeable plastic lining on its bed and has rejected the claim that the project was being undertaken in a manner which would damage the environment. A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice A K Goel said that there may be different opinions on the subject but once an informed decision has been taken on expert advice for the use of impermeable plastic lining, it is difficult for the tribunal to reject the view. The green panel took note of the submission of the state-owned construction firm NBCC that development work of the iconic Purana Qila lake here was being done as per the suggestions of the IIT-Roorkee and rainwater harvesting structures were being built for ground water recharge. The NBCC had said that drawings for development works at Purana Qila lake were approved by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and it was directed to seek expert advice from a reputed ...
German diesel deal runs into opposition from carmakers
BERLIN (Reuters) - Owners of older diesel cars in polluted German cities should be able to choose between trade-in incentives and a hardware upgrade for their vehicles, German coalition parties agreed but the car industry swiftly raised objections.
NGT directs BPCL to look into grant of contract for supply of absolute alcohol sans permission
The National Green Tribunal has directed the Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) to look into the issue of grant of contract for supply of absolute alcohol or ethanol to manufacturing units which are running without permission of the Petroleum and Explosive Safety Organisation (PESO). A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice A K Goel asked the BPCL to examine the issue and take action in accordance with the law after a plea by an NGO sought directions to the state-run oil marketing firm not to grant contract for supply of ethanol to units which lack requisite approval. The plea filed by NGO Social Action for Forest and Environment (SAFE) said that no industry can be allowed to manufacture absolute alcohol/ethanol without a license from PESO in view of mandatory requirement of Manufacture, Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemical Rules, 1989. The NGT said that though the grievance of the NGO appears to be against tender that is not a subject matter which may be gone into by this ..
Ask REC to start work in Arunachal, Union power minister urged
Arunachal Pradesh Power Minister Tamiyo Taga has requested Union Power Minister R K Singh to direct the Rural Electrification Corporation (REC) to start electrification of all un-electrified houses in the state under Saubhagya scheme, official sources said on Tuesday. Taga called on Singh in New Delhi on Monday and drew his attention on implementation of the time-bound Saubhagya scheme in the state. The Saubhagya Scheme was launched last year by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to provide electricity to every household in the country. The REC is the nodal agency of the project. The state minister informed Singh that the REC had not supplied all required materials as per the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed for which the state government was unable to start electrification of un-electrified houses though the deadline has been set for December 31. Snowfall will begin in upper reaches of the state like Tawang district by October and it would be difficult to work, Taga .
1 killed in train derailment in TN
Two separate incidents of train derailment were reported in TN on Tuesday, with one person dying in Ambattur after a weighbridge container fell on him. The Southern Railway has ordered a multidisciplinary probe into the matter, they said. According to Southern Railway officials, a goods train "rolled back" at Ambattur, leading to the derailment of a brake van and a wagon before they hit a dead end and a weighbridge container. "One person sitting beneath the weighbridge died after the weighbridge container fell on him," they said. Certain 'heavy' goods trains can move with the slightest momentum, officials said explaining the possibility of the train rolling back. "Train movement was not affected and a multidisciplinary inquiry at the officer level has been ordered," officials added. In a separate incident at Egmore here, an empty coach of an express train proceeding to the yard derailed. However, nobody was injured in the incident that occurred this morning nor was there any ...
In South Africa, endangered frogs get another chance
Conservationists are monitoring some 200 endangered frogs that were released along South Africa's coastline after a captive-breeding program at the Johannesburg Zoo. The release last month of the Pickersgill's reed frogs happened in KwaZulu-Natal province, where the species' wetland habitat along the Indian Ocean coast has come under severe pressure from human development. The Endangered Wildlife Trust, a South African group, will follow the progress of the frogs, which were transported in plastic jars by road to their new homes near the city of Durban. The Pickersgill's reed frog is about 2.5-3 centimeters (1-1.2 inches) long. The males are smaller than the females. The species was among those earmarked for help after a fungus killed many amphibian populations around the world in the early 2000s.
Cut use of chemicals, diversify crops: FAO chief
Rome, Oct 2 (IANS/AKI) Attaining sustainable development means shifting away from high-input and resource-intensive farming and food systems towards more sustainable practices, FAO Director-General Jose Graziano da Silva said.
