Page 471 - Environment
TN CM orders water release from Kuthiraiyar dam for irrigation
Water would be released from Kuthiraiyar reservoir in Dindigul district for irrigation from Friday till October 12, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami said Thursday. The decision to release water was taken following a representation from farmers, he said in a release here. "I am happy to state that this will benefit 1,000 acres of farmland," he said. He asked the farmers to use the water judiciously and get higher yield. Kuthiraiyar dam near Palani is part of the Cauvery basin, which caters to the irrigation needs of the farmers of the region.
China ready to start world's first AP1000 nuclear reactor
After a long delay and cost spillover, China is set to start commercial operations of the world's first next-generation AP1000 nuclear reactor.
Forest dept rescues elephant herd in MP's Sidhi district
The Madhya Pradesh Forest department has rescued a herd of elephants that entered the state's Sidhi district from neighbouring Chhattisgarh, an official said Thursday. The elephants had entered Sidhi district, over 500 kilometres from here, on August 4 after crossing the Mawai River and had first halted in the jungles near Kundaur village of Sanjay Tiger Reserve (STR), the official informed. "They vandalised huts in the vicinity of the village, rummaged through foodgrain stocks and destroyed standing crops. The Sanjay Tiger Reserve authorities had to install solar lights on the border of the village to halt their march into the village," the official informed. The elephants had reached within 15 kilometres of the Sidhi district headquarters, he said. "The elephants also killed two people. Round the clock vigil was maintained on the route the elephants were taking. The state's forest department roped in experts from West Bengal to drive away the elephants. Villagers en ...
Kalpakkam fast breeder reactor may achieve criticality in 2019
The country's first indigenously developed 500-megawatt (mw) prototype fast breeder reactor at Kalpakkam in Tamil Nadu is expected to achieve criticality next year, a senior official said. The project, which was earlier expected to be commissioned in 2012, has missed several deadlines. "Our indigenously developed prototype fast breeder reactor of 500 mw is now under going sodium commissioning. We expect criticality next year," Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) secretary Sekhar Basu said at the 62th General Conference of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) held in Vienna. Achieving criticality means that the reactor is fully operational and safe. The design of the country's first fast breeder reactor, called Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR), was done by the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR). Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam (Bhavini), a public sector company under DAE, has been given the responsibility to build the fast breeder reactors in the ...
NTPC says minor fire broke out at Unchahar plant
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's largest power producer NTPC Ltd said on Thursday there was a minor fire in a cable tray at a construction site at its Unchahar plant on Wednesday.
Bayer, Crystal Crop partner to find solution for brown plant hopper pest in paddy crop
Crystal Crop Protection Ltd on Thursday said it has partnered with Bayer CropScience to develop a solution for effective control of brown plant hopper and help farmers increase rice yields. "Crystal Crop Protection embarked on a collaborative project with Bayer CropScience Ltd (Bayer) which will endeavour to enhance the productivity of rice by developing new crop protection solution for effective control of brown plant hopper," the company said in a statement. India has 44 million hectares of area under rice. Brown plant hopper in rice impacts the crop productivity substantially and reduces the yield up to 20-30 per cent and sometimes the whole crop can be lost under high pest pressure. Additionally, the company pointed out that the brown plant hopper develops fast resistance and therefore requires newer solutions to be developed every 2-3 years for sustainable production. Under this collaboration, Bayer will provide Crystal access to newer compound, enabling the latter to bring new ..
IMD issues cyclone alert for Odisha and AP
The IMD has sounded a cyclone alert for south Odisha and north Andhra Pradesh with a low pressure over the Bay of Bengal intensifying into a deep depression, triggering heavy rainfall in several districts on Thursday. The depression over west-central Bay of Bengal and adjoining areas has moved westward and intensified into a deep depression, it lay centred at about 300 km east-southeast of Gopalpur in Odisha, IMD said in a bulletin. "It (the depression) is likely to intensify into a cyclonic storm and then move west-northwestwards and cross south Odisha and north Andhra coasts close to Gopalpur," it said. While heavy rainfall lashed several parts of Odisha since Wednesday, rain and thundershower is likely to occur in most places in the next 48 hours and it will ease thereafter, the IMD said. The depression caused heavy rainfall in Balasore, Bhadrak, Puri, Ganjam, Khordha, Jagatsinghpur, Cuttack, Kendrapara and Jajpur districts on Thursday, a MeT official said. Under the depression's ..
In U-turn, Exxon, Chevron to join rivals in climate initiative - sources
LONDON (Reuters) - Exxon Mobil, Chevron and Occidental Petroleum are joining a group of international oil and gas giants in an initiative aimed at curbing carbon emissions in the sector, two sources familiar with the matter said on Thursday.
Meghalaya HC dismisses PIL against cement major LafargeHolcim
The Meghalaya High Court has dismissed a PIL filed by a group of villagers in East Khasi Hills district against cement major LafargeHolcim observing that it was "totally without merit" and "tainted with ill design". The PIL, pending since 2007, had alleged that the land bordering Nongtrai and Shella had been illegally acquired by the company for mining of limestone and had not benefitted the villages around the mining area. A division bench, comprising Chief Justice Mohammad Yaqoob Mir and Justice S R Sen, on Wednesday said the PIL was aimed at jeopardising the progress of the village. The bench said the PIL was "totally without any merit" and "tainted with ill design" as the Shella Action Committee (SAC) could not produce even one land owner who was affected, after the land was transferred, sold or leased out in favour of the company. The high court also directed the petitioner, the SAC, to pay a fine of Rs 20,000 within a month, to be donated to flood-affected Kerala. The SAC had ...
IIT-KGP develops model to predict variability and trends in
Researchers at IIT Kharagpur have developed a new statistical model which can be used to predict variability and trends in rainfall over different climate regions of India. The model, developed by researchers of the Centre for Oceans, Rivers, Atmosphere and Land Sciences (CORAL), takes into consideration both local and remote factors causing weather changes, an IIT-KGP statement said Thursday. Many of these, local and remote, factors that affect weather conditions have been known to the scientific community, the statement said, adding, most weather forecast models typically consider local factors or a single factor that affects rainfall or use of statistical models of correlation to establish the impact of various factors. Because of this, there used to be significant uncertainties in such predictions as each independent factor has a certain impact, which may not match with actual conditions, it said. "Our study finds that the summer monsoon rainfall variability is ...
Australia eyes PNG military base to curb China's Pacific influence
Australia is planning to build new naval base in Papua New Guinea, reports said Wednesday, an apparent move to curb China's influence in the Pacific. Canberra was aiming to finalise an agreement on the joint facility -- to be built on the Pacific nation's Manus island -- ahead of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Port Moresby in November, The Australian reported. The newspaper said Australian defence officials visited PNG's Lombrum Naval Base on Manus to review a potential redevelopment after that country's prime minister Peter O'Neill visited Brisbane in July. "The Pacific is a very high-priority area of strategic national security interest for Australia," Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Wednesday, refusing to deny the report. "But I'm not going to comment on speculation on national security issues, that would not be appropriate." Beijing has been showering billions of dollars in infrastructure loans to tiny island nations across the Pacific Ocean, a region ...
Insight: Tidal wave of Chinese marine parks fuels murky cetacean trade
HONG KONG (Reuters) - Eight beluga whales jump in unison out of a bright blue indoor pool, flipping their tailfins and spewing fountains of water, as a packed audience cheers and snaps photographs.
NASA's Parker Solar Probe sends back first images
Just over a month into its seven-year mission to touch the Sun, NASA's Parker Solar Probe has beamed back the first-light data from each of its four instrument suites, the US space agency said.
India contributes USD 1 mn to UN's ambitious solar project
India has contributed a whopping USD 1 million for the installation of solar panels on the roof of the imposing UN building at the world body's headquarters here. The contribution will help reduce carbon footprint and promote sustainable energy, India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Syed Akbaruddin said in a tweet. He said that India is the "first responder" to Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' call for climate action. "India funds solar project @UN Hqrs to reduce carbon footprint & promote sustainable energy," Akbaruddin said, referring to India's contribution of USD 1 million to the UN Headquarters' Solar Project, in which solar panels will be installed on the roof of the imposing UN headquarters. "I thank Ambassador @AkbaruddinIndia @IndiaUNNewYork for India's generous contribution for the installation of solar panels on the roof of the @UN conference building. A strong message promoting #Innovation for action on #climatechange #efficiency," ...
Construction of dam on Indus River illegal, says Sindhi activists
Geneva [Switzerland], Sept 20 (ANI): Sindhi political activists have strongly opposed the construction of Kalabagh Dam on the Indus River, calling it as 'illegal, unethical and immoral attempt' by Pakistan to deny life to the Sindhi people.A side-event titled "Construction of Dam - denial of life to Sindhi People" was held during the ongoing 39th Session of UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on Wednesday.Lakhu Luhana, Secretary-General of World Sindhi Congress, said, "Already, there are a number of dams and canals and that have been built against the international laws, conventions and even agreements. So, they are violating all of that. They built these dams and canals and as a result of that, it's not just hundreds and thousands, the lives of millions of people have been affected"."Forget about the water for agriculture, you don't get water even for drinking and that's a grave situation. The ecological habitats of millions of years have destroyed and then the sea intrusion. The sea ..
UP farmers offer land for Jewar airport
Representatives of farmers from Jewar in Noida met Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday and handed him letters agreeing to offer their land for the proposed Jewar international airport, an official said.
BJP MLA demands declaration of drought in parts of Vidarbha
Disgruntled BJP MLA Ashish Deshmukh demanded Wednesday that the state government declare drought in some parts of Vidarbha and provide necessary assistance to farmers. Many parts of Vidarbha including Katol, Amravati, Yavatmal and Buldhana are facing shortage of water for irrigation as well as for drinking purposes, he said. No guardian minister has reviewed the situation in these parts, he claimed. "Farmers would hardly be able to save their kharif crops," he said. Deshmukh, who has often criticised his own party over various issues, also informed that he has invited AAP's Rajya Sabha member Anil Singh, BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha, Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan, TMC's Dinesh Trivedi and NCP's Majid Memon for 'Vidarbha Yuva Sansad' at Kalol on September 22. Asked if he is trying to send out a political message by inviting opposition leaders, he said, "We can not deny the fact that the youth are disappointed due to lack of job opportunities....We are going to discuss
Alibaba's cloud services to help Kenya protect wildlife
China's e-tail giant Alibaba's computing arm would help Kenya to protect its wildlife in Africa using its cloud services, said an official at a technology conference here on Wednesday.
CCEA approves revised cost for safety of 198 dams
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on Wednesday approved the revised cost estimate of Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project (DRIP) at Rs 3,466 crore for 198 dams in the country, an official statement said.
Meghalaya babus allowing illegal coal mining: Wildlife group
A wildlife and environment protection group in Meghalaya's Jaintia Hills districts has urged the state government to initiate criminal proceedings against officials allegedly allowing illegal coal mining, despite a ban imposed on it by the National Green Tribunal. The group also demanded auditing be conducted on all cement factories in East Jaintia Hills District to find out the source of coal being supplied to them. "Meghalaya should initiate criminal proceedings against the errant officials who are responsible for allowing illegal coal mining to happen in their jurisdiction," group convener Sajay Laloo and B Buam said in a letter submitted to Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on Tuesday. "Audit should be immediately conducted on all the cement factories in East Jaintia Hills on the source of coal and the quantity they are utilising on daily basis, and the coal stocked within their factory premises," the letter said. The NGT had imposed a blanket ban on coal mining in ...