Page 639 - Environment
Panel rejects BMC demand to slash plastic ban fine
The law panel of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has rejected the civic body's demand to reduce the minimum fine proposed for violating plastic ban from Rs 5000 to Rs 200. With the rejection, Mumbaikars found carrying banned plastic items will be fined from Rs 5000 to Rs 25,000 from June 24, a senior civic official said today. The Maharashtra government banned the manufacture, usage, transport, distribution, wholesale and retail sale and storage, and import of plastic bags through a notification dated March 23 this year. Other plastic items like single-use disposable dishes, cups, plates, glasses, forks, bowls, containers, plastic packaging to wrap or store products, and packaging of food items and food grain material, were also banned. "Fine for 1st offence Rs 5000. Fine for 2nd Offence Rs 10000. Fine for subsequent offence Rs 25000 and 3 months imprisonment. For non-compliance with provisions of Maharashtra Non-biodegradable Garbage Control Act 2006 ...
Officials instructed to release Cauvery water for crops in
Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy today said he has instructed officials to release Cauvery water for crops in Mandya district, saying the state farmers had to be saved without waiting for the orders of the Cauvery Water Management Authority. Kumaraswamy pointed out that water is being released toneighbouring Tamila Nadu, with which Karnataka has locked horns over sharing the river water. He said he has asked officials to release water for crops, while taking upon himself the responsibility for any legal or technical hurdles that may arise. "This morning I saw reports in the media that crops in Mandya are dying without water. Immediately I have instructed officials (to release water)," Kumaraswamy said. Speaking to reporters at Ramanagara, he said the quantum of water due to Tamil Nadu this month, has been released. The state government has to "save" Karnataka farmers also, Kumaraswamy said. "We can't wait forCauvery Management Board (Authority) orders. The ...
MPEDA to launch state-of-the-art aquaculture complex at Kochi
The Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA), which is headquartered here, is all set to launch its multi-species Aquaculture Complex here with an aim to revolutionize fish production in the country, an official said.
14,000 of 21,000 trees to be axed for redevelopment of south Delhi colonies: Govt
About 14,000 trees would be felled for the re-development of seven colonies in south Delhi, the government said today. Responding to reports that nearly 17,000 trees would be cut in Nauroji Nagar, Netaji Nagar, Sarojini Nagar, Mohammadpur, Sriniwaspuri, Kasturba Nagar and Thyagaraj Nagar as a part of the re-development, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, in a statement, said "14,031 trees are to be cut out of the existing 21,040 trees". It added that the redevelopment would lead to "an increase in the green area coverage by about three times...and the compensatory plantation of trees will be done in the ratio of 1:10, thereby resulting in an enhanced tree-coverage area". "The re-development of the seven colonies is being done with complete adherence to environmental sustainability and green building concepts and special care and attention is being given towards retaining the maximum number of the existing trees," the statement said. The ministry said 1,35,460 trees would be ...
Most people aware of harmful effects of plastics but still use it: Study
A majority of people are aware of the harmful effects of plastic on environment, but still use it due to lack of availability of cheaper alternatives, a study said. With a sample size of 3,600, the national study conducted by market research and analysis company Velocity MR found that 90 per cent of respondents are aware of the harmful effects of plastic and 85 per cent of the respondents are even aware of the ban on polythene bags. The study was conducted in most of the major cities of the country, including Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Chennai, Ahmedabad and Pune. "It has been observed that even with plastic ban in 25 states of India, 15,000 tonnes of plastic is still procured from cities on a daily basis. From our study, we clearly understood that while the people are aware of the adverse effects of plastic, the usage of this environmental poison is high, primarily due to lack of availability of proper alternatives," Managing Director and CEO of Velocity MR Jasal ..
Timely execution of Central projects critical to NE economic
Timely execution of central projects in the North East was critical for the overall economic and social development of the region, Union Minister of state for Statistics and Programme Implementation Vijay Goel said here today. The centre was implementing 44 projects worth more than Rs 50,000 crore in the North East and timely completion was of utmost importance to ensure development, the Minister told reporters after reviewing the progress of central sector infrastructure projects In Road and transport, Petroleum and Natural Gas and railway sectors. The Ministry reviews projects worth over Rs 150 crore and Goel held review meetings with senior officials of the NHAI, Oil India Limited, North East Frontier Railways and the state government. Referring to the road sector projects being implemented by NHAI, the minister said the officials have pointed out that there was delay in completion of the projects due to natural calamities. "I have asked the officials to separate the
MPEDA to launch multi-species aquaculture complex
The Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) is all set to launch its sprawling multi-species aquaculture complex at Vallarpadam near here, with an aim to revolutionise fish production in the country. Spread over 8.5 acres, the facility will produce seeds/fingerlings of 6-7 commercially important species, which are of high export demand. The species includes Tiger shrimp, Asian Seabass, Pompano, Cobia, Genetically improved Farmed Tilapia (GIFT), Mud crab etc. MPEDA Chairman, A Jayathilak said a unique feature of the facility will be its Tiger shrimp hatchery with a production capacity of 20 million disease-free high health seeds per annum. "This effort will revive the Black Tiger shrimp farming after a gap of two decades and will certainly bring about huge returns, as demand and price for good quality tiger shrimp is very high in international markets, especially Japan and European Union," he said. One of the major impediments while undertaking black tiger .
Now, see what Himalayas have in store
Turns out, people know more about Mars than about the young Himalayan ranges."We know more about the rocks on parts of Mars than we do about some of the areas in the Himalaya," said a scientist, Alka Tripathy-Lang.In this regard, a group of scientists from Arizona State University have started to use data from Terra, a satellite orbiting the Earth, in the same way, that planetary geologists have been using data from the Mars-orbiting satellite, Odyssey."Many researchers have done extraordinary geologic mapping in this rugged region, but the fact is that some places are just completely inaccessible because of topography, elevation, or geopolitical issues. The rocks in those areas are an important piece of the tectonic puzzle and are important for understanding the way the region evolved," said Wendy Bohon, another scientist working on this subject."The tools we used, originally developed for mapping rocks on Mars, were a way to safely access information about the rocks in the ...
Elephants pull down mud house: two children killed
Two children of a family were killed and their grandmother was injured in wall collapse when their mud house was pulled down by a herd of elephants at Domunda today, a forest official said. The elephants had gone to the village, about 45 km from the district headquarters, in search of food. Since paddy was stored in house, the animals pulled down the house at about 3 am when the victims were sleeping. The two children died on the spot and their grandmother was seriously injured, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Saurabh Chandra said. The deceased were identified as Sanjit Malhar(5), son of Binod Malhar, and Chintamani Kumari (12), daughter of Kisto Malhar. Their injured grandmother Kumudni Devi (50) was admitted to the Patliputra Medical College Hospital. The Ranger of Tundi forest Shambhu Prasad Gupta said that families of the victims were paid Rs 25,000 each. The government grant of Rs 4 lakh each would be paid after completion of official formalities. The forest ...
Thailand preparing total ban on import of electronic waste
Thai authorities, who began a series of raids last month on factories accused of illegally importing and processing electronic waste, today said they may use special powers given to the military government to impose a total ban on the import of such potentially toxic materials. Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Gen Surasak Karnjanarat said that he will lead an effort to amend the law to include such a ban. He said if that proves impossible, the prime minister could invoke special powers he was given after the army seized power in 2014 to institute a ban. Police today raided two factories on the outskirts of Bangkok accused of illegally processing electronic waste, and said they would be closed.
Sembcorp lowest bidder for Bangladesh power supply tender
Sembcorp Energy India is set to bag a tender for supply of 250 megawatts of electricity to Bangladesh after it bid the lowest tariff. Sources with direct knowledge of the development said Sembcorp Gayatri Power, a subsidiary of Sembcorp Energy India Ltd, bid the lowest among half a dozen power utilities that submitted offers to Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) for the supply of 250 MW of electricity for 15 years. It wasn't immediately known as to how much Sembcorp had bid. Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) had in February invited bids for buying 250 MW power from Indian firms for short duration (August 1, 2018, to December 31, 2019) and long-term (January 1, 2020, and July 31, 2033). Besides Sembcorp, other bidders included Adani Power Mundra Ltd, Hindustan Power, Jaiprakash Power Ventures Ltd, Meenakshi Energy Pvt Ltd and Odisha Power Generation Corp Ltd. Sources said, Sembcorp made the most competitive offer for supply of electricity generated from imported coal at .
Bear necessities: Cooler home for S Korea's last polar bear
The last polar bear kept in South Korea will be sent to Britain to escape the country's stifling, humid summers and live out his days in more appropriate surroundings, zoo keepers said today. Tongki -- a 23-year-old male named after a Japanese cartoon character of the 1980s -- lives in a 330-square-metre (3500-square-foot) concrete enclosure at the Everland theme park outside Seoul. Born in captivity at a zoo in the southern city of Masan, Tongki is the only polar bear in South Korea and has been living alone in Everland since his last fellow resident died three years ago. As temperatures inched towards 30 degrees Celsius today, Tongki cooled off in a pool while zoo keepers threw him fish to eat. This November he will be moved to the Yorkshire Wildlife Park in the north of England. The park boasts a 40,000-square-metre polar bear reserve designed to replicate the animals' Arctic summer habitat, complete with several lakes. "I just hope he spends his last years in greater happiness and
Rice up on export enquiries, tight supply
Prices of rice basmati as well as non-basmati rose by up to Rs 100 per quintal at the wholesale grains market today due to pick up in export enquiries and local demand. However, wheat dara weakened marginally due to reduced offtake by flour mills. Traders said, increased export enquiries and rising demand from local parties attributed the rise in rice basmati and non-basmati prices. Besides, pause in supplies, too, supported the upside in rice prices, they added. In the national capital, super basmati rice and basmati common new traded Rs 100 each higher at Rs 9,900 and Rs 7,300-7,400 per quintal, respectively. Rice Pusa (1121) also traded higher by Rs 50 to Rs 6,550-6,650 per quintal. Rice permal raw and wand too traded higher by Rs 50 each to Rs 2,425-2,450 and Rs 2,525-2,575 per quintal, respectively. Wheat dara (for mills), howeverm traded lower by Rs 5 at Rs 1740-1745 per quintal due to reduced offtake by flour mills. Following are today's quotations (in Rs per quintal): Wheat ..
Central team to identify source of Nipah virus
A central team is expected to arrive here to identify the source of the deadly Nipah virus that struck this Kerala district last month and claimed 13 lives.
NASA's Curiosity rover captures images of Martian dust storm
With NASA engineers yet to make contact with the Opportunity Mars rover due to a massive storm on the Red Planet, scientists are pinning their hopes on learning more about Martian dust storms from images captured by the Curiosity probe.
Treat water crisis as a scary situation and act: Kasturirangan
Eminent scientist K Kasturirangan said agriculture's share in India's total water usage needs to be brought down to below 50 per cent, and efforts made to preserve and manage even a single drop. The Niti Aayog in a report last week stated that India is suffering from 'the worst water crisis' in its history with about 60 crore people facing high to extreme water stress and about two lakh people dying every year due to inadequate access to safe water. "By 2030, the country's water demand is projected to be twice the available supply, implying severe water scarcity for hundreds of millions of people and an eventual six per cent loss in the country's GDP," the report noted. Citing data by independent agencies, the report pointed out that with nearly 70 per cent of water being contaminated, India is placed at 120th amongst 122 countries in the water quality index. Kasturirangan, a former Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), said there are countries where
Volvo opens 1st US plant amid tariff threats
Auto manufacturer Volvo Cars has opened its first North American plant in Charleston in the US even as its CEO expressed concerns over President Donald Trump's tariff threats.
Goa govt puts on hold process to declare animals as vermin
The Goa government has decided to put on hold the process to declare certain wild animals as vermin (harmful and objectionable). Earlier, several farmers had complained to authorities about animals like wild boars, bisons and others damaging crops, thus causing losses to them. The state government had subsequently initiated a process to declare some of these wild animals as vermin. Principal Chief Conservator of Forest Ajai Saxena today said the issue figured during the State Wildlife Board's meeting held earlier this month and it was decided not to go ahead with the process. However, he did not elaborate on reasons behind the decision. The Centre had earlier sought report from states to declare certain overpopulated species as vermin for a limited period of time in a given area, if found damaging crops. Once declared vermin, the particular species will not be covered under the Wildlife Protection Act, and can be hunted or culled without restriction. Farmers from several .
NASA's Curiosity rover captures photos of Mars dust storm
NASA's Curiosity rover has beamed back pictures of a dust storm that has engulfed much of Mars over the last two weeks and prompted NASA's Opportunity rover to suspend science operations, the US space agency said today. However, the Curiosity rover, which has been studying Martian soil at Gale Crater, is expected to remain largely unaffected by the dust. While Opportunity is powered by sunlight, which is blotted out by dust at its current location, Curiosity has a nuclear-powered battery that runs day and night. The Martian dust storm has grown in size and is now officially a "planet-encircling" dust event. Though Curiosity is on the other side of Mars from Opportunity, dust has steadily increased over it, more than doubling over the weekend. The atmospheric haze blocking sunlight, called "tau," is now above 8.0 at Gale Crater - the highest tau the mission has ever recorded. Tau was last measured near 11 over Opportunity, thick enough that accurate measurements are no longer possible .
Outdoor air pollution killed 4.2mn people in 2016, says UN
A United Nations report published on Wednesday said in 2016, an estimated 4.2 million people died as a result of high levels of ambient air pollution.
