Page 74 - Environment

Mass die-off of puffin birds linked to climate change

Birds like puffins are dying in alarming numbers owing to climate change, suggests researchers.Tufted puffins breeding in the Bering Sea, off the coast of Alaska, feed on fish and marine invertebrates, which in turn feed on ocean plankton. Elevation of sea temperatures has led to major changes in ocean ecosystems and has been linked to previous mass mortality events in marine birds.Beginning in 2014, increased atmospheric temperatures and decreased winter sea ice led to declines in energy-rich prey species in the Bering Sea, as well as a shift of some species more northward, diminishing puffin food resources in the southern portion of the sea, according to the study published in the Journal of PLOS ONE.In the current study, researchers documented a four-month-long die-off of puffins and a second species, the Crested auklet, on St. Paul Island, one of the Pribilof Islands in the southern Bering Sea, about 300 miles east of the mainland.Beginning in October 2016, tribal and community ...

2,500 kg sea cucumber valued at Rs 1 crore seized in TN

: Nearly 2,500 kg sea cucumber valued at Rs 1 crore meant to be smuggled to foreign countries was seized from a godown here Sunday and two people were arrested in this connection, Coastal Security Group police said. Acting on a tip-off, a special team of CSG police personnel conducted search operations in a godown here this morning and found 2,500 kg sea cucumbers hidden there. The sea cucumber was meant to be taken to Tuticorin and then smuggled to foreign countries, police said. The accused were arrested under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, they added. A mini-lorry kept in the premises was also seized, the police said. Sea cucumbers are classified as endangered species and their harvest is banned under the Wildlife Protection Act. These are in great demand in South-East Asian countries.

WB: Massive cleanliness drive on Mahananda River held in Siliguri

Ahead of World Environment Day, a massive cleanliness drive on Mahananda River was conducted by various Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and youth of Siliguri here on Sunday.Arunangsu Sharma, the organiser of Mahananda Bachao Abhiyan, told ANI, "It is very unfortunate to see water bodies getting contaminated day-by-day. While we were cleaning the Mahananda River, we got to see plastic waste materials, carcasses of animals and other materials sedimented in the river. The residents aren't aware of the repercussions this can bring to their lives if they consume water from these rivers."He said, "It is also a matter of shame for the people who are staying here when tourists come to visit Siliguri, which is considered as one of the major tourist attractions in the state. The condition of the river was so appalling and that's why we started campaigns and initiatives to clean the Mahananda River.""It's been more than 10 days that we are cleaning the river and its banks. Many people from

Infant killed in suspected leopard attack

A nine-month-old boy was mauled to death, apparently by a leopard, in a village in Sindewahi taluka of the district early Sunday, officials said. According to a forest official, the mortal remains of the infant were found around half a km away from his house located in Gadbori village. "The baby boy was sleeping alongside his parents when a leopard possibly sneaked into their house, located close to a forest area, in the wee hours and took him away without anybody noticing it," range forest officer, Sindewahi range, Arun Gond, said. Some time later, when the parents found the child missing from the place, they raised an alarm and informed the forest officials around 4 am. Thereafter, a search was launched and the infant's body was found, he added. Gond said, preliminary investigation suggests that the child was killed by a leopard. "We have set up camera traps and cages to capture the animal," he said.

Asia's glaciers prevent water shortage during droughts

Glaciers become the largest supplier of water to some of Asia's major river basins during droughts, fulfilling the basic needs of 221 million people when water shortages are at their worst, a study has found. The study, published in journal Nature, has important economic and social implications for a region that is vulnerable to drought. Climate change is causing most of the region's glaciers to shrink. Hamish Pritchard, a glaciologist at the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) in the UK, said that the melt-water is important for the people living downstream when the rains fail and water shortages are at their worst. According to researchers, each summer, glaciers release 36 cubic kilometres of water -- equivalent to 14 million Olympic swimming pools -- to these rivers. This is enough water to cater to the needs of 221 million people. The high-mountain region of Asia, known as the Third Pole, including the Himalayas, has 95,000 glaciers in total. About 800 million people are partly ...

Purvanchal Expressway will be completed by Aug 2020: Anup Chandra Pandey

Anup Chandra Pandey, Chief Secretary of Uttar Pradesh on Sunday spoke in detail about the under-construction Purvanchal Expressway and added that he was carrying out inspections on the same."The 340-kilometre long Purvanchal Expressway is a six lane-expandable to eight-lane expressway, it will have a total of 19 flyovers, 7 road over bridges, 7 major bridges and 123 minor bridges as well. It will also have 223 underpass and 491 culverts and 4 wire ducts along the total route. We will inspect the ongoing work at Amethi, Sultanpur, Azamgarh and Ghazipur today," Pandey told reporters here.The Lucknow-Azamgarh-Ghazipur- Expressway which was renamed as Purvanchal Expressway will connect the historic towns of Ghazipur and Azamgarh with the state capital, Lucknow.Pandey added that the majority of groundwork in and around Amethi had been completed and the construction work was about to begin and asserted that the project would be completed by August 2020."96 per cent of the land acquisition ..

Nagaland takes measures to save maize crop from pest attack

With the Fall Armyworm (FAW) affecting maize cultivation in Nagaland, the horticulture department has started taking measures to mitigate the problem, officials said. The department has also decided to carry out a survey to estimate the quantum of damage caused by the pest attack, they said. Out of the 11 districts in the state, the crop has been affected in Kohima, Dimapur and Phek, the Deputy Director of Department of Horticulture, Dr Moa Walling, told reporters here on Saturday, on the sidelines of an awareness campaign and training for mitigation of FAW. As an allied agriculture department, the horticulture department is concerned about the effects of FAW on maize cultivation throughout the state, he said. The district horticulture officers, field staff and farmers are being trained to control the menace by using Nimbecidine EC, an insecticide, he said. They are also being trained to use pheromone traps to fight the pest, he added. He said preventive measures have to

Ludhiana battles heatwave conditions, temp reaches 44 degree Celsius

Scorching heat wave conditions has not only gripped the national capital but also Punjab's Ludhiana.According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the minimum and maximum temperatures in Ludhiana are hovering at 28 degree Celsius and 44 degree Celsius, respectively. The relative humidity is around 8 per cent. For the next few days, the temperature will continue to be above 40 degree Celsius.The heat wave is making life difficult for all the sections of the society in the region especially those who have to commute under the hot sun. The locals are battling the heat wave by purchasing water, juices from shops at traffic signals.Some locals spoke to ANI and shared their problems saying that the citizens must take steps such as planting trees and conserving water to battle with the heat."Everyday, the temperature is increasing. We are not able to step out of our house. I request them all to plant more trees and not to waste water. I also advise them to consume liquid as much as .

Mayurbhanj faces scarcity of clean drinking water

People in Arjunsahi village are resorted to using visibly dirty water for their everyday need due to unavailability of well, tube well or clean drinking water resource in their area.A large number of women, carrying utensils over their heads and walking through farm fields is not an uncommon sight in the region; however, despite all these efforts they have to make do with an unhygienic shallow-dug water pit, which also provides them with unclean water for their daily needs.One of the villagers said, "Sometimes we see insects in the water we collect. We want the government to give us tubewells so that we get clean groundwater."Srimathy Manjhi, a human right activist from the area also echoed similar sentiments and said, "This is a place where water scarcity is the major problem. Government promises a lot of things but even pure drinking water is not available in the area. They are forcing to use water which is not fit for drinking and is unhygienic. The government must do ...

No discussion on joining BJP: Cong MLA Gore on meet with BJP minister

Refuting speculations of him joining Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Congress MLA Jay Kumar Gore on Saturday said that his meeting with BJP Minister Girish Mahajan was completely apolitical and was held to discuss the drought situation in his constituency.Speaking to ANI, Gore said, "There hasn't been any discussion of me going to BJP. The place which I represent in the Legislative Assembly is facing drought. Water is required to be released in my constituency for the welfare of farmers. My meeting was completely apolitical."Earlier Gore had met state Water Resources Minister, Mahajan triggering speculations of Gore joining the BJP.Gore was accompanied by BJP MP Ranjitsinh Naik Nimbalkar to the meeting.Congress was wiped out in the state in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections and could only win one seat while its ally NCP won four out of 48 seats.

Noida police issue 79,200 challans for traffic violations in May

As many as 79,200 drivers, or about 2,500 daily, were penalised for traffic violations in May, leading to a revenue collection of over Rs 90 lakh, the Noida Traffic Police said Saturday. The figures are nearly double from March, when 40,061 challans were issued. In April, 53,573 drivers were penalised. "From May 1 to May 31, 79,200 drivers were issued challans for the violation of traffic rules under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988," police said. "While total challans worth Rs 2.51 crore were issued, Rs 91.86 lakh was earned in fine from 22,764 erring vehicles," they added. Police said 8,116 vehicle owners paid their fine manually while 14,648 opted for the online mode. "So far this year, Rs 2.64 crore has been earned in fine against total issued challans of Rs 8.43 crore to 2.42 lakh drivers," police said. According to the official data, 43,001 drivers were issued challans worth Rs 1.34 crore in February, leading to a recovery of Rs 32.28 lakh. In January, 26,277 drivers were issued ...

Dog saves his master's life by forcing tiger to retreat

A dog saved his owner's life by forcing a tiger to retreat in Seoni district of Madhya Pradesh Saturday. Pancham Gajba (22) and his brother were returning from a jungle near Paraspani village in the morning after attending nature's call when the incident took place, said Divisional Forest Officer T S Suliya. As he was breaking off a tree branch, a tiger jumped out from bushes and attacked him, Gajba told reporters. His brother was some distance away. His dog, however, didn't scamper away but started barking ferociously. "The tiger stood over me, on my hands, but before it could get at my throat, the dog started barking. I had a near-death experience," he added. "The tiger then stepped back and for a while stood still. After my brother and villagers came to my rescue, alerted by the dog's barking, the tiger melted back into the jungle," he said. Suliya said Gajba sustained deep wounds on his hands and head. He was given preliminary treatment at a hospital at ...

Special music function praying for rain organised in Madurai

More than 50 students and professors of a government music college in Tamil Nadu along with members of Vaigai Nadi Makkal organisation held a special music function praying for rainfall on Saturday.The function was held in the centre of Vaigai river which has almost run dry amidst the growing drought conditions in Madurai.Kamala, a professor in the music college said that despite the Madurai district getting no monsoon rain, the people have not yet lost hope."There has been no rain during the monsoon season since the last four years in our area. Despite no rain, the people in many places of Tamil Nadu worship and offer special prayers to the Vaigai river and ask for rainfall," Kamala told reporters here.Due to rising temperature, several districts in Tamil Nadu are facing acute water shortage.According to reports, there has been a 40 per cent cut in the piped water supply in Chennai. Several reservoirs across the state have witnessed a decrease in water levels.

Texas struggles to keep pace as thirst for water intensifies

About 1,000 people arrive in Texas each day, drawn by jobs, newly built homes and other opportunities. But in a state where prolonged drought is a regular occurrence, officials are struggling to ensure they can sate everyone's thirst. Water experts are trying to determine how "resilient" the state's water infrastructure is in keeping safe drinking water flowing through the taps. There are indications that the system is more fragile than once thought: After Hurricane Harvey in 2017, more than 200 public water systems shut down or warned customers to boil their tap water. Months later, 3,700 Texans still lacked access to safe drinking water. Before that storm, 30 towns in 2013 were within six months of running out of water as a drought continued to grip the state. "The state is growing so fast that we're constantly playing catch-up when it comes to building resilient water supplies," said Robert Mace, executive director of The Meadows Center for Water and the Environment at Texas State .

GCMMF hails govt's decision to create separate ministry for animal husbandry

GCMMF, which markets dairy products under the Amul brand, Saturday welcomed the Centre's decision to create a separate ministry for animal husbandry, dairying and fisheries. It would be pertinent to note that for the first time the government at the Centre has formed a separate ministry for animal husbandry, dairying and fisheries, Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) said in a statement. "Dairying and Animal Husbandry contributing around Rs 7.7 lakh crores per year, which is around 4.2 per cent of National GDP and emerged as a primary source of income for about 7 crores rural households - most of them are either landless, small or marginal farmers. Animal Husbandry and dairying is contributing around 30 per cent of total agriculture GDP," GCMMF Chairman Ramsinhbhai Parmar said in the statement. Milk, he said, was the "largest agriculture crop of India" and total value of produced is around Rs 7 lakh crore which is more than the total value of all pulses and grain ...

Climate change affecting food production globally

While climate change might find a close association with rising sea levels or high air pollution, a new study shows that climate change has affected the production of world's top ten crops in certain regions.Barley, cassava, maize, oil palm, rapeseed, rice, sorghum, soybean, sugarcane and wheat which together makes the World's top 10 crops, are known to provide a combined 83 per cent of all calories produced on the cropland.The study also highlights that the effect in some regions and countries are faring far worse than others.Published in the journal PLOS ONE, the study analyzed the weather and crop data to evaluate the potential impact of observed climate change.The findings indicated that the observed climate change caused a significant yield variation in the world's top 10 crops, ranging from a decrease of 13.4 percent for oil palm to an increase of 3.5 percent for soybean, and resulting in an average reduction of approximately one per cent (-3.5 X 10e13 kcal/year) of consumable ..

NFC has produced 1 million fuel bundles for reactors:official

The Nuclear Fuel Complex here has achieved the historic milestone of producing one million PHWR fuel bundles, NFC's Chief Executive Dinesh Srivastava said Saturday. "...One of the things which previously was also mentioned about achieving the landmark of one million (PHWR) bundles last year," he said at the NFC Day organised at the complex here. NFC, an organisation under the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), is engaged in the production of natural Uranium fuel bundles for Pressurized Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs), enriched Uranium fuel assemblies for Boiling Water Reactors (BWRs), among others. NFC is embarking on expansion of production facilities at Hyderabad and also setting up a new production facility at Kota, Rajasthan to manufacture 500 MT of fuel assemblies to cater to the requirements of forthcomng 700 MWe Pressurized Heavy Water Rectors, NFC said in a release. Speaking on the sidelines, Uranium Corporation of India Ltd Chairman and Managing Director C K ...

Four trampled to death by rampaging elephant in Jharkhand

Four people, including a two and a half year old boy, were trampled to death by a rampaging elephant in a village outside here on Saturday, an official said.

N-power generation advantages highlighted

Nuclear power generation is comparatively better than any other source of power generation, Secretary in the department of atomic energy K N Vyas said Saturday. Vyas compared nuclear power generation with thermal power generation, which has many disadvantages. "Each unit of 1,000 MW of nuclear power requires 20 hectares while coal based power generation power plants require 70 hectares of land and returns are negligible," he pointed out. Speaking at the diamond jubilee celebrations of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research and National Aerospace Laboratories on the NAL premises, Vyas said the solar park at Rajasthan spread over 1,000 acres will generate 200 MW, but it has a drawback that it has to be washed time and again in the arid region. The nuclear scientist compared the Kaiga nuclear plant in Karnataka with the solar park in Rajasthan. "... this (solar power plant) comes to about 1,000 acres and Kaiga is 4,100 acres. Definitely (at present) this ...

One lion cub, three langurs rescued in city

One lion cub and three langurs were rescued in the city on Saturday by the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, an official said. Officials of the bureau, acting on intelligence inputs, chased and intercepted a SUV in which the cub and the langurs were being transported. Three persons involved in the wildlife trafficking racket were arrested. Sources said the langurs and the cub were being brought from Bangladesh and were supposed to be delivered somewhere in the western part of the country.