Page 906 - Environment
U.S. solar panel import tariff to hit European, Asian manufacturers
SINGAPORE/BERLIN (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to slap tariffs on solar panel imports is a blow to a booming global industry, and hit stocks in European and Asian solar groups on fears their business might suffer.
NHAI approves Rs 866 cr project in Madhya Pradesh
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has awarded a Rs 866 crore project in Madhya Pradesh for widening of a stretch on National Highways No 12, the government said today. The NHAI has issued Letter of Award (LOA) for the development of Hiran River to Sindoor River stretch on NH 12 to Krishna Constructions-Gawar Construction Ltd JV, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said in a statement. The 866.39 crore project would be implemented on EPC (engineering, procurement, construction) mode in 24 months, it said. "It includes upgradation of the highway from 2 lane to 4 lane with rigid pavement (cement concrete road), along with construction of 4 major bridges, 20 minor bridges, 9 underpasses at the location of minor junction and 29 minor junctions for the free and safe movement of road users". It said 13 km of the project road passes through wildlife sanctuary in which 39.750 hectare forest land is required for diversion. "The road also passes through ...
Reliance Energy gets 18 electric vehicles to combat pollution
Reliance Energy has acquired six cars and 12 two-wheelers for its operational activities as part of its commitment to protect the environment by reducing air pollution, an official said here on Tuesday.
Sasan plant may shut down in March for lack of coal: HC told
The threat of a shutdown is looming large over the operation of Reliance Power's 3,960 megawatt power project in Madhya Pradesh if it is not allowed to mine coal in excess of the cap set by the Centre, the company told Delhi High Court today. Sasan Power Ltd, a subsidiary of Reliance, moved an application before a bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar, contending that the cap of 17 million tonne per annum (MTPA) on mining from its two coal blocks Moher and Moher-Amlohri blocks was not enough to carry out operations till the end of this financial year. It said the approved quantity of coal would not meet the requirement for running the plant for the last 10 days of March this year, severely affecting 42 crore consumers. The company has contended that if it was not allowed to mine another 2 MTPA, that is up to 19 MTPA, in this financial year, it will not be able to meet the requirements of its Sasan Ultra Mega Power Project (UMPP) that ...
'Kerala Model needed to upgrade rural living standards'
There should be a 'Kerala Model' in introducing technology-driven projects to upgrade the living standards of the rural community in the state, Manju Sharma, former Union Secretary of Department of Biotechnology (DBT), said on Tuesday.
2,500 govt buildings to get environment-friendly ACs
Super-efficient and environment- friendly air-conditioners, which consume 30 per cent less power will be installed in 2,500 government buildings, Union Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan has said. All automobiles will be converted to electric keeping in view the government's commitment to shift to electric mobility by 2030 he said while launching replacement of conventional lights with LED lights in East Delhi yesterday. "One lakh conventional air conditioners will be replaced by super-efficient ACs that will consume 30 per cent less power and will be environment-friendly," an official statement quoting the minister said. Vardhan said India will adhere to its commitment made in the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. "Over 88 crore LED bulbs have been distributed across India, both by government and private agencies under the Mission Innovation scheme of Prime Minister Narendra Modi," the minister said. "In 2014, the procurement cost of these bulbs was Rs 310, now it is ..
Plea to PM to utilise transfer fund for FACT modernisation
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan today urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to utlise the amount mobilised from transfer of about 480 acres of FACT land in Kochi to KINFRA for modernisation and expansion of the sick central Public Sector Undertaking. A letter in this regard was sent to Prime minister today. The unutilised land of FACT has been transfered to Kerala Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (KINFRA) for setting up a Rs 1,800 crore Petrochemical Park. An MoU in this regard was signed in December 2017 by the Kerala government and Fertilisers and Chemicals Travancore. The park is aimed at making Kochi a hub in petrochemical production chain on par with Jurong in Singapore and industrial complexes in South Korea. The fertilisers ministry had decided to utilise the amount for clearing the liablities of FACT and tax arrears. Once these dues are cleared, there will not be any resource left for revamping of the fertiliser company, an official press ...
Globalisation is losing its lustre, Modi tells Davos summit
DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - Protectionism is gaining ground and globalisation is losing its appeal, but India is open for business, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told the World Economic Forum on Tuesday.
Electricity for all in Assam now a reality: Sonowal
Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal today launched the Saubhagya (Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojna) scheme and said electricity for all would now be a reality, even in the remotest areas of the state. No village or urban area in the state would be left out of the reach of electricity, he said. Sonowal said the scheme has been launched to give every citizen access to electricity, which is one of the basic necessities of modern living. The Saubhagya scheme, launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 25, 2017, will provide electricity connection to all households, even in remotest of villages by 31st December, 2018. It will also cover 20.40 lakh remaining villages out of the ambit of electricity, he said. Households in inaccessible areas would be provided solar power packs (with battery bank) along with LED lights, fan and power plug with five-year free maintenance support, the chief minister said. Altogether 18.7 lakh rural households and 1.7 lakh .
Biologist moots integrated approach for ensuring food security
An integrated and holistic approach was required for developing proper technologies to ensure the food and nutritional security of the people in the country, eminent biologist Dr Manju Sharma said today. "Malnutrition is still a grave issue in India. Every year 2.1 million children die of malnutrition in the country", she said here, citing a data of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Sharma, a former secretary of Department of Biotechnology, urged the scientists and professionals to take up challenging tasks for combating malnutrition. She stressed the need for launching different types of missions, along with international collaborations and interaction with social scientists as well, to address the food and nutritional issues in the country. She was speaking after inaugurating a 21-day Winter School being launched by the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) to train young researchers on latest trends in developing natural products from the .
NHAI awards contract for 4-Laning of Hiran River to Sindoor River section of NH-12 in Madhya Pradesh
The project would be implemented on EPC mode with construction period of 24 months. The project includes upgradation of the highway from 2 lane to 4 lane with rigid pavement (cement concrete road), along with construction of 4 major bridges, 20 minor bridges, 9 underpasses at the location of minor junction and 29 minor junctions for the free and safe movement of road users.
'Larger dams needed to increase water storage capacity'
Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal today stressed the need to build larger dams in India for increasing river water storage capacity to meet demands of population growth,economic growth and sustainable development. Speaking after inaugurating the two-day 'International Dam Safety Conference-2018' here,he said it was estimated that it was possible to create total river water storage capacity of about 690 Billion Cubic Meters in India. Against this less than 300 BCM storage has been created by building dams in the country so far, Meghwal said. "Thus there is a need to construct more large dams to meet the demands of population growth, economic growth and sustainable development', the Minister for Water Resources and River Development said. Stressing the importance of dam safety and regular maintenance of existing ones, he said there was also an urgent need to safeguard each and every dam. "Most of the existing dams are considerably old. Close to 80 per cent of the dams are ..
Shriram EPC secures order worth Rs 84 crore
From Drinking Water & Sanitation Department, Government of Jharkhand
Wheat output likely to drop by 2.31% to 96.1 mn tonnes: NCML
The country's wheat output could drop by 2.31 per cent to 96.1 million tonnes in the 2017-18 crop year due to shift in the area to other crops, private agri-commodities management and services firm NCML said. Although the government has not come out with its official estimate on wheat and other rabi crops for 2017-18 crop year (July-June), but the agriculture ministry is hopeful of a record 100 million tonnes of wheat output this year. Wheat output stood at 98.38 million tonnes in the 2016-17 crop year, as per official data. "Contrary to the government's speculation of wheat crossing 100 million tonnes, NCML forecasts the 2017-18 wheat crop at 96.1 million tonnes," National Collateral Management Services Limited (NCML) said in a statement. The reason is around 4 per cent lower wheat area sown as the farmers shifted to other crops, majorly chana, it said. Even soyabean production is estimated to decline sharply to 9.15 million tonnes in the rabi season of this year, as ...
China's high-speed laser comm satellite put into service
China has successfully put into service its first high-speed laser communication satellite, after completing a key test, officials said today. The high-orbit satellite, Shijian-13, has (successfully) completed a two-way high-speed laser communication test between the satellite and the ground, the first of its kind in the world, the China National Space Administration said in a statement. "Besides, serving users in China, the satellite will connect communication base stations in remote areas and meet the needs of distance education, digital news gathering, and emergency communication," Li Feng, chief satellite designer at China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation said. Shijian-13, launched from Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in southwest China's Sichuan Province in 2017, has a transfer capacity of 20 Gbps and a designed orbital life of 15 years, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
Scientists discover a piece of America in Australia
Researchers have discovered rocks in Queensland that bear striking similarities to those found in North America, suggesting that a chunk of Australia was actually part of America 1.7 billion years ago. The research published in the journal Geology found that the rocks have signatures that are unknown in Australia and instead have a surprising resemblance to those found in Canada today. According to Adam Nordsvan, a PhD student at Curtin University in Australia, the findings are significant as they unlock important information about the 1.6 billion year old super-continent Nuna. "Our research shows that about 1.7 billion years ago, Georgetown rocks were deposited into a shallow sea when the region was part of North America. "Georgetown then broke away from North America and collided with the Mount Isa region of northern Australia around 100 million years later," Nordsvan said. This was a critical part of global continental reorganisation when almost all continents on ...
Tripura marks Netaji's birth anniversary with massive procession
Over 2,000 school students and tableaux depicting various issues, including current ones, were part of a mammoth colourful procession here in Tripura on Tuesday to mark the 122nd birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.
Climate change is huge threat: PM Modi in Davos
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said that climate change is a huge threat to the world right now.Prime Minister Narendra Modi was delivering the keynote address at the opening session of the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in the Swiss mountain resort of Davos."Climate change is a huge threat right now, Snow in the Arctic is melting, many islands are sinking or are about to sink," Prime Minister Modi pointed out."Extreme cold, hot, floods, drought- the effect of extreme weather is increasing day by day. Everybody says that carbon emission should be reduced, but how many people and countries are there who are ready to help developing countries and societies to get useful technology," Prime Minister Modi asked.He also outlined the efforts India is making to tackle the menace of climate change."My government has put a very big goal before Indians to protect the environment and to fight climate change- we have set a target to produce 175GW of renewable energy by 2022. We ...
China denounces US tariffs on solar products, washing machines
China today expressed dissatisfaction over a US move to impose steep tariffs on imported solar cells and washing machines, asking America to refrain from "overusing" trade remedies and play a positive role in promoting the world economy. The US approved tariffs on imported washing machines and solar panels in line with President Donald Trump's "America First" trade policy, which aims to protect local manufacturers from foreign competition. Trump ordered tariffs of up to 50 per cent on imported washing machines for the next three years and of up to 30 per cent on solar cells for the next four years. China, the world's biggest solar panel manufacturer, called the move an "abuse" of trade remedies. "China hopes the US could refrain from overusing trade remedies, abide by multilateral trade rules to play a positive role in promoting the world economy," Wang Hejun, head of the commerce ministry's trade remedy and investigation bureau said. Wang pointed out the US trade ...
CBI to investigate NTPC, MMTC, others over coal imports
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) will probe top state-run utility NTPC and state-owned company MMTC, over whether they were involved in a scheme to import inferior quality coal from Indonesia and pass it off as superior grade.
