Page 920 - Environment
Household burning, coal combustion behind 75% deaths
Exposure to household burning emissions and coal combustion were the main reasons behind 75 per cent of air pollution-related deaths in India in 2015 which came chiefly from rural areas, reveals a report.
'91k solar lights provided in un-electrified villages in JK'
The Jammu and Kashmir government today said 91,000 solar home lights have been provided to households in un-electrified villages in the state. Minister for Social Welfare, ARI & Trainings and Science & Technology Sajad Gani Lone said the home lighting devices were provided under the Remote Village Electrification Programme. Replying to a question of BJP MLC Ajatshatru Singh in the Legislative Council, he said the Jammu & Kashmir Energy Development Agency (JAKEDA) would also install 54 MW solar rooftop power plants in 2018-19. Under the Prime Minister's Development Package, the government installed 3,000 solar street lighting systems and more 17,013 would be installed after the identification of the areas, Lone said. The minister said there was a 70 per cent subsidy for domestic consumers and 60 per cent to government departments for solar rooftop systems. He said the Union ministry of New and Renewable Energy has approved 100 MW solar energy park for the ...
Vascon Engineers launches residential project 'Forest Edge'
In Kharadi, Pune
CBI recovers Rs 2.15 cr in raids at agriculture ministry
The CBI has recovered Rs 2.15 crore in cash and jewellery worth about Rs 30 lakh from the residence of a senior official of the Union agriculture ministry, posted in Kolkata. The CBI sources said the searches were carried out in connection with alleged forgery and cheating in the issuance of phyto-sanitary certificate for plant-based imports from various countries. During the searches at the residence of R K Sasihar, plant protection officer, Regional Quarrantine Office, Kolkata, Rs 2.15 crore in cash and about Rs 30 lakh worth jewellery was seized, the sources said. They said the searches in connection with the alleged forgery began on Saturday and continued till today. The searches were conducted at 24 locations in Kolkata and two locations in New Delhi.
Cong seeks PM's intervention to resolve farmers' stir against
Madhya Pradesh Congress leader Ajay Singh today demanded Prime Minister Narendra Modi's intervention in the ongoing protest by farmers against the NTPC in Narsinghpur district. He expressed apprehension that the agitation at Gadarwara might take a turn like the one in Mandsaur in which five farmers were killed in police firing last year. Singh, Leader of Opposition in the Madhya Pradesh Assembly, has written a letter to the prime minister, Union Energy Minister R K Singh and Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan in this regard. "I demand immediate intervention in the ongoing agitation by farmers against the NTPC at Gadarwara over non-fulfillment of the promises made to them. I suspect that it may lead to a crisis like the Mandsaur," Singh stated. He claimed that hundreds of acres of farm land had been acquired by the NTPC for its proposed 3200 MW plant and farmers were promised to pay Rs 18 lakh per acre. Singh said the farmers were also promised that they would be paid ..
Rajasthan: 80 people injured in kite-flying related accidents
At least 80 people were injured over the past 24 hours in kite-flying related accidents here on the occasion of Makar Sankranti, a hospital official said. According to the official, out of the 80 people injured, 10 have have been admitted to the SMS Hospital for treatment starting yesterday morning. "The patients include those who fell while flying kites and also those who got injured to glass-coated manjha (abrasive string)," In charge SMS Hospital (Emergency cell) Dr Jagdish Modi said. With that, many birds were also injured due to manjha threads and were therefore treated by veterinary doctors. At Pakshi Chikitsalaya, an NGO in Malviya Nagar area, nearly 1100 birds including eagle, cuckoo, crow, pigeon were treated. "We had set up 32 camps across the city for the birds injured due to manjha used in kite-flying. From January 13 to 15, we received nearly 1100 injured birds at the Chitiksalya and the figure is likely to rise. "On Makar Sankranti alone, 742 birds with ...
'Refine tec'logies to improve forecasting in fisheries sector'
A top official of Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) today stressed the need to focus on refining technologies to improve the forecasting system in the fisheries sector. "Technology is moving very fast. Scientists should ensure the existing forecasting system in fisheries and agriculture sectors is accurate and authentic", Dr Trilochan Mohapatra, Secretary, Department of Agricultural Research and Education and Director General of the ICAR said. He was inaugurating the second international symposium of the Societal Applications in Fisheries and Aquaculture using Remote Sensing Imagery (SAFARI), organised by the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) here today. Mohapatra said remote sensing techniques could effectively be used to develop proper technologies to maintain accuracy in a slew of activities like weather warning,real-time advisories on nature of the sea and forecasting various ocean phenomena. "Scientists should be ready to improve the ...
Punjab inks MoU with IOC to set up biogas, bio-CNG plants
The Punjab government today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Oil Corporation to set up bio-gas and bio-CNG plants in the state. The pact is part of the state's concerted efforts to find sustainable solutions to paddy straw burning, which has emerged as a major environmental concern. The MoU with IOC was signed by Punjab Bureau of Industrial Promotion (PBIP) and Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA) here in the presence of Chief Minister Amarinder Singh. It will facilitate regulatory clearances and incentives by the state government, and will be followed up with a separate technical cooperation MoU between the public sector undertaking and PEDA, an official spokesperson said. The plants, to be based on a new concept and technology, will be set up at a total investment of Rs 5,000 crore, and will generate employment for around 4,000 people, he added. The project will be initiated with 42 plants becoming operational in 2018. It will be scaled up ..
N. Korea to send orchestra to Winter Olympics
North Korea agreed with South Korea on Monday to send a 140-member orchestra to the South Korea-hosted Winter Olympics, Seoul's Unification Ministry said.
NC MLC marshalled out from JK Legislative Council, Oppn stages
National Conference (NC) legislator Sajad Ahmed Kitchloo today was marshalled out from the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Council after he trooped into the well of the House over an "unsatisfactory reply" in connection with the power issue. Angry over his marshalling out of the house, the NC and Congress members staged a walkout, alleging that the opposition voice was being suppressed. During the Question Hour in the upper house, Kitchloo had asked a supplementary question about halting of the construction of a few power projects in Kishtwar district. Minister of State for Power Asiea Naqash, replying to his question, said due to poor performance of contractor the commissioned schedule of the 48 MW Kalnai hydro electric project was bound to be delayed. Unsatisfied by the reply, Kitchloo walked into the well of the House, protesting the delay. On this Chairman Legislative Council Haji Anayat Ali directed marshals to take him out. Naqash, continuing her speech, said four ...
50,000 artists to get govt assistance in Odisha
Odisha government today announced an artists' assistance scheme called the 'Mukshyamantri Kalakar Sahayata Jojana' (MMKSJ) under which 50,000 artists from across the state will get a monthly assistance of Rs 1,200. The announcement in this regard was made by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik after a meeting, attended by culture minister A C Panda, Chief Secretary A P Padhi and other officials. "The government has decided to give Rs 1,200 per month as artist assistance. About 50,000 artists from across the state will get the benefit," Patnaik told reporters adding that earlier only 4,000 artists were being given Rs 1,000 as the artist assistance per month. Patnaik said the state government has also changed the eligibility criteria for availing the artist assistance. Now under the new scheme, a male artist can avail assistance after attending the age of 50 years instead of the present 60 years, while the age criteria for female artist is reduced to 40 years from 50 ...
Turkey unveils route of 45 km 'Istanbul Canal'
The Turkish government today unveiled the route of its planned new canal for Istanbul, a hugely ambitious 45 kilometre (28 mile) project designed to be its answer to the famed artificial shipping lanes in Panama or Egypt's Suez. The project, first announced by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan while he was prime minister in 2011, is by far the most complex of a string of new ventures for the city. The government argues it will create attractive new living areas and take pressure off the Bosphorus Strait that splits the European and Asian sides of the city and is one of the world's busiest shipping lanes. Transport and Communications Minister Ahmet Arslan said that the canal would begin in the Istanbul district of Kucukcekmece on the Sea of Marmara, where there is already an inland lake. It will then head north towards the Sazlidere reservoir before emerging into the Black Sea just north of Durusu. "The aim is to reduce the risks that can arise from vessels in the Bosphorus .
Goa files arguments at Mahadayi tribunal on dispute with
The Goa government today filed a brief summary of arguments before the Mahadayi Water Dispute Tribunal in Delhi amidst its dispute with Karnataka over the diversion of the river's waters. The hearing on Goa's arguments against Karnataka's proposed dams on the river will be heard in the first week of February. Senior Counsel Atmaram Nadkarni, representing Goa before the tribunal, said a brief summary of arguments had been filed which runs into three volumes comprising 531 pages. "The summary of arguments have been prepared topic wise. The first volume contains the case and pleadings of the state of Goa, along with excerpts of the evidence on hydrology placed by Goa through its witnesses," Nadkarni explained. The second volume contains arguments and submissions on the environmental aspect and the evidence placed by Goa on marine wild life, marine ecology and environmental flows, he said. "The third volume contains specific arguments on various legal issues such as ...
Rising sea swamps island along Bengal coast
Mousuni (West Bengal), Jan 15: The living drown and the dead float out of their graves as the rising sea engulfs Baliara village in Mousuni, an island facing the Bay of Bengal. Every third or fourth day, the high tide enters homes and leaves farms a wasteland.
Rhino shot dead by poachers in Kaziranga National Park
An adult female rhino was shot dead by poachers in Assam's Kaziranga National Park, a UNESCO declared World Heritage site, a senior Forest department official said today. Forest guards at Daflang camp under Bagore range of Kaziranga National Park heard two gunshots around 9.10 yesterday night and reacted immediately by firing six rounds in defence of the animals there, Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (Wildlife) Bikash Brahma told media here. Brahma said because of the quick action of the forest guards the poachers could not take away the horn of the dead rhino. A combing operation has been launched to trace the poachers who fled away, the senior official said. The incident was the first case of rhino killing by poachers this year. Last year five rhinos were killed by poachers in Kaziranga National Park while in 2016, 18 rhinos were killed by poachers and their horns taken away.
Octogenarian trampled to death
An 80-year-old farmer was trampled to death by an elephant on the city outskirts in the early hours today. The man had gone to bathe at a rivulet around 5.30 AM before going to his farm when the jumbo attacked him, the police said. Forest and police officials chased the elephant away and recovered the body. The local people have appealed to forest officials to take steps to prevent frequent incidents of elephants straying into human habitats.
U.S. regains status as top beef exporter to South Korea
SEOUL (Reuters) - The United States reclaimed its spot as the top beef exporter to South Korea in 2017, 14 years after a U.S. outbreak of mad cow disease led to a ban on American beef and handed market leadership to rival Australia.
Kite fliers' message to Modi, Yogi: Save Yamuna, save Agra
Pained by the condition of the Yamuna, hundreds of kite fliers thronged to a dry riverbed here to send messages to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath urging them to save the dying river.
JNU professor comes up with solution to stubble burning
With crop residue burning in northwest India contributing to a quarter of Delhi's air pollution during winter, a professor from Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has claimed to have developed a solution to the problem.According to Professor Dinesh Mohan, the biomass or stubble can be converted into Biochar using a reactor.Professor Mohan says the conversion of biomass into Biochar would reduce the issue caused due to stubble burning.Biochar is a manmade charcoal material composed of agricultural wastes including manure, crop residues, and forage grasses."One of the contributors to pollution in Delhi is stubble burning. Farmers do not have a solution to deal with waste. After working on the situation we found a solution where we can convert stubble or biomass into Biochar which can be used in agriculture," Prof. Mohan told ANI.As per the professor the converted Biochar can be re-used in the fields for agricultural purposes, which would provide essential nutrients to the soil.He
Will curb illicit felling of trees with firm hand: Thakur
Himachal Pradesh Forest Minister Gobind Thakur today warned that stringent action would be taken against illicit felling of trees as he asserted the state government's commitment to eradicate forest, drug, liquor and mining mafia. The minister, who visited the Koti forest range near Shimla, where 400 trees were illegally felled and assured stringent action against the culprits. Thakur, accompanied top officers of forest department, interacted with locals who said that illicit felling of trees was going on for the past three years. He directed forest department officers to submit a report about illegal felling of trees within a week. Following a complaint by Range Forest officer Anu Thakur that about 400 trees of different species likeBaan, Deodar and Chir (Pine trees) had been illegally felled in Koti Forest Range, a case was registered under various sectionsof the Indian Forest Act and 379 of the Indian Penal Code at Dhalli Police Station. On investigations it was found
