Page 955 - Environment
Odisha university partners with BPCL to promote bio-fuel
Odisha's University of Agriculture and Technology and state-run Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) on Sunday signed an agreement to develop and promote rice straw based bio-fuel production in the state.
Bomb blast kills 3 soldiers in Pakistan
A roadside bomb today exploded near a market, killing three soldiers in Pakistan's restive northwest tribal region bordering Afghanistan, officials said. The improvised explosive device blast occurred in Ghulam Khan area of north Waziristan agency. Frontier Constabulary personnel were patrolling the area when the explosion took place. Security forces cordoned-off the area and launched a search operation to nab the culprits. A curfew was imposed in the area.
Patnaik wants officers to fast-track green nod for projects
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has asked officials to fast-track the process of granting forest and environment clearances for infrastructure development projects. Patnaik's direction came close on the heels of Union Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari blaming the state government for the delay in the implementation of several national highway projects and the construction of the second bridge over river Brahmani near Rourkela. Gadkari had cited delay in forest clearance and land acquisition as the major reasons for the delay. Addressing a conference of divisional forest officers here yesterday, the chief minister said, "These clearances should be fast tracked so that developmental initiatives are not delayed." The chief minister also stressed the need for participation of people for increasing the green cover of the state through 'Vana Surakshya Samitis' and Eco Development Committees. Joint forest management should be strengthened for protection and ...
New spider species named after Bob Marley
Scientists have discovered a water-adapted species of spiders and named it after Jamaican reggae legend Bob Marley. In 2009, the sea along the coastline of Queensland in Australia receded to such an extent that it exposed a population of spiders. Researchers associated their emergence with Marley's song "High Tide or Low Tide". In a study published in the journal Evolutionary Systematics, researchers from Queensland Museum in Australia and University of Hamburg in Germany described the intertidal spider. Unlike the spiders which people are familiar with, the intertidal species have adapted to the underwater life by hiding in barnacle shells, corals or kelp holdfast during high tide. To breathe, they build air chambers from silk. Once the sea water recedes, though, they are out and about hunting small invertebrates that roam the surfaces of the nearby rocks, corals and plants. The new species, listed under the scientific name of Desis bobmarleyi, is described based on ...
China flies its first home-made large amphibious aircraft
China's first home-made large amphibious aircraft finished its first ever flight on Sunday in south China's Guangdong Province.According to Xinhua, the aircraft AG600, code-named "Kunlong," successfully winged above the clouds from the Jinwan Civil Aviation Airport in the city of Zhuhai at 9:39 am. It remained in the high sky for about one hour."Its successful maiden flight makes China among the world's few countries capable of developing a large amphibious aircraft," said Huang Lingcai, chief designer of AG600.State-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) which developed the aircraft said, "The aircraft is powered by four domestically-built turboprop engines, has a 39.6-meter-long fuselage and a 38.8-meter wingspan."If the AVIC sources are to be believed, the new aircraft can fly for 12 hours at a time with a maximum take-off weight of 53.5 tonnes and a top cruising speed of 500 kilometers per hour.It is also believed to be the world's largest aircraft of its type.
Two arrested for poaching migratory birds
Wildlife personnel have arrested two poachers in Odisha's Chilika area and seized four bird carcasses from them, a senior forest officer said. The accused duo, arrested yesterday, had poisoned three purple moorhens and one jacana, said Divisional Forest Officer, Chilka wildlife division, Bikash Ranjan Das. The two poachers, aged around 17 years, are residents of Tentuliapada area of the district, Das said. Despite the initiatives taken by the wildlife officials to check poaching around Chilka, hunting of migratory birds continues unabated in the lagoon, said a source in the forest department. In the past one month, at least four bird poachers have been arrested from the lake's vicinity, he said.
China's first homegrown amphibious aircraft makes maiden flight
China's first indigenous amphibious aircraft, believed to be the world's largest, completed its maiden flight on Sunday, taking off from Zhuhai, the coastal city off the disputed South China Sea.
Centre asks Delhi govt to expedite projects under AMRUT scheme
Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri has asked the Delhi government to expedite implementation of the projects approved under the Centre's AMRUT scheme and complete them by 2020. Launched in June 2015, the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) aims at ensuring robust sewage networks, water supply and other infrastructures to improve the quality of life of people in urban areas. In a recent letter to Chief Minister Arvind Kerjriwal, Puri said the Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry has approved all 'State Annual Action Plans (SAAP)', totalling around Rs 802.31 crore, submitted by the Delhi government in three rounds under the AMRUT. The ministry has released the first instalment of 20 per cent of the committed central assistance amounting to Rs 160.46 crore, he said. "Against the total SAAP size of Rs 802.31 crore, projects worth Rs 143 crore only have been awarded so far. With respect to projects worth Rs 397 crore, even detailed projects reports ...
Photosynthesis began 1.25 billion years ago on Earth: study
The world's oldest algae fossils are a billion years old, according to a study which found that the basis for photosynthesis in today's plants was set in place 1.25 billion years ago. The study, published in the journal Geology, may resolve a long-standing mystery over the age of the fossilised algae, Bangiomorpha pubescens, which were first discovered in rocks in Arctic Canada in 1990. The microscopic organism is believed to be the oldest known direct ancestor of modern plants and animals, but it was poorly dated, with estimates placing it somewhere between 720 million and 1.2 billion years. The findings also add to recent evidence that an interval of Earth's history often referred to as the 'Boring Billion' may not have been so boring, after all. From 1.8 to 0.8 billion years ago, archaea, bacteria and a handful of complex organisms that have since gone extinct milled about the planet's oceans, with little biological or environmental change to show for it. In fact, ...
Detailed survey of water bodies in Delhi for their revival
The Delhi government has decided to conduct detailed topographic and hydrographic surveys of all water bodies, drains and rivers in the national capital for their revival. The Irrigation and Flood Control Department of the Delhi government has engaged four firms to assist its officials in the exercise. A senior department official said the move is intended to know exact topography and hydrography of water bodies, river and drains and also the construction activities in their vicinity. "After the survey, a comprehensive plan will be made to revive water bodies across the national capital," the official said. Last year, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had asked the then water minister Kapil Mishra to prepare a blueprint to revive the water bodies. According to the official, executive engineers ofthe Irrigation and Flood Control Department have been asked to take the help of four empanalled firms to conduct this survey. "All the executive engineers have been asked to execute
China conducts maiden flight of indigenous amphibious aircraft
China today conducted the maiden flight of the world's largest homegrown amphibious aircraft, according to a media report. The amphibious aircraft AG600, code named 'Kunlong', soared into the sky from the Jinwan Civil Aviation Airport in the city of Zhuhai, south China's Guangdong Province. The plane has a 39.6-meter-long fuselage and 38.8-meter wingspan, its developer, the state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) said. It is believed to be the world's largest in-development amphibious aircraft, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. China in recent years made major strides in aviation technology. On December 17, it launched the second prototype of China's large passenger jet C919 completed its maiden flight in Shanghai.
10 months after ads, vacancies in NGT yet to be filled
Ten months after it first issued advertisements to fill up 95 vacancies on various posts in the National Green Tribunal (NGT), the government is yet to finalise the candidates for these posts.
Bees attack Brazilian cops in sting gone wrong
Brazilian police looking for criminals ended up targets of a sting themselves when a swarm of bees attacked, sending seven officers to the hospital. The officers were searching a piece of forest by a farm in Resende, northwest of Rio de Janeiro, yesterday when "they found a box," the state police force said in a statement today. "On opening it, they encountered a swarm of bees and were attacked." Seven officers required hospitalisation, two of them being quickly released, the statement said. Of the five still in hospital, one was in intensive care. Globo News television reported that one of the victims was stung 300 times.
Rally for Rivers discussed at Global Landscapes Forum
United Nations Environment Programme, the leading environmental authority that sets the global environmental agenda, has discussed the Rally for Rivers, initiated by Isha Foundation here. The UNEP Executive Director Erik Solheim discussed the matter with the Isha Foundation Founder Sadhguru and lauded its success, a foundation release said today. Solheim welcomed him by saying, "an Indian leader is here today who has inspired any number of Indians to take care of the great rivers of India." "Fascinating conversation with Sadhguru on 'planting trees in people's minds'," Solheim said at Global Landscapes Forum, one of the foremost international ecological forums, at Bonn last week. "Increasing green cover, tree-based agriculture and private investment in irrigation are critical to saving our rivers," Solheim said. "The most important aspect of starting a positive movement is moving away from abstract ideas and towards real issues that concern people," Sadhguru said. "If ...
'Ganga Gram' project for villages launched
Minister for Drinking Water and Sanitation Uma Bharti today launched the 'Ganga Gram' project as part of the government's clean Ganga mission, named Namami Gange, for holistic sanitation development in 4,470 villages on the banks of the river. The project was launched at the Ganga Gram Swachata Sammelan here which was attended by more than 1,400 delegates including 500 village heads from Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal, state government officials and Ganga Swachhta volunteers. At the launch event, Bharti said, "Development takes place only if adequate care and precaution are taken in the project to protect the environment of the Ganga." The Ganga Gram project "depends on the commitment and resolve of the people living on its banks", she said. Water Resources, Ganga Rejuvenation and River Development Minister Nitin Gadkari appealed to the village heads to pledge unconditional support for making the river and the villages on its banks clean.
Kaleshwaram project gets environmental clearance
The Kaleshwaram project has got an environmental nod from the Centre.With this, the project, which has got all the clearances, is estimated to cost about Rs 80,499.7 crore and proposed to be completed in three years.The Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change gave the environmental clearance with certain specific conditions.It said that the allocated grant of Rs 362.04 crore for the Catchment Area Treatment (CAT) Plan should be fully utilized and not be diverted for any other purpose. As per the plan, the area of CAT is 32.83 Sq.km.The Centre directed Telangana to settle all rehabilitation and resettlement (R&R) issues before commissioning of the project."Construction work to be carried-out after following the due procedure of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation, and Resettlement Act, 2013 as applicable to the state of Telangana (21/2017) as amended by Act. Adequate publicity of the compensation package should be ...
Focus research on forest productivity: Harsh Vardhan
Concerned over low productivity of forests, Union Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan today batted for making all-out efforts towards green cover expansion for climate change adaptation and its mitigation. Efforts should be made towards generating more livelihood options through skill development programmes that encourage the communities to use forestry resource on a sustainable basis, he said. The Minister for Environment, Forests and Climate Change, who visited the Forest Research Institute (FRI) here today as part of the ongoing review of the activities of the ICFRE and its affiliates stressed upon the need for making all-out efforts for green cover expansion which is a "must" for climate change adaptation and mitigation. Research and development should be tailored in accordance with the changing social scenario and their results should reach people in the form of quality products, he said. Vardhan also impressed upon the need to synergise the research activities at .
UP govt signs MoU with South Korea
The Uttar Pradesh government today signed a memorandum of understanding with South Korea to enhance cooperation in the field of tourism, skill development, culture and farming. A delegation from Gimhae city of South Korea met Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath here and discussed ways to improve cooperation between the two countries. On the occasion, an MoU was signed for giving a new dimension to cooperation in the field of tourism, skill development, culture and farming, which will provide more employment opportunities and development, an official release said. Speaking on the occasion, the chief minister stressed on the cultural and historical relations between Uttar Pradesh and South Korea and said that the MoU will go a long way in cementing the bond. "There are immense possibilities in tourism in Uttar Pradesh and South Korea...there is also a need to improve cooperation in the field of technology...this will not only bring investment but also create employment ...
Mahadayi water dispute: Siddaramaiah seeks meeting with Goa, Maha CMs
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddarmaiah has called for a meeting with his Maharashtra and Goa counterparts "to arrive at a negotiated settlement" on the long-standing Mahadayi water dispute, as suggested by the Mahadayi Water Dispute Tribunal on September 1, 2016.In a letter dated December 22, Siddaramaiah sought a meeting with Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar and informed that a similar letter has been written to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.The letter comes after reports emerged that Parrikar had written to Karnataka BJP President B S Yeddyurappa over the same issue."A copy of the said letter dated 20.12.2017 has been widely circulated in the social media also. I have also perused the same. I only wish you had replied to my letter since I took the initiative for the negotiated settlement," Siddaramaiah wrote to Parrikar."The matter is urgent because the Tribunal has fixed the final hearing of the Reference from 06.02.2018 to 22.02.2018 vide its order dated ...
'Tiger Zinda Hai' amongst top 5 openers of 2017
Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif's most awaited film 'Tiger Zinda Hai' is the second biggest opener of 2017 after 'Baahubali 2'.According to trade analyst Taran Adarsh, the flick has made Rs. 33.75 crore on its opening day."Tiger roars... Flexes its muscles at the box office and takes an extraordinary start," he tweeted.'Tiger Zinda Hai', the sequel of 'Ek Tha Tiger', released on Friday on 5700 screens, out of which 4600 screens are in India.
