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Cse In News

If Nepal's mountains are fragile, so are Arunachal's

Every monsoon, the Himalayas deliver the same lesson in mud, water and rubble: fragile mountains do not forgive careless development. Floods, landslides and other extreme events are no longer distant warnings but recurring disasters, and the voices urging caution are growing louder. Among them is Sunita Narain, Director General of the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), who has repeatedly argued that climate change can no longer be treated as an abstract threat, and that disturbing fragile ecosystems in pursuit of an aggressive development model carries a heavy price. That argument raises an uncomfortable question for India itself: are the same environmental principles being applied consistently to development projects at home?

नया फोन आया, चार्जर गायब! कंपनियों ने बॉक्स छोटा किया या ई-वेस्ट का संकट बड़ा हो गया?

कंपनियों का तर्क है कि ज्यादातर घरों में पहले से चार्जर मौजूद है. इसलिए हर फोन के साथ नया अडैप्टर देने की जरूरत नहीं. छोटी पैकेजिंग से प्रोडक्डट और ट्रांसपोर्ट कम हो सकता है.जो इनवायरमेंट के लिए ठीक होगा. लेकिन सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एनवायरनमेंट में इंडस्ट्री एंड रिन्यूएबल एनर्जी प्रोग्राम डॉयरेक्टर निवित कुमार यादव का कहना है कि इसे सिर्फ पर्यावरण बचाने का फैसला मानना सही नहीं होगा. इसके पीछे मार्केट इकोनॉमिक्स भी बड़ा कारण है. निवित यादव मानते हैं फोन की कीमतें बढ़ रही हैं और चार्जर अलग से खरीदना ग्राहक की लागत बढ़ाता है. अच्छे चार्जर की कीमत करीब 1,500 रुपये तक हो सकती है. सस्ता लोकल चार्जर लेने पर चार्जिंग में ज्यादा समय लग सकता है. यानी फोन सस्ता नहीं हुआ, बस चार्जर बॉक्स से बाहर हो गया.

पेरिस समझौते के दस साल बाद संसद में पर्यावरण को लेकर पूछे गए सिर्फ़ 3.3% सवाल: अध्ययन

उन्होंने सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एनवायरनमेंट और डाउन टू अर्थ की एक संयुक्त रिपोर्ट, जिसमें बताया गया था कि इन खराब घटनाओं ने 9.47 मिलियन हेक्टेयर फसलों पर असर डाला, लगभग 1,00,000 घर तबाह हो गए और लगभग 58,982 जानवर मारे गए, का भी ज़िक्र किया है.

Odisha Governor Asks Youth to Lead Climate Action at Gen C Conclave

On the occasion, Sunita Narain, Director General of the Centre for Science and Environment, was felicitated. Economic growth and environmental protection are not competing goals but partners, Odisha Governor Dr. Hari Babu Kambhampati said on Friday, calling on the young generation to drive a clean, smart and climate-resilient development model. Speaking at the third Earth Again Conference 2026, organised by the Sambad Group at the Utkal University auditorium on the theme “Gen C – Generation Climate”, the Governor said climate change has moved from distant warning to present reality. Irregular rainfall, rising temperatures and extreme weather are already affecting agriculture, water resources, health and livelihoods across the state. He urged students and young professionals to become ambassadors of climate-friendly action and to adopt greener habits in everyday life. Combating climate change, he stressed, is not the task of any single institution or section of society. It requires a joint effort by government, educational institutions, industry, media and ordinary citizens. Industry remains essential for jobs, livelihoods and economic growth, the Governor noted, but it must advance with greater environmental responsibility. He called for wider use of technologies that cut pollution, conserve energy and water, reduce waste and protect natural resources. Pointing to practical steps already underway, he highlighted the 635-kilowatt solar power plant at Lok Bhavan and the introduction of electric vehicles in the Governor’s convoy. He advised young people to choose electric vehicles and cleaner transport, and asked universities to install solar units on campus, offer free electric-vehicle charging to students and staff for at least one year, and promote the RESCO model for renewable-energy projects. Dr. Kambhampati also called on every university in Odisha to pursue Green Certification and encouraged year-round tree plantation under the principle that each person plants one tree. He cited Lok Bhavan’s IGBC Green Certification, expanded green cover, safer spaces for birds and animals, and water-harvesting projects as examples worth replicating. Such measures, he said, strengthen the country’s energy security, reduce dependence on imported crude oil and save foreign exchange. He also referred to government subsidies available for clean-energy adoption. “The first step to save the Earth must begin at home,” the Governor said. He praised the Sambad Group for building environmental awareness through print, television, radio and digital platforms, and for initiatives such as Climate Panchayat, Green Campus, Youth Engagement and Environment Assembly. On the occasion, Sunita Narain, Director General of the Centre for Science and Environment, was felicitated.

Delhi's free-pass for mid-size electric trucks finds no takers

Delhi’s bid to shift medium-sized goods vehicles from fossil fuels to electric by exempting electric trucks from the city’s ‘no-entry’ restrictions has found no takers so far. Nearly three months into the new electric vehicle (EV) policy, not a single mid-sized, or N2, e-truck has been registered in the capital, government portal Vahan’s data showed, raising questions over whether an entry exemption alone is enough to push a switch to the way pricier electric option.

Climate change demands development in harmony with nature: Sunita Narain at Earth Again Conference

Bhubaneswar: Climate change has emerged as a major challenge, and development should happen in harmony with nature, said Sunita Narain, Director General of the Centre for Science and Environment, today at the three-day Earth Again Conference 2026 organised by Sambad at Utkal University in Bhubaneswar. Narain said recent landslides in Nepal and the changing conditions in the Himalayan region are among the visible signs of climate change. She stressed that while development is necessary, protecting the environment must receive equal priority. “Development cannot happen by ignoring nature. We have to move forward and develop in harmony with nature,” she said, underlining the need for governments to rethink the way development projects are planned and executed. Referring to the Himalayas, Narain said the recurring natural disasters in the region indicate that nature is under stress. Construction of roads, houses and bridges near the Himalayan region may be considered development, she said, but it is important to examine whether such development is compatible with the environment. She also pointed to extreme weather events such as cloudbursts, landslides, flash floods and cyclones, saying climate change is contributing to their increasing intensity and frequency. Narain praised Odisha's disaster management system, saying the state has been able to manage natural disasters effectively and protect lives. She said government initiatives in disaster management deserve appreciation. However, she cautioned that climate protection cannot be the responsibility of Odisha alone. “The entire country has to work towards protecting the climate,” she said. Highlighting the growing problem of water pollution, Narain expressed concern over the condition of the Mahanadi. She said the expansion of industries and the discharge of waste into water bodies are among the major causes of increasing water pollution. She also appreciated Sambad's initiative to create awareness about environmental protection, saying the conference reflects the importance being given to environmental issues in Odisha. Narain further said abnormal changes in weather patterns are disrupting the natural balance, with rainfall, drought and cold occurring in increasingly intense forms. She stressed the need to build cities that are designed for the needs and well-being of all sections of society. “Many small solutions can together prevent major weather-related disasters,” she said, calling for practical and sustainable measures to address the growing challenges posed by climate change.

ଏବେ ବର୍ଷକୁ ୬ସାଇକ୍ଲୋନ୍‌ ଆସିପାରେ | Sunita Narain Says India Could Face More Cyclones In Coming Years

ପିକ୍‌ଚର ବାକି ହେ...ପୂର୍ବରୁ ସାଇକ୍ଲୋନ୍‌ ବର୍ଷକୁ ଥରେ ହେଉଥିଲା । ବର୍ଷକୁ ବର୍ଷ ଏହାର ସଂଖ୍ୟା ବଢ଼ିବ । ଏହା ହିଁ ଜଳବାୟୁ ପରିବର୍ତ୍ତନ : ପରିବେଶବିତ୍ ସୁନୀତା ନାରାୟଣ

New Report Reveals What India’s MPs Asked (and What They Didn’t) on Climate, A Decade After Paris Agreement

“The findings of the report are startling because just in the first nine months of 2025, 4,064 lives were lost to extreme weather events in India, marking a 48 per cent rise in deaths over the past four years. These events also affected 9.47 million hectares of crops, destroyed nearly 100,000 houses, and killed approximately 58,982 animals, according to a joint report by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) and Down To Earth. The human and economic toll was not confined to a handful of isolated disasters: at least 18 states and Union Territories recorded their highest number of extreme-weather days since 2022”, said Hajira Puthige, author of the report.

Delhi saw only one ‘Good’ air day this monsoon despite heavy rain: CSE report

Delhi recorded just a single day of ‘Good’ air quality during the entire 92-day monsoon season despite heavy rainfall, according to a new report by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). The report, released on Wednesday (September 30, 2026), noted that the Capital’s ‘Good’ Air Quality Index (AQI) day occurred on July 9, when the combined mean rainfall across the Safdarjung and Palam meteorological stations hit 67.75 mm. The report defied the summer season, as April 1 to May 31 (61 days) and the monsoon as June 1 to August 31 (92 days). “Out of 92 analysed days, ‘Poor’ days plummeted to just three (3.3 per cent). ‘Satisfactory’ days rose to 35 (38.0 per cent), while ‘Moderate’ days held the single largest share at 53 (57.6 per cent),” the CSE statement noted. According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the AQI scale marks 0–50 as ‘Good’, 51–100 as ‘Satisfactory’, 101–200 as ‘Moderate’, and 201–300 as ‘Poor’. According to the report, even during the monsoon — when natural atmospheric “washout” and wet deposition effects peak — Delhi’s ambient air quality struggled to sustain clean levels. Despite heavy precipitation, baseline pollution remained elevated, and particulate matter rebounded rapidly within 48 hours of rainfall, it added. Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director of research and advocacy at CSE, said, “While monsoon rains bring temporary relief, they only mask the underlying crisis. The fact that even heavy rainfall failed to bring consistent ‘Good’ air quality, and that pollution rebounded within 48 hours during dry spells, shows that our baseline emissions remain dangerously high. As we enter winter, we are starting from a baseline where continuous, elevated emissions will inevitably trigger severe seasonal spikes.” Ms. Roychowdhury added that Delhi cannot rely on nature’s washout in the monsoon or emergency winter bans to manage its air. “What we need is ambitious, year-round, airshed-wide action to permanently cut emissions at their source across all sectors in the NCR,” she said. Every winter, air pollution spikes drastically across Delhi-NCR and the larger Indo-Gangetic Plains. This seasonal crisis is triggered by meteorological shifts like lower wind speeds and dropping temperatures, and is severely worsened by vehicular emissions, road dust, stubble burning in October and November, and festive firecrackers.

AI, Data, Fact-Checking Skills Critical for Credible Environmental Reporting

The growing influence of artificial intelligence (AI), data and digital verification tools has made technological competence increasingly critical to credible research, communication and evidence-based decision-making in environment, science and development. MachineLearning & Artificial Intelligence Against this backdrop, the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), a leading think tank in the Global South on development, environment and climate change, has announced a Global Online Certificate Course designed to equip professionals with practical skills in AI, data analysis and fact-checking. The programme is targeted at researchers, academics, communicators, policymakers, development practitioners, government officials, civil society organisations, NGOs and corporate professionals seeking to strengthen their research and communication capacities. According to CSE, the rapid evolution of AI and digital tools is transforming how professionals research issues, process information, analyse data and communicate complex subjects to diverse audiences. The organisation said the technologies could be particularly valuable in addressing environmental and developmental challenges, including climate change and biodiversity loss, where large volumes of data increasingly have to be processed and translated into accessible information. It, however, stressed that the growing availability of AI tools also makes responsible use, verification and fact-checking essential to maintaining professional and institutional credibility. The certificate course, therefore, seeks to enable participants to use AI responsibly while improving their ability to conduct research, analyse evidence, detect misinformation and produce effective communication materials. The programme will teach participants how to use AI to streamline research workflows, including data collection, analysis, writing and reporting, while introducing practical approaches to AI-assisted fact-checking and verification. MachineLearning & Artificial Intelligence Participants will also learn how to apply AI to data visualisation, multimedia content, presentations and public outreach, as well as develop strategies for integrating the technology responsibly into their projects and institutions. CSE said the programme would be particularly relevant to professionals working in environmental studies, data science, science communication, sustainability, climate action, corporate communication and environmental, social and governance (ESG) activities. The course is structured as a self-paced online programme comprising video lectures, presentations, tutorials, quizzes and assignments. Participants will also have an opportunity to undertake a project of their choice. The flexible structure, according to the organisers, is designed to enable participants to complete the programme alongside regular employment or academic commitments. The six-module programme begins with an introduction to AI, covering its concepts, applications to global challenges and implications. MachineLearning & Artificial Intelligence The second module focuses on the foundations of science, environment and development communication, including communication barriers and frameworks through which AI tools can be effectively integrated. The third module examines AI for research, including generating and refining research questions, conducting literature reviews with AI tools and developing effective prompts. The fourth module focuses on AI and data analysis, with emphasis on analysing and visualising environmental and development data. Fact-checking and verification form the focus of the fifth module, covering misinformation detection, source validation, image verification and the responsible use of AI in evidence-based communication. The final module examines AI for effective communication and outreach, including audience-focused communication, multilingual content and prompt design. CSE said the course was open to researchers and academics, environment and science communicators, policy professionals, development practitioners, government and institutional officers, civil society and NGO personnel, and corporate professionals working in sustainability, ESG and communications. Participants are required to have access to a computer or laptop and a high-speed internet connection. The course is being directed by Kiran Pandey, Programme Director, Information Management, CSE, while Susan Chacko, Manager, Information Management, CSE, is the course coordinator.

Delhi Air Pollution Rises Again After Rain, Exposing a Year-Round Crisis

Delhi’s monsoon offered only brief relief from air pollution, with the city’s average PM2.5 concentration rising sharply after rainfall stopped. A Centre for Science and Environment assessment found that Delhi recorded just one day of “good” air quality across the 92 days from June to August, while PM2.5 levels rose 37.9% within 48 hours of rain events. The findings challenge the assumption that heavy rainfall can substantially resolve Delhi’s air pollution problem. The city received 576.9 mm of rain during the monsoon period, but the improvement in air quality was temporary. Rain removed some particulate pollution from the atmosphere, yet gaseous pollutants remained, allowing pollution levels to rebound soon after the weather cleared. That distinction matters because Delhi’s air quality problem is not limited to the winter months. The CSE assessment shows that the city experienced pollution across the monsoon, although at lower average levels than during summer. Delhi’s average PM2.5 concentration during the monsoon was 40.2 micrograms per cubic metre, 33.2% lower than the summer average of 60.2 micrograms per cubic metre. Lower pollution, however, did not translate into consistently clean air. Of the 92 monsoon days analysed, 53, or 57.6%, fell in the “moderate” air quality category. Another 35 days were classified as “satisfactory”, three as “poor” and only one as “good”. The single good-air day was recorded on 9 July, when 67.75 mm of rain fell. On 8 August, Delhi received the season’s highest rainfall of 101.05 mm, but air quality reached only the “satisfactory” category. The pattern indicates that rainfall can temporarily suppress particulate matter without removing the emissions that continuously enter the urban atmosphere. In its analysis of six separate rainfall events, CSE found that the average PM2.5 level stood at 40.6 micrograms per cubic metre before rain. It fell to 32.7 during rainfall, a reduction of 19.5%. The improvement began to reverse almost immediately. PM2.5 rose to 36.2 micrograms per cubic metre 24 hours after rainfall and reached 45.1 micrograms per cubic metre after 48 hours. The level two days after rain was therefore 37.9% higher than during the rainfall event and 11.1% higher than the pre-rain average. This rebound is the central evidence in the assessment. Rainfall changes atmospheric conditions for a short period, but it does not address the sources producing pollution on the ground. Once rainfall ends, emissions from transport, industry, waste burning, construction-related activity and other urban sources continue to enter the air. The data supplied by CSE does not assign a precise share of the post-rain increase to each source, but it demonstrates that weather-driven improvement is not equivalent to emissions reduction. The pollutant mix also complicates the idea that rain alone can deliver clean air. CSE found that ground-level ozone was the dominant pollutant on 20 monsoon days. Nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide were also significant. While rain can wash particulate pollutants out of the air, gaseous pollutants can persist, allowing air quality to deteriorate even during a season associated with frequent showers. This is an important governance distinction. A city can record a visible and measurable fall in PM2.5 during rain without having improved its underlying emissions profile. If pollution returns within one or two days, the immediate atmospheric benefit has not been matched by a change in the systems that generate emissions. The result is a cycle in which residents receive intermittent relief but remain exposed to pollution for much of the year. The findings also place Delhi’s winter pollution debate in a wider annual context. CSE’s executive director for research and advocacy, Anumita Roychowdhury, said rainfall provides temporary relief but does not eliminate the root sources of pollution. She called for year-round emission reduction across the National Capital Region rather than reliance on temporary measures during winter. That recommendation points to the institutional challenge created by Delhi’s air basin. Pollution does not stop at municipal or state boundaries, and the assessment specifically calls for an integrated “airshed” approach across the NCR. Such an approach would require authorities to treat the region’s air as a shared environmental system rather than as a problem belonging to Delhi alone. The policy measures cited by CSE cover several urban systems. These include an electricity-based transport system, cleaner industrial fuels, a ban on open waste burning, recycling of construction waste, uninterrupted electricity supply and integrated air-quality management across the NCR. Together, they show that air pollution is connected to mobility, industrial production, waste management, construction and power reliability. Each of these areas is administered through different institutions and enforcement arrangements. Transport policy involves public agencies, vehicle operators and commuters. Industrial fuel decisions involve factories, regulators and energy suppliers. Waste burning is linked to collection, disposal and enforcement by local authorities. Construction-waste recycling depends on the capacity to collect and process material. Reliable electricity can reduce dependence on polluting backup systems. An airshed strategy would have to coordinate these responsibilities across jurisdictions. The monsoon data also exposes the limits of using seasonal averages as the sole measure of progress. Delhi’s average PM2.5 level was substantially lower during the monsoon than in summer, but the city still had only one good-air day. The average therefore captures an overall reduction while obscuring the frequency with which residents experienced air that remained moderate or worse. The six rainfall events provide a more dynamic picture. They show how quickly air quality changes before, during and after rain. A decline from 40.6 to 32.7 micrograms per cubic metre may appear significant while the rain is falling, but the subsequent rise to 45.1 within 48 hours shows that the improvement was not durable. For urban policy, duration matters as much as the size of a temporary decline. The evidence also raises a question about how authorities define success. If clean-air conditions appear only during exceptional weather and disappear soon afterwards, weather is doing more of the work than policy. A durable improvement would require pollution levels to remain lower after atmospheric conditions return to normal. The assessment does not establish that such a shift has occurred in Delhi. For residents, the implications are practical. The end of a rainfall spell cannot be treated as the end of an air-pollution episode. People may experience visibly clearer conditions during rain, followed by a rapid return of fine particulate pollution and continued exposure to ozone, nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide. The city’s daily experience of air quality is therefore shaped by both weather and the performance of urban systems. What the CSE assessment confirms is that Delhi’s monsoon pollution is not a contradiction but a structural signal. Rain can lower PM2.5 temporarily, yet the city’s emissions sources remain active. What remains unresolved is how quickly and effectively institutions across the NCR can reduce those emissions throughout the year. The next test is whether the measures identified by CSE are implemented as coordinated systems rather than activated only when winter pollution becomes an emergency.

Will India’s new Rs 1.86 lakh crore grid fix renewable bottlenecks?

According to a study by the Centre for Science and Environment, renewable energy has seen a 3.5x increase within six years to exceed 140 GW of installed capacity. But the report warned that the rapid surge had “fundamentally altered the demand–supply balance in the grid”. CSE highlighted deep intra-day variability and operational stress on conventional generation that now presented a significant challenge to the stability of the national power grid. Union Minister Shripad Naik also told Parliament in late July that the government held back 8,133 GWh of solar power in the April-June quarter owing to transmission constraints. News agency Reuters calculated at the end of July that India had been unable to run 7% of its solar capacity at full output due to infrastructure curbs.

Only 3.3% of 8,702 parliamentary questions in 10 years accounted for Climate Change in India

According to Puthige, the findings are significant in view of the growing human and economic impact of extreme weather events. She cited a joint report by the Centre for Science and Environment and Down To Earth, according to which 4,064 people died in extreme weather events in India during the first nine months of 2025. The events affected 9.47 million hectares of crops, destroyed nearly 100,000 houses and killed around 58,982 animals.