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हिमाचल के छह स्कूलों को “मुख्यमंत्री ग्रीन स्कूल रोलिंग ट्रॉफी”, सोलन जिला सबसे आगे

विश्व पर्यावरण दिवस के मौके पर हिमाचल प्रदेश के छह स्कूलों को पर्यावरण संरक्षण में उल्लेखनीय योगदान के लिए मुख्यमंत्री ग्रीन स्कूल रोलिंग ट्रॉफी 2024-25 से सम्मानित किया गया। यह ट्रॉफी शिमला स्थित ऐतिहासिक पीटरहॉफ होटल में आयोजित एक भव्य समारोह में प्रदेश के मुख्यमंत्री सुखविंदर सिंह सुक्खू द्वारा प्रदान की गई। इस पुरस्कार का आयोजन सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एनवायरनमेंट (सीएसई) और हिमाचल प्रदेश विज्ञान, प्रौद्योगिकी एवं पर्यावरण परिषद (हिमकोस्ट) द्वारा संयुक्त रूप से किया गया। ग्रीन स्कूल्स प्रोग्राम (जीएसपी) के तहत यह ट्रॉफी उन स्कूलों को दी जाती है जो पर्यावरणीय जागरूकता, संसाधनों के समुचित उपयोग और सतत विकास के क्षेत्र में उत्कृष्ट प्रदर्शन करते हैं।

पर्यावरण संरक्षण में हिमाचल के छह स्कूलों की बड़ी भूमिका को मिली पहचान

विश्व पर्यावरण दिवस के अवसर पर गुरूवार को हिमाचल प्रदेश के छह स्कूलों को वर्ष 2024-25 के लिए मुख्यमंत्री ग्रीन स्कूल रोलिंग ट्रॉफी से सम्मानित किया गया। पर्यावरण संरक्षण और सतत विकास में उल्लेखनीय योगदान देने वाले इन स्कूलों को यह पुरस्कार शिमला के ऐतिहासिक होटल पीटरहॉफ में आयोजित समारोह में प्रदान किए गए। कार्यक्रम में हिमाचल प्रदेश के मुख्यमंत्री सुखविंदर सिंह सुक्खू ने विजेता स्कूलों को ट्रॉफी भेंट की। इस आयोजन का आयोजन सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एनवायरनमेंट (सीएसई) के ग्रीन स्कूल्स प्रोग्राम (जीएसपी) और हिमाचल प्रदेश विज्ञान, प्रौद्योगिकी एवं पर्यावरण परिषद (हिमकोस्ट) द्वारा संयुक्त रूप से किया गया। इस वर्ष सोलन जिले का प्रदर्शन सबसे शानदार रहा, जहां के तीन स्कूलों ने पुरस्कार हासिल किए। इसके चलते सोलन को राज्य का सर्वश्रेष्ठ प्रदर्शन करने वाला जिला घोषित किया गया है। यह जिला लगातार पर्यावरण शिक्षा और टिकाऊ गतिविधियों में अग्रणी बना हुआ है। इस वर्ष जिन स्कूलों को मुख्यमंत्री ग्रीन स्कूल ट्रॉफी से नवाजा गया, उनमें शिमला जिले का सरकारी वरिष्ठ माध्यमिक विद्यालय बलद्यान शामिल है, जिसे चेंजमेकर स्कूल अवॉर्ड मिला। हमीरपुर के भलेठ स्थित सरकारी वरिष्ठ माध्यमिक विद्यालय को वेस्ट वॉरियर अवॉर्ड, सोलन के कन्ह गांव के सरकारी उच्च विद्यालय को लैंड मैनेजर अवॉर्ड तथा दून वैली पब्लिक स्कूल सोलन को एनर्जी मैनेजर अवॉर्ड से सम्मानित किया गया। इसके अलावा शिमला के सरोग स्थित सरकारी वरिष्ठ माध्यमिक विद्यालय को न्यूकमर अवॉर्ड और नालागढ़ (सोलन) के शिवालिक वैली स्कूल को वॉटरवाइज अवॉर्ड प्रदान किया गया। ग्रीन स्कूल्स प्रोग्राम की शुरुआत वर्ष 2017 में की गई थी। इसका उद्देश्य स्कूलों को पर्यावरणीय ऑडिट के जरिए सतत विकास की दिशा में प्रेरित करना है। इस ट्रॉफी के जरिए उन स्कूलों को सम्मानित किया जाता है जो संसाधनों के विवेकपूर्ण उपयोग, कचरा प्रबंधन, ऊर्जा संरक्षण और जल संरक्षण जैसे क्षेत्रों में अनुकरणीय कार्य करते हैं। सीएसई और हिमकोस्ट पिछले करीब दस वर्षों से मिलकर हिमाचल में पर्यावरण शिक्षा को बढ़ावा देने में जुटे हैं। समारोह में हिमकोस्ट के सदस्य सचिव डीएस राणा ने कहा कि हिमाचल में ग्रीन स्कूल्स प्रोग्राम के जरिए पर्यावरण संरक्षण की दिशा में मजबूत आधारशिला रखी गई है। उन्होंने कहा कि इस साझेदारी से आने वाली पीढ़ी को प्रकृति के प्रति जागरूक और संवेदनशील बनाने में मदद मिल रही है। सीएसई के पर्यावरण शिक्षा कार्यक्रम के प्रबंधक नीरज कुमार ने बताया कि हिमाचल प्रदेश ने वर्ष 2024-25 में 290 स्कूलों द्वारा जीएसपी ऑडिट पूरा कर देश में दूसरा सबसे अधिक भागीदारी वाला राज्य बनने का गौरव हासिल किया है। उन्होंने कहा कि इन स्कूलों ने यह सिद्ध कर दिया है कि पर्यावरण शिक्षा के क्षेत्र में प्रतिबद्धता और परिश्रम से बड़े बदलाव संभव हैं। बता दें कि ग्रीन स्कूल्स प्रोग्राम स्कूलों को ऊर्जा संरक्षण, जल प्रबंधन, कचरा निपटान और जैव विविधता जैसे क्षेत्रों में सुधार के लिए प्रोत्साहित करता है।

हिमाचल के छह स्कूलों को मिला ग्रीन स्कूल अवार्ड, सोलन जिला रहा अव्वल

विश्व पर्यावरण दिवस के अवसर पर गुरूवार को हिमाचल प्रदेश के छह स्कूलों को वर्ष 2024-25 के लिए मुख्यमंत्री ग्रीन स्कूल रोलिंग ट्रॉफी से सम्मानित किया गया। पर्यावरण संरक्षण और सतत विकास में उल्लेखनीय योगदान देने वाले इन स्कूलों को यह पुरस्कार शिमला के ऐतिहासिक होटल पीटरहॉफ में आयोजित समारोह में प्रदान किए गए। कार्यक्रम में हिमाचल प्रदेश के मुख्यमंत्री सुखविंदर सिंह सुक्खू ने विजेता स्कूलों को ट्रॉफी भेंट की। इस आयोजन का आयोजन सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एनवायरनमेंट (सीएसई) के ग्रीन स्कूल्स प्रोग्राम (जीएसपी) और हिमाचल प्रदेश विज्ञान, प्रौद्योगिकी एवं पर्यावरण परिषद (हिमकोस्ट) द्वारा संयुक्त रूप से किया गया। इस वर्ष सोलन जिले का प्रदर्शन सबसे शानदार रहा, जहां के तीन स्कूलों ने पुरस्कार हासिल किए। इसके चलते सोलन को राज्य का सर्वश्रेष्ठ प्रदर्शन करने वाला जिला घोषित किया गया है। यह जिला लगातार पर्यावरण शिक्षा और टिकाऊ गतिविधियों में अग्रणी बना हुआ है। इस वर्ष जिन स्कूलों को मुख्यमंत्री ग्रीन स्कूल ट्रॉफी से नवाजा गया, उनमें शिमला जिले का सरकारी वरिष्ठ माध्यमिक विद्यालय बलद्यान शामिल है जिसे चेंजमेकर स्कूल अवॉर्ड मिला। हमीरपुर के भलेठ स्थित सरकारी वरिष्ठ माध्यमिक विद्यालय को वेस्ट वॉरियर अवॉर्ड, सोलन के कन्ह गांव के सरकारी उच्च विद्यालय को लैंड मैनेजर अवॉर्ड तथा दून वैली पब्लिक स्कूल सोलन को एनर्जी मैनेजर अवॉर्ड से सम्मानित किया गया। इसके अलावा शिमला के सरोग स्थित सरकारी वरिष्ठ माध्यमिक विद्यालय को न्यूकमर अवॉर्ड और नालागढ़ (सोलन) के शिवालिक वैली स्कूल को वॉटरवाइज अवॉर्ड प्रदान किया गया। ग्रीन स्कूल्स प्रोग्राम की शुरुआत वर्ष 2017 में की गई थी। इसका उद्देश्य स्कूलों को पर्यावरणीय ऑडिट के जरिए सतत विकास की दिशा में प्रेरित करना है। इस ट्रॉफी के जरिए उन स्कूलों को सम्मानित किया जाता है जो संसाधनों के विवेकपूर्ण उपयोग, कचरा प्रबंधन, ऊर्जा संरक्षण और जल संरक्षण जैसे क्षेत्रों में अनुकरणीय कार्य करते हैं। सीएसई और हिमकोस्ट पिछले करीब दस वर्षों से मिलकर हिमाचल में पर्यावरण शिक्षा को बढ़ावा देने में जुटे हैं। समारोह में हिमकोस्ट के सदस्य सचिव डीएस राणा ने कहा कि हिमाचल में ग्रीन स्कूल्स प्रोग्राम के जरिए पर्यावरण संरक्षण की दिशा में मजबूत आधारशिला रखी गई है। उन्होंने कहा कि इस साझेदारी से आने वाली पीढ़ी को प्रकृति के प्रति जागरूक और संवेदनशील बनाने में मदद मिल रही है। सीएसई के पर्यावरण शिक्षा कार्यक्रम के प्रबंधक नीरज कुमार ने बताया कि हिमाचल प्रदेश ने वर्ष 2024-25 में 290 स्कूलों द्वारा जीएसपी ऑडिट पूरा कर देश में दूसरा सबसे अधिक भागीदारी वाला राज्य बनने का गौरव हासिल किया है। उन्होंने कहा कि इन स्कूलों ने यह सिद्ध कर दिया है कि पर्यावरण शिक्षा के क्षेत्र में प्रतिबद्धता और परिश्रम से बड़े बदलाव संभव हैं। बता दें कि ग्रीन स्कूल्स प्रोग्राम स्कूलों को ऊर्जा संरक्षण, जल प्रबंधन, कचरा निपटान और जैव विविधता जैसे क्षेत्रों में सुधार के लिए प्रोत्साहित करता है।

CM unveils 25-point blueprint to fight Delhi’s bane — pollution

Experts have broadly welcomed the plan but flagged the absence of stronger targets. “Electric mobility needs a clear commitment to zero-emission vehicles, not vague references to clean vehicles,” said Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director of research and advocacy at the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). A massive expansion of electric buses, crackdown on polluting vehicles, stricter enforcement at construction sites, cloud seeding pilots, deployment of over 1,000 water sprinklers and 140 anti-smog guns, and six new air monitoring stations — these are among the key steps outlined in Delhi’s new air pollution action plan unveiled by chief minister Rekha Gupta on Tuesday. Billed as the “most scientific and actionable” road map yet for the Capital’s battle against bad air, the 25-point Air Pollution Mitigation Plan 2025 targets seven key sources: dust, vehicle emissions, construction and demolition waste, solid waste, industrial pollution, greening, and real-time monitoring. “Providing clean air to Delhi’s citizens is not optional — it is our duty,” Gupta said, releasing the plan at the Delhi Secretariat flanked by cabinet ministers Ashish Sood, Manjinder Singh Sirsa, and Kapil Mishra. “This plan balances enforcement, innovation, and public engagement. This plan is not just a document, but a robust road map to protect the health of our citizens in the coming years. It lays the foundation for a clean, green, and healthy Delhi.” The Bharatiya Janata Party had promised halving Delhi’s pollution by 2030 in its election manifesto ahead of the 2025 Delhi assembly polls. Key measures include deploying more than 5,000 new electric buses and 2,299 e-autos by year-end, installing ANPR (automatic number plate recognition) cameras to keep end-of-life vehicles out of the city, mandatory anti-smog guns at all large commercial buildings, and launching a tree plantation drive that will see seven million saplings planted under the “Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam (A tree for your mother)” campaign. The government will also audit PUC centres every six months, scale up C&D waste processing by 1,000 tonnes per day, and make 100% recycled construction material mandatory for government projects. In a first, the plan integrates advanced tools such as AI, GPS tracking, cloud computing, and automated alerts into Delhi’s air quality governance systems. “We’re also launching a ‘Startup Innovation Challenge’ to bring in low-cost, high-impact ideas for pollution control,” Gupta said. One of the more ambitious pilot efforts will involve cloud seeding to test the feasibility of artificial rain to control airborne dust. This will be done in collaboration with IIT Kanpur, which will also partner with the government on other scientific interventions. To tackle dust pollution — among the most visible sources of smog in Delhi — the city will see over 1,000 water sprinklers and 140 anti-smog guns in year-round operation, with real-time GPS and CCTV tracking. The government also plans to expand night-time cleaning with 200 mechanical road sweepers, 70 electric litter pickers, and 38 tankers. For the construction sector, Gupta announced that all projects spread over 500 square metres must register with the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) and follow a 14-point dust control checklist embedded into the building approval process. On vehicular emissions, the plan reiterates the strict enforcement of a Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) directive that bans all but BS-VI, CNG, and electric commercial goods vehicles from entering the Capital. Digital alerts will be sent to non-compliant vehicle owners in neighbouring states. The electric mobility push includes charging stations across commercial areas, malls, airports, railway stations, and municipal parking lots — a step officials say is crucial to shifting public transport and last-mile connectivity to cleaner modes. A total of 2,299 electric autos will be stationed at metro hubs, while over 5,000 new electric buses are on the cards, with 2,080 expected to hit the roads by year-end. Landfills, another long-standing air pollutant, are also under the spotlight. Timelines have been issued for remediating legacy waste at Okhla by March 2027, Bhalswa by December 2027, and Ghazipur by September 2028. Residents’ associations have been asked to enforce household-level segregation and replace winter biomass burning with electric heating options for support staff. Delhi will also see six new ambient air quality monitoring stations and a real-time source apportionment study. Emphasising public participation, Gupta urged residents to enlist as “Environment Doots” — the city’s first line of vigilance and action. Experts have broadly welcomed the plan but flagged the absence of stronger targets. “Electric mobility needs a clear commitment to zero-emission vehicles, not vague references to clean vehicles,” said Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director of research and advocacy at the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). “The focus on bus transport is welcome, but it requires setting ridership goals. And solid waste management needs a 100% diversion target for wet waste.” Roychowdhury also welcomed the plan’s emphasis on enforcing approved fuels and tackling fugitive emissions in industrial zones. “However, household fuels remain an overlooked source. We hope to see stronger systemic and infrastructure-level interventions to drive long-term improvements,” she added.

Wildlife & Biodiversity: SEED SAVIOURS

There was a time when women farmers in Machnoor village of Telangana faced shortage of good quality seeds. They were forced to borrow seeds from landlords and would often get them too late or find them to be of poor quality. To break this cycle, they decided to save and share their own seeds with each other, leading to the birth of Sangham Seed Bank in 1995, formed with the help of Deccan Development Society, a Telangana-based non-profit. Women from nearly 75 villages are part of the initiative. The bank stores 80 types of traditional food crops—mainly millets, pulses and oilseeds—that grow well in dry, tough conditions. It also has dryland rice and wheat varieties that need less water and can survive high temperatures. Farmers with whom the seeds are shared, return double the amount after harvest. Some people even come from far to buy these seeds at a fair price. “The seeds are stored using traditional methods—in palm-leaf baskets, with neem leaves, ash and clay to protect them from moisture and pests. This keeps them safe for two-three years,” says R Santhoshi Srilaya, programme coordinator of the seed bank. Sangham Seed Bank is just one of the many such organisations across the country storing traditional seeds and knowledge. But there is no data on the numbers or types of seeds that such organisations store, because most of them are informal or unorganised. To assess this critical resource that can provide safety in times of climate change, Delhi-based think tank Centre for Science and Environment conducted an online survey in February-March 2025 and contacted about 60 community seed banks, non-profits and individual farmers. Responses received from 22 community seed banks, 20 non-profits and two individuals show that they collectively own some 887 climate-resilient varieties of 71 crops (see ‘Traditional resource’ on). Sangam Agrawal, who runs Routes to Roots, a permaculture farm in Neemuch, Madhya Pradesh, is an individual involved in saving seeds. “I started my seed-saving journey in 2020 after finding the benefits they provide—lower costs, climate-resistant crops and better tasting produce,” he says. His farm collects seeds of tomato, brinjal, pearl millet, wheat, papaya, guava and even the rare perennial toor plant (pigeon pea), which grows like a tree and gives up to 15 kg of pulses. The native seeds are stored in glass jars with a bit of ash to keep moisture away. “We seek to share seeds with people who grow food, not with corporations,” he says. The way seeds are shared depends on local factors. While the most common method is seed-loan system, where farmers borrow seeds at the beginning of the growing season and return twice the quantity post-harvest, in tribal areas, there are banks that provide seeds for free. These distribution mechanisms collectively ensure that indigenous seeds remain in active cultivation and retain viability. But there are massive challenges. Financial sustainability remains a major hurdle, since most seed banks operate independently, says Sayan Sau, who works with West Bengal based SwitchON Foundation. To compensate for this gap, many seed banks have formed partnerships with research institutions and non-profits. Another challenge is that traditional seed storage methods are not always effective in preventing moisture damage, pest infestations or fungal infections. Agriculture departments could provide the necessary resources such as containers made of wood or mud, and infrastructure for seed storage. Seed banks also face a shortage of technical expertise. Without regular training on seed testing, viability assessment and genetic purity maintenance, some farmers receive low-germination or poor-quality seeds, reducing their trust in community owned seed banks. Lack of supportive government policies is the other major issue. It was only in 2001 that the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act was adopted. The Act recognised the rights of both plant breeders and farmers. It allowed farmers to save, exchange and sell seeds of registered varieties, except under branded names. Communities conserving traditional crop varieties could claim benefits if the genetic material was used commercially. Under this, traditional crop varieties bred by farmers could be registered and protected. The Act encouraged the formalisation of conservation of indigenous genetic resources, paving the way for community seed banks and participatory seed conservation initiatives. However, there are major implementation issues because farming communities continue to struggle to register their traditional seed varieties due to complex procedures and lack of support. “There is currently no specific policy framework governing community seed banks. While India has laws such as the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act, 2001, and the Seeds Act, 1966, these do not provide clear guidelines for managing community seed banks. The proposed Seed Bill of 2019 is still under discussion, and efforts are going on to develop policies that recognise farmer–managed seed systems,” say Rengalakshmi Raj and Prajeesh Parameswaran of M S Swaminathan Research Foundation based in Chennai. (This analysis was originally published in the June 1-15, 2025 print edition of Down To Earth)

Cycles overtake buses which crawl at 10-15 km/h in city

Facing congestion challenges on the roads, the City of Joy is crawling at snail’s pace, revealed a study on urban mobility patterns across Kolkata with comparison to Tier-II cities like Durgapur and Dhanbad. The study named as ‘Speed Mapping Report,’ was conducted between 23 April and 6 May, covering 14 key traffic corridors in Kolkata, including VIP Road, Rashbehari Avenue, Esplanade, Dum Dum Road, Vivekananda Road, and Diamond Harbour Road, during peak traffic hours from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. The report on the analysis by SwitchON Foundation highlighted that Kolkata is at an important inflexion point, facing persistent congestion challenges in terms of speed, limitations in public transport efficiency, and an urgent need to enhance investment in non-motorised mobility infrastructure. A closer look at the findings reveal that public buses recorded the lowest average speeds, often crawling at 10-15 km/h, particularly on congested stretches like Dum Dum Road and Esplanade. The researchers attributed it to the absence of dedicated bus lanes and poor signal prioritisation as major contributors. Across major corridors like Esplanade and Rashbehari Avenue, bus speeds remain between 12-15 km/h, whereas motorcycles and autos frequently clock speeds above 22 km/h, demonstrating the clear disadvantage faced by shared public mobility under mixed-traffic conditions. Tier-II cities like Durgapur and Dhanbad are said to have shown smoother traffic, with autos up to 26.9 km/h and better bus speeds. In Kolkata, cycles exceeded motorised transport on 60 per cent of the studied corridors. In Tollygunge Phari, cycles matched the speed of buses of around 10 kmph and outperformed cars during the peak hours. According to the experts, across Indian cities, early steps are being taken. Chennai has earmarked 40 per cent of street space for walking and cycling in its new mobility plan and allocated Rs 200 crore in its 2025 budget for non-motorised transport (NMT). Pune has allocated 15 per cent of its transport budget for walking and cycling and is exploring connecting the public bicycle share with the PMPML bus stops, and Bengaluru is piloting ‘safe school zones’ and cycling corridors. Kolkata has launched New Town’s Green Verge Cycling Track, and interest is growing in expanding cycling infrastructure near transit hubs. While these are promising signals, the broader shift is still underway. The challenge and opportunity lies in scaling these pockets of progress into structured, core components of urban design, planning budgets, and institutional structures across India’s cities. Kolkata’s data proves cycling is not slow, cars are. The city must choose, prioritise space-efficient modes like cycling, buses or choke in traffic. Tier-II cities, such as Durgapur have shown the example, having double vehicular speed to Kolkata. As reiterated by Vinay Jaju, executive director of SwitchON Foundation, Kolkata’s car addiction is suffocating our city and our children. “Our research proves cycles now beat cars and taxis on 40 per cent of major routes, hitting 21 km/h while private vehicles crawl at 7 km/h. This isn’t just congestion – it’s a public health emergency. We must reclaim our streets: fewer parking spaces, stricter car quotas, and protected lanes for cyclists, pedestrians and buses,” claimed Mr Jaju, during a multi-stakeholder discussion on World Bicycle Day observed today. “Kolkata has taken important steps by including cycling and non-motorised transport in its policy frameworks. Now, the real opportunity lies in turning those plans into action. If we rethink our urban design to prioritise walking and cycling, we can build a city that is healthier, more accessible, and truly sustainable for all,” added Dr Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy, Center for Science and Environment.

Mixed report card for Bengal environment

Bengal received mixed results in a nationwide assessment of states' performance on environment, sustainability, agriculture, public health, and infrastructure, according to State of India's Environment in Figures 2025, released by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) on the eve of World Environment Day. When it comes to agriculture and land use, Bengal fared better, ranking 6th with a score of 60.5, thanks to improved agricultural input usage and land sustainability. However, it lagged in terms of farmer welfare indicators, like indebtedness and insurance coverage. The report placed Bengal 23rd among 28 states in overall environmental performance, with a score of 50.1 out of 100. It fell behind on key indicators, like solid waste management, sewage treatment, and polluted river stretches, although it had moderate scores in climate-related parameters and forest cover. In terms of public health, Bengal fared poorly, ranking 23rd with a score of 39.4. The state continued to grapple with high rates of undernutrition among children, poor health infrastructure, and low percentages of medically certified deaths. Its performance across health outcomes, such as infant and maternal mortality, life expectancy, and insurance coverage, was also weak. In public infrastructure and human development, Bengal ranked 22nd, with a score of 43 out of 100. The state struggled with issues such as low female workforce participation, high graduate unemployment, and inadequate per capita power availability. CSE director general Sunita Narain emphasised that the data, sourced entirely from official govt statistics, offers a sobering picture. "India's most populous states — Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, Bengal, and Madhya Pradesh — home to 49% of the country's population, rank low on nearly every theme. This shows that large segments of the population remain vulnerable and exposed to multiple threats," she said. Narain added: "Numbers usually give us the truth, and what we are unveiling clearly indicates that this is not the time for complacency, nor chest-thumping." No state emerged as a comprehensive leader, with even top-ranking states struggling in key areas. Andhra Pradesh, while leading in forest and biodiversity conservation, struggled with sewage and river pollution; Sikkim excelled in sustainable land use but lagged in farmer welfare; Goa, despite being the best in health and human development, faced bed shortages and low female labour participation.

From the India Today archives (2021) | How to save the Earth: The 10 commandments

Sunita Narain, director general, Centre for Science and Environment, points out, “The bottom line is that 66 per cent of the world, including India, is left with some 30 per cent of the carbon budget, the rest already consumed by developed countries. British prime minister Boris Johnson has a penchant for the dramatic. At the inaugural of the global climate change summit in Glasgow on November 1, he compared the situation to that of Scotland’s most famous son, the fictional secret agent James Bond, being strapped to a “doomsday device” that will destroy the planet. With the countdown timer rapidly ticking towards zero, Bond desperately tries to defuse it. Johnson then went on to say, “We are in roughly the same position my fellow global leaders as James Bond today except that the tragedy is this is not a movie the doomsday device is real... it’s ‘one minute to midnight’ to prevent climate catastrophe.” The annual climate change summit of world leaders was expected to be another “blah, blah, blah” event as the young Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg had dubbed it. But it was upgraded to the ‘Last Chance Saloon’ after the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report warned that in recent decades the earth was warming at a rate that could result in an irreversible climate catastrophe as early as 2050 rather than at the end of the century as estimated earlier. Levels of Green House Gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere—mainly carbon dioxide—that cause global warming have almost doubled in the past 100 years because of the burning of enormous amounts of fossil fuels like petroleum and coal to produce energy for human use. As a result, average global temperatures have already risen by 1 Celsius, causing freak weather patterns, including extreme floods and droughts, which have resulted in widespread loss of life, disruption and destruction in the past two decades. Meanwhile, warming oceans have seen the polar ice caps shrink alarmingly, leading to sea levels rising by an average of 23 centimetres, threatening many island nations and coastal cities, including parts of Mumbai, with submergence. Developed nations, particularly the US, which had been a climate laggard despite being among the world’s top three GHG emitters, used the IPCC findings to ram through their demand for nations to declare Net Zero in their carbon emissions by 2050. Net Zero refers to the balance nations need to maintain between GHG emissions and their removal from the atmosphere through various means. But developing nations, including India, termed the new target the ‘Great Deception’ and accused advanced nations of wriggling out of their commitments, made under the 2015 Paris Agreement, to substantially reduce their GHG emissions by 2030. They also saw it as a ploy by advanced nations to dodge their commitment to provide finance and green technology to help underdeveloped nations cope with the deleterious impact of climate change. In Paris, developed countries had committed to providing finance for climate adaption and mitigation to developing countries amounting to $100 billion annually from 2020 to 2030. But they gave far less in the first year and are now pushing for 2023 as the start date. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who at Glasgow had considerably upped India’s commitment to reduce GHGs and even announced that we would become Net Zero by 2070, came down heavily on the foot-draggers. “We all know the truth that promises made over climate finance so far have been empty,” he said. “Today, when India has pledged to move forward with a new commitment and enthusiasm, in such a time, climate finance and transfer of low-cost technology becomes even more significant.” The prime minister is right. Finance and green technology are the key inputs needed to wean developing nations away from fossil fuels that emit GHGs to clean energy alternatives such as renewable sources. Averting Doomsday requires a global compact—one based on the principles of climate justice and equity, including pushing through the following 10 primary initiatives experts have identified that could make the difference between planetary survival and unmitigated disaster... THE BATTERY BUNNY How we move around is one of the major causes of carbon emissions. The transport sector accounts for close to 16 per cent of the world’s GHG emissions. Forty-eight per cent of this is generated by the 900 million passenger cars. However, a revolution is underway as cars powered by electricity and emitting zero carbon are hitting the road in larger numbers. The electric vehicle market has grown by over 40 per cent year on year in the past five years. Despite this phenomenal growth, the 8 million electric cars on the road account for less than one per cent of the world’s passenger car market. In India, while there are over a dozen electric vehicle manufacturers, electric cars are a fraction of the total passenger vehicles in the country. The potential for growth, however, is huge with lithium-ion (Li-on) technology dominating the battery market. Battery costs have reduced by over 85 per cent in the past decade. Yet, the technology is far from ideal. Li-on battery-driven vehicles are constrained by the amount of electricity they can store—the average range is around 200 km and it takes over 4-6 hours to recharge fully. It may suit cars driven in cities, but not long-distance cargo trucks. Several major research centres are working on what are called post Li-on batteries, including new chemistries such as lithium-sulphur and zinc-air. In June, a US-based science company announced a breakthrough in electric vehicle batteries by fusing silicon nanowires onto commercial graphite powders, resulting in tripling the driving range while reducing charging time and cost. As important is providing the infrastructure, including charging centres. Delhi recently announced it will permit, for a small fee, the installation of private chargers for electric vehicles in parking spaces for apartments, hospitals, malls and other commercial establishments. THE GREEN MILE We need a battery revolution of a different kind for the most promising source of renewable energy: solar. Under Modi’s leadership, India has ramped up its solar generation capacity from 2.6 GW in 2014 to around 40 GW currently and is targeting a phenomenal 280 GW by 2030. At Glasgow, Modi announced that India would meet 50 per cent of its energy requirements from renewable sources such as solar, hydro, wind and biomass. This would mean upping the non-fossil fuel energy capacity to 500 GW, with solar comprising 60 per cent. Meanwhile, India pushed through the International Solar Alliance at the Paris climate change summit that has seen over 100 nations collaborate to boost global solar power production. Solar energy, however, has major drawbacks, including supply being intermittent as it is limited to daylight hours. Storage of power for use at night is another obstacle. The good news is that storage technology is improving rapidly with the development of battery farms and banks that can store as much as 1 GW of power each. Yet even these have their limitations. To overcome this, the ISA launched a major initiative called the One Sun, One World, One Grid (OSOWOG) in combination with the Green Grid Initiative (GGI) led by the UK and India at the Glasgow summit. Ajay Mathur, director general of ISA, says we can have an international grid for green electricity similar to the one for global telephony. By establishing electricity grids to connect countries, excess power generated by solar plants in one country can be sold to other countries in need, reducing the requirement for large battery storage plants. With daylight timings differing across the world, smart grids can ensure a continuous flow of solar power and address concerns of intermittent supply. “Our goal is to ensure that solar energy is cost-effective and reliable across the world,” says Mathur. “That will draw the kind of investments we require to build these worldwide grids to transmit and distribute electricity.” Concerns of sovereignty and security remain, but Mathur is confident of overcoming them through multiple worldwide grids to avoid dependence on any one nation. 3. TRANSITION FUEL With developed countries moving decisively towards carbon-free economies, developing nations left behind by the Industrial Revolution still depend heavily on oil and coal as the most cost-effective options for their energy needs. Despite the rapid expansion of its renewable energy capacity, fossil fuel sources, including coal-fired thermal power plants, still fulfil 80 per cent of India’s energy needs. Economic development necessitates a rise in per capita energy consumption, and India’s energy requirement is expected to grow five-fold by 2050. This means India will remain dependent on fossil fuels for decades. As an interim solution, experts are pressing for a fossil fuel that releases much less carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, such as natural gas. In a seminal volume titled The Next Stop: Natural Gas and India’s Journey towards a Clean Energy Future, Vikram Singh Mehta, the former CEO of Shell India, and chairman, Centre for Social and Economic Progress (CSEP), and other experts make a case for gas as the transition fuel towards clean energy. Surprisingly, the share of gas in India’s energy basket has remained low despite enormous potential. Mehta cites two reasons: heavily regulated prices, which have impeded investment in exploration and exploitation of gas reserves besides impacting commercial viability; and the shortfall in infrastructure, particularly pipelines that carry gas from production centres to consumers. Recognising gas as a bridging fuel to clean energy, the Modi government in 2017 announced that gas would account for 15 per cent of its energy mix by 2030. Last year, it announced its ‘One Nation, One Gas Grid’ programme to expand the Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) infrastructure through 15,000 gas pipelines covering 407 districts by 2023. As Mehta points out, much of this pipeline network can be upgraded to transport other cleaner fuels like hydrogen in the future. His request: don’t run out of gas. 4. FROM GREY TO GREEN Most high school students would recall the simple science experiment of using an electric charge to split water into oxygen and hydrogen, a process called electrolysis. Few, though, would have seen it as the answer to the world’s quest for clean energy, particularly for heating buildings, long distance transport or generating high temperatures in heavy industries like cement, steel and aluminium. Strangely, for decades, 95 per cent of industrial hydrogen was derived from coal or natural gas that resulted in 12 tonnes of CO2 emission for every tonne of hydrogen produced. The shift from grey to (the less carbon-generating) blue hydrogen and now to the relatively more expensive green and clean fuel version began recently after countries clamped down on GHG emissions. Now, all the big daddies of business are betting their money on a hydrogen energy-driven future. Mukesh Ambani, chairman of the Reliance Industries, announced this September he was setting up a giga electrolyser factory in Jamnagar to produce green hydrogen. While global efforts are on to bring down the cost of production of green hydrogen to $2 per kg, Ambani said India should aim for an even more ambitious target and become a world leader in this fuel. Ambani termed it the 1-1-1 formula—bring down the cost of 1 kg of green hydrogen to $1 in one decade, making it even cheaper than petroleum-derived fuels. The key to cheaper generation of green hydrogen is locating either a solar or wind power plant next to the electrolyser factory so that only clean fuel is used for the process. Ambani is doing just that, in the massive 5,000-acre Jamnagar green energy complex he is setting up. Meanwhile, in his Independence Day address this year, Prime Minister Modi announced the launching of a National Hydrogen Mission to scale up green hydrogen production and use across the country and align it with global best practices in policy, technology and regulation. The world over, hydrogen fuel is going to be the next big thing to solve the climate crisis. 5. NUCLEAR COMEBACK Despite being a major substitute for fossil fuel, nuclear power steadily declined in salience, barring in a few nations like France. Part of the reason was the backlash from the public and environmentalists after several nuclear accidents, including the one at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in 2011. Since then, the nuclear power establishment has been working hard on making reactor technology failsafe. Nuclear energy is making a strong comeback in many countries, including in India, after several reputable research institutes, including MIT, produced studies that showed the cost of clean fuel would quadruple if nuclear was not made part of the new energy mix. In India, nuclear power currently accounts for only 3.3 per cent of the energy mix. The government has recently sanctioned 10 additional 700 MW nuclear power plants to be built by 2030. Anil Kakodkar, former chairman of that Atomic Energy Commission, believes India should set up several mini-nuclear plants given our mastery over the technology. He also advocates that old and inefficient coal-powered power plants be decommissioned and replaced with large nuclear plants. Meanwhile, India is making rapid progress in setting up fast-breeder reactors that reuse the fuel they burn, making nuclear plants even more cost-effective. The real promise, though, is not atomic fission but fusion—the nuclear reaction that powers the Sun, with limitless carbon-free energy production. Among the most ambitious global projects is the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), based in southern France, which has 35 nations, including India, the US, China, Russia and the European Union, collaborating to build the world’s largest tokamak, a giant magnetic device designed to prove the feasibility of fusion technology. It is an incredibly complex process that requires generating temperatures over a million degrees Celsius to fuse hydrogen atoms and produce energy. ITER is expected to reach fruition by 2025 and, if successful, could be scaled up for worldwide commercial use. Kakodkar has his fingers crossed. 6. GOING WITH THE WIND While solar energy has grabbed the spotlight, wind power too has been making steady progress across the world and in India. With an installed capacity of 39,000 MW, accounting for 10 per cent of the country’s total generation, India is now among the top five wind energy-generating nations in the world. The wind of change has been in the design and construction of turbines, which will enable them to generate more electricity at a cheaper cost. The length of the turbine blades, which averaged around 20 metres (roughly the length of a cricket pitch), has now been extended to 50 metres or more. Many of them now have a wingspan of an average passenger jet plane. The greater the radius of the rotor blades, the better they can harness the wind and generate electric power. Simultaneously turbines are becoming taller too, touching heights of 250 metres, twice Air India’s iconic headquarters at Nariman Point. Both these developments have seen power generation from a wind turbine almost double, to around 5 MW now. Increasingly, wind turbine installations have moved offshore where wind speeds are normally higher, more regular and there are no space constraints in erecting towers. India, with a coastline of over 7,500 km, can generate as much as 127 GW of offshore wind energy, but is tapping only a fraction of that potential. Coastal states like Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Andhra, Maharashtra, Odisha and Karnataka need both massive investment and technology support to boost their current production levels. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has fixed a target of installing offshore capacity of 30 GW of wind power by 2030. But first it needs to sort out the multiple tariffs and duties to meet the target and push it even higher. Meanwhile, developed nations with expertise in wind power could help boost capacity in Africa and other under-developed countries that have coastlines. 7. GREEN REVOLUTION 2.0 If the world’s bovine population, estimated to be 1.4 billion, had a nation of its own, it would be the most populous in the world. India alone accounts for close to 300 million bovines, of which buffaloes constitute around 110 million and adult female cows 81 million. Across the world, bovines contribute to both milk and meat production. According to the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization), world meat production stood at 342 million tonnes in 2018, of which pork accounted for 38 per cent, chicken 33 per cent and beef around 20 per cent. Livestock contributes close to 6 per cent of the total GHG emissions. The methane they produce is 100 times more potent than carbon dioxide in terms of global warming. With the world population continuing to grow, the demand for meat is expected to rise exponentially. Coupled with the growing movement to generate energy from plants or plant waste (ethanol and other advanced biofuels), feeding livestock would compete with food crops and push food prices up apart from increasing the pace of deforestation. Research is on in laboratories across the world to grow meat in labs using stem-cell technology obviating the need for animal slaughter. In the Netherlands, Mosa Meat, a food technology start-up that introduced the first hamburger grown from stem cells eight years ago, is now working on producing cell-cultivated, cost-effective beef. The company claims that if their research is successful, then stem cells derived from a single bovine could produce enough meat to feed a big city like Amsterdam. Other start-ups are now in the race to produce “cultivated meat” of all kinds. It may trigger the second Green Revolution in food production and cut down harmful emissions significantly. It’s the kind of transformative research and technology the world needs to invest in. 8. NET ZERO Among the major objectives of the Glasgow summit was to frame the foundation of an international carbon trading system listed in the Paris Agreement to achieve the target of net zero emissions by 2050. It would enable nations to transfer credits to each other and offset their GHG emission targets. Critics of the trading system, and there are many, say it would give leeway to developed countries and companies that are highly polluting to stave off making deeper cuts in their own emissions by buying credits from poorer countries at exploitative prices. There are also major differences over whether the new trading system will recognise historical emissions permitted under earlier protocols. Others want rules that permit double credits—for the nation funding a particular carbon reducing project, such as the regeneration of forests to act as a carbon sink, and for the country implementing it. A third issue is whether a share of the revenue from such a bilateral trading agreement will go towards the UN’s Adaptation Fund. There have also been concerns about the integrity of the accounting system for such credits. In the meantime, the EU, China and Russia have already introduced carbon markets for certain industries. Companies in many countries have introduced voluntary carbon markets that enable them to trade and earn carbon offset credits. In vogue are two types of schemes. The first is an emission trading scheme known as Cap and Trade, where a government sets a limit on GHG emissions for an entity. Those with emissions below the limit can trade with those whose emissions are likely to exceed their limits, with the market mechanism determining the best price. The other option is a carbon tax where a blanket tax is imposed on GHG emissions so that there is incentive for entities to emit less and pay less tax. But as British economist Sir Nicholas Stern said, “The problem of climate change involves a fundamental failure of markets: those who damage others by emitting greenhouse gases generally do not pay.” For the carbon market mechanism to succeed, these entities must pay, and heavily. 9. CLIMATE FUNDS Central to the climate accords since inception in 1992 is the fact that developed countries that had historically overloaded GHG emissions into the atmosphere must fund both mitigation and adaption measures to enable developing countries combat climate change. The “common but differentiated responsibilities” based on the principle that polluters must pay agreed upon in Rio was bypassed by the Paris Agreement that opted for voluntary nationally determined emission reduction measures that left the big historical polluters, including the US, off the hook. Now, a second major principle on which the Paris agreement rested has begun to unravel, with developed countries nowhere close to mobilising the $100 billion per year by 2020 agreed upon to support climate action in developing countries. A UN official said the commitment was meant “to be a floor and not a ceiling” for climate finance. But a recent report by independent experts showed that these countries have gone even below the floor with the estimate of the total finance being anything from $40-60 billion in 2018. At Glasgow, donor countries pushed their $100 billion per annum pledge to 2023, upsetting developing countries. India reiterated that its new emission commitments will hinge on developed nations coughing up the requisite funds. India has estimated that developed countries will have to chip in $1 trillion annually if they expect developing countries to meet global emission targets. Sunita Narain, director general, Centre for Science and Environment, points out, “The bottom line is that 66 per cent of the world, including India, is left with some 30 per cent of the carbon budget, the rest already consumed by developed countries. Can you ask these 66 per cent to disappear from the face of the earth to stop climate change? The entire continent of Africa, which has 16 per cent of the world’s population, occupies only 4 per cent of the carbon budget. Do you want Africa to live in darkness forever or will you fund solar projects there?” If climate change targets are to be met, rich countries must put the money where their mouths are. 10. GLOBAL IMPACT Billionaire, philanthropist and now environment evangelist Bill Gates in his new book, How to Avoid a Climate Disaster, argues that “markets, technology and policy are three levers that we need to pull to wean ourselves from fossil fuels”. He advocates putting Green Premiums on all goods and services so that people adopt zero emissions to drive down premiums. Former Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia believes government policies and sensible fiscal incentives can accelerate the pace of transition to clean fuels. He says, “The EU has announced that cars with internal combustion engines will not be allowed for sale after 2035. India must do something similar for faster adoption of clean technology. A simple first step is for the central government to announce that all vehicles it buys or hires after 2023 be electric. The 42 central PSUs could be encouraged to make similar announcements.” While such local and national action are the need of the hour, given the planetary scale of the threat, we must as a world community set aside our quibbles and selfish interests and put up a united front to meet the emergency. The Covid pandemic showed what a combined effort in vaccine technology could achieve. But it also exposed the widespread vaccine inequity and injustice. If we are to avert a collective climate catastrophe, we urgently need a global compact to rapidly develop key green technologies, with the haves paying for the have-nots.

Environment on the brink: J&K recorded 12 extreme weather events in last 5 months

&K has witnessed at least 12 extreme weather events in 2025 already, a report has revealed, while the air, the waste management and temperature are grossly off the mark. Environment goals need immediate prioritisation to mitigate the effects of human activities in the eco-fragile region. The report has compiled the extreme weather events in states and UTs of India between 2022 and 2025. This data set has been sourced from the Disaster Management Division of Indian Meteorological Department. While extreme weather patterns continue to get more frequent, it has also led to displacements and internal migrations. In J&K, 12 extreme weather events were recorded in 2025, higher than any recent year. The year 2022 had 8 extreme weather events in J&K, while 6 and 4 were recorded in 2023 and 2024 respectively. In 2024, 535 internal displacements were attributed to dry mass movements, 1513 to hailstorms, and 33 to storms. The states and UTs have been scored and ranked based on available data. On the parameters of Forests & Biodiversity and Climate Sub-Categories J&K features in the middle rung states and UTs. It has scored 53 points, crossing the halfway mark, far below Andhra Pradesh, which has scored 68.38 points, and also below all north-eastern states. Together among all states and UTs, J&K perches itself at the 24th rank, an area of concern. In terms of sustainable land use, J&K bags 50.9 points and 15th rank, a better performance on this indicator among states and UTs. J&K has failed to uptake the new renewable energy resources and depends solely on old renewable energy sources. Here, 98 percent of energy comes from old energy sources, while 2 percent is from new renewable energy sources. Not a single Bio-CNG plant is operational in the UT, and only one that has been registered is yet to get into construction mode. India has set itself a goal that 32 percent of its electricity generation must be from new renewable sources by 2030, a mark that J&K appears to be far from. In terms of Air Pollution, J&K has had a share of bad air days. For the period between January 1, 2021 and March 31, 2025, Srinagar Air Quality was ‘Poor’ for 449 days. Comparatively, the Air Quality during the same period was ‘Good’ only for 339 days. Srinagar recorded 203 days of ‘Satisfactory’ Air Quality in the 1551 days that were studied. The Air Quality also went ‘Severe’ bad for two days in Srinagar. Released on Wednesday, a compilation of multiple Government data sets, the ‘State of India’s Environment 2025 in Figures’ report, paints a picture of J&K and other state and UTs parameters affecting the environment. The report has been compiled by Down to Earth, Center for Science and Environment, New Delhi, and is the 10th annual report of the series. The report has been divided into 12 chapters, each dissecting the state of environment, agriculture, human development and sustainability, utilising and analysing published Government data. The numbers, the foreword of the report states, are the crutch that will help us understand the trends – what is shaping our world and our future; what is changing; what is improving; and what is not.

India calls for more climate contributions ahead of key meet

“In an atmosphere of aid cuts and reducing international cooperation, there are few hooks remaining to hold developed countries accountable for what they owe and committed to. Reinforcing their duty to provide finance to developing countries is a demand that the Global South must not give up on,” said Avantika Goswami, Programme Manager, Climate Change Centre for Science and Environment. India has put forth its expectations on the ideal “Baku To Belem Roadmap to 1.3T” ahead of the Bonn Climate Meeting which begins on June 16, stating that without sufficient climate finance, even proposed nationally determined contributions will not materialise, leave alone any ambitious future NDCs. In a succinct and strongly worded submission to the UN climate body, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) on May 27, India has said climate finance should flow from developed countries to developing countries and that public capital should be used strategically to crowd in private investments for climate action, pointing out that excessive borrowing poses risks to a country’s fiscal stability. It added that the roadmap should support meaningful translation of developing country NDCs to concrete actions. “At the outset, India expresses concern with the substantial gaps remaining between the current annual quantum provided under the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) on Climate Finance and the financing needs currently identified by developing countries for their 2030 NDC commitments,” India flagged in its submission. “Without sufficient climate finance, even the proposed NDCs would not fructify, leave alone any enhanced level of ambition in future NDCs. The NCQG outcome of COP 29 was adopted despite India’s objection and signals the unwillingness and failure of developed countries to fulfil their responsibilities under the Convention and its Paris Agreement. The “Baku to Belém Roadmap to 1.3T” is an opportunity to put the financial discussion on the right track in accordance with Article 9.1 of Paris Agreement,” India added. Article 9.1 of the Paris Agreement states “Developed country Parties shall provide financial resources to assist developing country Parties with respect to both mitigation and adaptation in continuation of their existing obligations under the Convention.” HT reported on November 25 last year that the COP29 climate talks in Baku ended in unprecedented acrimony as India led a fierce pushback against what it called a “stage-managed” climate finance deal, moments after the Azerbaijan Presidency hastily gavelled through a contentious proposal. India was the first to reject the decision for not reflecting the priorities of the Global South — a dismissal endorsed by many other countries. Baku was expected to see progress on NCQG, basically a new commitment on climate funding by developed countries. The NCQG text set a climate finance goal of “at least $300 billion per year by 2035” and launched the “Baku to Belém Roadmap to 1.3T.” COP 30 is scheduled for later this year at Belem, Brazil, and the understanding at Baku was that countries would use the year between the two conferences to arrive at a roadmap for climate funding goal of $1.3 trillion. However, India identified specific problems that could fundamentally alter climate finance obligations: “As we struggle to deal with climate change, the outcome proposed in the paper will further affect our ability to adapt to climate change, greatly impact our NDC ambition, and its implementation... will severely affect our growth,” Chandni Raina, the negotiator from India and a finance ministry advisor said then, emphasising that “the amount proposed to be mobilised is abysmally poor, it is a paltry sum and it will not enable climate action.” She specifically highlighted three problematic paragraphs in the Baku declaration: Allowing finance from “a wide variety of sources, public and private, bilateral and multilateral ; recognising climate finance mobilised through multilateral development banks and ; and encouraging developing country contributions through South-South cooperation. The NCQG text had decided that the roadmap will be joint initiative of the Presidencies and not a negotiated outcome. India said in its latest submission that it should be seen that this is indeed not a negotiated outcome among parties. Further action should be country led, India stressed. “The roadmap must be based on approaches that duly recognise the country-led nature of climate action. In the context of developing countries, achieving sustained growth depends on fostering a “virtuous cycle” of domestic savings and productive investment. There is a well-established link between the Human Development Index (HDI) and per capita energy consumption,” India’s submission added. Global tax levies and specific sector approaches must be excluded, the submission went on to say. These not only lack international consensus but also run counter to the principles of equity and CBDR-RC and the bottom-up, nationally determined nature of climate action. The financial commitments of developed nations should reflect their historical responsibilities in their contribution to global cumulative GHG emissions. In 1992, at the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the CBDR-RC was officially enshrined in the UNFCCC treaty on Climate Change. Article 3 paragraph 1 of the UNFCCC said: “The Parties should protect the climate system for the benefit of present and future generations of humankind, on the basis of equity and in accordance with their common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities. Accordingly, the developed country Parties should take the lead in combating climate change and the adverse effects thereof” . Further, overleveraging for climate initiatives through excessive borrowing poses risks to the country’s fiscal stability, India said in its submission. Finally, India has said the roadmap should convey the right signals and messages for urgent climate actions enabled by scaling up climate finance to developing countries effectively. “In an atmosphere of aid cuts and reducing international cooperation, there are few hooks remaining to hold developed countries accountable for what they owe and committed to. Reinforcing their duty to provide finance to developing countries is a demand that the Global South must not give up on,” said Avantika Goswami, Programme Manager, Climate Change Centre for Science and Environment.

Climate Justice Starts with a Bus Ride: A Lifeline for Delhi’s Waste Pickers

Though public perception often blames stubble burning or fireworks for Delhi’s toxic air, a Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) analysis confirms that vehicular pollution is the leading contributor among combustion sources. Every day, Delhi’s waste pickers walk three to four kilometers under the blazing sun, collecting and sorting the garbage that keeps India’s capital functioning. Their work is essential—yet largely invisible. There are an estimated 200,000 waste pickers in Delhi, many of whom are migrants from landless, rural families in northern and eastern India. Pushed out of agriculture and informal rural economies, they arrive in the city with little more than the hope of survival, often ending up in the informal recycling sector. Labeled as “unskilled” or “semi-skilled” labor, they perform some of the city’s most crucial work—without contracts, protection, or recognition. Sheikh Akbar Ali, a waste picker from Seemapuri who has worked with the community for over 15 years, paints a grim picture. “We’re often denied access to public buses because people say we smell,” he says. With a daily income of ₹300 (roughly USD 3.60), even a single auto ride costing ₹150 (USD 1.80) one way is unaffordable. For women waste pickers, things are worse—no access to toilets, no place to change, and no shelter from the searing heat. “Since COVID-19, we’ve been pushed off shaded footpaths and society corners to work under the open sky,” he adds. The Smart Cities Mission, aimed at modernizing urban infrastructure, has only shrunk their access to public spaces, replacing common corners with beautified zones and surveillance. Sumit Chaddha, another waste picker in Kamla Nagar, recalls how there once was a rule to stop work by 10am during peak summer hours. “Now, the heat is unbearable, but we have to keep going. One man collapsed while working—he started vomiting and died,” Sumit says. “There’s no medical card or health service for us through the MCD. We handle waste for the whole city but don’t even get gloves, let alone health insurance.” In 2024, Delhi recorded a temperature of 52.3°C during what the World Meteorological Organization declared the hottest year in 175 years. The city also continues to rank among the world’s most polluted, with 74 of the 100 most polluted cities in the world located in India, according to the 2024 World Air Quality Report. Though public perception often blames stubble burning or fireworks for Delhi’s toxic air, a Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) analysis confirms that vehicular pollution is the leading contributor among combustion sources. Pollution in Delhi is Not Seasonal. Delhi breathes hazardous air nearly all year round—99 percent of the time. PM2.5 levels, which measure the concentration of fine particles that can penetrate deep into the lungs, regularly exceed the World Health Organization’s safe limit by 30 times. Even short-term exposure to PM2.5 has been linked to heart attacks, strokes, and severe respiratory illnesses. Yet, the poorest—those already battling extreme heat, living in cramped settlements, and working with hazardous waste—remain stranded. Public buses, their main mode of mobility, are in a state of collapse. Over 100,000 bus breakdowns were reported in just nine months of 2024 alone. Transport-related emissions, while relatively easier to reduce, are still not a priority in most countries. Globally, the transport sector accounts for 15 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, with road transport alone responsible for 71 percent of that figure in 2019. India, now the third-largest emitter of CO₂ in the world, released 2.69 billion tons of fossil CO₂ in 2022—up by 6.5% from the previous year.

India’s public health leaders call for warning labels on food products high in sugar, salt, and saturated fat

The policy statement initiated by Nutrition Advocacy in Public Interest (NAPi) is endorsed by 28 organisations, including PHFI, Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), Indian Public Health Association (IPHA), Consumer VOICE, and Diabetes India. Patient groups like Kidney Warriors have also supported the statement. A coalition of India’s 29 leading public health and consumer organisations on Tuesday urged the centre to mandate front-of-pack warning labels on pre-packaged food and beverage products high in sugar, salt, and saturated fat (HFSS). The leading public health leaders gave the call for warning labels, responding to the mounting evidence of health risks posed by HFSS and ultra-processed food (UPF) products. Prof. K. Srinath Reddy, Honorary Distinguished Professor and Goodwill Ambassador of Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) for Public Health Partnerships, who has been a longstanding voice in India’s public health landscape, said: “India cannot afford to wait while non-communicable diseases (NCDs) escalate and children become marketing targets.” “Warning labels are simple, effective, and evidence-based,” he added. The policy statement initiated by Nutrition Advocacy in Public Interest (NAPi) is endorsed by 28 organisations, including PHFI, Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), Indian Public Health Association (IPHA), Consumer VOICE, and Diabetes India. Patient groups like Kidney Warriors have also supported the statement. Dr Arun Gupta, Convener of NAPi, a national think-tank on nutrition consisting of independent medical experts, paediatricians, and nutritionists, said: “Without mandatory warning labels, the public remains in the dark. Industry interests must not override children’s right to health.” Quoting the Economic Survey, he added: “Globally, self-regulation has been ineffective. Stringent front-of-pack labelling rules are needed and must be enforced.” The Supreme Court has also recently expressed concern over misleading and insufficient food labelling practices. The apex court in its order in April, directed the centre to amend the 2022 draft regulation within three months, stating food packets “have no information” and raised concern about products like Kurkure and Maggi. According to the Indian Council of Medical Research-National Institute of Nutrition (ICMR-NIN) Guidelines, 2024 HFSS foods are defined as foods or diets that exceed recommended thresholds for added fat, sugar, or salt. These foods are typically energy dense, low in micronutrients and fibre, and are associated with increased risk of NCDs such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease, the statement said. NAPi further said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his Mann Ki Baat address, emphasised the critical need to raise awareness among children about their sugar consumption, how much they are eating and what they should ideally consume. Earlier this year also, the prime minister had emphasised on reducing fat consumption to tackle the obesity crisis in India. He had suggested that such awareness would guide them toward healthier choices. Warning labels on HFSS products do exactly that, they said. The public health organisations said warning labels on HFSS food products is the need of the hour as India is witnessing an alarming rise in non-communicable diseases and related premature deaths. As per national data, 28% of adults are overweight or obese, while one in four adults is diabetic or pre-diabetic. Alarmingly, 10% of 10–19-year-olds are pre-diabetic. “Children are consuming increasing amounts of packaged foods high in sugar and salt, accelerating childhood obesity. As many as 54% of all deaths are linked to unhealthy diets,” the policy statement said. Senior constitutional expert Rajeev Dhawan, Senior Advocate, Supreme Court, said: “Proper and accurate labelling of all pre-packaged food products is not only consumer protection and a right to know, it is part of the right to health and life.” The policy statement called for mandatory warning labels (like High in Sugar) on the front of the pack; rejection of the 2022 draft “Star Rating” model, which is misleading and favours industry; labelling thresholds based on the 2022 Draft Regulation, WHO SEARO, or ICMR-NIN criteria; prohibition of marketing to children, including cartoons, celebrity endorsements, and health claims; transparent and time-bound regulation, with a 12-month compliance deadline; and protection of public health in trade negotiations involving food labelling standards. Dr. Nupur Bidla, National Coordinator, Breastfeeding Promotion Network of India (BPNI) said the Supreme Court’s question, “You all have grandchildren?... the packets have no information”, highlights the urgent need to protect future generations. “We have urged the government of India to heed the apex court’s concern and mandate warning labels - not star ratings on all ultra-processed packaged foods/ HFSS.” She said NAPi has also launched a public petition in support of this campaign.

Delhi made worthy leaps but why clean air is still a long work in progress

Delhi is not the city that comes to mind with the words ‘Clean Air’ but rather the abject absence of it. A recent nationwide review of the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), has shown that the Delhi administration’s multi-pronged actions to crack down on sources of air pollution has covered much ground, yet more remains to be done. Delhi’s clean air action precedes the NCAP programme. Its early moves were driven by interventions from the Supreme Court and its monitoring body, the Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority, established by the top court in 1998. Road dust due to transport is the source of close to 40 per cent of PM (particulate matter) 2.5 pollution. To begin with, Delhi substituted diesel fuel with compressed natural gas (CNG) in its public transport and local commercial transport. Then it put restrictions on entry of trucks; imposed a pollution tax on daily truck entries, diesel fuel sold and diesel cars sold with 2000 cc engines; phased out 10-year-old diesel and 15-year-old petrol vehicles; banned polluting industrial fuels like coal, furnace oil and pet coke; and also closed all coal-based power plants. After 2020, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has restricted the entry of pre-Bharat Stage IV inter-state buses; banned diesel generator sets; and initiated hotspot action on dispersed sources. The Delhi government’s electric vehicle policy has attained fleet electrification level of 12 per cent. The long-term action on coal and diesel has cumulatively led to major reductions in their consumption and led to reduction of emissions.