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Strong winds blow away bad air, gift city best AQI since Sept

New Delhi: Strong and cool northwesterly winds, which blew in the city on Wednesday, helped Delhiites inhale clean air. The city recorded an air quality index (AQI) of 119 in the lower end of the moderate category. The last time Delhi recorded a lower AQI was on Sept 29, 2024, at 76, in the satisfactory category. Wednesday was the fifth consecutive moderate day. Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director of research and advocacy at Centre for Science and Environment, said, "This has been possible primarily because of strong breeze and relatively lower impact of wind-blown dust haze as we normally see during summer. Pollution has dispersed faster than usual." However, she pointed out, "This is only a temporary reprieve. We need deeper and round the year action to meet the clean air benchmark." According to India Meteorological Department, strong surface wind conditions from west with 25-35kmph speed prevailed during the past 24 hours. Strong winds aid in dispersion of pollutants while calm winds lead to their accumulation. Met department has predicted that strong surface winds at the speed of 20-30kmph are likely to prevail till Thursday noon. Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi, the forecasting body under the Union ministry of earth sciences, the air quality is likely to stay moderate till Saturday. "The outlook for the subsequent six days is that the air quality is likely to be in the moderate to poor category," it added. Meanwhile, the maximum temperature is likely to rise from Thursday and it may reach 33 degrees Celsius by March 10. Strong winds caused the day temperature to dip on Wednesday. The maximum temperature was 25 degrees Celsius, two degrees below normal, at Safdarjung, the city's base station. The minimum temperature settled at 11.8 degrees Celsius, two degrees below normal. It was 3.8 degrees lower than Tuesday's minimum temperature. IMD has predicted that the maximum temperature may remain in the range of 28-30 degrees Celsius on Thursday, but is likely to surpass 30 degrees Celsius by Saturday. It is predicted to reach in the range of 31-33 degrees Celsius by March 10.

कचरे का होगा बेहतर इस्तेमाल CSE रिपोर्ट में बताया भारत में उद्योगों से निकलने वाले कचरे को कैसे किया जाएगा यूज

Industrial Waste: भारत में उद्योगों से निकलने वाले कचरे को लेकर सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एनवायरनमेंट (CSE) की रिपोर्ट में तेजी से बढ़ते उत्सर्जन पर कंट्रोल का बताया तरीका। भारत में उद्योगों से निकलने वाले करीब 75 करोड़ टन कचरे का दोबारा इस्तेमाल किया जा सकता है। इसमें स्टील स्लैग, कचरे से पैदा ईंधन (RDF), फ्लाई ऐश, रेड मड, बायोमास आदि शामिल हैं। इससे प्राकृतिक संसाधनों पर बढ़ते दबाव को कम करने में मदद मिलेगी। तेजी से बढ़ते उत्सर्जन पर भी लगाम लगाई जा सकेगी। सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एनवायरनमेंट (CSE) की रिपोर्ट में यह बात कही गई। बचेगा प्राकृतिक संसाधन ‘गुड प्रैक्टिस इन इंडस्ट्रियल वेस्ट सर्कुलेरिटी’ नाम की रिपोर्ट के मुताबिक औद्योगिक कचरे के दोबारा इस्तेमाल से कोयला, जिप्सम जैसे 45 करोड़ टन प्राकृतिक संसाधनों को बचाया जा सकेगा और पांच से नौ करोड़ टन कार्बन उत्सर्जन रोका जा सकेगा। सीएसई के औद्योगिक प्रदूषण कार्यक्रम के प्रबंधक शोभित श्रीवास्तव ने कहा, कई भारतीय उद्योगों ने इस दिशा में बेहतर काम किए हैं। इन्हें आगे बढ़ाने की जरूरत है। स्टील स्लैग से सीमेंट रिपोर्ट के मुताबिक 2030 तक भारत में करीब 5.25 करोड़ टन स्टील स्लैग पैदा हो सकता है। इसमें से 3.53 से 4.1 करोड़ टन का इस्तेमाल सीमेंट बनाने में किया जा सकता है। इसी तरह 43.7 करोड़ टन फ्लाई ऐश में से 20.8 से 23.1 करोड़ टन का इस्तेमाल सीमेंट उद्योग में किया जा सकता है। मूल्यवान संसाधन सीएसई की महानिदेशक सुनीता नारायण का कहना है कि उद्योग भारत के सकल घरेलू उत्पाद में 30 फीसदी से ज्यादा का योगदान देते हैं। ये बड़ी मात्रा में प्राकृतिक संसाधनों का इस्तेमाल कर रहे हैं। कचरे के साथ बड़ी मात्रा में उत्सर्जन भी कर रहे हैं। अपशिष्ट मूल्यवान संसाधन हो सकता है। सर्कुलरिटी से कार्बन उत्सर्जन कम सीएसई में औद्योगिक प्रदूषण कार्यक्रम के निदेशक निवित यादव ने बताया कि “इस बात पर प्रकाश डाला है कि कैसे सर्कुलरिटी अपशिष्ट प्रबंधन में सुधार ला सकती है, साथ ही कार्बन उत्सर्जन को कम कर सकती है। यह संसाधनों की बचत के साथ-साथ लागत में भी कटौती कर सकती है।“ सरकारी नीतियों की जरुरत सीएसई रिपोर्ट में भारत में औद्योगिक कचरे को ट्रैक और रिकॉर्ड करने की आवश्यकता पर जोर दिया गया है। सर्कुलरिटी को बढ़ावा देने के लिए, उद्योगों को प्रोत्साहन दिया जाना चाहिए। साथ ही सरकार को विभिन्न क्षेत्रों के लिए कचरे के पुनर्चक्रण से जुड़ी नीतियां बनानी चाहिए।

How to save Delhi from turning waste capital? Indore says...

India has 42 of the 50 most polluted cities in the worlda stark failure of municipal governance, India’s G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant has said at the Anil Agarwal Dialogue 2025, an event organised by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) in Rajasthan. Kant emphasised that waste mismanagement is not just a governance issue but also a failure of citizen responsibility. “People do not take responsibility for separating their waste at the household level,” he said. “If we continue down this path, we will become a country of filth.” WHY WASTE SEGREGATION Segregation is the practice of essentially not mixing waste and slotting different kinds of garbage separately at the household/ source level and giving it separately to the garbage collector in different packages. Experts say it is extremely fundamental to addressing the challenges of waste management in India. “Segregation is the single-biggest factor that can save Delhi or any other city from turning into a dump-yard,” Atin Biswas, programme director for solid waste management and circular economy at CSE, told INDIA TODAY on the sidelines of the Anil Agarwal Dialogue 2025. “In fact, it can solve at least half of the [waste] problem.” HOW TO SEGREGATE AT HOME Household waste can broadly be divided into two large sectionswet and dry. Each kind of waste requires a different type of facility to manage it. However, if both wet and dry waste get mixed, which happens in most households today, half the battle is already lost, said Biswas. The main reason is that when mixed, wet waste (such as vegetable peels, which have 70 per cent water) contaminates dry waste. As a result, the value of dry waste reduces. That’s essentially because dry waste includes a wide spectrum of materialspaper, metal, glass, plastic, discarded medicines, broken thermometers, electronic waste, sanitary napkins and diapers, to name a few. All of these contain chemicals that don’t react unless exposed to moisture or liquid. Experts say that if segregated, both these wastes can be treated for making money, something that forms the ethos of a circular economy, wherein nothing goes to landfill but is circulated back into the system. For instance, wet waste gets converted into biogas, bio-CNG or compost.

How to save Delhi from turning waste capital? Indore says...

India has 42 of the 50 most polluted cities in the worlda stark failure of municipal governance, India's G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant has said at the Anil Agarwal Dialogue 2025, an event organised by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) in Rajasthan. Kant emphasised that waste mismanagement is not just a governance issue but also a failure of citizen responsibility. "People do not take responsibility for separating their waste at the household level," he said. "If we continue down this path, we will become a country of filth." WHY WASTE SEGREGATION Segregation is the practice of essentially not mixing waste and slotting different kinds of garbage separately at the household/ source level and giving it separately to the garbage collector in different packages. Experts say it is extremely fundamental to addressing the challenges of waste management in India. "Segregation is the single-biggest factor that can save Delhi or any other city from turning into a dump-yard," Atin Biswas, programme director for solid waste management and circular economy at CSE, told INDIA TODAY on the sidelines of the Anil Agarwal Dialogue 2025. "In fact, it can solve at least half of the [waste] problem." HOW TO SEGREGATE AT HOME Household waste can broadly be divided into two large sectionswet and dry. Each kind of waste requires a different type of facility to manage it. However, if both wet and dry waste get mixed, which happens in most households today, half the battle is already lost, said Biswas.

Centre for Science and Environment, New Delhi, School of Planning and Architecture, University of Mysore

Regional workshop on Climate Resilient Cities: Adaptive and Mitigative Approaches for a Warming Habitat, Prof. N.K. Lokanath, Vice-Chancellor, University of Mysore, inaugurates; Rajneesh Sareen, Programme Director for Sustainable Building and Habitat Programme, Centre for Science and Environment, New Delhi, chief guest; Dr. Chandrashekar Hariharan, Chairman, AltTech Consortium, Bengaluru, delivers keynote address; Mitashi Singh, Programme Manager, Sustainable Building and Habitat Programme at Centre for Science and Environment, New Delhi and M.K. Savitha, UoM Registrar, guests of honour, Prof. K.S. Rangappa Auditorium, School of Planning and Architecture, Manasagangothri, 12 noon.

Industrial waste is a potential gold mine. India can reuse up to 750 million tonnes, says CSE report

Circularity is the answer to India’s rising industrial waste and carbon missions. The country could reuse up to 750 million tonnes (MT) of industrial waste, such as steel slag and fly ash, by 2030. It can also reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 50-90 million tonnes (MT), according to a Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) report. “Circularity has emerged as a critical focus area globally and nationally, emphasising on the principle that waste is not merely waste, but a valuable resource,” Sunita Narain, the director general at the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), said in a press release. Circularity is the sustainable use of waste material from a production process by reusing it in various forms, ensuring that any economic process is circular and not linear, limiting waste production. There has been a renewed focus in India on circularity, which Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman mentioned in the 2025 Budget speech. Over the last decade, Swacch Bharat Abhiyan, the 2022 ban on single-use plastic, and the E-Waste Management Rules that India passed in 2022 are all geared towards a more circular economy. According to the CSE report, India’s material industrial consumption will likely double from seven billion tonnes in 2015 to 14.2 billion tonnes by 2030. In Europe, the quantum of goods recycled is as high as 70 percent, but the goods India recycles is a mere 20 percent. Globally, there is a big gap in overall circularity, with only 7.2 percent of the global economy being circular. “Many Indian industries are already taking steps to improve circularity—they have a number of good practices that need to be scaled up. States like Gujarat, Goa and Karnataka have taken initiatives towards circularity, but more states need to follow their example,” Shobhit Srivastava, the industrial pollution programme manager at CSE, said in the press release. Challenges to circularity The CSE report comes at an opportune time. Currently, the state leaders are meeting in Jaipur for the 12th edition of the Regional 3R and Circular Economy Forum in Asia and the Pacific. Inaugurated by Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs Manohar Lal Khattar, the forum focuses on global strategies and collaboration for reducing waste and promoting sustainability. Over 500 representatives from over 20 countries in the Asia Pacific region and the United Nations will be participating in the forum, slated to pass a Jaipur Declaration on 5 March 2025, stating goals for a more resource-efficient economy. The large-scale generation of industrial and hazardous waste, along with improper handling and mismanagement, has, in several cases, resulted in environmental accidents, such as the 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy. Waste poses risks to local communities, wildlife, and vegetation, with the CSE report stressing the need to shift towards a circular economy. Circularity conserves resources—for instance, alternative fuels and raw materials derived from industrial waste, such as biomass, can reduce coal consumption in India.

Hotter days and nights ahead as temperature touches 39 degrees Celsius in TN

Chennai and Tamil Nadu are grappling with an intensifying heat stress as maximum temperatures are climbing above normal. As per the temperature forecast by the regional meteorological centre here, there will be a gradual rise in day time temperature by 2°C during next 5 days and maximum temperature is likely to be 2-3 degrees above normal in isolated pockets of Tamil Nadu. Tirupattur recorded the highest temperature in the state at 38.8°C. This comes amid warnings of an unusually harsh summer ahead. On March 3, maximum temperatures ranged between 34 - 39°C across the plains of North Interior Tamil Nadu, 33-34 degrees in South Interior Tamil Nadu, and 30-35 degrees along the coastal areas, including Chennai, Puducherry and Karaikal. Nighttime conditions offered little respite, with districts like Dharmapuri (3.8 degrees above normal), Ooty (3.6 C), Coimbatore (3 C), and Chennai (2.2 C) recording unusually high minimum temperatures. Although, on Tuesday, the mercury dropped slightly, the majority of districts continued to record above normal temperatures. A recent report by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) - Urban Heat Stress Tracker: Chennai - highlights a decadal rise in summertime average ambient air temperature of 0.4°C - from 30.3°C (2001-2010) to 30.7°C (2014-2023) - coupled with a 5% increase in relative humidity. This combination has driven a 5% rise in Chennai’s Heat Index (HI), with days exceeding the dangerous HI threshold of 41°C tripling since the early 2000s. Last year, March-April temperatures were 1°C hotter than the 2014-2023 average, a trend continuing into 2025. Experts attribute this escalation to the urban heat island effect, worsened by Chennai’s rapid urban expansion.

Industrial waste circularity can make a huge difference to the way we manage waste and reduce carbon emissions: CSE

Building and practising a circular economy is not just about managing waste efficiently – it has a potential to lead to substantial conservation of natural resources as well as reduction in carbon emissions, says a new report on industrial waste circularity by Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). The report – Good Practices in Industrial Waste Circularity — has estimated the potential of circularity of different industrial wastes in various applications by 2030 and the associated benefits in terms of natural resource conservation, reduction in carbon emissions and cost economics. According to it, there is a potential for utilising about 750 million tonne (MT) of various types of wastes in industries (steel slag, RDF, flyash, red mud, biomass, hazardous waste etc). Circularity can also help conserve more than 450 MT of natural resources like coal and gypsum, while the potential of reduction in carbon dioxide equivalent (CO 2 e) lies in the range of 50-90 MT . Speaking at a National Dialogue based on the CSE report on the subject here today, CSE director general Sunita Narain said: “Industries contribute over 30 per cent of India’s GDP, and are significant consumers of natural resources and generators of waste. They are also major sources of pollution and carbon emissions. Circularity has emerged as a critical focus area globally and nationally, emphasising on the principle that waste is not merely waste, but a valuable resource. This model promotes the sharing, leasing, reusing, repairing, refurbishing, and recycling of existing materials and products to extend their lifecycle.” Narain went on to say: “A new approach is needed in management of industrial waste. We must avoid simply transferring toxins from one place to another. Instead, waste from one industry should become a resource for another. Industrial activity should not contribute to pollution but instead follow a path of responsible circularity. CSE’s work in this field highlights that it can be a game-changer, making a significant impact on resource use in the country.” Nivit K Yadav, programme director, industrial pollution, CSE said: “The Dialogue has been organised to explore how circularity can serve as a tool not only for effective waste management but also for achieving co-benefits such as decarbonisation, cleaner air, resource conservation, and cost optimisation. The event has highlighted the current state of industrial waste management, showcased the best practices, and outlined a future vision for industrial waste circularity in India.” The other speakers at the Dialogue included K Murugesan, member secretary, Orissa Pollution Control Board; S Ramarao, chief operating officer of Adani Cement; Satish Upadhyay, mission director, National Mission on Use of Biomass in Power Plants and Ulhas Palikar, director, Material Recycling Association of India (MRAI). Presenting the findings of the CSE study, Shobhit Srivastava, programme manager, industrial pollution, CSE said: “Many Indian industries are already taking steps to improve circularity – they have a number of good practices that need to be scaled up. States like Gujarat, Goa and Karnataka have taken initiatives towards circularity, but more states need to follow their example.” Highlighting the circularity potential of industrial wastes, the CSE report says that out of 52.5 MT of steel slag estimated to be generated by 2030, about 35.3-41 MT can be used in cement making. Similarly, out of 437 MT of fly ash expected to be generated by 2030, roughly 208-231 MT can be used in the cement sector. Using refuse-derived fuel (RDF) in cement industries and co-firing biomass in thermal power plants can help reduce CO 2 emissions in the range of 46.6 to 85.6 MT of CO 2 e by 2030, says the report. Says Srivastava: “Biomass co-firing in thermal power plants has the potential to be one of the key pathways for decarbonisation. Both RDF and biomass circularity in industries is expected to be improved with the recently introduced notification for Solid Waste Management Rules, 2024.” Pointing to the challenges, K Murugesan from Odisha said: “One of the biggest roadblocks towards scaling up industrial circularity practices is the absence of attractive taxation policies for industries utilising waste.” According to Satish Upadhyay, “we need a strong economic case to drive funding and make circularity viable. A ‘push’ strategy is ineffective for circularity – we need a ‘pull’ strategy. Demand must drive the market, ensuring maximum utilisation of resources to achieve full circularity.” Yadav points out: “There is an urgent need for India to have a national vision and mission towards industrial waste circularity. A national circular economy action plan is the need of the hour, and it should include sectoral action plans for industries.” The CSE report says it is critical that India maps and inventorises the industrial waste generated in the country. Incentivisation for industries is another pathway to enhance and encourage the practice of circularity of waste — government should come up with circularity-driven policies or industrial waste for different industries.

Tata Motors begins trials of hydrogen-powered trucks for long haul transportation

Union ministers Nitin Gadkari and Pralhad Joshi on Tuesday flagged off the first-ever trials of hydrogen-powered heavy-duty trucks launched by Tata Motors to assess their viability for long haul transportation solutions. Gadkari, the road transport and highways minister, complimented the company for taking the lead in this significant step towards enabling hydrogen-powered green and smart transportation, “Hydrogen is the fuel of the future with immense potential to transform India’s transportation sector by reducing emissions and enhancing energy self-reliance. Such Initiatives will accelerate the transition to sustainable mobility in heavy-duty trucking, and move us closer to an efficient, low-carbon future,” he said. Tata Motors was awarded the tender for this trial, which is funded by the ministry of new and renewable energy under the National Green Hydrogen Mission. The trial phase will continue for up to 24 months and involves deployment of 16 advanced hydrogen-powered vehicles with different configurations and payload capacities. These trucks, equipped with new age Hydrogen Internal Combustion Engines (H2-ICE) and Fuel Cell (H2-FCEV) technologies, will be tested on India’s most prominent freight routes, including those around Mumbai, Pune, Delhi-NCR, Surat, Vadodara, Jamshedpur and Kalinganagar, a government statement said. The first batch of three hydrogen-powered heavy-duty trucks will operate on the Faridabad–Delhi NCR and Ahmedabad–Surat–Vadodara routes. Joshi, the new and renewable energy minister, said hydrogen was an important fuel for India’s transition to a sustainable and zero-carbon future. The launch of hydrogen-powered truck trials mark a radical shift in India’s mobility sector, reducing dependence on fossil fuels and enhancing energy security, he said. Vehicular pollution is a significant contributor to PM 2.5 levels in urban areas. Diesel vehicles, a major chunk of which are heavy vehicles, in particular, are known to be major sources of PM 2.5 emissions due to their higher levels of particulate matter compared to petrol vehicles and other relatively cleaner fuels such as CNG. A 2016 study by Centre for Science and Environment and Shakti Foundation had found across India, trucks contribute about 66% of PM (particulate matter) pollution and 62% of NOx emissions.

तमिलनाडु में तापमान 39 डिग्री सेल्सियस तक पहुंचने से दिन गर्म

चेन्नई और तमिलनाडु में गर्मी का प्रकोप बढ़ता जा रहा है, क्योंकि अधिकतम तापमान सामान्य से ऊपर चढ़ रहा है। यहां क्षेत्रीय मौसम विज्ञान केंद्र द्वारा तापमान पूर्वानुमान के अनुसार, अगले 5 दिनों के दौरान दिन के तापमान में धीरे-धीरे 2 डिग्री सेल्सियस की वृद्धि होगी और तमिलनाडु के अलग-अलग इलाकों में अधिकतम तापमान सामान्य से 2-3 डिग्री अधिक रहने की संभावना है। तिरुपत्तूर में राज्य में सबसे अधिक तापमान 38.8 डिग्री सेल्सियस दर्ज किया गया। यह असामान्य रूप से कठोर गर्मी की चेतावनी के बीच आया है। 3 मार्च को, उत्तरी आंतरिक तमिलनाडु के मैदानी इलाकों में अधिकतम तापमान 34 - 39 डिग्री सेल्सियस, दक्षिणी आंतरिक तमिलनाडु में 33-34 डिग्री और चेन्नई, पुडुचेरी और कराईकल सहित तटीय क्षेत्रों में 30-35 डिग्री के बीच रहा। रात के समय की स्थितियों ने थोड़ी राहत दी, धर्मपुरी (सामान्य से 3.8 डिग्री अधिक), ऊटी (3.6 डिग्री सेल्सियस), कोयंबटूर (3 डिग्री सेल्सियस) और चेन्नई (2.2 डिग्री सेल्सियस) जैसे जिलों में असामान्य रूप से उच्च न्यूनतम तापमान दर्ज किया गया। हालांकि, मंगलवार को पारा थोड़ा कम हुआ, लेकिन अधिकांश जिलों में सामान्य से अधिक तापमान दर्ज किया गया। सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एनवायरनमेंट (सीएसई) की एक हालिया रिपोर्ट - अर्बन हीट स्ट्रेस ट्रैकर: चेन्नई - गर्मियों के औसत परिवेशी वायु तापमान में दशक भर में 0.4 डिग्री सेल्सियस की वृद्धि को उजागर करती है - 30.3 डिग्री सेल्सियस (2001-2010) से 30.7 डिग्री सेल्सियस (2014-2023) तक - साथ ही सापेक्ष आर्द्रता में 5% की वृद्धि हुई है।

Power demand surge isn’t just a sign of development. Heatwaves sparked 41% spike in summer consumption

India saw a whopping 41 percent surge in average electricity demand in the summer of 2023 when temperatures touched 50 degrees Celsius in some parts of the country. Extreme temperatures are the biggest culprit, according to a new report by the think tank Climate Trends. Analysing consumption patterns across the country, the think tank found a direct correlation between heatwaves and peak power demand. The trend will continue, considering the country, this year, recorded the hottest February since 1901. Increased use of cooling appliances for residential and industrial purposes is the prime driver of power demand during the summers, defined as April-June in the report. Most of the 2023 electricity demand was fulfilled by fossil fuels, with a three percent overall increase in the consumption of fossil fuels, according to the report. It also pointed out how India’s expected power demand rise in the coming years needed to account for not just development and population growth but also climate change-induced rise in temperatures. “We’ve been misunderstanding the sudden increase in power demand as a sign of only economic development,” said Manish Ram, lead analyst of the study, in a press release. “While there has been development, our analysis shows that rising temperatures are causing an additional surge in peak power demand.” India’s power demand has steadily increased over the past few years, reaching an all-time high of 250 GW in 2024. The year before, i.e., in 2023, the highest demand or what is known as peak demand was 220 GW, and the year before that, it was 215 GW. According to a 2022 report by the India Environment Portal, India’s power demand is increasing faster than its electricity generation—the peak power demand almost doubled between 2011 and 2022.

India Can Reuse Up to 750 Million Tons of Industrial Waste

India has the potential to reuse up to 750 million tons (MT) of industrial waste, such as steel slag and fly ash, by 2030. This shift could also cut carbon dioxide emissions by 50–90 MT, according to a report by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). “Circularity has become a major focus globally and in India. It challenges the idea that waste is simply waste-instead, it is a valuable resource,” said Sunita Narain, Director General at CSE. Circularity ensures that waste materials from production processes are reused in various ways, making economic systems circular rather than linear. This approach minimizes waste and promotes sustainability. Government Push for a Circular Economy India has recently increased its efforts to promote circularity. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman highlighted its importance in the 2025 Budget speech. Several initiatives, such as the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, the 2022 ban on single-use plastics, and the E-Waste Management Rules, reflect the country’s commitment to a circular economy. India Lags Behind in Recycling Despite these efforts, India still has a long way to go. The CSE report reveals that India’s industrial material consumption could double from seven billion tons in 2015 to 14.2 billion tons by 2030. While European nations recycle up to 70% of goods, India recycles only about 20%. Globally, the circular economy remains limited, with just 7.2% of the world’s economy classified as circular. Industry and States Must Scale Up Circularity Efforts Some Indian industries have already started implementing circularity practices, but these efforts need to expand. “Many industries are making progress, but we need to scale up these initiatives,” said Shobhit Srivastava, Industrial Pollution Programme Manager at CSE. Certain states, including Gujarat, Goa, and Karnataka, have launched initiatives to improve circularity. However, more states must adopt similar measures to ensure sustainable industrial growth. As reported by theprint.in, by expanding these efforts, India can turn its industrial waste problem into an opportunity for resource efficiency and environmental sustainability.

Assam development claims questioned: State lags in key SDG targets

Guwahati: Assam is significantly lagging in achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), failing to meet even half the target in 42% of assessed indicators, according to the Centre for Science and Environment’s (CSE) recent State of States report. According to the recently released report, Assam has not reached even half of the SDGs target in 44 of the 105 assessed indicators, representing 42 percent. These low-scoring indicators are spread across 12 of the 15 SDGs, with the highest concentration in SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 2 (Zero Hunger), and SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure). Specifically, in SDG 1 (No Poverty), Assam ranked 14th with 75 points. However, in SDG 2 (Zero Hunger), the state ranked 24th with an alarming 47 points nationwide.

Warmest winter yet: How all major Indian cities are getting hotter by the year

Delhi’s winter chill is fading. This January was warmer than usual, and February felt even less like winter. Decades of climate data show a steady rise in temperatures across Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai. Is this the new normal? January 2025 marked the highest yearly minimum global surface temperature in 1,20,000 years. India experienced even more heat, with the national January 2025 mean reaching 19.02°C, nearly 0.1°C above the 1991-2020 baseline. Delhi's January 2025 temperature averaged 13.62°C, 0.35°C above the 1991-2020 baseline. Other major Indian cities — Chennai, Kolkata, and Mumbai—show similar warming trends. In-depth: India had more extreme weather in 2024 than in 2022 and 2023. In the first nine months, extreme weather hit India on 255 days. This affected 3.2 million hectares of cropland, 74 per cent more than in 2022, according to the Centre for Science and Environment’s State of India’s Environment 2025 report. In Delhi, February was also warmer than usual, with high daytime temperatures and warm nights. The average minimum temperature was 11.6°C, the highest since 2017. This year's monthly minimum average was 1°C above the long-term average of 10.6°C. February's monthly maximum average was 26.7°C, 2.5°C higher than the long-term average.