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Cse In News

UN summit to call for revised climate action, net-zero goals

Major emitters of planet- warming greenhouse gases are expected to ratchet up climate action and announce new plans at the United Nations Climate Ambition Summit that begins on Monday. The New York Climate Week, organized in partnership with the UN during the general assembly, will be held on September 17-24, bringing together representatives from business, government and civil society. On September 20, heads of states of major emitters are expected to address the UN on their updated climate plans. UN secretary- general Antonio Guterres had sent letters to member states, calling for expression of interest in presenting on how the nations will update their efforts to deal with the climate crisis. “We received over 100 expressions of interest to participate, which contain details and specifics on announcements. Participation in most cases would be at the level of heads of states and governments,” Selwin Hart, special adviser to Guterres on climate, said during a briefing last week. Guterres called on “first movers and doers” to present on updated pre-2030 nationally determined contributions, as agreed to in the Glasgow climate summit in 2021: updated net-zero targets; energy transition plans with commitments to no new coal, oil and gas; fossil fuel phase-out plans; more ambitious renewable energy targets; and pledges to the green climate fund. A chair’s summary on the updated goals will be released at the end of the meeting. The climate ambition summit is important this year because of the global stocktake taking place in December and because temperatures are at a record high due to a combination of the impact of El Nino and climate change. August this year was the planet’s hottest August 174 years since records have been kept. The sizzling month also wrapped up the northern hemisphere’s warmest summer and the southern hemisphere’s warmest winter on record, according to an analysis by scientists from the National Centers for Environmental Information of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on Thursday. The synthesis report of the first global stocktake by United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change on September 8 presented some inconvenient but not unknown truths. Global efforts on the climate crisis are falling short of meeting the Paris Agreement goals of keeping global warming under 2 degrees Celsius over preindustrial levels and pursuing efforts to keep it under 1.5 degrees. The synthesis report said there is a rapidly narrowing window to raise ambition and implement existing commitments in order to limit warming to 1.5 degrees, HT reported on September 9. “The report of the global stocktake shows we are way behind in climate goals, climate indicators are trending in the wrong direction and emissions are at their highest level and continue to rise. The window to keep global warming under 1.5 degree C is closing,” Hart said. Though the G20 summit held on September 9-10 under India’s presidency agreed to meet Paris Agreement goals. The major economies comprising the grouping, which is responsible for 80% of global greenhouse gas emissions, resolved to achieve net zero emissions by around mid-century through a variety of approaches. It committed to efforts to triple renewable energy capacity from current levels and increase the uptake of other zero or low carbon technologies, including carbon capture and removal technologies. to be sure, there were no clear statements on phasing out or phasing down fossil fuels or references to emissions from fossil fuels. A clear intent on peaking before 2025 was not made either. Those gaps are expected to be addressed at New York beginning Monday. The so-called ambition meeting is expected to raise momentum and push for concrete goals ahead of the UN climate summit in Dubai later this year. On September 22, UN will also hold a meeting on the loss and damage fund, which was decided to be set up during the annual 2022 summit in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. The UN meeting will discuss political outcomes on the loss and damage fund. “The recent global stocktake report shows how wildly off track the world is in meeting the challenge to tackle the climate crisis. The G20 Summit held just after this sobering report showed a tepid political reaction to the everyday reality of climate devastation,” said Avantika Goswami, programme manager, climate change at the Centre for Science and Environment, an advocacy group. “Consensus on a low-ambition declaration that did not balance a renewable energy mention with a matching intent to phase out fossil fuels in an equitable manner was hardly a win,” she said.

Small Hydro Projects In The Northeast Ignore Environmental Risks, Local Voices

Darjeeling: The Union government has reportedly made a strong push to develop hydro projects of all types and sizes in the northeast, two-thirds of which is blessed with hilly terrains interspersed with valleys and plains crisscrossed by major rivers and their countless tributaries. Proponents of these projects, including the government, say these projects will help develop the region, but local residents say the projects will change their way of life and culture by altering the flow of rivers and by their downstream impacts. Environmentalists highlight the ecological costs of these projects on the region's biodiversity. Small hydropower projects are being particularly pushed in the northeast, and in West Bengal’s Darjeeling, as we reported in the first part of this two-part series on the local opposition to two projects--a 12 megawatt (MW) project on Chhota Rangit and a 6 MW one on Balawas. This second part details why it is easier for small hydel power projects to be approved despite local resistance and why these projects are environmentally fraught. Northeast to be dam(n)ed? According to the Central Electricity Authority’s Reassessment Study, carried out during 1978-87, India’s hydropower potential from projects with a capacity above 25 MW was estimated at 145,320 MW. Of this, the northeastern states make up 58,356 MW--40% of the total capacity. Union Minister for Power and New And Renewable Energy (MNRE) R.K. Singh told the Rajya Sabha in April 2022 that seven large hydel projects with a total capacity of 3,157 MW were being constructed in the northeast. They are part of projects across the country with a yield of 12,663.5 MW that are currently in development. The Union Minister also stated that the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) had approved Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) for an additional 29 projects with an aggregate installed capacity of 22,768 MW. However, these projects were yet to be started due to “various reasons”. Seventeen of these projects, with a capacity of 16,715 MW, are located in the northeast. Projects with capacity of 25 MW or below, classified as small hydro, are estimated to have a potential of 21,133 MW from 7,133 sites in India, as found by the Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee in its Small Hydro Database of 2016 and cited by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy. The northeast region’s small hydro potential is estimated at 3,261.49 MW, says the North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Limited (NEEPCO), a Government of India enterprise, on its website. Of this, 2,064.92 MW would be produced in Arunachal Pradesh alone, the Ministry of Development of North-East Region told Parliament in April 2022. Additionally, there are several large and small hydel projects--operational and proposed--in West Bengal’s Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts that are not part of numbers for the northeast. Of the potential power generation of 3,261.49 MW from small hydel projects in the northeast (excluding West Bengal), just about 338.46 MW of energy capacity had been installed, as of April 2022. Why small hydel power projects are easier to push than large projects Hydro projects under 25 MW enjoy a free hand because it is believed that among the various methods of harnessing water energy, Small Hydropower projects (SHPs) have the least negative impact on the environment. These projects were eligible for subsidies from MNRE till 2017, and the Union government is reportedly planning to launch similar schemes again. “At a local level, small hydro and micro hydel power plants provide power to local village communities located in remote areas where national grid infrastructure is inadequate, such as in the northeast. Access to power in these areas is critical to support socioeconomic development,” says a 2017 MNRE report. The report adds, “at the national level, the two main benefits that accrue from an SHP plant are stable source of clean power and employment. Apart from these, one major positive externality is development of infrastructure such as roads and improved accessibility in remote rural areas.” As we have reported earlier, the Indian government has placed small hydel projects in the ‘White Category’ industrial sector which is “practically non-polluting”. They are looked after by the MNRE and are exempted from the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) notification of 2006 and as a result, do not require a legally binding environmental clearance. Additionally, SHPs in India have reportedly been highly successful in obtaining carbon emission reduction credits (CER) under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s (UNFCCC) Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). These credits are then sold to industrialised countries so they can meet a part of their emission reduction target. All these make small hydel projects a lucrative initiative and a part of India’s renewables goals. But small hydropower projects have environmental, human costs Media reports, research and experiences of affected people elsewhere suggest that SHPs can pose significant threats as well. The first issue with these projects in India is the country’s arbitrary limit of 25 MW. In 1989, hydro power plants with capacity up to 3 MW were handed over to MNRE from the Ministry of Power. Later in 1999, MNRE was entrusted with hydro projects of capacity up to 25 MW. The term “small hydro” does not have a universally accepted definition. As per the UNFCCC, the capacity of a “small” hydro power plant typically ranges from 1 MW to 50 MW internationally. Projects with a capacity between 100 kW and 1 MW are sometimes referred to as “mini” hydro, while those with a capacity of less than 100 kW are called “micro” hydro. “Installed capacity, however, is not always a good indicator of the size of a project. For example, a 20 MW, low-head “small” hydro plant is anything but small as low-head projects generally use much larger volumes of water and require larger turbines as compared with high-head projects,” the UNFCCC said in 2001. As a result, without any strict regulation for hydro power plants under 25 MW, the adverse socio-economic, cultural and ecological impacts of such projects are often ignored in India, as is being done in Darjeeling district’s Bijanbari and Pulbaza, as we reported in the first part of this series Further, stakeholder consultation with local communities is a prerequisite for projects registered under CDM, but small hydro developers hardly bother, research shows. A 2017 paper published in AMBIO: A Journal of the Human Environment, which studied SHPs in India’s Western Ghats and surveyed local affected communities, found that public hearings did not take place and locals “were neither informed nor consulted prior to dam construction”. “About 47% of the respondents were unaware that their panchayat had awarded No Objection Certificates for the dams to be built,” the paper found. “Many respondents (31.5%), including four panchayat members, admitted that the process of SHPs seeking panchayat permission was pretence, driven largely by bribes and political pressures, rather than the intent to improve social welfare and livelihoods.” Media reports have also highlighted this issue. The local population in northeastern states has opposed large and small hydel projects alike, citing their impact on local indigenous communities, as well their environmental impacts. Reporting finds that northeast India has been wrecked by large-scale construction of hydel projects, with indigenous riparian and hilly communities suffering the most from the resulting floods, landslides and earthquakes. India’s hydel push in the region has also led to homelessness and migration. Regulated or not, hydro projects have the potential to wreak havoc in the northeast Northeast India is rich in biodiversity and serves as a habitat for a significant population of wildlife such as rhinos, elephants, tigers, Gangetic river dolphins, etc. The region, home to scores of indigenous communities who form a substantial part of the population, falls under the high-risk category of Seismic Zone 5. Darjeeling falls under Zone 4. Classifying the country’s various regions into seismic zones 1-5 is an activity carried out by the National Centre for Seismology, under the Ministry of Earth Sciences. Zone 5 is the highest classification, delineating those areas that are most at risk from high-intensity earthquakes. In his 2012 paper, Scope, Possibility and Risks in Hydropower Development in the North East Region of India, Sharad K. Jain, former NEEPCO (North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Limited) Chair Professor at IIT Roorkee, argued for improving the living conditions of affected communities in the northeast by equitable distribution of hydel project benefits. He believes if local communities are informed about how hydro projects could help regions grow, such projects would get popular support. “Local and traditional knowledge of communities should be utilised in project planning, construction, and operation,” Jain wrote. To convince local communities who would be potentially affected by development activities to “trade off today’s certainties for tomorrow’s uncertainties”, far-reaching changes would be required “to mobilise their trust and involve the communities as partners in progress,” Jain added. But this has not happened so far. The former NEEPCO Chair Professor at IIT Roorkee says the government has developed several schemes to resolve the livelihood issue, but adds that they are not foolproof and despite best efforts, the authorities fail to satisfy everyone. “In most cases, people ask for jobs,” Jain said. “But there are very few jobs available in a hydro project site where locals could be engaged. To address this crisis, skill development schemes have been initiated where locals who lose their livelihoods for a project are taught different skills so they can find other work.” He says that mismanagement by on-ground officials who are in charge of vocational programmes and distributing compensations is seen in many cases across India, failing the government’s ideas and intentions. The 2017 paper about small hydro projects in the Western Ghats found that most people were not given the opportunity to work at the dam, even though dam developers had promised them jobs. Locals believed that due to their mass agitations demanding employment, and their vigilant behaviour in “reporting illegal activities undertaken by dam authorities”, they were not considered for jobs. The paper said that despite confirming local employment generation in their UNFCCC CDM’s project design document (PDD) form, “non-locals were perceived as preferred employees in working plants by all respondents, even for unskilled labour such as cleaning and maintenance”. A few locals were hired as temporary employees and were greatly underpaid. Shripad Dharmadhikary, an activist and founder of Manthan Adhyayan Kendra, a centre set up to research, analyse and monitor water and energy issues, says that at the sites of development projects such as hydro power initiatives and dams, people depending on common property resources are affected the most. “The government and project authorities provide cash compensation [jobs and resettlement] to those who have lost land and property,” Dharmadhikary says. “They don’t compensate people who depend on common property resources. In case of hydro projects, riparian communities lose access to rivers and are forced to look for alternative livelihood opportunities. “Also, people who receive cash compensation tend to spend it on personal things or on things that may not build any sustainable asset for his/her community. As a result, sites of these projects are reduced to having very little to offer its own people.” A 2010 paper, a chapter of which is available on the Tripura State Pollution Control Board’s website, critiqued the existing impact assessment system of hydro projects in the northeast on similar grounds. “The impact of dams on resources under common use (for example, pasture land), vital to the livelihoods of local communities, is also a major missing link in the impact assessment of projects,” wrote Neeraj Vagholikar, author of the chapter titled ‘Dams and Environmental Governance in Northeast India’. Vagholikar further wrote that mandatory norms require land use restrictions in the reservoir’s catchment area to reduce siltation and increase its lifespan. Additionally, legal mechanisms, such as compensatory afforestation, lead to other areas being taken up by the government and the consequent restriction of local communities to access those lands and resources. “However, in the existing planning and decision-making process, social and environmental impacts over the larger landscape due to various aspects are not assessed,” Vagholikar wrote. “This is therefore not reflected in the decision-making on the overall viability of the project.” He pointed out that the Indian government prioritises the techno-economic issues of a hydro project more. Ecological and cultural concerns As most of the large rivers in India are already dammed, there is an increasing focus on damming tributaries at higher altitudes, found a 2017 study by the Centre for Science and Environment. The critical impacts of small hydro projects are ecological, physical, and human-induced. Ecological impacts include effects on aquatic plants and animals. Physical impacts include changes in water quality, sediment-carrying capacity, erosion, groundwater quality and recharge, climate, soil, and geology. Human-induced impacts, because locals are forced to change their way of life after their land and resources are impacted by hydropower projects, include interference with drinking and agricultural water availability, solid waste generation, and socio-economic factors. The CSE study says that while a single SHP has less impact, the cumulative impact--the combined environmental effects of multiple projects in the same river basin--of multiple SHPs can be dangerous. For instance, the study says, 400 SHPs of 5 MW each can affect more tributaries than one large hydro power project of 2,000 MW. “The cumulative impact of SHP is not confined to the addition of multiple SHP projects in one area; the impact is also cumulative with many other development projects in terms of forest use and linear intrusion from roads and power lines,” the study points out. SHPs have a relative advantage over large hydro projects as they avoid issues such as “changes in landscape, rehabilitation and resettlement of project affected people, soil erosion, groundwater recharge, water quality, sediment transportation resulting from submergence of vast tracts of land and massive deforestation activities,” the CSE report says. But, it adds that deforestation still takes place due to project activities related to small hydropower plants, and that results in “increased soil erosion, disruption of local flora and fauna and disturbance of hill slopes.” The CSE study highlighted that the deposition of rubble, muck, and silt from construction and operations is a concern. Dumping sites are often in pristine forest areas where they should be forbidden. Not returning silt to the river can decrease nutrients downstream, vital for farming and fisheries. “[Small] hydro power turbines, dams and tunnels also have an impact on fish populations as many fish species migrate for spawning; this migration is effectively barred by dam constructions and dry riverbeds,” it says. Apart from the ecological concerns, hydel projects also threaten local cultural and traditional beliefs, says Dharmadhikary. Almost every development initiative in India tends to ignore the traditions and sentiments of indigenous and local communities associated with land, river and trees. “Local communities have very strong social, cultural and identity ties with rivers which get disrupted with the construction of dams and hydropower projects,” Dharmadhikary says.

MCD to double waste processing capacity at Delhi’s 3 waste landfills

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has decided to double its waste processing capacity by engaging an additional agency for all three landfills in Delhi at Ghazipur, Bhalswa, and Okhla. While tenders have been floated and an agency each will be finalised this month for Ghazipur and Okhla, the tender for Bhalswa landfill site will be floated next month. Mayor Shelly Oberoi said that MCD aims to reduce the three waste mountains in the city at the earliest. All three landfills are currently managed by one agency each. “One agency is currently working towards waste processing at each of the three sites. They have to process 3 million tonne of garbage each in two years. Now the target to double the garbage processing capacity has been set so that garbage mountains can be disposed of before time. According to the plan, one additional agency per landfill site will be deployed. Each agency will have to process 3 million tonne of garbage each. So, 6 million tonne of garbage will be processed in two years at each landfill site,” said Oberoi. By deploying additional agencies at the three landfill sites, each site will clear 6 million tonne of garbage. So, a total of 18 million tonne of garbage will be processed every two years across the city’s three landfill sites, officials said. Officials added that the garbage processing work by the additional agency will initially start at Gazipur, followed by Okhla and Bhalswa, which will also start in November. The mayor added that if the agency finishes the garbage processing work before time, it will be given additional work. “If any agency disposes 3 million tonne of garbage before the end of two years, then it will be given the work to dispose additional 15 million tonne of garbage. It will give them an additional income. This information has already been given to agencies so that they can work faster. These terms have been included in the tender process as well,” said Oberoi. She also said that chief minister Arvind Kejriwal will personally monitor the work of garbage processing at the landfill sites. However, experts said that the Capital is still not recycling its waste and there is no energy recovery, adding that authorities do not fully understand how to manage the city’s waste. “Delhi is not following the waste management hierarchy of reduce, reuse and recycle. In fact, the calorific value of the waste is so low that additional fuel needs to be used. There shouldn’t be a need for more agencies after having three processing plants of such scale. I think there is lack of understanding among the decision makers about how the waste of Delhi needs to be managed,” said Siddharth Singh, Deputy Programme Manager, Municipal Solid waste unit, Centre for Science and Environment (CSE).

Very few new antibiotics in the pipeline

According to a World Health Organization (WHO) database, of the 297 antibiotic medicines that are being researched on globally, only 77 are undergoing clinical trials. This is miniscule compared to over 10,000 for cancer, over 1,800 for neuropsychiatric conditions, and about 1,500 for endocrine, blood and immune disorders. Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) director general Sunita Narain says: “Antibiotics are getting increasingly ineffective. This silent pandemic of antimicrobial resistance is taking lives. What is more frightening is that not only are we not conserving the existing stock of medicines, the drug pipeline for new antibiotics is drying up.” “In the years to come we are heading for a triple jeopardy: one, the antibiotics we know today would be increasingly ineffective; two, there would be no new antibiotics available; and, three, there would be a critical need for access to these medicines for all,” Narain added. Narain is a member of the Global Leaders Group on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), an independent international advisory and advocacy body which has heads of states, ministers and government officials, civil society leaders, and representatives from the private organisations as its members. CSE researchers have highlighted how the global antibiotic pipeline is weak across the pre-clinical and clinical development stages. They have analysed the clinical pipeline of 15 high-earning pharmaceutical companies to understand their R&D focus and the role of small and medium pharmaceutical companies. The assessment also covers incentives to support antibiotic R&D and what needs to be done further. AMR, antibiotic resistance in particular, is a silent pandemic that is one of the biggest public health threats of current times. The misuse and overuse of antibiotics in humans, animals and crops is making antibiotics ineffective due to growing resistance in bacteria against antibiotics. About five million deaths worldwide were associated with antibiotic resistance in 2019. Analysis of clinical pipeline of 15 high-earning companies revealed that of the total 1,007 candidates, only 13 are antibacterials which are developed by four companies. CSE researchers point out that a majority of antibiotic developers are small and medium scale companies. “These companies are struggling and need support,” says Rajeshwari Sinha of CSE. “Push incentives have challenges, but they are working. The main limitation of any push funding organisation is that they alone can’t do the job. More money is required but more importantly, coordination and collaboration is the key,” said Richard Lawson of CARBX (Combating Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator), which supports small and medium antibiotic developers. Lesley Ogilvie of Global AMR R&D Hub pointed out that “despite progress we still have a fragmented pipeline and what we are really lacking is the predictability that would encourage the development of a more sustainable and healthier pipeline. We need to build more robustness and resilience in funding for the antibiotic development pipeline.” Global AMR R&D is a global partnership currently consisting of 17 countries, the European Commission and two philanthropic foundations. Acknowledging the crisis with antibiotic R&D, James Anderson from IFPMA (International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations) said: “Currently, society and healthcare systems place a low value on antibiotics despite the public health risks of AMR, sending a clear signal to companies that investing in them is not a priority. The way to solve this is to improve the conditions through the use of incentives, and the world’s leading economies have a role to play in this.” CSE researchers call for critical reforms to stimulate the antibiotic R&D ecosystem for a sustainable and equitable antibiotic access. There is a need for greater public financing, a coordinated response from national governments and striking the right balance in public-private partnership for antibiotic development. They have highlighted that antibiotics have attributes of a ‘global public good’ despite not fitting into the strictest definition. “These life-saving antibiotics must be conserved, which means careful, restricted use, even if less money is made in sales. Access to these medicines is critical to be ensured: drugs will have to be affordable, which also limits the profit interest of pharmaceutical firms. So it is time to look at antibiotics as a global public good,” said Narain as she concluded the webinar.

At 74, DMK has new battles to wage

CHENNAI: Three score and fourteen years ago on September 17, 1949, the DMK was founded. The following day, at its public launch, founder C N Annadurai (Anna) said their political father, the Dravidar Kazhagam’s 70-year-old E V Ramaswamy Periyar, was authoritarian and by marrying his aide Maniammai, less than half his age, had brought infamy to them. Nevertheless, he named Periyar the titular head, wished him a long life and said their aims were the same – a socialist garden where ‘Dravidam’ (an independent Dravida Nadu made of the south) would bloom. On July 27, 1947, Periyar had described the impending independence on August 15, 1947, as ‘British-Bania-Brahmin Contractual Day’. The Dravidar Kazhagam had, since 1939, considered the aforementioned three Bs enemies. On August 10, 1947, Anna demurred. He said one of the two enemies, the British, was leaving, and only the bania remained. He avoided mention of the Brahmin. In 1967, when Anna joined hands with the erstwhile ‘wily Brahmin’ Rajaji, the Brahmin had been co-opted, and in 1971 when chief minister M Karunanidhi joined hands with Indira Gandhi, the bania had become an ally. On both occasions, the dalliance with the ‘enemy’ was to defeat the ‘Pachai Thamizhan’ or ‘Pure Tamil’ Kamaraj. By 1962, the impending ban saw the DMK give up its separatist demand. Three years later, Anna denied the DMK was a party of ‘expediency’ and no principles: “Federalism, full autonomy for the states and egalitarianism —are these not principles,” he asked. The cardinal goals of federalism and full autonomy appear more distant than ever. Yet, the DMK can look back with some satisfaction on the distance covered with respect to egalitarianism. The party’s early welfare schemes and revamped public distribution system under Karunanidhi laid the foundations of the welfare state. Chief ministers M G Ramchandran and J Jayalalithaa built upon these. Karunanidhi also slightly enlarged the reservations pie, and MGR expanded it to the maximum. Today, the state isknown for both its paternal populism and reservations. On August 28, 2018, in his acceptance speech as president of the DMK, M K Stalin said, “A race that does not change itself to suit the changing times will not last”, indicating his willingness to accept change. Seven decades later, the DMK’s challenges cannot be the same. Insistence that the goalposts remain the same would mean the party has floundered. The challenges are substantial, and they remain jobs, sustainable development, graft, eradication of caste discrimination, weaning people from freebies and subsidies and a calibrated liquor policy to end drunkenness. In 1967, the party gave up on its promise of a measure of rice per rupee for want of ₹5 crore in a ₹240-crore budget. Since 2011, the state has provided five kg of free rice per person. It looks like the party and the voters have come a long way. But have they? When an estimated 35 lakh immi-grant workers have sought to better their lives in the state, the free rice to the needy does not add up. More worrying is the fact that Tamil Nadu spends close to a third of its ₹3,65,321 crore Budget, or ₹1,13,643 crore on subsidies, according to the Reserve Bank of India. These, one would assume, would include subsidised power to farmers and support prices for produce, among other things. Of this, 40% (₹45,000 crore) comes from selling alcohol. This model of taking with the left hand and returning one-and-a-half fold as subsidies with the right and the handout culture require serious introspection. Should not the scions of self-respect be enabling people to catch fish instead of handing out fish? This brings us to jobs and the bane of alcoholism. Total prohibition has proved impossible even in Iran. The state owes its women voters to launch a sustained campaign against drunkenness on the models of the anti-smoking campaign. An ear-nest and sustained awareness campaign on the evils of alcohol could be a fitting start for a party that promised total prohibition in 2016. Jobs remain the crying need of the hour. Tamil Nadu (67.7 lakh) has the second largest number of jobseekers on the live register as of 2021 after West Bengal (77.6 lakh), as per the National Career Service data and the maximum number of SC and OBC jobseekers at around 17.3 lakh and 46 lakh. The unemployment rate of those between 15-29 years for the state, according to the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation’s Periodic Labour Force Survey, is 17.1%. In contrast, Gujarat is at 6.3% and Delhi 6.9%. Neighbours Andhra, Telangana and Kerala are above 20%, while Karnataka scores 13.8%. Also, despite the DMK government’s Meendum manjappai and green initiatives and the party’s environmental wing, the state’s performance in the environmental rankings since 2016 has been slipping, according to the Centre for Science and Environment. Tamil Nadu scored just 4.4 out of 10, while Tel-angana topped with a score of 7.2, followed by Goa at 6.3, Maharashtra at 5.7 and Haryana at 5.5. In the battle between jobs, development and environment, the DMK has a worthy enemy. It would require all its imagination and the help of civil society and experts to keep Tamil Nadu green and environmentally friendly. Precariously dependent on its neighbours for its water, the state must aggressively promote water conservation methods and alternative energy. The DMK’s energies could be usefully channelled thus. Heir apparent Udhayanidhi Stalin does not have to become a Rorschach test talking about Sanatana Dharma. If Sanatana Dharma as the DMK understands it is a particular community’s hegemony, today, the DMK aligned dominate the media to education to breweries. Udhayanidhi’s profile could be raised by what he does best: meetings with youth and constituents, holding job fairs, tracking the implementation of electoral promises, and providing a regular progress report. These would not provide the actor-politician the instant recognition that his remarks on Sanatana Dharma brought him, but they, in the long run, would give him much political heft. The DMK should choose its battles. NEET is a classic case of the sunken cost fallacy. The state’s students should be given all the help they need to face the exam. Similarly, returning education to the state list is an empty aspiration. For 17 years, the DMK was part of the Centre. It could not be achieved. Then how can it be now? On social justice, too, the party seems to be in a time warp. A prop in perpetuity for the backward classes limits their fullest expression, not to mention underestimating their ability to compete. The DMK, like others, abounds in tokenism. But it had lost the plot a long time ago with the vanniyars and the dalits deserting it. Vengaivasal and other incidents further reveal the chinks in the armour of Dravidian inclusiveness. Probity in public life has been in a free fall for a long time. But retaining a minister charged with graft is a new low. While describing the DMK as the party of the modest, Anna said the modest do not have to remain so, envisaging a Tamil Nadu free of want. The DMK has long ceased to be the party of the modest. Its leaders have come a long way from travelling in borrowed cars and living in modest houses. The party’s top echelons are well-heeled, and even third-tier functionaries are visibly well-off. Quite a few of these success stories, however, remain mired in mystery. Anna must be turning in his grave.

पाइपलाइन में बहुत कम नई एंटीबायोटिक्स

विश्व स्वास्थ्य संगठन (डब्ल्यूएचओ) के डेटाबेस के अनुसार, वैश्विक स्तर पर जिन 297 एंटीबायोटिक दवाओं पर शोध किया जा रहा है, उनमें से केवल 77 का ही क्लिनिकल परीक्षण चल रहा है। यह कैंसर के लिए 10,000 से अधिक, न्यूरोसाइकिएट्रिक स्थितियों के लिए 1,800 से अधिक और अंतःस्रावी, रक्त और प्रतिरक्षा विकारों के लिए लगभग 1,500 की तुलना में बहुत कम है। सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एनवायरनमेंट (सीएसई) की महानिदेशक सुनीता नारायण कहती हैं: “एंटीबायोटिक्स लगातार अप्रभावी होते जा रहे हैं। रोगाणुरोधी प्रतिरोध की यह मूक महामारी लोगों की जान ले रही है। इससे भी अधिक भयावह बात यह है कि न केवल हम दवाओं के मौजूदा स्टॉक का संरक्षण नहीं कर रहे हैं, बल्कि नई एंटीबायोटिक दवाओं के लिए दवा पाइपलाइन भी सूख रही है। “आने वाले वर्षों में हम तिहरे ख़तरे की ओर बढ़ रहे हैं: एक, जिन एंटीबायोटिक्स के बारे में हम आज जानते हैं वे तेजी से अप्रभावी होंगी; दो, कोई नई एंटीबायोटिक्स उपलब्ध नहीं होंगी; और, तीन, सभी के लिए इन दवाओं तक पहुंच की गंभीर आवश्यकता होगी, ”नारायण ने कहा। नारायण ग्लोबल लीडर्स ग्रुप ऑन एंटीमाइक्रोबियल रेजिस्टेंस (एएमआर) का सदस्य है, जो एक स्वतंत्र अंतरराष्ट्रीय सलाहकार और वकालत निकाय है, जिसमें राज्यों के प्रमुख, मंत्री और सरकारी अधिकारी, नागरिक समाज के नेता और निजी संगठनों के प्रतिनिधि इसके सदस्य हैं। सीएसई शोधकर्ताओं ने इस बात पर प्रकाश डाला है कि वैश्विक एंटीबायोटिक पाइपलाइन प्री-क्लिनिकल और क्लिनिकल विकास चरणों में कैसे कमजोर है। उन्होंने अपने अनुसंधान एवं विकास फोकस और छोटी और मध्यम दवा कंपनियों की भूमिका को समझने के लिए 15 उच्च आय वाली दवा कंपनियों की नैदानिक ​​पाइपलाइन का विश्लेषण किया है। मूल्यांकन में एंटीबायोटिक अनुसंधान एवं विकास का समर्थन करने के लिए प्रोत्साहन और आगे क्या करने की आवश्यकता है, को भी शामिल किया गया है। एएमआर, विशेष रूप से एंटीबायोटिक प्रतिरोध, एक मूक महामारी है जो वर्तमान समय के सबसे बड़े सार्वजनिक स्वास्थ्य खतरों में से एक है। मनुष्यों, जानवरों और फसलों में एंटीबायोटिक दवाओं का दुरुपयोग और अत्यधिक उपयोग एंटीबायोटिक दवाओं के खिलाफ बैक्टीरिया में बढ़ती प्रतिरोधक क्षमता के कारण एंटीबायोटिक दवाओं को अप्रभावी बना रहा है। 2019 में दुनिया भर में लगभग पांच मिलियन मौतें एंटीबायोटिक प्रतिरोध से जुड़ी थीं। 15 उच्च कमाई वाली कंपनियों की क्लिनिकल पाइपलाइन के विश्लेषण से पता चला कि कुल 1,007 उम्मीदवारों में से केवल 13 जीवाणुरोधी हैं जो चार कंपनियों द्वारा विकसित किए गए हैं। सीएसई शोधकर्ता बताते हैं कि अधिकांश एंटीबायोटिक डेवलपर्स छोटी और मध्यम स्तर की कंपनियां हैं। सीएसई की राजेश्वरी सिन्हा कहती हैं, ''ये कंपनियां संघर्ष कर रही हैं और उन्हें समर्थन की जरूरत है।'' “पुश प्रोत्साहन में चुनौतियाँ हैं, लेकिन वे काम कर रहे हैं। किसी भी पुश फंडिंग संगठन की मुख्य सीमा यह है कि वे अकेले काम नहीं कर सकते। अधिक धन की आवश्यकता है, लेकिन अधिक महत्वपूर्ण बात यह है कि समन्वय और सहयोग महत्वपूर्ण है,'' CARBX (कॉम्बैटिंग एंटीबायोटिक रेसिस्टेंट बैक्टीरिया बायोफार्मास्युटिकल एक्सेलेरेटर) के रिचर्ड लॉसन ने कहा, जो छोटे और मध्यम एंटीबायोटिक डेवलपर्स का समर्थन करता है। ग्लोबल एएमआर आर एंड डी हब के लेस्ली ओगिल्वी ने बताया कि "प्रगति के बावजूद हमारे पास अभी भी एक खंडित पाइपलाइन है और हमारे पास वास्तव में भविष्यवाणी की कमी है जो एक अधिक टिकाऊ और स्वस्थ पाइपलाइन के विकास को प्रोत्साहित करेगी। हमें एंटीबायोटिक विकास पाइपलाइन के लिए वित्त पोषण में अधिक मजबूती और लचीलापन बनाने की जरूरत है। ग्लोबल एएमआर आर एंड डी एक वैश्विक साझेदारी है जिसमें वर्तमान में 17 देश, यूरोपीय आयोग और दो परोपकारी फाउंडेशन शामिल हैं। एंटीबायोटिक आर एंड डी के संकट को स्वीकार करते हुए, आईएफपीएमए (इंटरनेशनल फेडरेशन ऑफ फार्मास्युटिकल मैन्युफैक्चरर्स एंड एसोसिएशन) के जेम्स एंडरसन ने कहा: "वर्तमान में, एएमआर के सार्वजनिक स्वास्थ्य जोखिमों के बावजूद, समाज और स्वास्थ्य देखभाल प्रणालियां एंटीबायोटिक दवाओं को कम महत्व देती हैं, जिससे कंपनियों को स्पष्ट संकेत मिलता है कि उनमें निवेश करना प्राथमिकता नहीं है. इसे हल करने का तरीका प्रोत्साहनों के उपयोग के माध्यम से स्थितियों में सुधार करना है और दुनिया की अग्रणी अर्थव्यवस्थाओं को इसमें भूमिका निभानी है। सीएसई शोधकर्ता टिकाऊ और न्यायसंगत एंटीबायोटिक पहुंच के लिए एंटीबायोटिक अनुसंधान एवं विकास पारिस्थितिकी तंत्र को प्रोत्साहित करने के लिए महत्वपूर्ण सुधारों का आह्वान करते हैं। एंटीबायोटिक विकास के लिए अधिक सार्वजनिक वित्तपोषण, राष्ट्रीय सरकारों की समन्वित प्रतिक्रिया और सार्वजनिक-निजी भागीदारी में सही संतुलन बनाने की आवश्यकता है। उन्होंने इस बात पर प्रकाश डाला है कि सख्त परिभाषा में फिट न होने के बावजूद एंटीबायोटिक्स में 'वैश्विक सार्वजनिक भलाई' के गुण हैं। “इन जीवनरक्षक एंटीबायोटिक्स को संरक्षित किया जाना चाहिए, जिसका अर्थ है सावधानीपूर्वक, प्रतिबंधित उपयोग, भले ही बिक्री में कम पैसा कमाया जाए। इन दवाओं तक पहुंच सुनिश्चित करना महत्वपूर्ण है: दवाओं को किफायती बनाना होगा, जो दवा कंपनियों के लाभ हित को भी सीमित करता है। इसलिए अब समय आ गया है कि एंटीबायोटिक्स को वैश्विक सार्वजनिक वस्तु के रूप में देखा जाए,'' नारायण ने वेबिनार का समापन करते हुए कहा।

Experts Lauds Sepatge Infra

Bhubaneswar: Odisha’s Sepatge Infrastrucure is one of the Best in the Country, opined by experts in a Regional Workshop on reuse of bio-solids harvested from sepatage & sewage organised by Housing & Urban Development department Odisha in collaboration with Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), New Delhi held yesterday here at Odisha Urban Academy. The Workshop focused on reuse and resource recovery of harvested bio-solids from FSTPs and STPs , these bio-solids can be a rich source of fertilisers in agriculture in India, say CSE reports. G Mathi Vathanan, Principal Secretary, H&UD, Odisha in his keynote address presented an overview of different Urban Sanitation and water initiatives, missions and programs in Odisha, and the emerging challenges of re-use of harvested bio solids. Odisha is known for its pioneering Faecal Sludge & Sepatge Management (FSSM), especially decentralised community-led inclusive sanitation in the country. The State has built 118 faecal sludge treatment plants (FSTPs)/sewage treatment plants (STPs) across all 115 ULBs. The State-wide roll-out of convergence of rural & urban sanitation is currently underway, he added. He further highlighted the role of Odisha Urban Academy to strengthen the capacity building ecosystems in water, sanitation and inclusive urban development space. Speaking at the workshop, Depinder Singh Kapur, Director, water programme, CSE, said: “There are over 500 FSTPs all over India, generating an estimated 250 tonne of bio-solids every day. Another 104,210 tonne of bio-solids are generated from the 1,469 STPs that exist in India. Odisha leads the country with its septage treatment infrastructure, covering 115 towns.” Vinod Vijayan, deputy laboratory head at CSE shared the detailed technical findings of CSE study on Bio solids. Sagarika Pattanaik Spl Secretary and Durgesh Nadini Sahoo Additional Secretary had represented H&UD Dept in the workshop . The delegates represented cross-section of senior Govt officers, academicians, scientists, municipal officers, consultants deliberated to address some key issues on the findings of the research reports disseminated and discussed in the workshop with the focus on recommendations for what can be done to immediately address the issue of safe handling and reuse of harvested bio-solids from FSTPs/STPs in Odisha.

India generates 250 tones of bio solids from FSTPs everyday: Singh Kapur

Bhubaneswar, Sep 16 (UNI) Over 500 faucal sludge treatment plants (FSTPs) all over India are generating an estimated 250 tones of bio-solids every day, Director, Water Programme, CSE Depinder Singh Kapur said. Another 104,210 tones of bio-solids are generated from the 1,469 STPs that exist in India,Singh Kapur said at a Regional Workshop on reuse of biosolids harvested from sepatage & sewage. The workshop was jointly organized by Housing & Urban Development department Odisha and Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), New Delhi here on Friday The Workshop focused on reuse and resource recovery of harvested bio-solids from FSTPs and STPs as these bio-solids can be a rich source of fertilizers in agriculture in India. Principal Secretary, H&UD, Odisha G Mathi Vathanan, in his keynote address presented an overview of different Urban Sanitation and water initiatives, missions and programs in Odisha, and the emerging challenges of re-use of harvested bio solids. Odisha , he said, is known for its pioneering Faecal Sludge & Septage Management (FSSM), especially decentralised community-led inclusive sanitation in the country. The State has built 118 faecal sludge treatment plants (FSTPs)/sewage treatment plants (STPs) across 115 ULBs, he said adding that the State-wide roll-out of convergence of rural & urban sanitation is currently underway. He further highlighted the role of Odisha Urban Academy in strengthening the capacity building ecosystems in water, sanitation and inclusive urban development space. The delegates represented a cross-section of senior Govt officers, academicians, scientists, municipal officers, consultants deliberated on how to address the issue of safe handling and reuse of harvested bio-solids from FSTPs/STPs in Odisha.

Odisha’s Septage Infra One Of The Best In Country: Director, CSE

Bhubaneswar: Odisha’s septage infrastructure is one of the best in the country, opined experts at a regional workshop on the reuse of bio-solids harvested from septage and sewage organised by the Housing & Urban Development department in collaboration with Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), New Delhi held yesterday here at Odisha Urban Academy. The Workshop focused on the reuse and resource recovery of harvested bio-solids from FSTPs and STPs, these bio-solids can be a rich source of fertilisers in agriculture in India, say CSE reports. G Mathi Vathanan, Principal Secretary, H&UD, Odisha in his keynote address presented an overview of different urban sanitation and water initiatives, missions and programmes in Odisha, and the emerging challenges of re-use of harvested biosolids. Odisha is known for its pioneering Faecal Sludge and Septage Management (FSSM), especially decentralized community-led inclusive sanitation in the country. The State has built 118 faecal sludge treatment plants (FSTPs)/sewage treatment plants (STPs) across all 115 ULBs. The State-wide roll-out of convergence of rural & urban sanitation is currently underway, he added. He further highlighted the role of Odisha Urban Academy in strengthening the capacity-building ecosystems in water, sanitation and inclusive urban development space. Speaking at the workshop, Depinder Singh Kapur, Director, Water Programme, CSE, said: “There are over 500 FSTPs all over India, generating an estimated 250 tonne of bio-solids every day. Another 104,210 tonne of bio-solids are generated from the 1,469 STPs that exist in India. Odisha leads the country with its septage treatment infrastructure, covering 115 towns.” Vinod Vijayan, Deputy Laboratory Head at CSE shared the detailed technical findings of CSE study on Bio solids. Sagarika Pattanaik Special Secretary and Durgesh Nandini Sahoo Additional Secretary represented H&UD Department in the workshop. The delegates represented a cross-section of senior government officers, academicians, scientists, municipal officers, and consultants who deliberated to address some key issues on the findings of the research reports disseminated and discussed in the workshop with the focus on recommendations for what can be done to immediately address the issue of safe handling and reuse of harvested bio-solids from FSTPs/STPs in Odisha.

En Inde, la chute des ventes de véhicules diesel est une bonne nouvelle pour l'environnement

En Inde, les ventes de véhicules diésel ont chuté de manière drastique ces dernières années, jusqu’à représenter moins d’un cinquième des nouvelles ventes, toutes catégories confondues. Cela fait suite à un ensemble de mesures fiscales et réglementaires qui ont rendu ces véhicules plus chers, et ont même poussé les constructeurs à s’en détourner. Une bonne nouvelle dans un pays qui compte les villes les plus peuplées du monde. Avec notre correspondant à New Delhi, Sébastien Farcis Il y a encore dix ans, l’essentiel des véhicules en Inde étaient reconnaissables à leur bruit : un bon ronronnement de diesel. Depuis, les ventes de ces transports polluants ont été divisées par trois, pour ne représenter que 17% des achats. Les raisons de cette chute : l’État a augmenté les taxes sur ce carburant, et son prix est maintenant proche de celui de l’essence. Le récent passage aux normes d’émission Euro 6 a également obligé les constructeurs à investir dans de coûteux systèmes de filtrages des émissions, ce qui a renchéri le prix de ces véhicules. Le principal constructeur indien, Maruti Suzuki, a d’ailleurs renoncé à produire des voitures diesel. Une tendance encourageante, estime Anumita Roychowdhury, la directrice du Centre for science and environnement à New Delhi : « Le gouvernement accepte davantage l’idée qu’il faille décourager l’utilisation de véhicules diesel. Un comité parlementaire a ainsi recommandé d’arrêter les ventes de voitures diesel à partir de 2030. Ce genre de signaux politiques réduit la confiance des consommateurs et des constructeurs dans le diesel. »

En Inde, la chute des ventes de véhicules diesel est une bonne nouvelle pour l'environnement

En Inde, les ventes de véhicules diésel ont chuté de manière drastique ces dernières années, jusqu’à représenter moins d’un cinquième des nouvelles ventes, toutes catégories confondues. Cela fait suite à un ensemble de mesures fiscales et réglementaires qui ont rendu ces véhicules plus chers, et ont même poussé les constructeurs à s’en détourner. Une bonne nouvelle dans un pays qui compte les villes les plus peuplées du monde. Il y a encore dix ans, l’essentiel des véhicules en Inde étaient reconnaissables à leur bruit : un bon ronronnement de diesel. Depuis, les ventes de ces transports polluants ont été divisées par trois, pour ne représenter que 17% des achats. Les raisons de cette chute : l’État a augmenté les taxes sur ce carburant, et son prix est maintenant proche de celui de l’essence. Le récent passage aux normes d’émission Euro 6 a également obligé les constructeurs à investir dans de coûteux systèmes de filtrages des émissions, ce qui a renchéri le prix de ces véhicules. Le principal constructeur indien, Maruti Suzuki, a d’ailleurs renoncé à produire des voitures diesel. Une tendance encourageante, estime Anumita Roychowdhury, la directrice du Centre for science and environnement à New Delhi : « Le gouvernement accepte davantage l’idée qu’il faille décourager l’utilisation de véhicules diesel. Un comité parlementaire a ainsi recommandé d’arrêter les ventes de voitures diesel à partir de 2030. Ce genre de signaux politiques réduit la confiance des consommateurs et des constructeurs dans le diesel. » Par rapport à l’essence, les voitures roulant au diesel émettent 50% de plus de particules fines et d’oxyde d’azote, deux composants du smog toxique qui recouvre régulièrement le nord de l’Inde.

Odisha Septage Treatment : ओडिशा को फॉलो किया तो देश में नहीं होगी खाद की कमी !

इनका प्रयोग फसलों के उत्पादन को बढ़ानेमेंकिया जाता है. भारत नाइट्रोजन, फॉस्फोरस और पोटेशियम आधारित खादों की पूर्ति आयात से करता है. यह एक तथ्य हैकि फीकल स्लज ट्रीटमेंट प्लांट और सीवेज ट्रीटमेंट प्लांट द्वारा उत्पन्न फीकल स्लज नाइट्रोजन, फॉस्फोरस और पोटेशियम (एनपीके) का एक रिच सोर्सहोता है. और इसका इस्तेमाल फसल के उत्पादन को बढ़ानेके लिए किया जाता है. फसलों के लिहाज से इनमें आवश्यक पोषक तत्व भरपूर होतेहैं. दूसरी ओर स्थिति यह हैकि भारत पोटेशियम और फॉस्फोरस की मांग को पूरा नहीं कर पाता है, इसलिए उसे आयात पर निर्भर रहना पड़ता है. अब सीएसई ने अपने एक अध्ययन मेंपाया कि अगर इस पर काम किया गया, तो उपचारित सीवेज से हम करीब-कीब 4531 टन यूरिया का विकल्प ढूंढ सकतेहैं. इतना टन यूरिया हमें आयात करानेकी जरूरत नहीं पड़ेगी. येतीनों तत्व फसल उत्पादन को बढ़ानेवालेपोषक तत्व हैं. मल कीचड़ उपचार संयंत्रों (एफएसटीपी) और सीवेज उपचार संयंत्रों (एसटीपी) द्वारा उत्पन्न मल कीचड़ नाइट्रोजन (एन), फॉस्फोरस (पी) और पोटेशियम (के) का एक समृद्ध स्रोत हो सकता है. फसल उत्पादन में उपयोग किए जानेवालेयेतीन आवश्यक पोषक तत्व हैं. सीएसई के वर्कशॉप में इन तथ्यों पर विचार किया गया. सीएसई नेहाउसिंग एंड अएं र्बन डेवलपमेंट ओडिशा सरकार के साथ मिलकर इसे अरेंज किया था. यहां पर एफएसटीपी और एसटीपी के सामनेक्या-क्या चुनौतियां हैं, इस पर गंभीरता सेविचार मंथन किया गया. ओडिशा सरकार ने इन चुनौतियों सेनिपटनेके लिए कई कदम उठाए हैं. उनके कुछ कदम काफी सराहनीय हैं. सीएसई नेपाया कि उनके कुछ प्रयोग इतने अच्छे हैंकि इसेपूरेदेश मेंरिपीट किया जा सकता है. उन्होंनेबायो सोलिड (जैव-ठोस) के रि-यूज (पुनः उपयोग) को लेकर कुछ कदम उठाए हैं. सीएसई के निदेशक दीपेंद्र सिंह कपूर ने कहा कि पूरे देश में 500 से अधिक एफएसटीपी हैं. इनमेंसे 250 टन बायो सोलिड प्रति दिन जेनरेट करतेहैं. इसके अलावा 1469 एसीटीपी सेप्रतिदिन 104210 टन बायोसोलिड बनतेहैं. सीएसई ने यह भी पाया कि पूरेदेश में सबसे अच्छा बुनियादी ढांचा ओडिशा का है. सरकार ने 115 शहरों में इसेस्थापित किया है. सीएसई मेंलेबोरेट्री विभाग के उपनिदेशक विनोद विजयन ने कहा कि सेप्टेज और सीवेज से एकत्रित बायो सोलिड, जैवठोस, पदार्थों के पुनः उपयोग मेंमुख्य बाधा 2022 का फर्टिलाइजर कंट्रोल ऑर्डर है. ये ऑर्डर इन्हेंखाद मानकों के अनुरूप नहीं मानतेहैं. सीएसई के प्रोग्राम मैनेजर डॉ सुमिता सिंघल ने कहा कि उन्होंनेदेश के चार राज्यों के 47 एफएसटीपी के आंकड़ों का अध्ययन किया है. इसमें उन्होंने इसका मूल्यांकन और बायोसोलिड को फिर से उपयोग करने पर विचार किया.

‘Global epicentre for pollution’: South Asia bears greatest health burden for dirty air

Skyrocketing energy demand and fossil fuel use in South Asia over the past two decades have contributed to rising particulate emissions in the region. Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan – where 22.9 per cent of the global population lives – are now the top four most polluted countries in the world and bear the greatest health burden for dirty air, latest data finds. The benchmark study, an annual report known as the Air Quality Life Index (AQLI), released in August by the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago (Epic) revealed that residents in the four South Asian countries are expected to lose about five years of life expectancy on average if levels of pollution persist. Since 2013, about 59 per cent of the world’s increase in pollution has come from India alone, said the study. “Fortunately, more and more people in these countries are recognising the severity of the problem, and governments are beginning to respond.” The report particularly cited how the government of India declared a “war on pollution” in 2019, launching a national clean air programme with a clear goal to reduce 2017 particulate pollution levels by 20 to 30 per cent by next year. Last year, it renewed the target and said that the country aims to achieve a 40 per cent reduction in particulate pollution levels by 2026 in 131 non-attainment cities – or cities that have fallen short of national ambient air quality standards for over five years. It remains to be seen, however, if India, with its resolute call to clean up air pollutants, can see sustained results like what China – another fossil fuel-reliant country – has achieved. The report calls attention to China’s success in its own “war on pollution” that has been ongoing for almost a decade. Latest data finds pollution in the country has declined each year since stricter policies were implemented. China’s efforts ‘a remarkable success’ Across China, pollution levels in 2021 were down by 42.3 per cent compared to 2013 – the year before the country began its war on pollution – and the average Chinese citizen can expect to live 2.2 years longer because of the improvements in air quality, the report said. “In fact, the small decline in global pollution levels from 2013 to 2021 is entirely due to China’s progress,” it said. In seven years, China has reduced almost as much air pollution as the United States did in three decades. Stringent public policies have led to this success, said the report. In China, coal is being replaced by a range of cleaner energy sources, such as natural gas, renewable energy, and nuclear power. Citizens are provided with real-time air quality data to raise awareness on air quality. Additionally, the country has shifted focus towards green planning urban spaces to make them more environment-friendly. China has been “able to significantly reduce air pollution thanks to a persistent, public call for change followed by strong policies”, the report said, suggesting that political will and resources, both human and financial, can reinforce each other to produce better results for solving air pollution. The report described China’s efforts to curb pollution a “remarkable success”, though it also said that the pollution in China is still six times what the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommended. Because of its large population, China experiences the second highest health burden from pollution globally, behind India, in terms of total life years lost. The report also cautioned that China has traditionally relied on a command-and-control approach to combat pollution, which has imposed substantial social and economic burdens. A smog that won’t go away India’s current war on pollution, on the other hand, puts a strong emphasis on expanding renewable energy, promoting electric vehicles and supplying LPG or liquefied petroleum gas cooking oil to millions of households. Its National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) has a target which looks at extending the life expectancy of residents. Observers have repeatedly also called upon the government to show political will, including to appoint a “clear functioning authority” with a specific mandate of improving air quality to work on the issue. India’s cities, however, still suffer from hazardous air pollution. Late last year, Air Quality Index (AQI) readings in capital New Delhi oscillated between “very poor” and “severe”, as a thick layer of toxic smog hung over the city. It has spent the winter choked by such smog almost every year. A report by the Urban Lab, Centre for Science and Environment Analysis on NCAP released in September last year highlighted how there is “barely any difference” in overall PM2.5 trends between the group of cities governed under the NCAP and those outside its ambit. Both these regions have mixed air quality depending on the climatic zone, which requires a measurable reduction in pollution to meet national air quality standards. According to the AQLI Index, several factors have worsened air quality in South Asia. Practices like crop burning, the operation of brick kilns, and rapid industrialisation contribute to air pollution. India’s status as a developing economy, coupled with its growing population, adds to the issue. Additionally, the surge in vehicle usage in South Asian countries like India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, has tripled the pollution load. The reliance on fossil fuels for electricity generation further escalates the issue, with their use growing year-on-year. Across South Asia, the most polluted country is Bangladesh. Despite a 2.1 percent dip in particulate pollution compared to 2020 levels, pollution in Bangladesh has hovered around 14 to 15 times the WHO guideline for the past decade. The report highlights efforts by other nations, other than India, in curbing air pollution. In Nepal, efforts are underway with the Air Quality Management Action Plan for Kathmandu Valley, aimed at regulating emissions from factories and vehicles. Pakistan has been increasing the deployment of pollution monitors and implementing seasonal closures of industrial zones in heavily polluted regions, particularly during the high heat energy demand winter months. In Bangladesh, air pollution monitoring has doubled in eight major cities, and brick kiln owners are being encouraged to adopt cleaner technologies. A law was passed in 2019 to prohibit brick kiln production near residential, commercial, environmental, and agricultural areas. Looking ahead, the government has plans for a ‘phase-out’ of traditional brick kilns in favour of cleaner concrete block production by 2025 to mitigate air quality issues.

Rice price spike offers preview of food disruption

A 15-year high in rice prices, prompted by top exporter India’s restrictions on overseas sales, should be a wake-up call on how climate change can disrupt food supplies, experts say. Rice prices jumped 9.8 percent in August, bucking decreases in other staples, the Food and Agriculture Organization said last week. That followed the July decision by India, which accounts for 40% of global rice exports, to ban the overseas sale of non-basmati rice. The government cited soaring domestic prices for the staple, caused by geopolitics, the El Niño weather pattern and “extreme climatic conditions.” This year is expected to be the hottest in human history, and the impacts of the seasonal El Niño weather pattern could make conditions even harsher. Despite severe flooding in parts of northern India, this August was the country’s hottest and driest on record. The monsoon season that brings up to 80 percent of the country’s annual rain has been far below normal levels. India’s July restrictions followed a decision last September to ban exports of another variety of rice that is a staple in parts of Africa. Up to 8 percent of global rice exports for 2023/24 could now be taken out of the market, according to analysis by BMI, Fitch Group’s research arm Drought fears For now, the crisis offers an opportunity for India’s rivals, including number two and three exporters, Thailand and Vietnam. Both have increased exports this year, with Nguyen Nhu Cuong, an official with Vietnam’s agriculture and rural development ministry, touting a “bumper crop” and plans to increase planting. But the dry conditions that tend to accompany El Niño mean smooth sailing ahead is unlikely, warned Elyssa Kaur Ludher, from the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute’s Climate Change in Southeast Asia programme.-AFP. “My question is whether they can continue to do this once El Niño comes into force towards the end of this year, when water becomes more scarce,” she told AFP. “I think the end of this year and especially the beginning of next year will be very, very tough,” she added. A naturally occurring weather phenomenon, El Niño typically lasts nine to 12 months and is expected to strengthen late this year. Even before India’s latest restrictions, its effects were boosting rice export prices, according to BMI. And in Thailand, national rainfall levels are currently 18% lower than expected for the time of year, the Office of National Water Resources said this month. Late rains could still make up the difference, but the agency said it is “concerned about a drought caused by El Niño.” ‘New normal’ The consequence is one of price rather than supply, said Charles Hart, agricultural commodities analyst at Fitch Solutions. “This is not a running out of rice moment,” he stressed, noting India’s restrictions have not been followed by other exporters. Instead, the situation is likely to force the drawdown of stocks rebuilt after pandemic-era depletions, and prompt importers to seek new deals and impose local limits. Top importer the Philippines this month signed a deal with Vietnam to help stabilise supply, days after announcing a national price cap. “It’s not just a food availability issue, but it’s also a social stability issue, it’s a political issue,” said Ludher. The current disruptions should be a wake-up call for policy-makers, she added, with more attention needed to the plight of farmers across various sectors. Climate change can affect productivity, with lower crop yields as temperatures rise, but also increases the likelihood of extreme events like the 2022 Pakistan floods. “Global grain export markets are relatively concentrated, so that kind of extreme weather risk accumulates in a few markets,” Hart added. In India, policymakers need to develop better early-warning systems and new planting patterns, said Avantika Goswami, a climate change researcher at the Centre for Science and Environment. “Erratic weather patterns are the new normal,” she told AFP. “Now, it’s a case of early adaptation. In the long-term, global emissions have to come down.”

Delhi to explore cloud seeding to check air pollution in winter: Environment Minister

In a bid to mitigate air pollution in the national capital during winter, the Delhi government is mulling over the use of cloud seeding technology to induce artificial rain, Environment Minister Gopal Rai said. Rai added that the government is preparing a separate action plan for each of the air pollution hotspots in the city. Rai's announcement came after his meeting with 24 environmental experts to discuss the 'Winter Action Plan' where scientists from IIT-Kanpur gave a presentation on inducing artificial rain in Delhi. At this meeting, suggestions were also taken from 24 members and researchers from the Council for Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), and Environmental Defense Fund, among others.

Who was Dr S M Mohnot, renowned primatologist and environmentalist?

Dr S M Mohnot who was World’s renowned Primatologist and Environmentalist Professor passed away yesterday. He died after a prolong illness. The Professor was eighty-three year old, and was also the founder and director of School of Desert Sciences (SDS) and Head of Zoology Department of Jai Narayan Vyas University from 1964 to 2001. Dr S M Mohnot was born in June 13 1941 in Jodhpur his father Ranjit Mall was an employee in Northern Railways India he did his primary education in Jodhpur only and enthusiast about environment conservation. Dr. Mohnot, an active individual, has made substantial contributions to research. He has authored books and participated in discussions at global forums on Jodhpur’s Hanuman Langurs. These works are now popular worldwide. Mohnot while staying in Germany worked on marmosets, the smallest of all living primates and developed a long range programme on langurs and came out with a sociological hypothesis on langurs in the wilderness. Germans, American and Canadian scholars have done their research and PhD under his guidance at the SDS. He always stressed the need of developing a world-class international Centre for primates at Jodhpur and to give a national character to develop a centre of excellence for primates has established a National Primate Museum and also a breeding centre to meet the demand for quality primates for a variety of research and studies. Dr Mohnot did the ground work on the western Rajasthan’s environmental issues and stone mining hazards along with late Anil Agarwal, founder of the Centre for Science and Environment, a Delhi-based research institute presently run by Sunita Narain. Among dozens of other books authored by S M Mohnot, three main books : Current Primate Researches, Primates of South Asia, and Environmental Degradation in Western Rajasthan received a world acclaim.