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Alert : देश के करीब 25 शहर 2030 तक ‘डे जीरो’की कगार पर, इसमें जयपुर शामिल

जयपुर। राजधानी सहित पूरे प्रदेश को जल संकट का सामना करना पड़ सकता है। संयुक्त राष्ट्र की संस्था यूनेस्को की रिपोर्ट में खुलासा किया गया है कि 2025 तक देश में जल संकट बहुत बढ़ जाएगा।कुल 13 राज्यों में पानी का भारी संकट पैदा होने की आशंका है। 2030 तक कई शहर डे जीरो की कगार पर होंगे, इसमें जयपुर भी शामिल है। सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एनवायरमेंट की एक रिपोर्ट के मुताबिक देश के करीब 25 शहर 2030 तक ‘डे जीरो’की कगार पर होंगे। डे जीरो' का मतलब, वह दिन जब नल से जल आना बंद हो जाएगा और पीने के लिए लोग पानी को तरसेंगे। ऐसे शहरों में जयपुर, कानपुर, गुरुग्राम, फरीदाबाद, दिल्ली, मेरठ, बंगलूरू, कोयंबटूर, कोच्ची, मदुरै, चेन्नई, सोलापुर, हैदराबाद, विजयवाड़ा, मुंबई, जमशेदपुर धनबाद, अमरावती, विशाखापत्तनम, आसनसोल और आगरा जैसे शहर शामिल हैं। ड्राई जोन राज्य 2021-22 में आई कैग रिपोर्ट के अनुसार पंजाब, हरियाणा, दिल्ली, राजस्थान और काफी हद तक उत्तर प्रदेश में 100 फीसदी भूमिगत जल का दोहन हो रहा है। ड्राफ्ट अर्ली वॉर्निंग सिस्टम (डीईडब्ल्यूएस) के अनुसार देश का 41.82 फीसदी हिस्सा सूखाग्रस्त है। उत्तर प्रदेश, पंजाब, हरियाणा, राजस्थान, महाराष्ट्र, बिहार, गुजरात, छत्तीसगढ़, कर्नाटक, मध्य प्रदेश, तेलंगाना, ओडिशा और तमिलनाडु ड्राई जोन की श्रेणी में आते हैं। 10 करोड़ लोग जल संकट का कर रहे सामना समग्र जल प्रबंधन सूचकांक (सीडब्ल्यूएमआई) रिपोर्ट के अनुसार देश के 21 प्रमुख शहरों में लगभग 10 करोड़ लोग जल संकट की भीषण समस्या से जूझ रहे हैं। वर्ष 1994 में पानी की उपलब्धता प्रति व्यक्ति 6 हजार घन मीटर थी जो 2025 तक घटकर 1600 घन मीटर रह जाने का अनुमान है। यूनिसेफ की एक रिपोर्ट के अनुसार 50 फीसदी से भी कम भारतीयों को स्वच्छ पेय जल मिल पाता है, क्योंकि यहां के भूमिगत जल में फ्लोराइड की मात्रा काफी ज्यादा है। राजस्थान की कई जगह पर फ्लोराइड की समस्या है।

गांधी के ग्राम स्वराज्य की मिसाल है विनोबा भावे का ग्रामदानी गांव सीड़

‘डाउन टू अर्थ’ से साभार सीड़, राजस्थान के उदयपुर जिले का एक गांव। देखने में यह राजस्थान के अन्य गांवों की तरह ही हैं, लेकिन जैसे ही आप गांव के थोड़ा अंदर पहुंचते हैं तो आप ठिठक जाएंगे। सड़क के एक ओर लगा बोर्ड आपका ध्यान बरबस ही खींच लेगा, जिस पर लिखा कि ग्रामदानी गांव सीड़ और इस बोर्ड के ठीक दूसरी ओर दिखेगा एक भवन, जहां लिखा है- ग्राम स्वराज भवन। राजस्थान के उदयपुर शहर से लगभग 80 किलोमीटर दूरी पर स्थित गांव सीड़ वल्लभ नगर विधानसभा क्षेत्र के अंतर्गत आता है। यह गांव महात्मा गांधी के ग्राम स्वराज्य परिकल्पना की एक मिसाल है। गांधी के ग्राम स्वराज्य की परिकल्पना को मूर्त रूप देने के लिए आचार्य विनोवा भावे ने जिन गांवों को चुना था, उसमें से एक गांव है-सीड़। इन गांवों को ग्रामदानी गांव कहा जाता है। क्या है ग्राम दान ग्रामदान क्या है ग्रामदान 1951 में गांधीवादी विनोबा भावे द्वारा शुरू किए गए भूदान आंदोलन का विस्तार है। भूदान का मतलब था, बड़े भूस्वामियों द्वारा भूमिहीनों के लिए भूमि का दान, लेकिन ग्रामदान का अर्थ है- पूरा गांव अपनी जमीन को एक आम ट्रस्ट के तहत रखेगा, जिसे ग्राम सभा या ग्राम समिति कहा जाता है। इसके बाद गांव के बाहर या ग्रामदान में शामिल नहीं हुए गांव के व्यक्ति को जमीन नहीं बेची जाएगी, लेकिन भू-स्वामी इसकी खेती जारी रख सकते हैं और लाभ उठा सकते हैं। विनोबा भावे, जिन्हें महात्मा गांधी ने ब्रिटिश शासन के खिलाफ 1942 में भारत छोड़ो आंदोलन शुरू करते समय अपना पहला सत्याग्रही चुना था देश में, खासकर तेलंगाना क्षेत्र में असमान भूमि स्वामित्व को लेकर हो रही हिंसा से बहुत परेशान थे। हैदराबाद से 40 किलोमीटर दूर पोचमपल्ली गांव में, एक जमींदार के युवा बेटे रामचंद्र रेड्डी ने जब भावे के समक्ष अपने गांव के भूमिहीन लोगों को अपनी जमीन का हिस्सा दान करने की पेशकश की। तब भावे ने फैसला किया कि वह पूरे भारत के भूस्वामियों को प्रेरित करेंगे कि वे स्वेच्छा से अपनी भूमि का एक हिस्सा भूमिहीनों को दान कर दें। इसे उन्होंने ‘भूदान’ आंदोलन का नाम दिया। अगले कुछ वर्ष के बाद अपनी भूदान पदयात्रा के दौरान उन्हें अहसास हुआ कि लोगों को ग्रामदान के लिए प्रेरित किया जा सकता है। उन्होंने गांव के लोगों को अपनी जमीन को एक ट्रस्ट के पास रखने की अपील की और व्यवस्था की कि हर व्यक्ति न केवल भूमि का एक छोटा सा हिस्सा बल्कि उनकी आय का 1/40वां हिस्सा ट्रस्ट को दान करे, जिससे भूमिहीनों का भला हो सके। भावे के ग्राम दान आंदोलन ने समुदाय में सभी को समान अधिकार और जिम्मेदारियों का अहसास कराया और उन्हें स्वशासन की ओर बढ़ने के लिए सशक्त बनाकर प्राकृतिक संसाधनों के संरक्षण का मार्ग प्रशस्त किया। आज, भारत के सात राज्यों में 3,660 ग्रामदान गांव हैं, जिनमें से सबसे अधिक ओडिशा (1309) में हैं। इसके अलावा आंध्र प्रदेश, बिहार, महाराष्ट्र, ओडिशा, राजस्थान, तमिलनाडु और उत्तर प्रदेश में ग्रामदानी गांव हैं। इनके अलावा असम में भी ग्रामदानी व्यवस्था थी, लेकिन सितंबर 2022 में असम सरकार ने असम ग्रामदान अधिनियम, 1961 और असम भूदान अधिनियम, 1965 को निरस्त कर दिया। उस समय तक असम में 312 ग्रामदान गाँव थे। अलग-अलग राज्यों के अपने-अपने अधिनियम हैं, लेकिन ग्रामदान अधिनियम की कुछ प्रमुख विशेषताएं इस प्रकार हैं: गांव के कम से कम 75 प्रतिशत भूस्वामियों को भूमि का स्वामित्व ग्राम सभा को सौंप देना होगा। ऐसी भूमि कम से कम गांव की 60 प्रतिशत भूमि होनी चाहिए। कुछ राज्यों में यह प्रतिशत कुछ कम है। जैसे- राजस्थान में गांव की कुल भूमि में से कम से कम 51 प्रतिशत भूमि ग्रामसभा को दान करनी होगी। आत्मसमर्पण की गई भूमि का पांच प्रतिशत गांव में भूमिहीनों को खेती के लिए वितरित किया जाता है, लेकिन इस जमीन को पाने वाले लोग बिना ग्रामसभा की अनुमति के उसे हस्तांतरित नहीं कर सकते। बाकी जमीन दाताओं के पास ही रहती है; वे और उनके वंशज इस पर काम (खेती आदि) कर सकते हैं और लाभ उठा सकते हैं। लेकिन वे इसे गांव के बाहर या गांव में ऐसे व्यक्ति को नहीं बेच सकते जो ग्रामदान में शामिल नहीं हो। ग्रामदान में शामिल होने वाले सभी काश्तकारों को अपनी आय का 2.5 प्रतिशत समुदाय को योगदान देना चाहिए। लगभग सात दशक बाद ग्रामदानी गांव किस स्थिति में हैं, यह जानने के लिए डाउन टू अर्थ ने महाराष्ट्र और राजस्थान के 10 ग्रामदान गांवों की यात्रा की। जिनके बारे में सिलसिलेवार रिपोर्ट की जाएगी। आज पढ़िए उपरोक्त गांव सीड़ की कहानी लगभग एक हजार आबादी वाले सीड़ गांव में वैसे तो किसी भी परिवार के पास जमीन का मालिकाना हक नहीं है, लेकिन गांव में कोई भी ऐसा परिवार नहीं है, जो भूमिहीन हो। मतलब, हर परिवार के पास इतनी जमीन है कि वह अपने परिवार के भरणपोषण के लिए खेती कर रहा है। इसके बाद विनोबा पूरे देश में घूम-घूम कर ग्रामीणों को ग्राम दान के लिए प्रेरित करने लगे। विनोबा देश भ्रमण करते-करते उदयपुर के वल्लभनगर कस्बे में पहुंचे। जहां उनकी मुलाकात सेठवाना गांव के युवा कार्यकर्ता रामेश्वर प्रसाद से हुई। रामेश्वर प्रसाद के साथ तब कई गांव के लोग थे। विनोबा ने इस दल से ग्राम दान करने की अपील की। “1959 की बात है। मैं अपने साथियों के साथ विनोबा जी से मिलने गया। विनोबा जी ने हमसे पूछा कि जितने भी लोग आए हैं, क्या उन सब हाथ के बुने कपड़े पहने हैं। मैंने विनोबा जी को बताया कि ये सभी किसान हैं। खेतों में कपास उगाते हैं और उसी कपास को धुनकर गांव के ही बुनकरों से अपने लिए कपड़े बनवाते हैं। यह सुनकर विनोबा बहुत खुश हुए और उन्होंने कहा कि जिस तरह कपड़ा काम में लिया है, उसी तरह अपनी सारी आवश्यकता की चीजें गांव में बने हुए हों, ताकि गांव का पैसा गांव में ही रहे। गांव का स्वावलंबी बनाओ, गांव को एक परिवार बनाओ। गांव में प्रेम कायम करो और गांव में ग्राम स्वराज कायम करो। विनोबा जी का यह हुक्म हमें मिला और हमने इसकी पालना शुरू कर दी।” रामेश्वर प्रसाद यह बात कहते-कहते कहीं खो से जाते हैं। रामेश्वर प्रसाद के प्रयासों से ही गांव सीड़ के साथ-साथ गोपा की भागल, हरियाखेड़ा, मंगरी फल्ला ने भी ग्राम दान का संकल्प पत्र भर दिया। 1954 में राजस्थान ने राजस्थान भूदान यज्ञन अधिनियम बना दिया था। जब विनोबा भावे ने ग्रामदान की पहल की तो 1960 में राजस्थान में राजस्थान ग्रामदान कानून पारित कर दिया गया। “राजस्थान में ग्राम दान” के लेखक एवं कुमाराप्पा ग्राम स्वराज्य संस्थान के निदेशक अवध प्रसाद कहते हैं कि 1965 तक कुल 426 ग्रामों के ग्रामदान संबंधी संकल्प हुए। एक्ट के अनुसार ग्रामदानी गांवों की जिम्मेदारी भी भूदान बोर्ड पर आई, लेकिन अलग से ग्रामदान बोर्ड के गठन की कार्रवाई काफी धीमी गति से चली, जिसकारण ग्राम दान अभियान तेजी नहीं पकड़ पाया। परंतु 1971 में एक बार फिर राजस्थान में ग्रामदान अभियान ने तेजी पकड़ी, जिसके बाद पुराने अधिनियम को खारिज राजस्थान ग्राम दान अधिनियम 1971 लागू किया गया। राजस्थान का ग्रामदान अधिनियम देश के अन्य राज्यों के कानूनों के मुकाबले सबसे मजबूत बताया जाता था। सीड़ और उससे सटे तीनों गांव गोपा की भागल, हरियाखेड़ा, मंगरी फल्ला को राजस्थान ग्राम दान अधिनियम 1971 के तहत ग्रामदानी अधिसूचित कर दिया गया। सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एनवायरमेंट द्वारा 1991 में प्रकाशित किताब “हरे भरे गांव की ओर” में लेखक अनिल अग्रवाल व सुनीता नारायण सीड़ के बारे में लिखते हैं कि केवल यही एक गांव देश में हमने ऐसा देखा, जहां भूमि के इस्तेमाल की पूरी योजना और उसे लागू करने के नियम बने हुए हैं। सार्वजनिक भूमि को दो श्रेणियों में बांटा गया है। पहली श्रेणी की भूमि में चाराई और पत्तियां तोड़ना वर्जित है। दूसरी श्रेणी की भूमि पर चराई की जा सकती है, लेकिन पत्तियां तोड़ना या पेड़ों को नुकसान पहुंचाना मना है। गांव वाले साल में एक बार घास काटते हैं। किताब में 1987 के सूखे का उल्लेख करते हुए कहा गया है कि सूखे के उन दिनों में भी 80 बैलगाड़ी घास काटी गई थी। बाजार में उस समय उस घास की कीमत 50 हजार रुपए थी। यह घास सब परिवारों में बराबर बांटी गई थी। गांव में न केवल सार्वजनिक बल्कि निजी जमीन पर खड़े पेड़ों को काटने की भी मनाही थी और ग्रामसभा से पूछ कर ही पेड़ काटे जा सकते थे। सभा भी तभी अनुमति देती थी, जब पेड़ की लकड़ी का इस्तेमाल घरेलू उपयोग के लिए किया जाता हो। सीड़ की सीमा में 800 बीघा में फैला वन क्षेत्र भी आता है। जिस पर वन विभाग की नजर है और ग्राम सभा से यह वन क्षेत्र विभाग के हवाले करने का दबाव डालता रहता है, लेकिन ग्रामसभा इसका जमकर विरोध करती है। ग्रामसभा के वर्तमान अध्यक्ष बाबरू राम कहते हैं कि जंगल हमारे अधिकार क्षेत्र में आते हैं, हम इसे सरकार को नहीं देंगे। यह जंगल गांव वालों ने खुद ही तैयार किया था। अपने हाथों से पेड़ लगाए थे। जब वन विभाग के कर्मचारी इस पर कब्जा करने आए तो गांव के हर व्यक्ति ने इसका विरोध किया। इस विरोध में महिलाओं की भूमिका प्रमुख रही। स्वास्थ्य विभाग से रिटायर हो चुके किशन लाल मीणा कहते हैं कि हम तो पढ़ते थे, तब ग्रामदान शुरू हुआ। ग्रामदान मतलब खुद का प्रशासन, जितने अधिकार व बजट पंचायत को मिलते हैं, उतने ही एक ग्रामदानी गांव को भी मिलते थे। ग्रामदानी गांव घोषित होने के बाद सीड़ में चार-पांच ट्यूबवेल लगे, काफी काम हुआ। ट्रैक्टर भी दिए गए। लिफ्ट सिंचाई की योजना भी शुरू हुई, जिसने गांव वालों की खेती में बहुत मदद की।

Hardlook: How does Delhi plan to control landfill fires this season?

The Indian Express looks at what measures are in place and what is yet to be done on the ground to tackle the issue In the year since massive fires broke out at two of three garbage dumpsites in Delhi last summer, the landfills have starred in an election campaign, been the subject of two key National Green Tribunal (NGT) orders and featured in several promises on their removal. The dumpsites — one each at Ghazipur, Bhalswa and Okhla — still stand, as imposing as ever. As the temperature rises and with it the possibility of fires at the dumpsites, The Indian Express looks at measures suggested by various departments to tackle this and if they are in place. Suggested measures In March 2022, a large fire had broken out at the Ghazipur dumpsite while there were fires at both Ghazipur and Bhalswa in April. Last year, high temperatures set in earlier than they did this year, with heat wave conditions even at the end of March. A report submitted by an NGT-constituted joint committee last July, after the Tribunal had taken cognizance of the long-drawn fire at the Ghazipur dumpsite, had offered some suggestions: installing spark arresters; laying pipelines at the dumpsite to release methane; increasing number of tankers to sprinkle water; ensuring adequate water storage capacity and pumps at the dumpsite to douse fires; CCTVs; methane detectors; temperature sensors and fire alarms; jetting machines to keep vulnerable areas damp; construction of roads around the dumpsite to allow movement of fire tenders and patrolling; and plantation in areas that are cleared. The committee, chaired by Justice SP Garg, former judge of the Delhi High Court, comprised representatives of Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the erstwhile East MCD, Delhi Police, and Delhi Disaster Management Authority. It was required to consider fire and other disaster management plans for the Ghazipur dumpsite. The suggestions, including that of ensuring segregation of waste, were presented to the committee by officials from DPCC and MCD who visited the Gorai and Deonar dumpsites in Mumbai last year in the hope of learning from there. Going by their report, these dumpsites had pipelines placed for the release of methane. Last April, Environment Minister Gopal Rai had also said a “gas sucking system” to absorb methane emissions will be set up at the Ghazipur landfill to deal with fire incidents. A representative of the Delhi Fire Services had also said a water storage tank with a capacity of 5 lakh litres should be installed along with at least three pumps at the dumpsite. The NGT report had also said surface fires can be reduced by covering the landfill with a layer of non-combustible material like soil or construction material. Ground report The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has offered some responses on what has been done so far to prepare for a fire outbreak or mitigate the chances of one. In response to questions sent to the MCD, a senior official said the dumpsites have “adequate number of CCTVs for 24×7 monitoring; adequate illumination by providing electricity poles around the dumpsites; round-the-clock deployment of machines and supervision by officials; and joint drill and training with MCD staff and fire department”. The official also said the fire department has ensured “a dedicated fire tender at the nearest fire station” and that all vehicles coming into the dumpsite for garbage disposal are fitted with spark arresters. The official further said pipelines for methane collection were installed earlier at Ghazipur in association with GAIL (before these recommendations were made last year), but they were not found to be successful: “There wasn’t much gas generation in this case. What we have done now is that temporarily in the summer, perforated PVC pipes have been placed in areas where fresh waste is being dumped at Ghazipur and Bhalswa landfills. In case there is methane accumulation there, that will be released.” On temperature sensors, the MCD official said, “The temperature is being measured at Ghazipur, and a register is being maintained with records of the temperature time-to-time. But it may not be very effective.” Area has been earmarked along the periphery of these sites to carry out plantation as a bio-fence, he said, adding that water tankers have been stationed at the landfills, on stand-by, and that fresh waste is being covered from time-to-time with non-combustible material. “It may not be possible to avoid these fires altogether. The key is to control them quickly, and for that, monitoring is important. The concessionaires who are carrying out biomining at these sites have also been sensitised since their staff is on ground. We are considering a hooter or siren for an alert if the staff on ground spots a fire,” the official said. Data with the DPCC shows that four water sprinklers or tankers are stationed at each of the three landfills, and 10 perforated pipes have been placed at Ghazipur for methane. While Ghazipur has around 22 CCTV cameras, the Okhla landfill is the most watched with 35 cameras, followed by Bhalswa with 31. According to experts, fresh waste being dumped at the sites can also spark fires. Richa Singh, who is part of the municipal solid waste programme at Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), said, “When fresh, biodegradable waste begins to decompose in anaerobic conditions (absence of oxygen), releasing methane, and temperatures are high, there are chances of fire outbreaks again, as methane is flammable… Dumping of fresh waste is the problem. Waste that’s already lying there can be dealt with by preventive mechanisms like covering it with soil or inert material.” Atin Biswas, who is also part of the municipal solid waste programme at CSE, pointed out that installing pipes to collect methane may not help with Delhi’s dumpsites considering that they are not scientifically designed. To clear landfills, legacy waste or old waste that has been lying at these sites for decades is being processed by biomining, where it is excavated and passed through screening machines or trommels that can separate materials. Fires can also break out during this process, Singh explained: “Even in legacy waste, there can be pockets where methane has accumulated… During biomining, provisions for fire control and emergency planning need to be made, as heavy equipment and excavators are used, and these dumpsites are very prone to fires.” Meeting targets What sort of progress has been made on solid waste management in a year? Data submitted by DPCC to the Ministry of Jal Shakti in March, as a progress report for February, shows that the city generates 11,328 TPD (tonnes per day) of waste, and existing processing capacity of waste, including material recovery facilities for recyclables, is 8,228 TPD — around 72.64% of waste generated. The municipal solid waste that is being processed is around 7,802 TPD, which is 68.88% of the waste generated, and 3,525 TPD fresh waste is being dumped at the landfill sites every day, the DPCC report shows. On segregation of waste, the DPCC report claims areas under New Delhi Municipal Council segregate 100% of waste, while segregation is at 100% in only 12 wards of MCD, 10%-20% in 29 wards, 20%-40% in 46 wards, and 40%-60% in 81 wards. It is around 80%-100% in 70 wards, as per the report. These figures are a little different from a presentation on solid waste management made by the MCD to the CM earlier this month. While the presentation states that the city generates 11,000 TPD, it said processing capacity is 8,166 TPD, and 2,834 TPD is being dumped at the dumpsites. As per the presentation, 17.72 lakh tonnes of legacy waste at Ghazipur has been processed till April 4, ever since biomining began in 2019. This is around 12.6% of the total quantity of 140 lakh tonnes of legacy waste that was lying at the site in 2019. The process has fared better at Okhla and Bhalswa. At Okhla, smallest of the three dumpsites, 26.95 lakh tonnes of legacy waste has been processed till April 4, out of an estimated 60 lakh tonnes in 2019, which is around 44% of the legacy waste. At Bhalswa, 31.69 lakh tonnes has been processed, out of 80 lakh tonnes of legacy waste (around 39% of the legacy waste has been processed so far). The target to complete remediation of the landfills is May 2024. CM Arvind Kejriwal had said last month that Okhla landfill is likely to be cleared by December, and Delhi will be free of these dumpsites in 2024. Can Delhi meet its target to clear the landfills? The presentation shows that on April 5, 8,379 tonnes of waste was biomined at Bhalswa, 5,871 tonnes at Okhla, and 1,931 tonnes at Ghazipur. The target is to process 10,000 TPD at Bhalswa and Okhla daily, and 6,500 TPD at Ghazipur. Singh said, “At Okhla, it may still be possible to clear the dumpsite by next year, clearing around 30 lakh tonnes in around 14 months. It may not be possible to process the waste during the monsoon months. If we need to clear the sites by 2024, how much we can treat in a day and the machines installed at the sites are important. If they are dumping fresh waste at these sites, they will have to deal with that quantity too.”

Earth Day 2023: Why summer air pollution is the new normal in India

Summer is upon us. Temperatures are crossing 40°C in several parts of the country. The IMD has already had to issue heatwave warnings for multiple states. But it's not just the scorching heat and high levels of humidity that people have to watch out for in these months. Sweltering summer days - the kind that bake pavements and roads - also causes air quality across Indian cities to plummet. Mumbai, for instance, had “poor” air quality while experiencing its hottest February in two decades and above normal temperatures in March. Similarly, residents of Patna and Indore struggled for fresh air this month as temperatures nearly touched 40°C. And just last week, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai directed departments to prepare action plans to curb air pollution in time for the scorching summer. But why is the air so polluted in the summer lately, and how does it affect us? Let’s find out. Feeling hot In India, air pollution is common in the winter months when inversion, induced by cold and calm weather, traps pollution close to the ground. These meteorological conditions, however, are absent in the summer. Warm air typically rises and carries pollutants away. At times, however, hot, still, and dry air leads to a build-up of pollutants, particularly dust, particulate matter and ozone. When this mass stays over the same area for several days, the phenomenon is known as stagnation. At such times, light winds cannot blow away the pollutants. You May Like Amazon CFD: Your Route to a Second IncomeCPX by Taboola Sponsored Links Related stories 3-day hunger strike demanding statehood for Ladakh begins in Kargil 3-day hunger strike demanding statehood for Ladakh begins in Kargil 6 Indian cities that could face a water shortage in the near future 6 Indian cities that could face a water shortage in the near future Pollution nightmare: Does your city rank among the most polluted? Pollution nightmare: Does your city rank among the most polluted? Climate change exacerbates this problem. Our country has been experiencing some of the hottest summers on record in recent years. The seasonal average air temperature last year, for example, was 1.24°C warmer than the baseline trends, as per the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). More summer heat brings in more stagnation days. In 2022, for instance, a study conducted by the CSE found high PM 2.5 (fine particulate matter) levels across multiple cities and regions of India from March to May. North India fared the worst with a 23 percent increase in average summer pollution, while central India followed at 15.6 percent. Its effects are further compounded in heat islands - urban areas with highly concentrated structures and limited greenery. These places typically record higher temperatures than the outer regions. They also demand more electricity for cooling during the summer months. It means turning to coal-fuelled power plants, as they play a major role in power generation and produce about 70 percent of the country’s electricity needs. That, in turn, leads to an increase in air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions. These pollutants also contribute to the formation of smog, fine particulate matter, and acid rain. Last year, for instance, the densely populated Delhi-NCR area had the worst regional air from March to May. It also had 12 of the cities in the top 20 with highest summer pollution levels, including Delhi, Ghaziabad, Manesar, Noida, Faridabad and Gurugram. Summers also mean heatwaves, especially in north and central India. Under the effect of climate change, they are now occurring more often, getting longer in duration and more intense with each passing year. In 2022 alone, India recorded 203 heatwave days, the highest in the recent past, as per data shared by the Ministry of Earth Sciences in the Lok Sabha. The maximum number of such episodes were reported from Uttarakhand (28), followed by Rajasthan (26), Punjab and Haryana (24 each), Jharkhand (18) and Delhi (17). Heatwaves make air pollution deadlier. Ground-level ozone, a kind of pollution, is made more efficiently on hot, sunny days. When there is extreme heat, it can reach dangerous levels in cities and the areas around them. It’s also often ignored. “Even before we could control the problem of particulate pollution, the toxic threat of ground-level ozone is catching up with us. Despite the warning signs, this problem has not attracted adequate policy or public attention for mitigation and prevention. If not addressed early, it can blow up as a serious health crisis in the coming years,” said Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director-research and advocacy, CSE, while talking about summer pollution. Health check Air pollution adversely affects human health. It causes eye irritation and cardiovascular disease, makes breathing difficult, and leads to inflammation, oxidative stress and even death. That’s why it is recommended that one avoid strenuous outdoor activities at times when pollutant concentrations are high in the air. This is especially true for people with allergies and asthma, though women who are pregnant and the elderly too need to be cautious. “It’s smart to track the air quality index of your city, and if possible, of your area, since it can vary. Avoid activity during traffic hours, and around major sources of emissions such as industrial facilities, major roads and airports. Be aware that exposure to air pollution increases during exercise since we breathe more heavily, so defer strenuous physical activity when the air quality is bad,” says Dr Tanay Jha, consulting pulmonologist based in Lucknow. While these steps work at an individual level to reduce exposure, they do not help in avoiding poor air altogether. That will only be possible when policy makers integrate public health into environmental and climate change policy, and urban planning.

Heat waves top extreme events list in 2022, Indian crops hit hard by climate change: Report

Heatwaves topped the list of extreme weather events in 2022, even as the global mean temperature was 1.15 (1.02-1.28) degrees Celsius above the 1850-1900 average, according to the World Meteorological Organization’s (WMO) State of Global Climate 2022 report released on Friday. There were as many as 117 heatwave events witnessed across the globe, far more than other extreme events such as drought, rain/wet spell, cold wave, or even cyclone. The report rightly points out that the years 2015 to 2022 were the eight warmest in the 173-year instrumental record. Despite ongoing La Nina conditions, 2022 was the fifth or sixth warmest year on record. “While greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise, and the climate continues to change, populations worldwide continue to be gravely impacted by extreme weather and climate events,” said WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas. Referring to the heatwaves in the 2022 pre-monsoon season in India and Pakistan that caused a decline in crop yields, the report pointed out that the combination of the heatwaves and the banning of wheat exports and restrictions on rice exports in India after the start of the conflict in Ukraine “threatened the availability, access, and stability of staple foods within international food markets and posed high risks to countries already affected by shortages of staple foods.” “As of 2021, 2.3 billion people faced food insecurity, of which 924 million people faced severe food insecurity. Projections estimated 767.9 million people facing undernourishment in 2021, 9.8% of the global population. Half of these are in Asia and one third in Africa,” it said about food insecurity. The WMO also pointed out how record-breaking heatwaves affected Europe during the summer. “In some areas, extreme heat was coupled with exceptionally dry conditions. Excess deaths associated with the heat in Europe exceeded 15,000 in total across Spain, Germany, the UK, France, and Portugal,” it said, adding, “China had its most extensive and long-lasting heatwave since national records began, extending from mid-June to the end of August and resulting in the hottest summer on record by a margin of more than 0.5 °C. It was also the second-driest summer on record.” Director General of the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Dr Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, told News9 Plus, “It is no surprise. If the temperature rises, the frequency of heatwaves will increase.” However, “heatwave conditions are not uniform across the globe,” explained Mohapatra. The geography, local weather, and definition applied by respective countries make for a heatwave. “For instance, in the United States of America, the threshold temperature is different, and they declare it after that temperature continues for five consecutive days. And in India, we do it only after two consecutive days,” Mohapatra added. In 2022, India witnessed the hottest March and April since the record-keeping started systematically. Heatwave-like conditions prevailed in 16 states of India from March 11 to April 24, 2022. There were 280 heatwave days from March 11 to May 18 in 2022, the highest in 12 years, as per the State of India’s Environment in Figures 2022 brought out by the environment think tank, Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). Other findings of the WMO report – Concentrations of the three main greenhouse gases – carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide – reached record highs in 2021, the latest year for which consolidated global values are available (1984-2021). The annual increase in methane concentration from 2020 to 2021 was the highest on record. – Global mean sea level continued to rise in 2022, reaching a record high for the satellite altimeter record (1993-2022). The rate of global mean sea level rise has doubled between the first decade of the satellite record (1993-2022), 2.27 mm per year) and the last (2013-2022, 4.62 mm per year). – In the hydrological year 2021/2022, a set of reference glaciers with long term observations experienced loss much larger than the average over the last decade. Six of the ten most negative mass balance years on record (1950-2022) occurred since 2015. – Antarctic sea ice fell to lowest extent on record.

Controlling Marine Litter is a big Challenge, say Experts

Global research estimates that about 80% of marine litter comes from land-based mismanagement of solid waste that reaches the ocean bed through various land-to-sea pathways. Experts say that controlling the increasing marine litter is a big challenge in the coastal belt in India and South Asia. Global research estimates that about 80% of marine litter comes from land-based mismanagement of solid waste that reaches the ocean bed through various land-to-sea pathways. The remaining 20% is the contribution of coastal settlements. About 90% of all the waste in the marine ecosystem is plastics. "Marine litter is a serious transboundary issue. Eight million tonnes of plastic waste from 192 countries that have a coastline go into our oceans every year. With a 7,000-plus km coastline, India has a role to play in controlling this menace," said Sunita Narain, director general of the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), at a national consultation workshop at Nimli in Alwar, Rajasthan. Narain said out of 460 million tonnes (MT) of global plastic production, close to 353 MT comes back as plastic waste – 8 MT (2.26%) of which is leaked into the marine ecosystem. To deal with this problem, a National Coalition of Coastal Cities, which will focus on combatting the scourge of marine litter across the country, was launched at the workshop organised and spearheaded by CSE. Another expert Atin Biswas, programme director of the solid waste management unit, CSE, said the extent of the litter in South Asian seas is a matter of particular concern. Estimates indicate that about 15,434 tonnes of plastic waste are leaked into South Asian seas daily, accounting for a colossal 5.6 MT of plastic waste yearly. According to CSE's release, tourist and beach litter are one of the most common sources of marine litter. Most of these wastes comprise multi-layered and low-value plastics, polystyrene, plastic products like cutlery and carry bags, cigarette butts, etc. These wastes are either not collected or are mismanaged and eventually leak into the oceans through the stormwater drainage system, canals and small and big rivers. A large amount of footwear waste comprising of soles, synthetic bases and cloth bases is also found in India's marine litter. The other contributors to marine litter include fishing communities (mostly fishing gear), flood waters, discharge of untreated municipal sewage, automobile and industrial waste generated at the coasts and waste from shipbreaking yards. CSE researchers point out that in India, the estimated extent of marine litter is about 0.98 metric tonnes of trash/km stretch of the coastline, with a concentration of 0.012 kg/square metre, said Siddharth G Singh, programme manager of solid waste management unit, CSE. "Tributaries of major Indian rivers are the pathways that carry around 15-20% of plastic waste into the marine environment." India's 7,517 km coastline across nine states and 66 coastal districts is home to about 250 million people. The coastline has 486 census towns and 36 class I towns. It also hosts 12 major and 185 minor ports. India is the world's second-largest fish-producing nation, with about 2,50,000 fishing boats, 40,00,000 fisherfolk and 3,600 fishing villages. India's coastline also has a rich biodiversity, protected by about 4,120 km of mangroves. The CSE's researchers said one of the key challenges worldwide is Abandoned, Lost or Discarded Fishing Gear (ALDFG). A large part of ALDFG is lost in deep seas, making it difficult to recover. India has 174,000 units of fishing gear in operation, of which 154,008 are gillnets/driftnets, 7,285 are traps, and the rest are fishing lines. According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), India loses 15,276 tonnes of gillnets annually. "In 2021, 58,000 kg of ghost net was recovered from the beaches and the ocean bed. The scale of the threat can be gauged from the fact that out of 1,000 eggs laid by a female turtle, only 10 can convert into adult turtles because of marine litter and ghost nets," Biswas said. Biswas said considering the complexity and scale of the problem, CSE felt the need to focus on marine litter as a matter of planning priority for local governments. Among the key problems that this national workshop has identified is an absence of adequate research-driven data; the lack of synergy in policy and practice among institutions connected to the causes of marine litter; and a need – as yet unmet -- for investment in communication strategy to engage with citizens, fishing communities and industrial establishments. "Since the problem has strong connections with the management of plastic waste on land, policies like the single-use plastic ban and EPR (extended producer responsibility) need to be enforced stringently," Singh said.

Delhi govt mulls e-challans for violators of pollution certificate norms

New Delhi The Delhi transport department is planning to penalise vehicle owners who have not renewed their pollution under control (PUC) certificates by checking their PUC status at fuel stations through cameras which are linked with the mParivahan software, officials aware of the proposal said on Wednesday. Violators will receive e-challans, on the lines of challans which are sent for speeding, the officials said. Section 190(2) of the Motor Vehicles Act makes it mandatory for vehicles to have PUC certificates. The owner of a vehicle plying without a valid PUC certificate is liable to be prosecuted and may be imprisoned for up to three months or fined up to ₹10,000, or both. Delhi has 966 PUC checking centres, where the tailpipe emission standards of the vehicles can be checked by paying a nominal fee. According to transport department data, around 1,700,000 active vehicles in the Capital do not have a valid PUC. Last week, transport officials held a meeting with prospective technology providers to explore the feasibility of e-challans for non-compliance of pollution norms. “The department has been exploring ways to penalise non-PUC compliant vehicles so that vehicular pollution can be checked. Vehicular pollution is one of the major contributors to air pollution in the Capital. The current mechanism to check PUC of vehicles is manpower intensive and transport enforcement officials besides traffic police personnel issue challans against such vehicles during manual checks. The manual checks come with limitations,” said an official, declining to be named. Officials said the idea behind using the fuel stations for the enforcement is to ensure a check on a maximum number of vehicles — all vehicles must visit fuel stations for refilling. Another official said the mechanism at the fuel stations will be based on automatic number-plate recognition (ANPR) technology. “The ANPR based mechanism can operate using CCTV cameras. Fuel stations already have CCTV cameras installed, which can be connected with ANPR technology and can work using the mParivahan database. Challans can be issued in seconds,” the official said. “With some technology interventions, these cameras can be linked with ANPR mechanism,” the official said. Officials said a detailed project report will be prepared, before it is put before the government for consideration and approval. Ajay Bansal, president of All India Petroleum Dealers Association, said, “It is a welcome move by the government, and the petroleum dealers will support the move. It will create awareness among people about vehicular pollution and encourage them to keep a valid PUC.” Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director (research and advocacy) at Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), said smart monitoring is needed for stringent enforcement to improve compliance with the PUC programme and ensure all vehicles undergo tests. “But at the same time we need very strong monitoring of the PUC testing centres themselves to ensure credible tests are being conducted. Simultaneously, upgrade the emissions monitoring system with remote sensing etc for effective monitoring of real driving emissions on the road and to catch the worst polluters,” Roychowdhury said.

How realistic are India’s 2030 fleet electrification targets?

Gadkari’s ambitious EV mandate can only be achieved if the government issues fleet electrification targets to the supply side of the Indian EV industry. Representative photo: iStock. By 2030, the government intends to have an electric vehicle (EV) sales penetration of 30 per cent for private cars, 70 per cent for commercial vehicles and 80 per cent for two and three-wheelers, Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), stated in 2021. Improvements in vehicle finance and mobilisation of public and private capital could have at least 50 million EVs plying on India’s roads by 2030, according to Rocky Mountain Institute, an organisation that collaborated with government think tank Niti Aayog in releasing Mobilising Electric Vehicle Financing in India report in 2021. However, an independent analysis by the clean air and sustainable mobility team at the Centre for Science and Environment, a Delhi-based non-profit, revealed that there will be annual EV sales of 2.05 million in 2030. This analysis is based on the total vehicle and EV sales trends observed since 2012. The International Energy Agency also estimates annual EV sales of 1.9 million in India by 2030. The Centre’s Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid &) Electric Vehicles in India (FAME) is a scheme based on demand-side subsidy. With this, the government can only support and influence a buyer’s purchase decision. It is difficult to connect the dots between the government’s target for 30 per cent private fleet electrification by 2030 and a solitary buyer’s decision, mostly driven by cost and convenience. Gadkari’s ambitious mandate can only be achieved if the government issues fleet electrification targets to the supply side of the Indian EV industry, i.e. original equipment manufacturers. The total vehicle sales in the country saw a dip in 2020, which continued into the next financial year, 2021, according to data from MoRTH’s VAHAN portal. Although this decline could be attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is noteworthy that the annual vehicle sales have not yet caught up to the pre-pandemic levels. This means that there has been a dent in the overall economic setup. First, sales of EVs depend on the disposable income of the buyers. So, the fall in positive purchase decisions could be attributed to reduced income due to unemployment and an overall decline in market sentiments. Second, a marked increase in vehicle purchases can be observed only with more parking and driving space in the existing cities or with newer cities coming up by 2030 with thriving road infrastructure. Considering India’s rising oil bills, the transition to clean energy also offers a huge economic opportunity for the country. But, it is imperative to note that the government’s macro-economic decisions should not ignore the micro-economic identity of the country. It must be remembered that the larger goal is 100 per cent fleet electrification and not just increased EV sales. That is, the focus should be on converting the existing fleet to EVs and not just adding more EVs to the roads, which will only lead to more vehicular congestion in the cities and break the back of the common man in non-utilitarian spending on new vehicle purchases.

Govt to hold round table meet for reduction in Delhi pollution in May

The Delhi government will hold a crucial roundtable conference next month where the findings of a real-time source apportionment study will be shared with all stakeholders and a strategy will be developed to further reduce pollution in Delhi-NCR. Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai said on Wednesday that the conference will be held at the Delhi Secretariat on May 15. Rai said that representatives from the Commission for Air Quality Management, Central Pollution Control Board, SAFAR, United Nations Environment Programme, India Meteorological Department, World Bank, Centre for Science and Environment, TERI and NCR (National Capital Region) states will be invited for this conference.. “We will share the report of the source-apportionment study with the participants, seek their suggestions and prepare a strategy to further reduce pollution in Delhi-NCR,” Rai said. This comes after a review meeting held by Delhi government environment minister held a review meeting with the teams of DPCC, the Environment Department and IIT Kanpur at the Delhi Secretariat. During the meeting, it was decided that in order to thoroughly review the Real Time Source Appropriation study’s report ‘Save Environment’ Round Table Conference would be held at the Delhi Secretariat on May 15. “Representatives from the CAQM, CPCB, Safar, UNEP, IMD, World Bank, CSE, TERI, and states including Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, and Haryana will be invited for this conference. All of the representatives will be taken to the supersite after the round table conference, and a joint action plan will be formed based on recommendations from all institutions, states, and study results.”

Centre launches coastal cities coalition to fight marine pollution

“The problem of marine litter is a serious trans-boundary issue – eight million tonnes of plastic waste, from 192 countries that have a coastline, go into our oceans every year. India, with a 7,000-plus km coastline, has a role to play in controlling this menace,” said Sunita Narain, director general, Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), in her keynote address at a two-day national consultation workshop that ended in New Delhi on Wednesday, April 19, 2023. A National Coalition of Coastal Cities, which will focus on combatting the scourge of marine litter across the country, was launched at the workshop, which was organised and spearheaded by CSE. Global research estimates that about 80 per cent of marine litter comes from land-based mismanagement of solid waste that reaches the ocean bed through various land-to-sea pathways. The remaining 20 per cent is the contribution of coastal settlements. About 90 per cent of all the waste that ends up in the marine ecosystem is plastics. Out of 460 million tonnes (MT) of global plastic production, close to 353 MT comes back as plastic waste – 8 MT (2.26 per cent) of which is leaked into the marine ecosystem, as Narain pointed out. Says Atin Biswas, programme director, solid waste management unit, CSE: “The extent of the litter in South Asian seas is a matter of particular concern. Estimates indicates that about 15,434 tonne of plastic waste is leaked into South Asian seas every day, accounting for a colossal 5.6 MT of plastic waste a year.” CSE researchers point out that, in India, the estimated extent of marine litter is about 0.98 metric tonne of trash per km stretch of the coastline, with a concentration of 0.012 kg per square metre. Says Siddharth G Singh, programme manager, solid waste management unit, CSE: “Tributaries of major Indian rivers are the pathways that carry around 15-20 per cent of plastic waste into the marine environment.” India’s 7,517 km of coastline across nine states and 66 coastal districts, is home to about 250 million people. The coastline has 486 census towns and 36 class I towns. It also hosts 12 major and 185 minor ports. India is the world’s second largest fish producing nation, with about 2,50,000 fishing boats, 40,00,000 fisherfolk and 3,600 fishing villages. India’s coastline also has a rich biodiversity, protected by about 4,120 km of mangroves. One of the key challenges worldwide is from Abandoned, Lost or Discarded Fishing Gear (ALDFG). A large part of ALDFG is lost in deep seas, making it difficult to recover. India has 174,000 units of fishing gear in operation, of which 154,008 units are gillnets/driftnets, 7,285 units are traps, and the rest are fishing lines. According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), India loses 15,276 tonnes of gillnets annually. Says Biswas: “In the year 2021, 58,000 kg of ghost net was recovered from the beaches and the ocean bed. The scale of the threat can be gauged from the fact that out of 1,000 eggs laid by a female turtle, only 10 are able to convert into adult turtles because of marine litter and ghost nets.” One of the most common sources of marine litter is tourist and beach litter. A majority of these wastes is made up of multi-layered and low-value plastics, polystyrene, plastic products like cutlery and carry bags, cigarette butts, etc. These wastes are either not collected or are mismanaged, and eventually leak into the oceans through the stormwater drainage system, canals and small and big rivers. A large amount of footwear waste comprising of soles, synthetic bases and cloth bases are also being found in marine litter in India. The other contributors to marine litter include fishing communities (mostly fishing gear), flood waters, discharge of untreated municipal sewage, automobile and industrial waste generated at the coasts and waste from shipbreaking yards. Says Biswas: “Considering the complexity and scale of the problem, CSE felt the need to focus on marine litter as a matter of planning priority for local governments. Among the key problems that this national workshop has identified is an absence of adequate research-driven data; the lack of synergy in policy and practice among institutions connected to the causes of marine litter; and a need – as yet unmet — for investment in a communication strategy to engage with citizens, fishing communities and industrial establishments. Adds Singh: “Since the problem has strong connections with the management of plastic waste on land, policies like the single-use plastic ban and EPR (extended producer responsibility) need to be enforced stringently.” The CSE workshop was attended by representatives from state and city administrations from coastal states, marine research institutes, multi-lateral institutes working in India and other countries, NGOs working in the domain of marine litter, industry and technology solution providers, academicians, start-ups and individual practitioners and experts. Says Biswas: “The outcome of these consultations will be used to form a coalition of coastal cities as a community and platform for further research, capacity building and advocacy in this subject.”

Air pollution: Delhi govt to share source apportionment study report i conference on May 15

Representatives from the Commission for Air Quality Management, Central Pollution Con Board, SAFAR, United Nations Environment Programme, India Meteorological Departme World Bank, Centre for Science and Environment, TERI and NCR (National Capital Region states will be invited for this conference. : The city government will hold a crucial roundtable conference next month where the findings of a realtime source apportionment study will be shared with all stakeholders and a strategy will be developed to further reduce pollution in Delhi-NCR, Environment Minister Gopal Rai said on Wednesday. He told PTI that the conference will be held at the Delhi Secretariat on May 15. participants, seek their suggestions and prepare a strategy to further reduce pollution in Delhi-NCR," Rai said. Real-time source apportionment studies help identify factors responsible for increase in air pollution at any spot such as vehicles, dust, biomass burning, and emissions from industries so that preventive measures can be taken accordingly. Representatives from the Commission for Air Quality Management, Central Pollution Control Board, SAFAR, United Nations Environment Programme, India Meteorological Department, World Bank, Centre for Science and Environment, TERI and NCR (National Capital Region) states will be invited for this conference, Rai said.

More Delhi areas at risk of facing heatwaves: Study

High temperatures—which have risen up to 6-7 degrees above normal over the years—recorded in certain pockets of Delhi in summers are putting all of the Capital at risk of heatwaves, new research carried out by the universities of Cambridge and Yale has found. The research found that this can also negatively impact Delhi’s sustainable development goals (SDGs) progress. Researchers calculated the heat index (HI) for Delhi and the rest of India recorded last April and also looked at the climate vulnerability index (CVI) for the study. States such as Punjab, Haryana, and Delhi were found to have the highest CVI based on high air temperatures and HI readings, finding these “temperature anomalies” to be 6-7 degrees above what the India Meteorological Department (IMD) considers normal for that time of the year. The study, which was released on Wednesday and led by Ramit Debnath from Cambridge university, also found that while the Delhi government has identified only the south and northeast districts as most vulnerable to climate change, all districts in Delhi recorded dangerous air temperature and HI levels, with the highest readings recorded in the New Delhi area, along with some parts of the south district. While the air temperature is the actual temperature, HI also factors in high humidity to give a “real feel” of the temperature and how hot it actually feels to the human body. Heat index is derived from the measured ambient temperature and humidity (absolute or relative). A real feel temperature of 26°–32°C will likely cause fatigue in many people, while 32°–40°C is widely associated with sunstroke, and 40°–54°C with heatstroke. “The Delhi government’s assessment shows that south and northeast Delhi, which are also the most affluent areas, are most vulnerable to climate change (crisis) impact. However, our estimation shows that 100% of the city is at dangerous HI levels. In addition, by downscaling the HI to the district level, results show that even low climate-vulnerable areas in Delhi have high heatwave risks. This is concerning as the current heat action plans are designed and implemented according to the Delhi government’s vulnerability assessment, which does not include HI estimations,” said the study, which was co-authored by Ronita Bardhan and Michele L Bell. “In addition, developments in central, east, west, and northeast districts can further elevate the local HI risk through heat island formation,” it added. The study said in order to remedy the problem, Delhi needs to look at parameters including avoiding overcrowding in high HI areas, and improving access to electricity, water, and health care. “Our results showed that Delhi lies in the 6-7˚C temperature anomaly zone, with HI levels that are in the danger category. The regional analysis also shows that Delhi’s urban sustainability is severely challenged as its current district-level climate change vulnerability measurements (through State Action Plans on Climate Change (crisis)) do not factor in heatwave impacts,” said Debnath in his research. “Some of the critical variables in Delhi that will aggravate heat-related vulnerabilities are concentration of slum population and overcrowding in high HI areas, lack of access to basic amenities such as electricity, water, and sanitation, non-availability of immediate health care and health insurance, poor housing and dirty cooking fuel (traditional biomass, kerosene, and coal),” he added. The researchers said their findings were also consistent with the SAPCC’s vulnerability assessment which found affluent areas to be high-risk areas too, as low-income groups are often known to live near high-income societies. “In Delhi, most slum settlements and affluent neighbourhoods coexist and these high temperatures will have unprecedented consequences on the low-income population. Delhi also has high-level construction activities, mostly involving a low-income labour force, which is then at severe risk from heatwave impacts,” the research said. Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy at the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), said the “heat island” is becoming a prominent aspect of urban cities, particularly Delhi, making safeguards against climate change and heat even more important. “We need to look at an action plan that improves greening, protects water bodies, reduces the traffic intensity and also looks to improve thermal comfort in buildings,” she said.

Free doorstep delivery of potted plants soon in Delhi

The Delhi forest department and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi will launch a pilot project to deliver small plants and potted plants to people's doorsteps free of cost. The move aims to make Delhi greener, with a ward-wise survey to begin soon. The project is still in the early stages, and the modalities of doorstep delivery will be discussed in the coming weeks. The Delhi government distributes a segment of saplings free of cost each year through its nurseries, but no doorstep delivery takes place. With distribution of free saplings already taking place in the nation capital, Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai on Wednesday said a pilot project will be launched soon where saplings and small-potted plants will be delivered to people’s doorsteps. The project will be undertaken by the forest department and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), Rai said. “The forest department and the MCD will soon launch a pilot project where we will provide small plants and potted plants at the doorstep, free of cost. For this, a ward-wise survey will begin soon. So far, we have carried out a survey only in my constituency of Babarpur, where people were asked about their species of preference,” Rai said on Wednesday, adding that this will help make Delhi greener. The Delhi government distributes a segment of saplings free of cost each year through its 14 government nurseries. However, no doorstep delivery takes place. The government had attempted something similar in 2019, when Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal had announced doorstep delivery of saplings through a helpline number. However, the move never took off, largely due to manpower shortage in the forest department. When contacted, a forest department official said the plan was still in the early stages and the modalities of doorstep delivery will be discussed in the coming weeks. Rai also took a review meeting on Wednesday with the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), the environment department and IIT Kanpur. During the meeting, he said htat while the supersite established by the government at Pandara road in January was already giving accurate data in terms of the sources of pollution, there was a need to expand beyond that location. “Moving forward in this series, five molecular markers have already been installed to get information about the main factors that lead to increased pollution at hotspots. Presently this network has been established in Delhi’s Dwarka, Jahangirpuri, Vivek Vihar, Mundka and Anand Vihar. Along with this, orders have also been issued to install mobile air quality monitoring vans at the 13 pollution hotspots of Delhi, which will allow us to trace the sources of pollution in real time,” Rai said. Rai also said that a ‘Save Environment’ roundtable conference has been planned for May 15 which will look at further ideation on improving Delhi’s real-time source apportionment. For this, representatives from the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), IMD, World Bank, Safar, along with organisations like The Energy Resources Institute (TERI) and the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) among others will take part. “These representatives will be taken to the supersite after the conference and a joint action plan will be formed based on the recommendations from all institutions, states and study results,” Rai added.

India: Migration from climate change getting worse

Protima Rai still remembers the aftermath of tropical Cyclone Bulbul that struck the Sundarbans in 2019 leaving behind a trail of destruction and lost lives. The cyclone that had formed in the Bay of Bengal forced Rai, 27, and hundreds of other families from to migrate from their village to safer areas. Climate change forces people to move on "The fields were not fit for cultivation. Rising sea levels and increasing salinity deprived the people living in the core Sundarbans areas of their main sources of livelihood — which is agriculture and fishing," Rai told DW. Substantial migration from the Sundarbans still continues on a permanent, seasonal and temporary basis. According to the Rural Household Survey, over 25% of the principal earners of individual families migrated temporarily searching for work. The Sundarbans is a cluster of low-lying islands in the Bay of Bengal, spread across India and Bangladesh, famous for its unique mangrove forests. The Indian Sundarbans has 104 islands in total, of which 54 are inhabited by humans. Environmentalists point out that coastal erosion and rising sea levels are gradually eating away at the land in the Sundarbans. Many people from the villages are being forced to migrate to cities, like Kolkata, because their fertile land is turning saline with an increasing number of storms and floods. No political plan to help "There is no structured policy or action plan from the administration to provide social protection in countering climate change and related migration," Jayanta Basu, a Kolkata-based environment and climate expert, told DW. The eastern state of Odisha is also an important source of migrant workers, and climate change plays an important role in increasing vulnerabilities, pushing people in search of work. Over the years, the Chilika Lake, the largest brackish water lagoon in the state and an important bird area, has been exposed to changing environmental conditions, impacting the livelihoods of the local people. "Employment options are limited after extreme weather events hit Mangalajodi town on the northern banks of the lake. Many have decided to move out permanently," Sugyan Behera, who works in the tourism industry, told DW. The town has a population of 10,000 people, mostly engaged in work around the wetlands. Climate migration is often influenced by extreme events — such as storms, floods, and droughts — or slow-onset events — like sea levels rising or saline water intrusion into agricultural land. A report published in December 2020 by ActionAid and Climate Action Network South Asia showed that even if the global community acts on their greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation pledges and targets, about 37.5 million people will still be displaced by 2030 and an estimated 62.9 million by 2050, across five South Asian countries — Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Highest number of displacements India alone will see 45 million people being forced to migrate from their homes by 2050 due to climate disasters — three times the current number number of people on the move as a result of extreme weather events. According to the "State of India's Environment-2022" report, India is the fourth worst-hit country in the world when it comes to climate change-induced migration, with more than three million people forced to leave their homes in 2020-2021. The highest number of migrations took place in China with more than 5 million people driven out of their homes due to weather-related disasters. Sunita Narain, director of the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), points out that given the impacts of the climate crisis, it is essential to invest in building local climate resilience and protecting economies. In an extensive study across 15 states, CSE found that wherever such an investment had been made, it brought benefits to villages while stemming migration. In fact, in villages where water harvesting was organized and ecological resources were used for the benefit of locals, reverse migration started. Narain referred specifically to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), a social security measure that aims for rural folk to safeguard their 'right to work.' "You can change the future. It does not have to be a story of climate distress driving migration. The value of MGNREGA and such schemes is to invest in ecological infrastructure that bolsters local livelihoods and community resilience, crucial in the era of climate change," Narain told DW. Abinash Mohanty, sector head of climate change and sustainability at IPE Global, an international development organization, also maintained that India needs to map the sectoral impacts through hyper-granular risk assessments to restrict climate cataclysm, in particular the issue of climate-induced migration. Climate-induced migration not taken seriously enough "Limiting migration calls for conducive policies and action plans, especially that can climate-proof climate-sensitive sectors like agriculture and tourism, among others. While India has a robust climate action plan both at the national and sub-national level, it hardly encompasses climate-induced migration as a pivotal issue," Mohanty told DW. India records some of the highest numbers of displacements in the world every year, the vast majority of them triggered by disasters. According to the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) in India there are currently about 14 million people who have been displaced due to climate change. Though migrants receive immediate support in terms of relief and rehabilitation in the aftermath of these disasters, there is little long-term institutional support for their needs. A 2021 study, 'Climate induced displacement and migration in India' found that people are migrating to escape poverty because of collapse of traditional livelihoods and the dismal infrastructure that is failing due to climate change. In the hilly districts of Uttarakhand, erratic rainfall patterns and a receding water table has forced people to abandon their homes and farms to migrate to the plains. In Saharsa district of northern Bihar, a relocated community continues to be overwhelmed by incessant floods. "Inter-state and intra-state (rural-urban) migration due to drought, floods and other extreme events have been taking place in the country for a long time and it is widely acknowledged that nature of this migration has changed due to increasing frequency of climate induced extremes," Chandra Bhushan, founder of International Forum for Environment, Sustainability & Technology, told DW. "While states have started to seriously look the issues of migrants since COVID 19, there are no separate policy or initiatives for climate induced migration," added Bhushan.

Organic Farming Empowers Widows In Maharashtra

Widows of farmers from Vidarbha and Marathwada, who switched to organic farming, experience better income and health. By sowing certain crops, they also challenge superstition Hingoli: Ever since Kalavati Savandkar, a widow aged 45, adopted organic farming methods on her three acres of farmland, life has changed for the better. For the first time in many years, she earned a profit from her produce. As a bonus, she says, consuming organically grown food has improved her family’s health, leading to less frequent hospital visits. Kalavati also found forest produce growing by itself on her farm. She shows off a recent harvest of about three quintals of turmeric that she has put out to dry on her farm in Tembhurni village, of Vasamat block in Hingoli district, 90 km west of Solapur. She is hopeful that the turmeric will fetch Rs 4,000-6,000 per quintal. Tulasiram, Kalavati’s husband, died by suicide in 2016 as he could not repay a bank loan. He became part of a statistic--Maharashtra registered the highest number of farmer suicides in India in 2019, 2020 and 2021. Kalavati, along with 182 other female farmers in the area, adopted organic farming in 2020-21, and has been cultivating local varieties of pulses, soybean, cotton and millets, as also vegetables such as spinach, tomato and coriander. The Mahila Kisan Adhikaar Manch (Makaam) had started this initiative for female farmers, mostly widows of farmers who had died by suicide, sugarcane cutters and marginal farmers from the drought-affected Marathwada and Vidarbha regions of Maharashtra. “Farmers in both the regions would cultivate cash crops like soybean and cotton,” says Seema Kulkarni, national facilitation team member at Makaam. “Female farmers would not have food to consume at home. The pandemic made women realise this problem, as they had to depend on rations provided by social organisations. Hence, most female farmers agreed to experiment. We did not want them to completely stop cultivating cash crops. They now cultivate 15-25 crops--pulses, millets, vegetables, oilseeds and one main crop (soybean or cotton) for food security.” Many of the women faced initial resistance from their families when they decided to take up organic farming. To surmount this problem, Makaam asked the women to start experimenting on half an acre. The organisation trained women in methods of producing manure from farm and animal waste, and vermicompost. They also provided training to produce Dashparni Ark (pesticides made using leaves of various trees, cow urine and cow dung). Once the half-acre experiment began to show signs of success, several women were able to surmount their family’s initial objections, and go organic on a larger scale. Farmers’ Suicides in Maharashtra A study of National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data by Makaam found that about 382,000 farmers died by suicide in India between 1995 and 2021. With 87% of these male, more than 320,000 women would have been left to fend for themselves. In Maharashtra, between 1995 and 2021, NCRB data show that 91,998 farmers and agricultural labourers died by suicide. As many as 5,318 farmers/cultivators and 5,563 agriculture labourers died by suicide in 2021 alone, according to NCRB data. The Marathwada and Vidarbha regions of Maharashtra record the most number of farmer suicides, as per a study on deaths by suicide between 2013 and 2018. Bankruptcy or indebtedness, farming-related issues, family problems, illness and drug abuse were the major reasons for farmer suicides, as per NCRB data from 2013 to 2015. “Following the death of farmers, their widows often face challenges like lack of land rights, debt, stigma, poor social security, violence and sexual harassment,” said Kulkarni. Maharashtra has 2.36 million women-owned land holdings out of a total 15.29 million operational land holdings, as per the latest available Agriculture Census from 2015-16. Asha Shinde, whose husband died by suicide seven years ago, got half an acre of land in her name. Her two sons were not ready to leave cash crops such as soybean and switch to organic farming. Shinde had a tough time convincing them. “I cultivated pigeon peas as the main crop and green gram and black gram as intercrops. Cowpea, millets, maize and sesame seeds were mixed among other crops to function as pest control. Roselle plant and boru are planted at the borders as a buffer zone,” she said. “Intercropping is the scientific sowing of interdependent crops to increase the quality and productivity of the soil,” explains Swati Satpute, member of the state facilitation team at Makaam. “By mixing crops, a population of insects, macro- and micro-organisms is built to strengthen crops, and they also control pests and diseases.” Organic farming in Maharashtra “To promote organic farming, the Maharashtra government has adopted the Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKKY), a central government-sponsored scheme, in 2016-17,” said Sripad Kulkarni, an official of the Agriculture Department of Maharashtra. “60,985 farmers adopted organic farming on 41,012 hectares of land under the scheme. 1,628 groups of farmers are given Rs 10 lakh per group for three years to facilitate the conversion.” The state has also implemented the Dr Panjabrao Deshmukh Organic Farming Mission (PDOFM) to promote the practice since 2018 in six suicide-prone districts of Vidarbha. This programme is separate from PKKY. About 8,337 beneficiaries, under the PDOFM practice organic farming on 13,548 hectares of land across six districts--Akola, Washim, Amravati, Buldhana, Yavatmal and Wardha, said Kulkarni, the agriculture department official. While the state has started the process of switching to natural farming, Makaam is in early-stage collaborations with agricultural universities to get scientific information about organic farming, research on organic farming and access to seeds, though this is not part of the state scheme as of now. According to a report by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), organic and natural farming are profitable, sustainable and productive. The report underlines the use of organic manure to improve soil structure and enhance soil fertility, and increase microorganisms in the soil. The findings also indicate that the use of organic manure increases the water-holding capacity and porosity of the soil. Besides, nutrients in soil like nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium improve plant and animal biodiversity. Latabai Narwade, a 50-year-old widow from Kothari village of Hingoli district, says she has observed changes in soil health since she started organic farming two years ago. “Earlier,” she says, “the soil would become hard like rock in the summer, and we had to invest a good amount of money for ploughing. Now, the soil remains airy and thin, and we don’t have to spend much for ploughing. The soil also absorbs more water, unlike earlier. Even though it rained heavily, the water did not accumulate on my farm this year.” “Organic farming increases organic matter/microorganisms like earthworms in soil and that increases nutrients in soil. For instance, earthworms keep going up and down in soil making it more porous,” said Ramanjaneyulu G.V., an agriculture scientist at the Centre for Sustainable Agriculture in Hyderabad. On the other hand, he said, chemicals, such as those in pesticides, kill microorganisms, reducing natural organic matter in the soil. In the third year since Latabai converted to organic farming on her half-acre land, she harvested 20 kg of yellow gram, 25 kg of black gram, two quintals of cotton and two quintals of turmeric. “Earlier, I would get 3-4 quintal of cotton and 10-12 quintal of turmeric using chemical fertilisers and pesticides. Though my income has been less in these three years, I am in profit because earlier, I had to spend Rs 30,000 per acre for pesticides, fertilisers, seeds and labour. Now I produce my own fertilisers, pesticides and seeds. I have to spend only Rs 10,000 for ploughing and weeding.” Farmers can label their produce as ‘organically grown’ only after completing three years of organic farming, which fetches a premium price in the market. Currently, Latabai sells her extra produce at the market rate for regular produce, and says her produce will fetch a better price from next year. Enhanced food security To their surprise, women farmers who had switched to organic farming found wild vegetables growing on their farms. ‘Wild vegetables’ are those that grow automatically without the farmer needing to sow seeds. “Earlier, wild vegetables got killed due to chemical fertilisers and pesticides,” says Satpute of Makaam. “Now, with organic manure, they are getting revived. We have observed 19 such vegetables that had earlier become rare, growing in farms in Vidarbha and Marathwada.” Some of these vegetables, she said, are Portulaca Oleracea, known locally as Ghol, and believed to have antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, Hibiscus Sabdariffa or Ambadi that is a jute alternative and Celosia Argentea, called Kurdu in the local language, which is high in Vitamin E. The naturally growing vegetables, together with organically grown food such as pulses and millets, has increased the physical strength and fitness of families, resulting in fewer hospital visits. “As we are now able to eat a variety of vegetables, pulses, millets, my family members have become healthier. No one got affected even with Covid-19 during the pandemic. Earlier my body would ache regularly but now I can work long hours at the farm without body pain,” said Kalavati. Subba Rao, a scientist from the National Institution of Nutrition, India, (NIN), said, “Health benefits of organic food come from lesser or zero exposure to chemicals in fertilisers and pesticides. However, no study has till now established whether the nutritional value of organic food is better than regularly grown food.”