• Clean Air & Sustainable Mobility

Kolkata registered a record 34,000 cars in 2022, experts flag pollution fears

KOLKATA: With as many as 34,863 new vehicles registered in 2022, last year saw the highest-ever vehicular growth in Kolkata. The boom, according to experts, is both good and bad: while it brought in record revenue earnings, the fact that the growth was driven mostly by private vehicles, mostly run on fossil fuel, means the city is set to get more congested and polluted. Track the pollution level in your city Before this, the public vehicles department (PVD) saw the most registrations in 2019, with a count of 33,830. The rise in demand for private vehicles started during the pandemic, out of a fear of catching the virus. But the sharp fall in the number of public transport vehicles kept the momentum going. Only 12 buses were registered in 2022. Transport minister Snehasis Chakraborty said he was happy with the growth. "Online services have significantly eased the processes. But we are overburdened with an older fleet. We are developing scientific scrapping facilities, which will make room for newer, non-polluting EVs," he added. But transport expert Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director, Centre for Science and Environment, saw the other side too. The increase in cars would contribute to traffic congestion, like in Delhi and Bengaluru, she feared.

• Down To Earth

Climate Change Worsening Human Health

Last year, deaths linked to heat increased by 68 per cent in those over 65 years of age. The 2022 heat wave also reduced rainfall in the subcontinent to almost a third of the normal expected setting the tone for further challenges to come In a world with constantly evolving global and local situations that impact us all, one event of massive significance for human health and well-being is Climate Change. This global phenomenon has been building up, while governments and organizations across the world have been busy in the race for economic dominance and industrial superiority, with scant regard for the environment. But the environment is hitting back. The rise in global temperatures, sea levels, and changes in rainfall patterns are disrupting centuries-old ecosystems and exposing humans to new health risks while making the existing ones worse. Air pollution, the by-product of burning fossil fuels and deforestation, is one of the primary contributors to climate change. Research has shown that over 90 per cent of the world’s population is breathing polluted air. In India, air pollution during the winter months in some northern states is common. What is not common is the deterioration of air quality in cities that are in no way geographically contiguous. This winter, Mumbai witnessed its worst air quality ever with the Air Quality Index (AQI) surpassing New Delhi, leading to a massive spike in respiratory illnesses like asthma in children and high blood pressure among the elderly. Suspended particulate matter, especially PM2.5 has the ability to impact all the major organ systems of the body – and India’s PM2.5 cut-offs are 8 times higher than recommended by the WHO. In 2019 when the National Clean Air Programme was launched, 102 cities were part of it. Now there are 131 – indicating a worsening of pollution in more cities (despite the prolonged pandemic lockdowns that reduced industrial activity and people movement). According to the data from NOAA Climate.gov, the earth’s temperature that was rising at an average rate of 0.08 degrees Celsius every 10 years, has shot up exponentially to 0.18 degrees Celsius since 1981. As a consequence, like several countries, last year, India witnessed a prolonged heatwave, the hottest in 122 years. According to a report by Lancet, India’s vulnerability to extreme heat has increased by 15 per cent from 1990 to 2019 and heat-related diseases are on the rise. Last year, deaths linked to heat increased by 68 per cent in those over 65 years of age. The 2022 heat wave also reduced rainfall in the subcontinent to almost a third of the normal expected setting the tone for further challenges to come. Droughts, floods, hurricanes, tropical storms and landslides are extreme weather events that are becoming more common and intense due to climate change. The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) reported that India witnessed 314 days of extreme weather events in 2022 across 34 states and UTs. Over 3026 human lives were lost. This devastation is likely to continue and have major impacts on human health, potentially increasing waterborne and vector-borne diseases, like cholera, malaria and dengue. Perhaps the least visible but most damaging impact is being felt in the oceans, where rising temperatures are melting icecaps and acidification as a result of increasing pollution is threatening the health of marine ecosystems and coastal communities that depend on them for food and livelihoods. Health systems across the world are reporting an increased level of utilization. Regions, where tropical diseases were unheard of, are now regularly reporting their occurrence. Microorganisms have learned to evolve and survive in hitherto hostile environments. Non-communicable diseases like metabolic disorders, cardiac conditions, respiratory illnesses and cancers are growing all across the world as a result of changing environments and lifestyles. What is becoming obvious is the massive psychological impact of climate change. Climate anxiety is real. People are struggling to adapt to the rapidly changing world around them, and the displacement of communities, illnesses, loss of homes and loved ones, and economic disruption associated with extreme weather events can lead to stress, anxiety, and depression. In some cases, the impacts of climate change are exacerbating existing mental health problems, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Climate change is an immediate crisis that directly threatens human health and wellbeing as much as it affects the environment we live in. Unfortunately, even though this is a global problem, the health impacts are not evenly distributed. They are disproportionately severe for vulnerable populations, such as the elderly, children, and those with pre-existing medical conditions. Companies and organizations have a crucial role to play. They must work to reduce their carbon footprint, promote sustainable practices, and invest in renewable energy. International SOS’ ESG experts are advising several of them to help them draft policies, protocols, increase awareness and preparedness for a quick and efficient response to climate events and to maintain sustainable business operations. Time is running out. Immediate action is needed by each and every citizen, working together with communities, organizations, authorities and governments around the world. We can save the earth and create a healthier world for ourselves and the generations to come. We just need to do it NOW.

• DTE - Web

Lessons from Joshimath: The Need for a Himalayan Development Model

The fragility of the Himalayan ecosystem was recently highlighted by incidents of land sinking in Joshimath, a small hill town in India’s Uttarakhand. This crisis has generated intense debate on aspects of development and environmental sustainability in the region, including the exploitation of Himalayan natural wealth and the strain placed on the vulnerable area by the tourism industry. This brief argues that the Himalayan region needs a cogent developmental effort that considers its unique ecosystem and minimises the conflict between humans and nature. Since early January 2023, Joshimath—a small town in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand[1]—has become a ‘sinking town’, with residential and commercial structures and road infrastructure developing cracks and many areas becoming unlivable or unusable.[2] Joshimath has since been declared a “disaster-prone area”.[3] As a result, the state government banned further construction in and around the town, and ordered the evacuation of more than 600 families from the danger zones.[4] Additionally, several structures were demolished for being “unsafe”.[5] Joshimath is located at over 6,000 feet (1,890 metres) in the Garhwal Himalayas mountain ranges. As per the 2011 Census, it had a population of 16,709,[6] up from 13,202 in the 2001 Census, a decadal rise of around 27 percent.[7] In 2023, its population is estimated to be approximately 22,900.[8] The town is a gateway to pilgrimage sites such as the Badrinath Temple and Hemkund Sahib, is the starting point for several mountain-climbing expeditions,[9] and is located near Auli, one of India’s top three ski destinations.[10] As such, Joshimath is a popular tourist location, which has had an impact on its sustainability. Joshimath and the surrounding area is also a key Indian garrison centre, in charge of defending the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China. Over 20,000 troops are stationed in the area, along with military hardware and missile systems. Many more structures will become unstable, and numerous people will be displaced as the incidence of land subsidence[a] in Joshimath increase. A preliminary study by the Indian Space Research Organisation’s National Remote Sensing Centre found that land subsidence was “slow” between April and November 2022, with Joshimath sinking by 8.9 cm. However, between 27 December 2022 and 8 January 2023 (a 13-day period of “rapid subsidence”), the town sank by 5.4 cm. The report suggested that the entire town may face an existential threat due to land subsidence.[11] Some environmentalists have suggested that other human settlements in the region could also soon face a similar crisis.[12] This brief assesses existing literature on Joshimath, mainly related to the developmental works that were undertaken in the town and its vicinity, the tourism load on the town, and defence requirements at the international border. Given the Joshimath experience, this brief highlights the need for a development model that considers the fragile Himalayan region, which includes several similar settlements (for instance, Nainital and Mussoorie) and especially given its significance to the Indian mainland: “The Himalayan ecosystem is vital to the ecological security of the Indian landmass through providing forest cover, feeding perennial rivers that are the source of drinking water, irrigation, and hydropower, conserving biodiversity, providing a rich base for high value agriculture, and spectacular landscapes for sustainable tourism”.[13] The Joshimath Situation Explained In 1976, the Uttar Pradesh government set up an 18-member committee headed by M.C Mishra, the then Commissioner of Garhwal, to study the issue of land subsidence in Joshimath.[b] The report had pointed out that “Joshimath is not situated on in situ rocks. It situates on weathered, landslide mass of big un-settled boulders in the loose matrix of fine micaceous sandy and clayey material. The rocks are crystalline consisting of schistose gneissic and quartzitic.”[14] Joshimath, the report said, also rested on an ancient landslide site of a substantial size.[15] Several subsequent studies also reiterated some of these facts. In 2018, the Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority (USDMA) noted that the town’s location was prone to landslides, and the area around Joshimath was covered with a thick layer of overburdened material.[16] It also said the town was situated on a fragile mountain slope that was bounded by the Karmanasa and Dhaknala rivers on the west and the east, and Dhauliganga and Alaknanda rivers on the south and the north.[17] “Large boulders of gneisses and fragments of basics and schistose rocks are embedded in grey-coloured, silty-sandy matrix. This makes the town highly vulnerable to sinking,” Piyoosh Rautela, USDMA executive director, is quoted as saying.[18] The USDMA study found that the perennial streams, significant snow in the upper reaches, and highly weathered gneissic rocks with low cohesive characteristics made the area prone to landslides.[19] These facts are further corroborated by research studies that find the Uttarakhand Himalayas highly susceptible to meteorological and geophysical hazards.[20] In February 2021, a glacial lake outburst in Chamoli caused a devastating flood that led to the deaths of 204 persons and 186 livestock. It damaged buildings, roads, bridges, and the hydro-projects at Raini and Tapovan. More importantly, it had an adverse impact on the landslide zone.[21] This zone was further weakened when Joshimath recorded a heavy downpour of 190 mm on 17 October 2021. As highlighted by satellite data, its impact was that mountain streams expanded their channels and changed course, which aggravated the slope instability.[22] Studies have also established that eco-tectonic[c] and geomorphic[d] factors coupled with meteorological[e] characteristics have rendered the Joshimath region highly vulnerable to subsidence.[23] Notably, Chamoli district falls in Zone V (areas most susceptible to earthquakes) of the Seismic Zoning Map of India.[24] Joshimath also sits on the Vaikrita Thrust, a tectonic fault line. The Main Central Thrust and the Pandukeshwar Thrust (the main geological fault lines[f]) are also in close vicinity.[25] Mishra Committee Recommendations and Developmental Works The Mishra Committee made several recommendations pertaining to Joshimath and the wider region based on its on-ground observations. It took stock of the heavy construction projects undertaken in this area after 1962 and the indiscriminate felling of trees to develop roads and buildings, which destroyed the natural forest cover in Joshimath.[26] The committee advised that heavy construction work be restricted and that such activities be permitted only after a thorough examination of the soil’s load-bearing capacity and the site’s stability. It was also recommended that restrictions be placed on the excavation of slopes. Notably, the committee recommended avoiding blasting or digging to remove boulders for road repairs or other construction. Further, it suggested that stones and boulders should not be removed from the bottom of the hill in landslide-prone areas as doing so would take away toe support[g] and increase the possibility of landslides.[27] It also suggested that if cracks developed, they should be sealed with lime, local soil, and sand. The committee pointed out that the felling of trees posed a danger to the town’s sustainability and encouraged that trees and grass be planted widely to conserve soil and water resources. It said that cutting trees to supply the township with timber and firewood be strictly regulated, and the locals be provided with alternative sources of fuel. It also recommended avoiding any agricultural activity on the slopes.[28] The report noted that there was excessive water seepage in the area. Since any percolation of water would be disastrous, the committee recommended the closure of open drains and soaking pits, and the halting of construction of concrete sewage lines for sewerage flow.[29] To prevent landslides, it recommended constructing a fixed draining system to avoid the seepage of open rainwater. Further, it suggested that roads should be metalled and be without scuppers that drain away the water from the road surface.[30] It suggested that cement blocks should be placed in vulnerable spots on the riverbank to prevent erosion. It also recommended that hanging boulders on the foothills be provided with appropriate support, and that erosion prevention and river training[h] measures be taken up. Despite the Mishra Committee’s recommendations, several infrastructure projects were undertaken in the region. The Tapovan-Vishnugad project,[31] a 520-MW run-of-river hydropower project by the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC), is being constructed on the Dhauliganga River in Chamoli district, and is expected to generate approximately 2,558 GWh of electricity annually. The project involves the excavation of a 12.1-km longhead race tunnel[i] and three adits.[j] These works require the use of a tunnel boring machine and possibly the use of the drill and blast method of tunnelling.[32] Some experts have said the blasting activities for tunnelling caused cracks to appear across Joshimath,[33] and the state government said it would probe the project’s role in land subsidence.[34] However, in a letter to the state government, an official from the Ministry of Power stressed that the project did not have any adverse role in the current crisis and reiterated the Mishra Committee’s conclusion of the town’s vulnerability due to its location.[35] Several on-ground studies have corroborated these assertions.[36] The Helang-Marwari bypass road under the All Weather Road initiative, starting 13 km before Joshimath, is another major construction project in the region.[37] The road has two major objectives—cutting the distance to Badrinath Dham by about 30 km, and easing and expediting the movement of troops to the Indo-China border. Although the project faced some opposition from the Joshimath Bachao Sangharsh Samiti (Save Joshimath Movement), a citizens’ initiative, which took the matter to the Supreme Court, the court authorised the construction in May 2022.[38] Notably, the group has repeatedly opposed major infrastructure projects in the region, warning of their consequences.[39] In 2021-22, the group formed several internal committees comprising locals and independent scientists to assess the problems in the area and compile a report that offered several alternative solutions. This report was handed over to the government in 2022 but was rejected. Increased tourist activity in Joshimath also led to the construction of many multistorey buildings. An August 2022 report by the USDMA noted many improperly planned structures without due regard to carrying capacity.[k] These have aggravated issues related to slope instability. Additionally, since Joshimath does not have a wastewater disposal system, increased on-surface anthropogenic activities[l] have blocked natural water drainage systems, forcing water to find new drainage routes, thereby reducing the shear strength of the overburdened soil. A Himalayan Developmental Strategy While Joshimath residents and army troops[40] are currently being relocated, authorities are also considering the creation of a ‘new Joshimath’ and assessing four locations near the town.[41] Still, this crisis has raised the need to acknowledge the fragility of the larger Himalayan zone and consider alternative approaches to avoid similar catastrophes in other mountain towns. The Garhwal Himalayas are home to over 51 million people,[42] and such a large population cannot be relocated entirely despite the area’s vulnerability. Importantly, the area also has certain advantages that can be harnessed for the greater good. For instance, it has considerable scope for hydroelectric projects. As a scenic natural area, the region is also a draw for mountain expeditions, rock climbing, trekking, and other tourist activities. It is also home to many religiously significant sites that attract numerous pilgrims. Such tourist activity provides a source of income to the locals, who may otherwise seek employment elsewhere. For instance, a 2018 survey of four towns preceding Joshimath on the Badrinath Temple route[m] found that 57.5 percent of the households were engaged in tourism services, with 37.5 percent exclusively dependent on tourism.[43] Additionally, this region contains many sensitive areas that border China and, as such, requires Indian military presence and infrastructure. In light of this, it is a given that certain developmental activities will need to be undertaken. The crucial factor is the manner and volume of activities that can be permitted such that it minimises human-nature conflict. The Himalayas are the world’s youngest mountain ranges, with unstable slopes that are prone to landslides and erosion.[44] The region is among India’s most earthquake-prone zones. Additionally, climate change has resulted in extreme and sudden rainfall.[45] As such, the Himalayan region is very different from India’s plains and so requires a different development model that considers this ecosystem. Since the area is an important tourist destination, with high projected traveller numbers in the coming years,[46] there will likely be a spurt in tourist-related developmental activity. These must adhere to the concept of carrying capacity (which the Uttarakhand government already recommends[47]). Notably, the government has also urged the implementation of an effective pilgrim management system.[48] This would mean curbing the number of tourists permitted to visit the region or a particular site per day and each season. Uttarakhand, and indeed the other Indian states in the Himalayas, can learn from Bhutan, which has imposed steep sustainable development fees in a bid to control the number of travellers.[49] In addition, a hill-town levy, currently imposed in many hill stations to limit the inflow of vehicles, can be expanded to other towns. This will also provide some revenue for the upkeep of the town.[50] A different set of building standards and building regulations will need to be adopted for construction projects in the Himalayan region. These standards should mandate lightweight structures and a restriction on height. Building control regulations will have to be redrawn to conform to sustainability benchmarks in these fragile regions. In the 1960s, establishments (including government premises) were built with corrugated roofs to keep structures light and single-storied.[51] But in recent years, the tourism boom in Joshimath and the surrounding areas led to the construction of many multistorey buildings on fragile slopes. Such constructions should be eschewed in favour of structures conducive to the ecosystem. Revised building regulations should also include earthquake-safe construction technologies and a mandated reduction of non-structural hazards in homes, schools, business centres, and offices.[52] These new building codes will need to be strictly enforced to protect the built environment in the region. Importantly, there has been no reorganisation of the Town and Country Planning department since Uttarakhand’s bifurcation from Uttar Pradesh.[53] This should be done urgently, with sufficient staff to oversee the town planning. While it is important to exploit the potential of hydroelectricity, it is equally crucial that not every potential site be pressed into service.[54] The construction of very large dams should be completely ruled out because of high landslide vulnerability and large-scale human rehabilitation.[55] The current goal of the hydroelectric projects in the region is to build about 70 projects and create 9,000 MW of power,[56] but this needs to be reviewed urgently. Vulnerable areas in the river valleys need to be mapped, and villages on the riverbanks need to be rehabilitated in safer areas.[57] Additionally, projects that are already underway may need to be redesigned to mimic the river flow.[58] Conclusion Given the national and local imperatives, there should be unanimity that development in the Himalayan region is necessary. The crucial factor is the volume and model of development that will be adopted. Developmental decisions on the region must be made after considering its entire ecosystem and the region’s significance to the mainland. The volume of development in the Himalayan region should be sustainable and not maximalist, and the model should respect the fragile ecosystem. However, while restrictions in tourism and infrastructure creation will adversely impact local employment, there is scope for greater investments in the environment sector—in biodiversity conservation, large-scale plantation and forestry, glacier and water body protection, and high-value organic farming.[59] The development of such activities will almost certainly generate enough jobs to replace those lost in the other sectors. End Notes [a] Land subsidence is a gradual settling or sudden sinking of the Earth’s surface on account of underground material movement, most often caused by the removal of water, oil, natural gas, or mineral resources from the ground by pumping, fracking, or mining activities. Natural events (such as earthquakes) and heavy human activity (such as heavy construction or groundwater withdrawal) may also cause land subsidence. [b] Prior to the formation of Uttarakhand as a separate state in 2000, Joshimath was in the state of Uttar Pradesh. [c] Tectonic relates to the structure of the Earth’s crust and the large-scale processes that occur within it. [d] Geomorphic relates to the form of landscape and other natural features of the Earth’s surface. [e] Meteorology is a branch of the atmospheric sciences with a major focus on weather forecasting. [f] A fault is a fracture or zone of fractures between two blocks of rock. Faults enable the blocks to move relative to each other. This movement may occur rapidly resulting in an earthquake or may occur slowly. Faults may run from a few millimeters to thousands of kilometers. [g] The toe of a slope denotes the bottom or baseline section of the soil mass comprising the slope. [h] River training is the construction of structures to guide the river’s flow. [i] Head race tunnels, or pressure tunnels, are modest-sized dams with very long tunnels and shafts that generate a high head for water for the generation of electricity. They are widely used in hydroelectric projects. [j]Adits are horizontal passages leading into a mine for the purposes of access or drainage. [k] Carrying capacity is the level until which a group of activities can be sustained by an area. [l] This refers to environmental change caused by human activity, either directly or indirectly. [m] Ratura, Gauchar, Nandprayag, and Chamoli. [1] Uttarakhand Tourism, “Joshimath”. [2] Hindustan Times, “Sinking Joshimath: Cracks develop on India-China border road; PMO to hold crucial meet”, YouTube video, 3:10 min, January 8, 2023. [3] “Uttarakhand’s Joshimath Declared Disaster-Prone Area After ‘Sinking’, Cracks Detected”, NDTV, January 9, 2023. [4] “Uttarakhand government orders evacuation of 600 families from Joshimath”, Scroll, January 7, 2023. [5] Gaurav Talwar, “PWD guest house, two more private houses to be demolished in Joshimath,” Times of India, January 19, 2023. [6] Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, “Census of India 2011”. [7] Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, “Census of India 2001”. [8] Populatiton Census, “Joshimath Town Population 2011-2023”. [9] Anwesha, “Joshimath, Uttarakhand: Trekking Destination and Places to Visit”, Moxtain, May 8, 2020. [10] Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority, Government of Uttarakhand, “Strategic Plan for Risk Reduction”, August 2018. [11] Neeraj Santoshi, “Joshimath sank by 5.4 cm in just 13 days, says ISRO report”, Hindustan Times, January 14, 2023. [12] Sunita Narain, “Joshimath, a well-engineered calamity”, Down To Earth, January 10, 2023. [13] Department of Science & Technology, Government of India, “National Mission for Sustaining the Himalayan Eco-System under National Action Plan on Climate Change”, June 2010. [14] Government of Uttar Pradesh, “Mishra Committee Report”, 1976, para 1, page 3 [15] Government of Uttar Pradesh, “Mishra Committee Report”, 1976, para 2, page 3 [16] “Strategic Plan for Risk Reduction” [17] Neeraj Santoshi, “Geology to unplanned construction: Decoding why Joshimath is sinking”, Hindustan Times, January 7, 2023. [18] Santoshi, “Geology to unplanned construction: Decoding why Joshimath is sinking” [19] Santoshi, “Geology to unplanned construction: Decoding why Joshimath is sinking” [20] V. P. Sati, “Glacier bursts-triggered debris flow and flash flood in Rishi and Dhauli Ganga valleys: A study on its causes and consequences”, Natural Hazards Research 2 (2022) 33-40. [21] National Disaster Management Authority, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, “Study of Causes & Impacts of the Uttarakhand Disaster on 7 February 2021 in Raunthi Gadhera, Rishiganga & Dhauliganga Valley: Measures to Reduce Disaster Risks”, April 2022. [22] Santoshi, “Geology to unplanned construction: Decoding why Joshimath is sinking” [23] Santoshi, “Geology to unplanned construction: Decoding why Joshimath is sinking” [24] Urban Development Department, Uttarakhand, “Presentation on: Uttarakhand – Disaster Resistant Technologies, Seismic Zoning Map of India”, July 27-28, 2018. [25] Santoshi, “Geology to unplanned construction: Decoding why Joshimath is sinking” [26] Santia Gora and Vijay Anand, “Joshimath: 1976 report warned that town was on ancient landslide, human activity poses danger”, CNBC TV 18, January 8, 2023. [27] Government of Uttar Pradesh, “Mishra Committee Report”, 1976 [28] Government of Uttar Pradesh, “Mishra Committee Report”, 1976 [29] Government of Uttar Pradesh, “Mishra Committee Report”, 1976, page 12-13 [30] Vandana Ramani, “Joshimath Crisis: Why the 1976 Mishra Committee Report is prophetic”, Money Control, January 8, 2023. [31] “Tapovan-Vishnugad Hydroelectric Power Plant, Uttarakhand”, PowerTechnology.com, February 13, 2014. [32] “Tapovan-Vishnugad Hydroelectric Power Plant, Uttarakhand” [33] “Experts blame NTPC’s hydro project for Joshimath disaster”, India TV, January 9, 2023. [34] Kautilya Singh, “NTPC project role in Joshimath’s sinking being probed: Uttarakhand”, Times of India, January 14, 2023. [35] Shreya Jai, “Joshimath: NTPC Not Responsible: Power Secy,” Rediff, January 16, 2023. [36] Sanjay Dutta, “NTPC project not to blame for Joshimath sinking: Panel in 2010”, Times of India, January 13, 2023. [37] Nitin Semwal, “The biggest and longest bridge of Uttarakhand will be built in Joshimath Helang to Marwari bypass, know the complete plan”, Hindustan News Hub, October 8, 2022. [38] “Helang-Marwari bypass road cleared by the Supreme Court, the movement of army in China border area will be smooth,” Satlok Express, May 14, 2022. [39] Ismat Ara, “At The Fault Lines”, Frontline, January 27, 2023. [40] “Army relocates some troops from areas surrounding Joshilath”, Economic Times, January 12, 2023. [41] Shivani Azad and Kautilya Singh, “Joshimath residents to be relocated to these rehabilitation sites”, Times of India, January 17, 2023. [42] Department of Science & Technology, Ministry of Science & Technology, Government of India, “National Mission for Sustaining the Himalayan Eco-System under National Action Plan on Climate Change”, June 2010. [43] “Strategic Plan for Risk Reduction” [44] Narain, “Joshimath, a well-engineered calamity” [45] Narain, “Joshimath, a well-engineered calamity” [46] Chandra Bhushan, “Hills, Stop Copying The Plains”, Times of India, January 17, 2023. [47] “Strategic Plan for Risk Reduction” [48] “Strategic Plan for Risk Reduction” [49] Bhushan, “Hills, Stop Copying The Plains” [50] Chetan Bhagat, “Stop. Cancel Your Hill Holiday”, Times of India, January 13, 2023. [51] Amit Bhattacharya, “Time To Look Out For Other Joshimaths”, Times of India, January 15, 2023. [52] “Strategic Plan for Risk Reduction” [53] Bhushan, “Hills, Stop Copying The Plains” [54] Mridula Ramesh, “Joshimath’s salvation lies on a new path but will we walk it?”, Times of India, January 15, 2023. [55] V. P. Sati, “Landscape vulnerability and rehabilitation issues: a study of hydropower projects in Garhwal region, Himalaya”, Natural Hazards, 2015, vol. 75, No. 3, [56] Narain, “Joshimath, a well-engineered calamity” [57] Sati, “Glacier bursts-triggered debris flow and flash flood in Rishi and Dhauli Ganga valleys: A study on its causes and consequences” [58] Narain, “Joshimath, a well-engineered calamity” [59] Bhushan, “Hills, Stop Copying The Plains”

• Down To Earth

CLIMATE CHANGE | J&K, Ladakh vulnerable to Glacial Lake Outburst Floods

Thajiwas, Hoksar, Nehnar, Shishram, and glaciers around Harmukh are also retreating slowly. Srinagar: Fast retreating of glaciers due to global warming and pollution has created glacial lakes in various mountain ranges of Jammu and Kashmir besides Ladakh making the Himalayan regions vulnerable to Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOF). GLOF can be disastrous for downstream populations due to sudden outburst of a glacial lake dammed by loose moraine material. The glacial lake outbursts can be catastrophic – destroying downstream infrastructure, resulting in fatalities and affecting livelihoods of mountain communities. Scientific studies indicate that Kolahoi, the largest glacier of Kashmir valley’s Jhelum Basin, is retreating rapidly due to spurt rise in temperature triggered by global warming and extreme pollution. Thajiwas, Hoksar, Nehnar, Shishram, and glaciers around Harmukh are also retreating slowly. Melting glaciers erode land and fill up the space creating glacial lakes. Besides glacier recession, the prevailing warming scenario over the Himalaya makes communities and infrastructure more vulnerable to cryosphere-related hazards that were previously not experienced in the past. “These include GLOF, rock-ice avalanches, glacier detachments, permafrost degradation-induced rock failures and debris flows. In the northwestern Himalayan regions of J&K and Ladakh, Leh and Kargil districts are more exposed to GLOF risk with 180 proglacial lakes most of which are expanding in area,” Dr Irfan Rashid, senior assistant professor of Department of Geo-informatics, University of Kashmir (KU) told Greater Kashmir. On the basis of extensive scientific studies, Dr Rashid said in Kashmir valley, two proglacial lakes in the upstream of Vishaw in south Kashmir’s Kulgam district are susceptible to GLOFs that might affect Asthal village downstream. He said Gya village located some 74 km from Leh experienced GLOFs moderate in August 2016 affecting built-up and agriculture downstream. Another high-intensity GLOFs was experienced in Rumbak in Leh that destroyed three bridges and washed away several kilometers of roads in August 2021. “While the number of proglacial lakes are high in Ladakh, downstream areas in Kashmir valley are more vulnerable owing to high population and greater area under infrastructure,” he said. In the mountainous Kashmir Himalaya, below-normal snowfall during last winter’s accompanied by high winter temperatures and summer heat waves contributed significantly to high glacier melting. Kolahoi Glacier has lost almost 23 percent of its area since 1962 and has fragmented into smaller parts. While GLOFs may be triggered by a host of geomorphic and meteorological factors, there is a plethora of scientific literature suggesting that earthquakes exacerbate the cryosphere-related hazard cascade processes including glacial lake failures translating into GLOFs and rock-ice avalanches. “This is especially important given the fact that there are around 5300 glacial lakes, thousands of ice-cliffs and permafrost on unstable steep slopes in the Indus Basin of which Jammu, Kashmir, and Ladakh regions are part of. Such cryosphere-related hazard cascades cannot be ruled out as these regions fall in highest earthquake risk zones (IV & V),” Dr Rashid said. J&K falls under the high seismic Zones IV and V making it vulnerable to earthquakes. A powerful 7.6 magnitude earthquake rattled J&K on October 8, 2005, claiming 1350 lives and causing massive destruction to structures. Prof Romshoo recommends that it is important to continuously monitor these lakes by field and satellite-based studies and assess risk associated with the bursting of these dammed lakes so that the human habitations are warned well in time and the necessary mitigation measures initiated to minimise the damage in the eventuality of their outbursting. He recommended that the hydropower and other river engineering structures downstream should be designed to withstand the disastrous surges of the water and debris associated with the bursting of the glacier lakes particularly in the Chenab valley where several hydropower projects are in operation. “Since the development of the hydropower projects envisages huge financial investment, it is essential to consider the risks and hazards of all the potential glacier lake outbursts in the upstream of the projects. It is very important to assess the breaching risk of glacial lakes in the state and the likely damage it shall cause to the human habitations and Hydropower and other engineering river structures downstream so that the feasible mitigation measures for these hazards are taken urgently,” Prof Romshoo said. On September 7, 2014, massive flow of water from higher reaches following heavy rainfall led to overflowing in Jhelum, Chenab, and Tawi basins causing devastating floods in J&K. In January 2015, an artificial lake was created due to landslides in the Phutkal area of Zanskar in Kargil. Experts had warned that delay in addressing the issue could cause "catastrophic flash floods" in downstream areas of Zanskar Valley. Two months later, a high-level team from the National Disaster Management Authority created a channel to drain the accumulated water, but to no avail. On May 7, 2015, the artificial lake burst triggering flash floods washing away several bridges and caused extensive damage to houses. Three million Indians live in areas where a GLOF could happen at any time, the first global assessment of such areas has found globally, 90 million people across 30 countries live in 1089 basins containing glacial lakes. Of these, 15 million (16.6 percent) live within 50 km of a glacial lake, said the new study published in Nature Communications on February 7, 2023. It states that the majority of the globally exposed population amounting to 9.3 million (62 percent) are located in the region of High Mountain Asia (HMA). India, Pakistan, Peru and China accounted for more than 50 percent of the globally exposed population to GLOFs. According to Centre for Science and Environment and Down to Earth’s State of India’s Environment 2022, here has been a 40 percent increase in water spread area in India, China and Nepal, posing a huge threat to seven Indian states and Union Territories including Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. In Kedarnath area in Uttarakhand, an estimated 5700 people, mostly pilgrims, died on June 16, 2013, due to heavy rains, cloudburst, and outburst from Chorabari Lake. On February 7, 2021, a part of the Nanda Devi Glacier broke off at Joshimath in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district, killing at least seven people and leaving around 150 missing and feared dead. The flash flood breached two hydropower projects near the Naina Devi National Park, about 300 km north of Dehradun. The J&K Government has devised an action plan on climate change recommending a slew of measures with institutional structure to address both adaptation and mitigation concerns with an objective of increasing resilience and climate proofing of the sectors keeping in mind conditions of the local vulnerabilities.

• Sustainable Habitat

Need to build cities of future, focus on natural elements, says experts

A two-day national conference on “Livability in Cities: Focus on Cooling Action” was held as collaboration between the Centre of Science and Environment, New Delhi, and Guru Nanak Dev University. Prof SS Behl and Er Krunesh Garg, Chief Environmental Engineer, PPCB, Jalandhar; Rajneesh Sareen, Programme Director, Sustainable Habitat Programme, Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), New Delhi, were the key note speakers along with Prof Ashwani Luthra. Deliberations were made and emergence of inputs for upgrading syllabi was discussed to create city-level decision making for enhancing livability across Indian cities. Delivering the key note address, Rajneesh Sareen highlighted that the lack of climate-responsive planning and design had caused poor urban livability. Master plans and building bye-laws need to be amended to include these factors as a part of cooling strategy, said Sareen. Krunesh Garg emphasised that the impact on environment in our cities was enormous, green areas have been replaced by concretisation. Prof Behl articulated his concerns about social and environmental complexities and the need to adopt simple but effective interventions to end urban chaos.

• Environment Resource Unit

Libraries are gateways towards social empowerment, holistic development

Despite affirmative action-oriented policies and other measures aimed at promoting social inclusion, low literacy rates, poor educational attainment, and limited access to employment opportunities continue to plague the Scheduled Castes (SC) and Sch... The role of libraries has evolved with time, and libraries are no longer limited to books and other traditional resources. The rise of digital resources and e-books has made it possible for libraries to provide access to a vast array of knowledge from around the world. A study conducted by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) highlights the role of public libraries in promoting sustainability and development. The report suggests that public libraries can help to create awareness among the public about sustainable practices, and provide them with the knowledge and skills required to adopt such practices. In this way, libraries can contribute to the economic, social, and environmental development of communities.

• Clean Air & Sustainable Mobility

Delhi govt to study its anti-dust measures

The Delhi government has decided to commission a study to assess the effectiveness of anti-smog guns, water sprinkling tankers and mechanised road sweepers in combating air pollution in the city. A senior government official said on Sunday that the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) will soon launch a request for proposal (RPF) for this project, which is likely to be carried out in the summer. “We want to know the results before next winter so we can prioritise where to spend funds and re-wire local measures accordingly. For instance, if mechanised road sweepers prove more effective than water sprinkling tankers, then more mechanised sweepers will be purchased next winter,” said the official requesting anonymity. As part of the study, low-cost sensors will be deployed on roads across the city where water sprinkling tankers and mechanised road sweepers are used. In the 2022-23 winter, the Delhi government deployed 80 mechanised road sweeping (MRS) machines, 401 water sprinkling tankers, 193 static anti-smog guns and 169 mobile anti-smog guns across the city to control localised pollution. Each MRS can cost between ₹8 lakh and ₹28 lakh, while water sprinkling tankers, based on the type of model such as simple tankers that release water on the road to ones that spray water in a fine mist, both vertically and horizontally, can cost between ₹8 lakh and ₹35 lakh. Anti-smog guns are the cheapest of the four devices, costing between ₹50,000 and ₹1 lakh. However, the cost increases if they are truck-mounted and connected to tankers, costing between ₹10 lakh and ₹30 lakh. A DPCC official, who is aware of the project, said a combination of Delhi’s 40 continuous ambient air quality monitoring stations (CAAQMS) and low-cost sensors will be used to monitor air quality data before and after these devices are used. A low-cost sensor is a small device that can monitor particulate matter or gases in a 1-km radius, making it ideal for analysing air quality in a specific location. While a single CAAQMS can cost up to ₹1.5 crore, these sensors cost just ₹25,000- ₹50,000. “We will create a grid across the city and these sensors will be deployed on all those stretches where road sweepers, tankers and mobile anti-smog guns are used. The low-cost sensors will only form a part of the study and will eventually be removed,” the official added. Last week, Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai held a review of the city’s ‘Winter Action Plan’, announcing that concerted efforts by the state government, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) and different agencies led to an improvement in air quality in 2022. Rai compared pollution data of 2022 with 2016 – considered Delhi’s most polluted year – stating that not only had the number of ‘good’, ‘satisfactory’ and ‘moderate’ days increased from 109 in 2016 to 160 in 2022, but the number of ‘severe’ air days dropped from 26 in 2016 to six in 2022. Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy at Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), said the study, if done in a scientific manner, can help not only Delhi but other states, too. “If we use low-cost sensors, we will know about the hyperlocal impact of these machines. But if the low-cost sensors are paired with our ambient air quality stations, then the data can give a larger picture, especially about the impact on ambient air quality, if any. At present, we are using these devices without knowing how useful they are in the absence of any scientific study or data,” she said.

• Renewable Energy

UP Global Investors’ Summit: Renewable energy bags maximum commitment of Rs 4.4 lakh crore

According to UP govt data 19,000 MoUs were signed & close to Rs 35.5 lakh cr pledged in investments. Gautam Buddha Nagar got 27% of commitments, followed by Agra, Lucknow & Gorakhpur. The Uttar Pradesh Global Investors’ Summit 2023 came to a close Sunday, fetching close to Rs 35.5 lakh crore in proposed investments — double the revised target of Rs 17.3 lakh crore — with the total number of MoUs (Memorandum of Understanding) exceeding 19,000. Among the total number of LOIs (letters of intent), more than 17,000 were issued by entities in the Rs 0-100 crore category, in addition to the 203 commitments made by entities in the Rs 2,000 crore and above category, according to data released by the UP government. A ‘letter of intent’ is a preliminary document sealing a partnership between two interested parties over an investment. This is followed by due diligence after which both parties negotiate a purchase agreement to actualise the deal. The renewable energy sector bagged the highest investment, raking in an estimated Rs 4.4 lakh crore through 144 LOIs — close to 15 per cent of the total number of investments. The electronics manufacturing sector came in second with 151 LOIs worth an estimated Rs 3.5 lakh crore. Experts believe the inclination among investors towards the renewable energy sector is no surprise owing to the need for states to align themselves with the central government’s push for domestic manufacturing businesses. With over 7,000 LOIs, the manufacturing sector received the most number of commitments, followed by textiles and dairy with a combined kitty of a little over 1,000 LOIs. In comparison, the power generation sector bagged six commitments worth an estimated Rs 53,000 crore. With a total of 16 MoUs in sectors like manufacturing, electronics, textiles, EV and medical devices, Hong Kong’s Tauschen Groups of Companies was the most promising investor at the summit. The conglomerate pledged to invest close to Rs 1.8 lakh crore in Noida, Mirzapur, Agra, Lucknow and Varanasi. RG Strategies group was the second largest investor at the summit, signing seven MoUs worth close to Rs 1.7 lakh crore in sectors like renewable energy, EV and manufacturing. The company is likely to set up bases in Bulandshahr, Gorakhpur, Noida and Ghaziabad. This was followed by Imperia Innovation Investment (Austin Consulting Group), a US-based venture capital firm, which signed two MoUs in the education and infrastructure sectors worth close to Rs 1.5 lakh crore. Lakhimpur Kheri and Noida are its preferred locations for business. The Austin Consulting Group was embroiled in a controversy last December after which the UP government had to issue a clarification regarding an MoU worth $42 billion it signed with the group to build a Knowledge Smart City. Push for renewable energy at Global Investors’ Summit Vibhuti Garg, director (South Asia) for Cleveland-based Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) told ThePrint, “I would say renewable energy is the future and there is a big scope given that the government now wants to give emphasis on domestic manufacturing.” Garg explained that in addition to renewable energy being looked at from the generational perspective, the “entire value chain is being looked at as a prospect for creating more green jobs in the country”. “And also from the energy security perspective, we want to reduce reliance on imports because so far we were importing more than 80 per cent of the modules from China, but now, through the PLI (production-linked incentive) schemes, the government is trying to give a boost to domestic manufacturing and states can play a big role. And I think that’s where UP wants to invite more and more investment,” she added. Another perspective revolves around India’s revised ‘Nationally Determined Contribution’ (NDC) for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). According to Binit Das, deputy programme manager for renewable energy at Delhi-based think tank Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), the “recent push towards renewable energy sector investments is mainly attributed to India’s revised NDCs, which broadly represent India’s framework for its energy transition for 2021-2030”. “By 2030, the country has committed to generating 50 per cent of its total installed electrical power from non-fossil fuel-based energy resources (renewable energy, including hydropower),” he said. However, Das also said that achieving these targets is a “considerable challenge” given the restrictions companies face in capacity building. “It is a considerable challenge to achieve the goal of 450 GW (gigawatt) of renewable energy by 2030, given that we lack an indigenous manufacturing capacity for renewable energy components,” he added. Region-wise breakup Among the different regions in Uttar Pradesh, western UP locked 45 per cent of the total investments in the run-up to and during the Global Investors’ Summit 2023. From this region, Gautam Buddha Nagar, Agra, Ghaziabad, Shahjahanpur and Bareilly are expected to receive investments worth approximately Rs 12 lakh crore. Next was eastern UP — which comprises both PM Narendra Modi’s and UP CM Yogi Adityanath’s Lok Sabha constituencies, Varanasi and Gorakhpur respectively — with 29 per cent, followed by 13 per cent each for Bundelkhand and central UP. Varanasi locked in close to Rs 1.3 lakh crore in investment proposals, almost 4.75 per cent of the total. Gorakhpur, on the other hand, got 328 LOIs and investment proposals worth nearly Rs 1.7 lakh crore. Among the districts, Gautam Buddha Nagar — which comprises Noida, among other cities — received the most number of investments, bagging 27.16 per cent of the total commitments. This was the second consecutive year that Gautam Buddha Nagar saw the highest number of investments. Agra, Lucknow and Gorakhpur followed with 7.5 per cent, 6.7 per cent and 5.9 per cent respectively. The three-day Global Investors’ Summit 2023 was held in Lucknow from 10-12 February. The event concluded Sunday with an address by President Droupadi Murmu who said UP is “saksham (capable) and taiyyar (ready)” to “play the role of India’s growth engine”.

• Down To Earth

Financial time bomb: The risks of climate inaction to the global economy

For the last 300 years, fossil fuels have been the first love of economic development; they symbolise prosperity and happiness. Historically energy transition is to move from a less economical and efficient form of energy to a more efficient and more economical form, i.e., wood/biomass to coal and then to oil, and finally, the emergence of renewable energy sources such as solar, wind and green hydrogen. Earlier transitions were more because of commercial incentives, which bolstered economic growth and allowed greater energy access to the broader population. Nevertheless, this energy transition is different and is driven by the need to meet climate targets, the challenge of environmental change, and the market to decarbonise the global energy system. Economic risks of climate change Climate change is putting our weather system on steroids, and extreme weather events are everyday occurring. Hurricane Ian in the US resulted in the loss of $ 100 billion and 101 lives; severe heatwaves in Europe during June and July last year brought the worst draughts in the previous 500 years; wildfires in Spain and Portugal were again a consequence of climate change event when both countries experienced driest climate in last 1200 years. Even India, according to Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI), released at COP 27 in November 2022, is amongst the top 5 best-performing countries in Climate Change, faced the wrath of nature through different events across the country on 241 of 273 days from January 2022 to October 2022, as per the report by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), a public interest research and advocacy organisation. The CSE report mentions these events cost “2,755 lives, affected 1.8 million hectares of crop area, destroyed over 416,667 houses and killed close to 70,000 livestock.” It looks like we are living in a new normal, which includes more extreme events and disaster risks. On July 27, 2022, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) published a discussion paper on climate change and sustainable finance. It was different for several reasons; one, the tone and tenor of the document were quite away from the traditional style of the RBI; second, without mincing words, the central bank said that climate change is for real and is an economic risk; third, it mentions without mitigation, not just Indian industry, but the entire financial sector is vulnerable. So, in the future, it recommends that banks begin reflecting climate risk on their balance sheets and lending propositions, which will have clear implications for the Indian industry and its credit. Therefore, climate inaction has made us sit on a financial time bomb. Physical consequences, such as severe weather conditions and the carbon transition resulting from shifting to a less carbon-dependent economy, are the two primary causes. Physical vulnerabilities are increasing in frequency and severity. These threats impacted the economy's financial stability as they directly affected property, industry and agriculture. In 2019, climate catastrophes cost the world's economy $146 billion. Insurers covered a total of $60 billion of it. According to Swiss Re, one of the biggest insurance firms, extreme weather occurrences are becoming more frequent and severe. This indicates that many sectors are preparing for future losses that will be considerably more serious. Moreover, these losses are not merely data or news headlines but have bearing on tens of millions of people. Is climate change triggering the financial time bomb? So, how might climate change lead to a financial disaster? Let's take the potential consequences of catastrophic incidents like the sinking of Joshimath, Uttrakhand, as an example. In the event of such an incident in a populous location, not only would the property be destroyed, but there will be loss of human lives, nature, and livestock. According to reports, in 2021, natural disasters caused a loss of $ 280 billion, and approximately 60 percent of this total was uninsured. This implies that mortgage and commercial lenders like banks will never get repaid by uninsured homeowners or businesses. An increase in such incidents will result in bad loans, which may push banks to go for higher interest rates or extend fewer loans. Potential homebuyers and companies will find it difficult to obtain financing, and it won’t be long until the economy grids. The Global Financial Crisis (2007-2008) was brought on by banks realising that assets backed by real estate had almost lost all their value. Hence, the global economy shrank due to the subsequent credit crunch. Transition to a low-carbon economy To safeguard ourselves against increasing natural calamities, we must transition from a high to a low-carbon economy. During fluctuating financial markets, businesses with a high carbon intensity lose value. This transition may be challenging for financial institutions if it is sudden. To achieve carbon neutrality, more nations are pledging to cut their CO2 emissions and use carbon-capturing technologies to bring in the necessary checks. However, many firms will need to alter their processes and operations to move towards carbon neutrality. For instance, most oil companies have yet to change strategies to incorporate more renewable energy sources in their operations. More renewables in the energy system will entail less consumption of oil and hence a decline in the company's worth and, finally, less appeal to investors. This may lead to a market sell-off if businesses in an industry stay the same for a low-carbon future. Financial markets may experience a shock if this occurs with more planning. There could have a ripple effect due to the interconnection of the global financial system, and industries that have already invested in green finance, like sovereign green bonds and so on, will also lose. The financial markets worldwide are so intertwined that; a tsunami in Japan or wildfires in California might affect your stock investments or a worker's retirement plans somewhere in Europe. A carbon tax is one factor that may influence investors' positions in the market. These taxes, which would charge businesses based on their emissions, are now being debated in numerous nations. Governments expect that having these businesses pay more would encourage them to reduce their pollution to firms whose output is overly dependent on coal, gas, and oil. The banks that have lent money to these businesses may need stability. How to reduce the risks posed by climate change? The most fundamental step is to design, develop and implement the policies and investments to facilitate the transition to a new climate economy which is low carbon and climate resilient. Additionally, we need a focused approach to our financial systems because they are crucial for the operation of our economies. For instance, the European Union is putting the European Green Deal into practice by working on several initiatives. To revitalise the Indian economy and generate employment, the government of India recently unveiled sovereign green bonds and a significant $4.3 billion investment in green technologies. These policies can help to revitalise economic growth while carving the path towards net zero. Investing in a low-carbon society may also have broader economic advantages. According to IMF, the world economy may profit from a five percent of GDP green investment, together with progressively rising carbon taxes and attention to those impacted by the transition; this can boost growth by 0.7 percent annually over the next 15 years. Climate change is the biggest issue for society, and we may be the last generation who have the opportunity to overcome this challenge. This brings the greatest opportunities of our lifetimes too. We can generate avenues of growth and employment by investing in climate resilience and innovative technologies. Climate change has both a human and environmental toll and a substantial financial cost and could lead to the world’s next big financial crisis. It’s a financial timebomb in the making if not curbed on time.

• Down To Earth

जलवायु परिवर्तन : जम्मू-कश्मीर, लद्दाख ग्लेशियल झील के फटने से आई बाढ़ की चपेट में

ग्लोबल वार्मिंग और प्रदूषण के कारण ग्लेशियरों के तेजी से पीछे हटने से लद्दाख के अलावा जम्मू और कश्मीर की विभिन्न पर्वत श्रृंखलाओं में हिमनदी झीलें बन गई हैं, जिससे हिमालयी क्षेत्र ग्लेशियल लेक आउटबर्स्ट फ्लड (जीएलओएफ) के प्रति संवेदनशील हो गए हैं। ढीली मोराइन सामग्री द्वारा क्षतिग्रस्त एक हिमनद झील के अचानक विस्फोट के कारण जीएलओएफ डाउनस्ट्रीम आबादी के लिए विनाशकारी हो सकता है। हिमनदी झील का विस्फोट विनाशकारी हो सकता है - डाउनस्ट्रीम बुनियादी ढांचे को नष्ट कर सकता है, जिसके परिणामस्वरूप घातक परिणाम हो सकते हैं और पर्वतीय समुदायों की आजीविका प्रभावित हो सकती है। वैज्ञानिक अध्ययनों से संकेत मिलता है कि कश्मीर घाटी के झेलम बेसिन का सबसे बड़ा ग्लेशियर कोलाहोई ग्लोबल वार्मिंग और अत्यधिक प्रदूषण के कारण तापमान में तेजी से वृद्धि के कारण तेजी से पीछे हट रहा है। अस्थल गांव दो झीलों L1 और में से किसी के मामले में GLOF के लिए असुरक्षित है L2 तेजी से बाहर निकलता है। अगर दो झीलों एल1 और एल2 में से कोई तेजी से खत्म हो जाती है तो अस्थल गांव जीएलओएफ के लिए संवेदनशील है। फोटो साभार: डॉ इरफान राशिद थजीवास, होक्सर, नेहनार, शीशराम और हरमुख के आसपास के ग्लेशियर भी धीरे-धीरे पीछे हट रहे हैं। पिघलते हुए ग्लेशियर भूमि का क्षरण करते हैं और हिमनदी झीलों का निर्माण करते हुए अंतरिक्ष को भर देते हैं। ग्लेशियर मंदी के अलावा, हिमालय पर प्रचलित वार्मिंग परिदृश्य समुदायों और बुनियादी ढांचे को क्रायोस्फीयर से संबंधित खतरों के प्रति अधिक संवेदनशील बनाता है जो पहले अतीत में अनुभव नहीं किया गया था। "इनमें GLOF, रॉक-आइस हिमस्खलन, ग्लेशियर टुकड़ी, पर्माफ्रॉस्ट डिग्रेडेशन-प्रेरित रॉक विफलताएं और मलबे का प्रवाह शामिल हैं। जम्मू-कश्मीर और लद्दाख के उत्तर-पश्चिमी हिमालयी क्षेत्रों में, लेह और कारगिल जिले 180 प्रोग्लेशियल झीलों के साथ जीएलओएफ जोखिम के संपर्क में हैं, जिनमें से अधिकांश क्षेत्र में विस्तार कर रहे हैं, "डॉ इरफान राशिद, भू-सूचना विज्ञान विभाग, कश्मीर विश्वविद्यालय के वरिष्ठ सहायक प्रोफेसर (केयू) ने ग्रेटर कश्मीर बताया। https://jantaserishta.com/local/jammu-and-kashmir/climate-change-jammu-and-kashmir-ladakh-in-the-grip-of-floods-due-to-the-bursting-of-glacial-lake-2031551थजीवास, होक्सर, नेहनार, शीशराम और हरमुख के आसपास के ग्लेशियर भी धीरे-धीरे पीछे हट रहे हैं। पिघलते हुए ग्लेशियर भूमि का क्षरण करते हैं और हिमनदी झीलों का निर्माण करते हुए अंतरिक्ष को भर देते हैं। ग्लेशियर मंदी के अलावा, हिमालय पर प्रचलित वार्मिंग परिदृश्य समुदायों और बुनियादी ढांचे को क्रायोस्फीयर से संबंधित खतरों के प्रति अधिक संवेदनशील बनाता है जो पहले अतीत में अनुभव नहीं किया गया था। "इनमें GLOF, रॉक-आइस हिमस्खलन, ग्लेशियर टुकड़ी, पर्माफ्रॉस्ट डिग्रेडेशन-प्रेरित रॉक विफलताएं और मलबे का प्रवाह शामिल हैं। जम्मू-कश्मीर और लद्दाख के उत्तर-पश्चिमी हिमालयी क्षेत्रों में, लेह और कारगिल जिले 180 प्रोग्लेशियल झीलों के साथ जीएलओएफ जोखिम के संपर्क में हैं, जिनमें से अधिकांश क्षेत्र में विस्तार कर रहे हैं, "डॉ इरफान राशिद, भू-सूचना विज्ञान विभाग, कश्मीर विश्वविद्यालय के वरिष्ठ सहायक प्रोफेसर (केयू) ने ग्रेटर कश्मीर बताया। व्यापक वैज्ञानिक अध्ययनों के आधार पर, डॉ राशिद ने कहा कि कश्मीर घाटी में, दक्षिण कश्मीर के कुलगाम जिले में विशॉ के अपस्ट्रीम में दो प्रोग्लेशियल झीलें जीएलओएफ के लिए अतिसंवेदनशील हैं जो नीचे की ओर अस्थल गांव को प्रभावित कर सकती हैं। उन्होंने कहा कि लेह से लगभग 74 किमी दूर स्थित गया गांव में अगस्त 2016 में जीएलओएफ का मध्यम स्तर का अनुभव हुआ, जिससे निर्मित और नीचे की ओर कृषि प्रभावित हुई। अगस्त 2021 में लेह के रुंबक में एक और उच्च तीव्रता वाले जीएलओएफ का अनुभव हुआ, जिसने तीन पुलों को नष्ट कर दिया और कई किलोमीटर सड़कों को बहा दिया। उन्होंने कहा, "लद्दाख में प्रोग्लेशियल झीलों की संख्या अधिक है, लेकिन कश्मीर घाटी में डाउनस्ट्रीम क्षेत्र अधिक आबादी और बुनियादी ढांचे के तहत अधिक क्षेत्र के कारण अधिक संवेदनशील हैं।" पहाड़ी कश्मीर हिमालय में, पिछली सर्दियों के दौरान सामान्य से कम बर्फबारी के साथ उच्च सर्दियों के तापमान और गर्मियों की गर्मी की लहरों ने उच्च ग्लेशियर पिघलने में महत्वपूर्ण योगदान दिया। कोलाहोई ग्लेशियर 1962 के बाद से अपने क्षेत्र का लगभग 23 प्रतिशत खो चुका है और छोटे भागों में बंट गया है। जबकि जीएलओएफ को भू-आकृतिक और मौसम संबंधी कारकों के एक मेजबान द्वारा ट्रिगर किया जा सकता है, वहां वैज्ञानिक साहित्य का ढेर है जो सुझाव देता है कि भूकंप जीएलओएफ और रॉक-बर्फ हिमस्खलन में अनुवाद करने वाली ग्लेशियल झील विफलताओं सहित क्रायोस्फीयर से संबंधित खतरनाक झरना प्रक्रियाओं को बढ़ाते हैं। "यह इस तथ्य को देखते हुए विशेष रूप से महत्वपूर्ण है कि सिंधु बेसिन में लगभग 5300 हिमनदी झीलें, हजारों बर्फ-चट्टानें और अस्थिर खड़ी ढलानों पर पर्माफ्रॉस्ट हैं, जिनमें जम्मू, कश्मीर और लद्दाख क्षेत्र शामिल हैं। इस तरह के क्रायोस्फीयर से संबंधित खतरों के कैस्केड से इंकार नहीं किया जा सकता है क्योंकि ये क्षेत्र उच्चतम भूकंप जोखिम वाले क्षेत्रों (IV और V) में आते हैं, "डॉ राशिद ने कहा। जम्मू-कश्मीर उच्च भूकंपीय क्षेत्र IV और V के अंतर्गत आता है, जो इसे भूकंप के प्रति संवेदनशील बनाता है। 8 अक्टूबर, 2005 को जम्मू-कश्मीर में 7.6 तीव्रता के शक्तिशाली भूकंप ने 1350 लोगों की जान ले ली और संरचनाओं को बड़े पैमाने पर नष्ट कर दिया। द्रंग द्रुंग ज़ांस्कर में सबसे बड़ा ग्लेशियर है और हिमालय में तेजी से घटने वाले ग्लेशियरों में से एक है क्योंकि बर्फ का मोर्चा प्रोग्लेशियल झील में खाली हो रहा है। 2008 के बाद झील बनना शुरू हुई, जो वर्तमान में 17 हेक्टेयर में फैली हुई है और इसके 39 हेक्टेयर तक विस्तार का अनुमान है। द्रंग द्रुंग ज़ांस्कर में सबसे बड़ा ग्लेशियर है और हिमालय में तेजी से घटने वाले ग्लेशियरों में से एक है क्योंकि बर्फ का मोर्चा प्रोग्लेशियल झील में खाली हो रहा है। झील का बनना 2008 के बाद शुरू हुआ था, जो वर्तमान में 17 हेक्टेयर में फैली हुई है और इसके 39 हेक्टेयर तक बढ़ने का अनुमान है। फोटो सौजन्य: डॉ इरफान राशिद प्रख्यात पृथ्वी वैज्ञानिक प्रो शकील रोमशू कहते हैं कि पिछले छह दशकों में ग्लेशियरों के पिघलने के परिणामस्वरूप पहाड़ी हिमाच्छादित इलाकों में कई क्षतिग्रस्त हिमनद झीलें बन गई हैं। उन्होंने कहा, "चिनाब, ज़ांस्कर और लेह क्षेत्रों में पिछले चार दशकों में कई हिमनदी झीलें विकसित हुई हैं और आकार में बढ़ रही हैं।" प्रोफ़ेसर रोमशू अनुशंसा करते हैं कि क्षेत्र और उपग्रह-आधारित अध्ययनों द्वारा इन झीलों की निरंतर निगरानी करना और इन बांध झीलों के फटने से जुड़े जोखिम का आकलन करना महत्वपूर्ण है ताकि मानव आवासों को समय पर अच्छी तरह से चेतावनी दी जा सके और क्षति को कम करने के लिए आवश्यक शमन उपाय शुरू किए जा सकें। उनके विस्फोट की स्थिति में। उन्होंने सिफारिश की कि जलविद्युत और अन्य नदी इंजीनियरिंग संरचनाओं को विशेष रूप से चिनाब घाटी में ग्लेशियर झीलों के फटने से जुड़े पानी और मलबे के विनाशकारी उछाल का सामना करने के लिए डिज़ाइन किया जाना चाहिए, जहाँ कई जलविद्युत परियोजनाएँ चल रही हैं। "चूंकि जलविद्युत परियोजनाओं के विकास में भारी वित्तीय निवेश की परिकल्पना की गई है, इसलिए परियोजनाओं के अपस्ट्रीम में सभी संभावित ग्लेशियर झील के विस्फोटों के जोखिमों और खतरों पर विचार करना आवश्यक है। राज्य में ग्लेशियल झीलों के टूटने के जोखिम का आकलन करना बहुत महत्वपूर्ण है और इसके कारण मानव आवासों और जलविद्युत और अन्य इंजीनियरिंग नदी संरचनाओं को होने वाले नुकसान का आकलन करना बहुत महत्वपूर्ण है ताकि इन खतरों के लिए व्यवहार्य शमन उपाय तत्काल किए जा सकें, "प्रो रोमशू कहा। 7 सितंबर, 2014 को, भारी वर्षा के बाद उच्च क्षेत्रों से पानी के बड़े पैमाने पर प्रवाह के कारण झेलम, चिनाब और तवी घाटियों में बाढ़ आ गई, जिससे जम्मू-कश्मीर में विनाशकारी बाढ़ आ गई। जनवरी 2015 में, कारगिल में ज़ांस्कर के फुटकल क्षेत्र में भूस्खलन के कारण एक कृत्रिम झील बनाई गई थी। विशेषज्ञों ने चेतावनी दी थी कि इस मुद्दे को हल करने में देरी से जांस्कर घाटी के निचले इलाकों में "भयावह अचानक बाढ़" आ सकती है। दो महीने बाद, राष्ट्रीय आपदा प्रबंधन प्राधिकरण की एक उच्च स्तरीय टीम ने जमा पानी को निकालने के लिए एक चैनल बनाया, लेकिन कोई फायदा नहीं हुआ। 7 मई, 2015 को, कृत्रिम झील के फटने से अचानक बाढ़ आ गई जिससे कई पुल बह गए और घरों को व्यापक नुकसान हुआ। तीन मिलियन भारतीय उन क्षेत्रों में रहते हैं जहां किसी भी समय जीएलओएफ हो सकता है, ऐसे क्षेत्रों का पहला वैश्विक मूल्यांकन विश्व स्तर पर पाया गया है, 30 देशों में 90 मिलियन लोग ग्लेशियल झीलों वाले 1089 घाटियों में रहते हैं। इनमें से 1.5 करोड़ (16.6 फीसदी) हिमनदी झील के 50 किमी के दायरे में रहते हैं, जैसा कि 7 फरवरी, 2023 को नेचर कम्युनिकेशंस में प्रकाशित नए अध्ययन में कहा गया है। इसमें कहा गया है कि विश्व स्तर पर उजागर आबादी का अधिकांश हिस्सा 9.3 मिलियन (62 प्रतिशत) उच्च पर्वतीय एशिया (HMA) के क्षेत्र में स्थित है। भारत, पाकिस्तान, पेरू और चीन वैश्विक स्तर पर जीएलओएफ से प्रभावित आबादी के 50 प्रतिशत से अधिक के लिए जिम्मेदार हैं। सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एनवायरनमेंट एंड डाउन टू अर्थ स्टेट ऑफ इंडियाज एनवायरनमेंट 2022 के अनुसार, यहां भारत, चीन और नेपाल में जल प्रसार क्षेत्र में 40 प्रतिशत की वृद्धि हुई है, जो जम्मू-कश्मीर सहित सात भारतीय राज्यों और केंद्र शासित प्रदेशों के लिए एक बड़ा खतरा है। लद्दाख, हिमाचल प्रदेश, सिक्किम, असम और अरुणाचल प्रदेश। उत्तराखंड के केदारनाथ क्षेत्र में, 16 जून, 2013 को भारी बारिश, बादल फटने और चोराबाड़ी झील के फटने के कारण अनुमानित 5700 लोगों की मौत हुई, जिनमें ज्यादातर तीर्थयात्री थे। 7 फरवरी, 2021 को, उत्तराखंड के चमोली जिले के जोशीमठ में नंदा देवी ग्लेशियर का एक हिस्सा टूट गया, जिसमें कम से कम सात लोगों की मौत हो गई और लगभग 150 लापता हो गए और मरने की आशंका है। देहरादून से लगभग 300 किमी उत्तर में नैना देवी राष्ट्रीय उद्यान के पास अचानक आई बाढ़ से दो पनबिजली परियोजनाएँ क्षतिग्रस्त हो गईं। जम्मू-कश्मीर सरकार ने जलवायु परिवर्तन पर एक कार्य योजना तैयार की है जिसमें अनुकूलन और शमन दोनों चिंताओं को दूर करने के लिए संस्थागत संरचना के साथ उपायों की सिफारिश की गई है, जिसका उद्देश्य स्थानीय कमजोरियों की स्थितियों को ध्यान में रखते हुए क्षेत्रों के लचीलेपन और जलवायु प्रमाण को बढ़ाना है।

• Solid Waste Management and Circular Economy

CSE’s roadmap can address the challenges faced by Bio-CNG in India

CSE worked closely with the Ministry of Jal Shakti & identified the opportunities that can be tapped to realise the potential of organic waste in the country Sometimes, Asia’s largest paddy straw-based CBG plant also ends up burning as high as 10 per cent of the gas produced due to limited offtake of gas. Representative photo: iStock. Sometimes, Asia’s largest paddy straw-based CBG plant also ends up burning as high as 10 per cent of the gas produced due to limited offtake of gas. Representative photo: iStock. The latest budget has earmarked Rs 10,000 crore under the GOBAR-Dhan scheme for setting up 500 new ‘waste to wealth’ plants to accelerate India’s clean energy transition. Some 200 compressed bio-gas (CBG) plants and 300 community and cluster-based plants are on the anvil. Bio-CNG, also known as Compressed Biogas (CBG), is an upgraded version of biogas. When purified up to 98 per cent, it is suitable to be used as a green fuel for transportation or filling of cylinders. The process relies on high pressure and hence is called CBG. The technology can provide clean energy and can deal with air pollution at three levels by trimming methane emissions, waste burning and fossil fuel-powered automobiles. However, there are critical challenges that need to be addressed as we move ahead. Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), a Delhi-based non-profit, worked closely with the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation (DDWS) of the Ministry of Jal Shakti to create a roadmap for establishing circularity in waste management across the country. The working group, led by CSE, consulted multiple stakeholders to understand the issues faced by the plant operators engaged in the production of CBG. Some of the key issues that were identified were as follows: Existing and functional biogas plants are challenged with an inconsistent supply of feedstock, leading to underutilisation of the facility. Limited offtake of produced biogas. Limited market for fermented organic manure, especially in the local market. For instance, Asia’s largest paddy straw-based CBG plant in Sangrur, Punjab, is owned and operated by Verbio — Germany’s leading bio-energy company. The plant requires a feedstock of 350 tonnes per day (TPD) and has the design capacity to produce 33 TPD of biogas. The farmers are the primary source of the feedstock and Verbio clears agricultural plots after harvest without charging the farmers. However, there are biomass aggregators in the region who charge as high as Rs 3,000 per acre of land. Hence, most farmers in the catchment area are not interested in clearing their farms by paying the price and they rely on stubble burning. Verbio plant has to spend between Rs 3,500 and Rs 4,500 per tonne of feedstock for collection, storage and protection of the feedstock. Revenue for the plant is sourced from the offtake of biogas and fermented organic manure (FOM), as well as carbon credits. The commercial partner for the offtake of biogas is Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. The 33 TPD plant is currently operating at a 5 TPD capacity, mainly due to limited feedstock availability and deficient offtake of the gas produced. Sometimes the plant also ends up flaring (burning) as high as 10 per cent of the gas produced due to limited offtake of gas. The gas is transported roughly 100 km away using the plant’s own trucks and cascades for transporting and storing the gas. In addition, the offtake of the FOM is severely limited due to the high moisture content and an imbalanced carbon-to-nitrogen (C:N) ratio, which stems from the high carbon content of the feedstock. There are no standards for the carbon-rich FOM generated by the plant, restricting the offtake of a co-product and thus reducing economic viability, said Ashish Kumar, managing director of Verbio in a consultation organised by CSE and the Ministry of Jal Shakti. WAY FORWARD The roadmap developed by CSE identified the opportunities that can be tapped to realise the potential of organic waste in the country. Some of the identified opportunities are listed below: Using an inventory of agri-residue and animal waste to practically predict the design capacity of the bio-methanation plant and create an enabling environment for the private entities Optimise the Sustainable Alternatives Towards Affordable Transporation scheme, MNRE Policy and GOBAR-Dhan scheme to increase the offtake of biogas and fermented organic manure at the local and national markets. The roadmap also suggested some recommendations for state and the Centre governments. It suggested the rural development department of the states to ensure the capacity building of elected and appointed functionaries to promote bio-methanation and create an enabling environment. The department can also adopt the public-private partnership (PPP) model to set up a bio-methanation plant and support the private operator with local data on feedstock supply at the commissioning and planning stage. The document suggested the department to encourage panchayats and local governments to partner with self-help groups/farmers cooperatives/milk unions/diaries/cattle farms with a formalised agreement to ensure the feedstock supply to the plant. It is to be ensured that the farmers do not have to pay to get their land cleared of stubble. This will ensure the availability of feedstock for the biogas plants. State rural development departments, in consultation with the department of transport, need to identify and explore the local market for the offtake of biogas for use in local vehicles through flexible registration policies and subsidies. The department needs to engage with farmers cooperatives and fertiliser outlets to promote the offtake of bio-fertiliser as a by-product from the bio methanation plant, the roadmap recommended. In addition to this, CSE suggested that the challenges can be overcome by coordinating various ministries at the Centre. The challenges identified cannot be dealt with by a single ministry in the country. There are a lot of cross-cutting issues due to the variety of stakeholders involved in the entire value chain covering the farm-to-fuel cycle. The roadmap recommended the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare (MoAFW), Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG) and Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MoNRE) to issue an advisory to all the states to create an enabling environment for offtake and marketing of biogas and FOM with special focus on the local market. MoAFW will have to develop standards for FOM derived from plants operating on different kinds of feedstock, for instance, agri-residue or municipal solid waste. MoNRE and MoPNG need to document and share the best practices on the offtake of biogas and FOM with an advisory to address the current challenges associated with the same. MoAFW should review the current scope of market development assistance to promote carbon-rich FOM in agriculture, the document suggested.

• Industrial Pollution

Industries In Delhi-NCR Shifting To Cleaner Fuels Such As PNG And Biomass, Supply And Cost Still A Challenge, Says CSE's New Study

Industries in Delhi-NCR are beginning to move towards using cleaner fuels – finds a new assessment done by Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) studying two major industrial areas in the region in Alwar district of Rajasthan. The welcome shift follows a Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) order for industries in Delhi-NCR to shift towards cleaner fuels such as PNG, biomass etc.

• Renewable Energy

Modi’s LPG subsidy programme is not as big a success as the finance minister suggests

Around 9.6% of beneficiaries took no cooking gas refills, 11.3% took only one refill and 56.5% took four or fewer refills in 2021-’22. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, while presenting the 2023-2024 budget, on February 1, said that 9.6 crore liquefied petroleum gas or cooking gas connections were provided under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana. More than 9.58 crore gas connections have been released under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana scheme, as of February 2, data from the official Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana website show. However, 9.6% of beneficiaries took no cooking gas refills, 11.3% took only one refill and 56.5% took four or fewer refills in 2021-’22, according to data provided in the Lok Sabha in July and data from a response given in the Rajya Sabha on August 1. A typical household using only liquefied petroleum gas for cooking, whether in urban or rural India, would need at least seven cylinders a year to meet all its cooking energy needs, a 2020 study by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water, a Delhi-based think tank, had found. The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, in May 2016, launched the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana as a “flagship scheme with an aim to make clean cooking fuel, such as liquefied petroleum gas, accessible to rural households, which were otherwise using traditional cooking fuels such as firewood, coal, cow-dung cakes etc”. The target was 8 crore liquefied petroleum gas connections to poor households by March 2020. The government said that the target was met on September 7, 2019. In 2021, the government launched Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana 2.0 to cover an additional 1 crore households with a special focus on migrant households. The target was achieved in January 2022, as per a Lok Sabha response on February 2, along with an additional target of 60 lakh connections. From May 21, 2022, the government announced a Rs 200 subsidy per 14.2 kg cylinder for Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana beneficiaries, for up to 12 refills a year during 2022-’23, as per the December 2022 Rajya Sabha response. Advertisement Budget allocation The budget allocation for “liquefied petroleum gas connection to Poor Households” in the 2023-’24 Union budget is Rs 0.01 crore, a drop of 99.99% compared to the budget estimate of Rs 800 crore and revised estimates of Rs 8,010 crore in 2022-’23. The budget for the Direct Benefit Transfer as a subsidy to households for purchasing refills remained unchanged at Rs 180 crore, compared to the revised estimates of 2022-’23 while it dropped by 95.5% as compared to the Rs 4,000 crore budget estimate of 2022-’23. When FactChecker asked if the scheme had been disbanded, Pardeep Kumar, from the Marketing Division of Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, clarified that the scheme is operational but refused to comment on the reasons for the fall in allocation. FactChecker has also reached out to Sitharaman’s office, Pankaj Jain, secretary, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and Praveen Mal Khanooja, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas via phone and email for clarifications and comment on the lack of refills at the consumer end and the drop in the budget for the scheme. We will update the story when we receive a response. Credit: FactChecker Fewer cylinder refills The main reason for fewer cylinder refills is due to the high cost of refilling them. When Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana was launched in May 2016, the price of a standard non-subsidised 14.2 kg liquefied petroleum gas cylinder in Delhi was Rs 527.5. This had doubled to Rs 1,053 by July 2022, FactChecker had reported in October. The prices of liquefied petroleum gas have remained unchanged since July. Advertisement Most beneficiaries IndiaSpend Hindi interviewed in January said that they didn’t have enough money to refill cylinders. When asked the reason for not refilling their gas cylinders, Sukhnand Kumar from Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh said, “What do we do, we are daily wage labourers, we are unable to fill it.” “Direct benefit transfer rules require people to first refill their cylinders before receiving a subsidy. It is difficult for poor families to get the cylinder refilled from their own pocket and to wait for the subsidy amount in the future,” Binit Das, Deputy Programme Manager for renewable energy at the Centre for Science and Environment, a New Delhi-based research and advocacy think tank had told FactChecker in October. “It is better that the government spend the subsidy in advance than place the economic burden of clean fuel on the poor.” “The challenge with maintaining access to liquefied petroleum gas is because oil prices have become unaffordable at this point,” Bhargav Krishna, Fellow at the Centre for Policy Research, a public policy think-tank based in Delhi, told FactChecker. “The scheme is dependent on states to find innovative financing mechanisms to be able to provide for running this but I don’t think states are keen either.” “The prices of petroleum products in the country are linked to the price of respective products in the international market,” Rameswar Teli, minister of state in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, had told the Rajya Sabha in July 2022. India imports about 58% of the liquefied petroleum gas consumed domestically. liquefied petroleum gas prices are based on the Saudi Contract Prices which had surged by 218% – from $236 per metric tonne in April 2020 to $750 per metric tonne in June 2022, according to his response. Advertisement “While there have been substantial increases in commitment to adjacent sectors such as transport, the almost total phase out of subsidies for liquefied petroleum gas signal an end to the initially ground-breaking Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana,” Krishna wrote in Centre for Policy Research’s blog on the Union Budget 2023-’24. “The lack of subsidies, coupled with the substantial increase in prices of liquefied petroleum gas over the last year will almost certainly mean more households will revert to using polluting cooking fuels in their homes, harming the health especially of women and children.”

• Industrial Pollution

‘Industries in Delhi-NCR shift towards green fuel’

Industries in Delhi-NCR are beginning to move towards using cleaner fuels, a new assessment done by Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) of two major industrial areas in Alwar district of Rajasthan has found. However, limited PNG availability and its soaring price are making it difficult for them to go greener and new particulate emission standards are being overlooked by industries firing biomass, states CSE. The study has surveyed and analysed the pattern of fuel shift, changes and tentative costs required for making this shift, challenges faced by industries for shifting towards cleaner fuels and the strategies they adopt to combat them. CSE has done in-depth assessment of two industrial areas — Matsya Industrial Area and Bhiwadi. Nivit Kumar Yadav, programme director, industrial pollution, CSE, said, “Though these industries are changing their fuels, a few significant points need to be kept in mind to make cleaner fuel usage a sustainable option — these include the issue of PNG availability, its soaring prices and the challenge of meeting new PM emission norms using biomass as a fuel.” Yadav, “But our study found that industries are not making enough efforts to mitigate PM emissions. Bag filters or electrostatic precipitators can bring down emissions below 50 mg/Nm3 – but only one out of 15 surveyed biomass-firing industries has a bag filter.”

• Clean Air & Sustainable Mobility

Survey to map sources of pollution at Anand Vihar

New Delhi: Pollution levels at Anand Vihar in east Delhi -- a hotspot for PM 2.5 and PM 10 particulate matter in the Capital -- have improved significantly year-on-year after key interventions by the environment department in November 2022 to map pollution sources in the area, a field survey has revealed. Officials said the department is set to launch a second such survey to assess how effective the on-ground action has been, and to ascertain how many pollution sources still remain. The department in November 2022 had launched an exercise to map and crack down on sources of pollution, including unpaved roads, diesel generator sets, potholes, garbage heaps, road dust and construction sites. Officials said the 470 “point sources” were identified in a 5-km radius from the Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Station (CAAQMS) at Anand Vihar. A point source of pollution is a specific area or stretch in the pollution hotspot, which could contribute to the local pollution in some form. “We used field surveys to record all micro-level sources which could be as small as a pothole or a heap of debris to a full-fledged construction site. However, within construction sites too, we identified several sources and each source was mapped with a geo-coordinate,” said an official on condition of anonymity, adding that Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) teams were then asked to either fix these sources, to remove them, or to ensure sprinkling of water to reduce localised emissions. “The second survey will give us a clearer picture on what has changed on the ground and how many sources have been fixed so far. We will also try to derive a correlation with on-ground action and the reduction in pollution levels beyond meteorological factors.” the official added. The official said that based on the success of this pilot project, a similar inventorisation of other point sources of pollution will take place across other pollution hotspots in Delhi. Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy at the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), said while it is important to have a city-wide action plan, it is equally important to have hyperlocal plans, which can pave way for improvement in air quality in a defined area. “If we act on specific local sources, then people’s exposure to localised pollution gets reduced. Each hotspot and neighbourhood of Delhi will have very different sources and if this approach is successful, then we can scale this up too,” she said.

• Clean Air & Sustainable Mobility

Crackdown on 5 million end-of-life vehicles in Delhi kicks off

New Delhi Around 5 million vehicles which were deregistered in Delhi between January and October 2022 are on the radar of the state transport department, with enforcement teams impounding around 250 such vehicles over the past three days, officials aware of the development said on Thursday. No vehicle which is 15 years old can operate on the roads of the national capital, according to orders issued by the National Green Tribunal (2015) and the Supreme Court (2018). For diesel vehicles, this time period is cut down to 10 years only. The government calls such vehicles “end-of-Iife” vehicles, and driving them in Delhi is illegal. The aim behind these rules is to cut down on the number of vehicles on the city’s roads with dated emission standards. A transport enforcement official said that earlier this week, 80 teams were formed. These teams have been deployed in different parts of the city -- especially on roads which witness heavy traffic and at petrol pumps -- to check for deregistered vehicles plying against the rules, and to impound and send them for scrapping. The official said that the special enforcement drive has been undertaken in light of the G20-related meetings in the city, starting from March till the summit meeting in September. A second official said overage vehicles are identified by model, condition, and on the basis of their registration number. “Some of them turn out to be deregistered, and are then impounded,” the official said. Transport commissioner Ashish Kundra said the drive against overage vehicles will be intensified over the next few days. “Overage vehicles make a huge contribution to air pollution. A drive against such vehicles is an important step towards combating air pollution. I urge all owners of overage vehicles to scrap their vehicles. We have six currently functional scrappers, the list of which is available on the website of the Delhi transport department. Even overage vehicles which are illegally parked in the streets will be impounded by the enforcement teams,” said Kundra. From a legal standpoint, deregistration immobilises vehicles and ensures that they cannot be lawfully used. “Deregistered vehicles cannot be sold and the insurance of such vehicles cannot be purchased. Using such vehicles becomes illegal and they can be impounded,” said an official. HT had in October last year reported that the transport department had deregistered 5,338,045 vehicles between January 2018 and October 2022, of which 4,698,391 were petrol-run, 415,362 had diesel engines, and 41,311 ran on CNG. Vehicular emissions contribute around 9% of the PM10 load and around 20% of the PM2.5 load in Delhi, according to a 2016 study by Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur. Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director (research and advocacy) at Centre for Science and Environment, said, “It is necessary to replace overage and highly polluting vehicles with cleaner and zero-emission vehicles to reduce toxic exposure.”