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With 6 more AQI monitoring stations, Delhi tops all cities, but experts wary

With Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta inaugurating six more Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations (CAAQMS) on Monday, the Capital’s air quality monitoring network now stands at 46 — the highest for any city in the country. The monitoring network, despite its density, however, remains unevenly distributed, with a heavy concentration in the central and southern parts of the city, according to experts. The six new stations — inaugurated digitally by the CM from the Delhi Secretariat — have been set up at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), Talkatora Garden, Commonwealth Sports Complex, Delhi Cantonment and Netaji Subhas University of Technology (West Campus). Most of these are located in the South, South West, Central and New Delhi districts (see box). Of the 46 monitoring stations currently operational in the Capital, 30 are operated by the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), 10 by the India Meteorological Department and Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Pune, and six by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). Another 14 stations are set to come up in the city, said the CM. “We aim to ensure that for every 25 sq km area in Delhi, there is at least one air quality monitoring station so that we get complete and accurate data on pollution levels and their sources,” she said The Chief Minister added that the expansion would ensure coverage of residential areas, industrial zones, traffic corridors and green belts. Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said the locations were decided by the previous AAP government and that the current administration had followed directions issued by the CPCB while expanding the network. However, an analysis published last year by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) pointed out that while Delhi has one of the densest monitoring networks in the country, its spatial distribution remains skewed. According to CSE, “nearly one-third of residents (31%) live within 2 km of a station”. The analysis had also found that of the total area of Delhi, about 75% lies within 5 km radius of an air quality station, indicating that it leaves large peripheral districts in “data shadows”, where reliable information cannot be accumulated. These outer zones, the analysis noted, are home to rapidly expanding populations and face high exposure risks but remain poorly represented in the monitoring network.

Dead EV battery doesn't mark end of its utility, UN official tells PTI

Under India's existing EPR framework, gaps in enforcement were flagged in other waste streams by think tanks earlier. In 2024, a report by the Centre for Science and Environment flagged shortcomings in the implementation of plastic EPR rules, with the CPCB and state pollution control boards identifying about 7,00,000 recycling certificates that did not correspond to verified processing capacity.

Delhi plans 14 new air monitoring stations in 2026-27

After inaugurating six Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring System (CAAQMS) stations in the city on Monday — taking the total to 46 — Delhi govt plans to install 14 more in the next financial year. The aim is to ensure at least one every 25 square km, officials said, adding, they are assessing areas to install the 14 stations. Moreover, 10 new stations in UP, seven in Haryana and four in Rajasthan are in the process of being set up, Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) said. TOI had reported last Nov that the spread of the stations is uneven in DelhiNCR. Though the capital has the highest number of such stations among all Indian cities, their distribution is uneven, with very few in the southwest and northwest peripheries. The situation is no different in NCR cities, with 21 having just a station each. A report by Centre for Science and Environment last year found that the existing monitoring network covers only 26% of Delhi's area within a 2 km radius, leaving a 74% data shadow; and 75% within a 5 km radius, leaving a 25% shadow. This results in peripheral districts being under-served. The air quality monitoring framework in Delhi-NCR is being strengthened to ensure spatial coverage, improved data reliability and robust scientific assessment of air pollution across the region, CAQM said. "In addition to existing population-based norms for Delhi and contiguous cities of Ghaziabad, Noida, Greater Noida, Faridabad, Ghaziabad and Sonipat, norms have been framed for installation of approximately one station every 25 sq km, while other district headquarters and cities will have a station per 50 sq km. Coverage in periurban and suburban areas has been identified as critical for assessing inflow and outflow of pollution and understanding the impact of urban sprawl on regional air quality, " CAQM said. Based on this criteria, 46 additional stations — 16 in Haryana, 15 in UP, 14 in Delhi and one in Rajasthan — are required to strengthen the air quality monitoring infrastructure and to ensure comprehensive and uniform monitoring across Delhi-NCR. Once they are set up, Delhi-NCR will have a total of 157 stations.

ट्रैफिक की वजह से हर साल हजारों करोड़ का नुकसान; क्या 'कंजेशन प्राइसिंग' से सुलझेगी समस्या?

नीति निर्माताओं की सोच है कि हम रोड नेटवर्क का विस्तार करके जाम की समस्या से निपट सकते हैं, लेकिन यह सोच गलत साबित हो चुकी है। जाम की समस्या का समाधान एक मजबूत सार्वजनिक परिवहन में ही है, जो आखिरी छोर तक कनेक्टिविटी सुनिश्चित करे। - अनुमिता चौधरी कार्यकारी निदेशक, सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एनवायरनमेंट मेरे घर से ऑफिस की दूरी महज 9 किलोमीटर है। सुबह 9 बजे ऑफिस पहुंचने के लिए इस दूरी को तय करने में कम से 50 मिनट का समय लगता है और अगर बारिश हो जाए या फिर थोड़ा और जल्‍दी आना पड़ जाए तो यह समय बढ़कर सवा घंटे तक पहुंच जाता है। यह समस्‍या सिर्फ मेरी या मेरे कलीग्‍स की नहीं है; यह समस्‍या दिल्‍ली-मुंबई और बेंगलुरु समेत बड़े शहरों में रहने वाले सभी लोगों की है। दिल्ली, मुंबई, बेंगलुरु जैसे मेट्रो शहर हों या लखनऊ जैसे टियर-2 शहर, घंटो जाम और सुस्त ट्रैफिक इन शहरों की साझा पहचान बन गया है। छोटे शहरों में भी हालात बहुत अलग नहीं हैं। लोग रुके हुए शहर में सुस्त गति से जीवन जीने के लिए मजबूर हैं। हाल में जारी किए गए इकोनामिक सर्वे में कहा गया है कि परिवहन शहरों की रक्तधारा, रीढ़ और मांसपेशियां है, जो लोगों, वस्तुओं और विचारों के प्रवाह को आगे बढ़ाता है। अगर यह तंत्र कमजोर होता है तो ट्रैफिक जाम, प्रदूषण और उत्पादकता में गिरावट शहरों की नियति बन जाते हैं। एक अध्ययन के अनुसार, दिल्ली में एक अकुशल कामगार जाम की वजह से सालाना 19,600 रुपये का नुकसान उठाता है। कुशल कामगार के लिए यह नुकसान बढ़कर सालाना 26,000 रुपये हो जाता है। एक और अध्ययन बताता है कि देश के प्रमुख चार मेट्रो शहर जाम की वजह से सालाना अरबों डॉलर गंवा रहे हैं। अगर इस अनुमान को राष्ट्रीय स्तर पर लागू किया जाए तो आसानी से अंदाजा लगाया जा सकता है कि इससे देश की आर्थिक वृद्धि दर किस हद तक प्रभावित हो रही है। ट्रैफिक जाम का क्‍या हो रहा असर? ट्रैफिक जाम का असर सिर्फ देर से ऑफिस पहुंचने तक सीमित नहीं है। इससे ईंधन की बर्बादी होती है, प्रदूषण बढ़ता है और लोगों की सेहत पर भी असर पड़ता है। इकोनामिक सर्वे में बताए गए अलग-अलग अध्ययनों के मुताबिक, एक अकुशल कामगार को जाम की वजह से हर साल हजारों रुपये का नुकसान होता है, वहीं कुशल और उच्च कुशल कामगार का नुकसान इससे भी ज्यादा है। बेंगलुरु में ही एक अध्ययन के अनुसार, ट्रैफिक जाम के कारण लाखों घंटे का उत्पादन खत्म हो जाता है, जिसकी कीमत अरबों रुपये में बैठती है। 19,600 का आर्थिक नुकसान उठाना पड़ता है दिल्ली में अकुशल कामगार को ट्रैफिक जाम के कारण प्रतिवर्ष 23,800 प्रतिवर्ष नुकसान उठाता है कुशल कामगार दिल्ली में ट्रैफिक जाम की वजह से 7.07 लाख उत्पादक घंटों का नुकसान उठा रहा है बेंगलुरु शहर प्रतिवर्ष, जाम के कारण लोगों के देर से ऑफिस पहुंचने के चलते 1,00,000 करोड़ से अधिक की आर्थिक चपत झेल रहा है बेंगलुरु उत्पादक घंटों की बर्बादी से 2,00,000 करोड़ से अधिक गंवा रहे हैं चार मेट्रो शहर दिल्ली, मुंबई, बेंगलुरु, कोलकाता ट्रैफिक जाम का अर्थव्यवस्था पर क्या पड़ेगा असर? अगर ट्रैफिक जाम को गंभीरता से नहीं लिया जाता है तो आने वाले सालों में आर्थिक नुकसान और बढ़ेगा। सर्व की रिपोर्ट में साफ कहा गया है कि शहर सिर्फ रहने की जगह नहीं, देश की आर्थिक रीढ़ हैं। अगर यही रीढ़ ट्रैफिक जाम में जकड़ी रही, तो भारत की ग्रोथ की रफ्तार भी धीमी पड़ सकती है। ट्रैफिक जाम का क्‍या है कारण? इस समस्या की जड़ में एक बड़ी वजह है- निजी गाड़ियों पर बढ़ती निर्भरता। शहरों की सड़कें लोगों की आवाजाही के बजाय गाड़ियों की पार्किंग बनती जा रही हैं। एक कार में अक्सर एक या दो लोग ही होते हैं, लेकिन वह सड़क की उतनी ही जगह घेरती है जितनी एक बस या कई दोपहिया वाहन। नतीजा यह कि सड़क की क्षमता का सही इस्तेमाल नहीं हो पाता और जाम बढ़ता जाता है। मजबूत पब्लिक ट्रांसपोर्ट में है समाधान इकोनामिक सर्वे साफ कहता है कि समाधान सड़कों को चौड़ा करने में नहीं, बल्कि पब्लिक ट्रांसपोर्ट को मजबूत करने में है। मेट्रो, बस, ई-बस, पैदल चलने और साइकिल जैसे विकल्प अगर सुरक्षित, सस्ते और भरोसेमंद हों, तो लोग खुद-ब-खुद निजी गाड़ियों से दूरी बनाएंगे। बेंगलुरु, दिल्ली जैसे शहरों में मेट्रो का विस्तार हुआ है, लेकिन बसों और आखिरी छोर तक कनेक्टिविटी की अब भी भारी कमी है। 60 बसें होनी चाहिए प्रति एक लाख लोगों पर केंद्रीय शहरी एवं आवास मंत्रालय के अनुसार 47,650 बसें ही सेवाएं दे रही हैं पूरे देश के शहरों में 60% बसें सिर्फ नौ बड़े शहरों में चल रहीं है देश में वर्तमान समय में इस समस्‍या पर एक्‍सपर्ट क्‍या कहते हैं? नीति निर्माताओं की सोच है कि हम रोड नेटवर्क का विस्तार करके जाम की समस्या से निपट सकते हैं, लेकिन यह सोच गलत साबित हो चुकी है। जाम की समस्या का समाधान एक मजबूत सार्वजनिक परिवहन में ही है, जो आखिरी छोर तक कनेक्टिविटी सुनिश्चित करे। - अनुमिता चौधरी कार्यकारी निदेशक, सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एनवायरनमेंट 'बेहतर शहरी जीवन के लिए हो प्लानिंग' सफल शहरों का अनुभव बताता है कि जब सड़कों को नागरिकों के लिए बनाया जाता है तो न सिर्फ जाम और प्रदूषण घटता है, बल्कि आर्थिक गतिविधियां बढ़ती हैं और जीवन बेहतर होता है। शहरी गतिशीलता का लक्ष्य गाड़ियों की रफ्तार नहीं, बेहतर जीवन होना चाहिए। - हितेष वैद्य, पूर्वनिदेशक, नेशनल इंस्टीट्यूट ऑफ अर्बन अफेयर्स

Why industry and city no longer need to live apart

Other concerns reported by Down to Earth magazine include the costs associated with the carbon capture and transport itself, as well as the slow deployment of the technology. History bears testament to company towns that have failed to catch up with changing economic winds. In Bihar’s Saran District, the quiet chimneys of C&E Morton India Limited confectionery factories and sugar and distillery mills at Marhowra paint a grim picture. Karnataka’s now exhausted Kolar Gold Fields (KGF), the first Indian city to be electrified in 1902 and once called mini-England, is now home to mounds of toxic residue locally termed as cyanide hills. While the causes of their obsolescence vary, the impact of industrial decay on both these company towns is rather similar. Industries become stranded assets when their licence to operate is revoked and their business formally terminated, either due to market forces in the case of Marhowra, by law due to violation of mineral rights in the case of KGF, or due to regulatory non-compliance. However, when an industry shuts down in a town that relies solely on its operations for its livelihood, its residents suffer. Marhowra and Kolar both send thousands of residents to their neighbouring cities of Patna and Bangalore, respectively, for jobs. Today, the modern equivalents of these cities operating as mono-industrial cities or belts face a new threat apart from land, labour, and capital constraints: that of an invisible Carbon Wall. High-carbon industries and cities built around them, without a pivot in tandem with global trade shifts desiring cleaner products, face the same stranded asset fate and a danger of obsolescence. With global trade barriers like the European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) now live and the January 27 FTA between India and the EU providing no exception to the mechanism, “dirty” production is now a double-edged sword; it is both an environmental and an economic concern. CBAM is the EU’s climate policy tool imposing a carbon charge on embedded emissions in imported goods. India is the EU’s largest steel importer and also a major source for cement and aluminium. With the CBAM’s definitive phase now live, the export of these materials could face carbon costs ranging from 3-8% of their value. In order to remain competitive in the EU, importers may even have to cut their ex-factory prices by 15-22% beyond the carbon tax, reported GTRI. Union Budget 2026-2027’s ₹20,000 Crore outlay for Carbon Capture, Utilisation, and Storage (CCUS) over the next five years offers a way to decarbonise these industries to ensure they stay afloat, without de-industrialising the cities they inhabit. By scrubbing emissions at source, CCUS technology outlay facilitates CO2 emission reduction of legacy industries and CO2-intensive sectors such as steel, cement, oil & gas, petrochemicals and chemicals, fertilisers. These sectors are critical to the growth of the Indian economy, and CCUS is currently the only known technology to decarbonise them. If implemented well, this technology not only has the potential to significantly decarbonise the country’s production output, but to also realign its urban landscape. With emissions being captured at source, industrial belts and cities would no longer have to be housed in isolation. CCUS technology allows high-emitting industries to continue operating near urban centres without the traditional levels of air pollution and carbon emissions. It thus has the potential to act as a shield of livability for the new City Economic Regions (CER) (with ₹5,000 crore backing per allocated region) outlined in the Union Budget’s strategy for urban revival through its increased focus on Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, and the simultaneous decongestion of the country’s Tier-1 cities. With adequate implementation, CCUS could scrub mono-industrial belts while turning them into high-tech, liveable urban landscapes. Industrial belts could decarbonise and survive, while cleaner and greener cities could thrive around them. The technology could also simultaneously create a carbon management economy and generate However, like most of India’s legacy industries, CCUS technology too comes with an energy penalty. The parasitic loop goes as such--for a typical coal-fired power plant, the CCUS system consumes about 20-30% of the plant’s power output. In the Indian context, where most legacy industries are heavily coal reliant, the reality is that using a coal plant to power a carbon capture unit results in burning more coal to obtain the same amount of clean energy, thus causing what is termed as a “fossil lock-in”. Pilots such as the NTPC’s Vindhyachal plant have demonstrated that the energy for CCUS is almost always parasitic in its early stages; i.e., that it is powered by coal. Critics have thus argued that CCUS might be yet another alternative to just keep India’s coal-heavy industries running as they are, without a much-needed push to switch to renewables. Other concerns reported by Down to Earth magazine include the costs associated with the carbon capture and transport itself, as well as the slow deployment of the technology. To avoid this thermodynamic trap, the policy must incentivise a shift to external, non-fossil power sources. The success of the ₹20,000 crore CCUS crore outlay outlined in this year’s budget depends on breaking the "fossil lock-in." If the CCUS units are powered by the existing coal-heavy grids instead of renewable alternatives, the process would ultimately create a circular trap where crores of rupees are spent to maintain a carbon-neutral status and remain competitive in global trade markets, without actually reducing the carbon footprint itself. By switching to renewable energy sources for the same and adopting mechanisms such as waste heat capture, India could also aim to achieve its 500GW renewable targets while moving closer to achieving net zero in the process of decoupling industrial cleanup from the coal grid. By providing legacy industries with the technology to thrive in a green global economy, the budget does aim for an industrial reset that does not de-industrialise. While historically, city, industry, and livability have been treated as a “zero-sum game”, the City Economic Region (CER) framework, supported by CCUS technology, offers a blueprint for a more holistic urban landscape. If executed well, this allows industrial hubs to be integrated into the heart of Tier 2 and 3 cities, instead of being relegated to their peripheries. By integrating decarbonisation technology with holistic urban planning, India’s industrial heartlands can avoid the "stranded asset" fate of the past and also become crucial nodes in the city’s metabolism. This article is authored by Aishwarya M, associate, research (urban), Centre for Public Policy Research (CPPR), Kochi.

BJP govt said Delhi logged 200 ‘clean’ days in 2025. So why did this winter feel this bad?

As Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director, Research and Advocacy at CSE, noted: “Rising pollution trends in December are indicative of two things. The first, which we all know, is that atmospheric conditions aggravate pollution levels. This was particularly evident this December, when we saw consistently high levels and a very dry month with no rain.” The BJP government says Delhi recorded nearly 200 days last year when the average Air Quality Index (AQI) stayed below 200 – considered “moderate” or better – about 15 percent more than the previous four years and broadly in line with National Clean Air Programme targets. But step outside during winter, and the numbers tell another story. In fact, December 2025 was the most toxic the city’s air has been in seven years, with a monthly average AQI of 351, according to an analysis of the Central Pollution Control Board’s data. The daily average AQI hovered above 300 on 27 days, and fell into the ‘severe’ category on five days. The air was at its worst on December 14, when AQI spiked to a hazardous 461. Even the “cleanest” day – Christmas – managed only 234, still firmly in the “poor” category. The trends reflect in PM2.5 and PM10 numbers too. This January, 17 days recorded AQI above 300, two days were “severe”, and only two days dipped below 200. In contrast, January 2025 had avoided the “severe” category altogether. The two-day severe spell lasted from January 17 to 19, with AQI peaking at 440 on January 18. Air quality improved slightly in the final week, largely due to rainfall. “If there was no rain in the last week of January, this January may have seen a record high average AQI,” Gufran Beig, founder of SAFAR and chair professor at NIAS, told The Times of India. Interestingly, a reply by Union environment minister Kirti Vardhan Singh in the Rajya Sabha maintained that Delhi had just eight ‘severe’ AQI days in 2025. Of these eight ‘severe’ AQI days, five fell in the month of December, as per CPCB records. But why this winter? Dr Mohan P George, a scientist and former additional director at the Delhi Pollution Control Committee, told Newslaundry that it could be an enforcement issue. “It seems that the action required to tackle pollution in Delhi itself has not been taken properly. We have seen biomass burning continue. There is construction-generated dust and resuspended road dust, but effective enforcement to control these sources is lacking. And then you have vehicular emissions – a constant every year. A few days of rain in January provided a brief respite.” “Meteorological factors are significant. However, I don’t think any major meteorological changes were observed this winter compared to previous winters. We did get some rain, although it came late in January,” he added. “For example, when I talk about biomass burning, we are among the greenest cities in the country, where municipal bodies regularly prune trees. After pruning, horticultural waste is dumped in parks or open areas, both assigned and non-assigned, and then most of it is collected and burned elsewhere. There is, of course, municipal solid waste, which isn't managed properly. Given how cold it has been this winter, people have also used these resources liberally for heating,” he said. Manoj Kumar, an analyst with the Centre for Research on Clean Air and Energy, also attributed the surge to an enforcement issue. “If you look at the DSS (Decision Support System developed by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology and Ministry of Earth Sciences) composition, it’s always the same major sources, only their contributions [to air pollution levels] vary. If you look at vehicular pollution, it’s consistently around 20 percent, ranking among the top two sources of air pollution. Meteorology is an influencing factor, but the question remains, why are these emissions happening in the first place?” he asked. Kumar cited the January 2026 report by the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), titled Report of the Air Quality Experts on Identification of the Causes for Worsening AQI in Delhi-NCR, which did a meta-analysis of all major pollution sources between 2015 and 2025. They reiterate the same major sources – vehicles at the top, followed by biomass burning, construction, and industry. “Year after year, industrial emission norms are not met. Also, there has been a rapid increase in vehicle registration this year, and I’m not talking about EVs,” said Kumar. According to recent research by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), local sources remain a major reason why this December was particularly bad. In their study, the think-tank argued that winter pollution in Delhi did not "dissipate" after stubble burning in neighbouring states, which occurs in October-November in Punjab, Haryana, and parts of Uttar Pradesh. In fact, they argue that it intensified. As Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director, Research and Advocacy at CSE, noted: “Rising pollution trends in December are indicative of two things. The first, which we all know, is that atmospheric conditions aggravate pollution levels. This was particularly evident this December, when we saw consistently high levels and a very dry month with no rain.” “More importantly, rising levels in December highlight the significant impact of local pollution sources. While the early winter (October and November) is influenced by stubble burning and smoke from farm fires, these external factors largely subside by December. Therefore, if pollution remains high, it points directly to internal sources within the city and the surrounding region – specifically vehicles, industry, and waste burning,” she adds. Local sources encountered a new factor in January: increased moisture. However, this had little impact on the deteriorating air quality. Despite 33 percent more rainfall than in January 2025, pollution levels remained high. As Roychowdhury explained, “A lot of these monthly variations are explained by the changes in their atmospheric conditions. This January saw some rain, and there was some immediate washout effect. However, the moment the rain stops, the pollution gets trapped again. Also, the added humidity from rain in cold conditions leads to condensation, which traps more pollution. It’s a vicious cycle. Only, consistent heavy rains get you some real respite.” So, what’s the way forward? To address these local pollution sources, Roychowdhury explains that seasonal enforcement measures are insufficient; instead, structural and systemic changes are required. “For instance, reducing vehicular pollution requires a massive transition to zero-emissions, meaning the electrification of the vehicle fleet must accelerate to eliminate tailpipe emissions. Simultaneously, we must upscale integrated public transport to curb the explosive growth of vehicles on the road. Similarly, waste burning can only be eliminated by achieving 100 percent collection, segregation, and material recovery, and by eliminating waste dumps, so that waste is not burnt in the open. Finally, the industrial sector must undergo an energy and technology transition to adopt clean fuels and processes,” she said. “Now, these kinds of solutions require infrastructure and system-level changes, and that demands upscaled action throughout the year. If you are trying only to sprinkle water during the winter, that is not going to solve this problem,” she added.

IHC Samanvay 2026 Concludes with Focus on Ecology, Heritage, and the Future

India Habitat Centre concluded IHC Samanvay 2026 – Celebrating Indian Languages on Sunday, bringing to a close three days of sustained dialogue, performance and reflection that foregrounded the deep relationship between India’s natural landscapes and its literary, cultural and artistic traditions. This year’s edition placed nature at the centre of inquiry, examining how mountains, rivers, deserts, forests and coastlines have shaped languages, belief systems, creative expression and community life across the subcontinent. Bringing together leading writers, scholars, conservationists, filmmakers, musicians and performers, IHC Samanvay 2026 unfolded as a multidisciplinary exploration of ecology as lived experience and cultural memory. Sharing his thoughts at the conclusion of the festival, Prof. (Dr.) K. G. Suresh, Director, India Habitat Centre, said, “As IHC Samanvay comes to a close, the deliberations and artistic expressions across these days reaffirm the profound interdependence between India’s linguistic traditions, cultural practices, and the ecological contexts in which they have evolved. This edition has consciously foregrounded ecology as both cultural memory and lived knowledge, reminding us that environmental responsibility is inseparable from intellectual and ethical inquiry. Through IHC Samanvay, India Habitat Centre seeks to sustain a reflective cultural space where ideas are examined with care, traditions are engaged with care, and dialogue contributes meaningfully to a more mindful and sustainable future.” Sharing her closing remarks, Vidyun Singh, Creative Head – Programmes, Habitat World, India Habitat Centre, said, “It has been a most satisfying Samanvay. Brilliant authors, speakers, and moderators were bookended by a fiery and rousing opening keynote address by environmentalist Sunita Narain and a closing session with the pioneering, award-winning environmental filmmaker Mike Pandey sharing his experiences. It was an awesome three days that covered the length and breadth of this blessed land, and underscored the importance of nurturing and conserving biodiversity—not just of our land, but of our planet Earth.” “Our hope is that the conversations we began here will carry forward beyond Samanvay, informing our homes, our work, and everyday choices,” she added.

Budget 2026: India needs urban governance, not big transport assets

he Union Budget 2026 signals a clear recognition that India’s growth will be anchored in its cities. Infrastructure outlay remains high at ₹12.2 trillion. The government has announced seven high-speed rail corridors, continued metro expansion, and a new push for “city economic regions.” Yet one dimension of urban infrastructure remains underweighted: mobility within cities. The Economic Survey 2025-26 describes transport as the “bloodstream, spine and muscles” of urban economies. The description is apt. Urban mobility shapes productivity, wages, and competitiveness. Long commutes are not a lifestyle inconvenience. They are an economic tax. The Centre for Science and Environment estimates that congestion costs an unskilled worker in Delhi up to ₹19,600 a year and a skilled worker about ₹26,000. These losses fall directly on disposable income at a time when urban housing and transport costs are rising. Bengaluru alone lost an estimated 700,000 productive hours to traffic delays in 2018, according to the Institute for Social and Economic Change. A joint Uber–Boston Consulting Group report puts the annual congestion cost of India’s four largest metros at $22 billion. The TomTom Traffic Index continues to rank Bengaluru among the world’s most congested cities, with Kolkata and Pune among the slowest. India has built urban transport assets at a pace unthinkable two decades ago. The visual transformation is undeniable. But rail-based systems cannot resolve mobility when the surrounding ecosystem remains tilted towards private vehicles.

As climate crisis grows, Nepal’s villages look to nature for answers

In India, more than 4,000 deaths were linked to extreme weather in the first nine months of 2025 – a 48% increase over the previous four years – according to a report by the Centre for Science and Environment, a Delhi-based think-tank. In a drought-stricken village in mid-eastern Nepal, rainwater collected from a rooftop has become a lifeline. At a typical three-story house in Bhadaure, pipes channel runoff into two artificial ponds built below the courtyard. One is used for household needs, the other for crops and cattle. The ponds serve as a last-resort water source for families struggling through prolonged dry spells. At an altitude of 1,300 meters (4,265 feet), such improvised systems are a necessity for many residents amid the deepening water crisis. “For us water is like nectar,” said Nanga Bahadur Ale, 62, pointing towards the rainwater harvesting system installed at his house. “It’s not sure how long these measures will keep us alive.” Like many others in this remote corner of Okhaldhunga district, Ale installed the system after years of worsening drought. Scores of households and towns have followed suit, turning to rainwater harvesting, trenches and small irrigation ponds to keep the soil moist and sustain crops. In some villages, solar-powered pumps lift water from nearby rivers to higher ground. Even so, many communities say the measures are only temporary fixes as water sources continue to evaporate. While nature-based solutions have eased the crisis, the situation remains worrying. Wealthy locals from Ale’s village and the surrounding area have already left, migrating to lowland areas where water is more accessible. Those who can afford to rebuild their lives elsewhere are departing the hills, leaving behind the poorest residents and those tied to traditional farming. Villages are emptying faster than expected. When the rains stop, women spend two to three hours collecting a vessel of water from the nearest water source. Some spend day and night around water sources during the dry season, as quenching the thirst of humans or cattle becomes the most urgent task. Locals say the crisis has deep roots. Decades ago, natural ponds once dotted the hills above the settlements. Over time, forests were cleared and ponds were filled in to build houses, while farmland expanded to cultivate millet and maize in the rainy season. Rising temperatures in recent years have compounded the damage, drying up springs, reducing crop yields and threatening the livelihood of people reliant on traditional farming. Looming climate crisis goes beyond drought Bhadaure is just one example. Drought is affecting nearly every part of Nepal, from the high Himalayas to the southern plains bordering India. At the height of the 2025 monsoon season, the government declared a drought emergency in Madhesh, the country’s agricultural heartland known as the grain basket. At the same time, other climate-driven disasters are intensifying across the region. Glacial lake outbursts, landslides, floods and wildfires are becoming more frequent, reshaping life in the mountainous nation of about 30 million people. Nepal lies within the Hindu Kush Himalayan range, one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable regions. Scientists say warming temperatures are also accelerating glacier melt and increasing the risk of sudden floods. A glacial lake outburst flood is a sudden and often catastrophic release of water from a lake held back by ice, rock or loose sediment near a glacier. The natural dam can fail due to avalanches, heavy rainfall, rapid glacier melt or earthquakes. When it collapses, a powerful surge of water and debris can race downstream, sometimes traveling more than 100 kilometers (62 miles), destroying settlements, roads and infrastructure along the way. Between August 2024 and July 2025, Nepal experienced at least three supra-glacial lake outbursts in the Everest region, Humla and Rasuwa. One flood swept through the village of Thame in the Khumbu region, destroying homes in a community known for producing many of the world’s leading mountaineers. The ancient village of Til in Humla is facing an existential crisis ever since the glacial lake outburst swept away the surrounding area. In Rasuwa, a flood triggered by a supra-glacial lake destroyed Nepal-China friendship bridges, customs offices and local markets. Some Chinese nationals were reportedly swept downstream into Indian territory. When a risk mapping exercise was conducted in 2020, these lakes were not categorized as potentially dangerous. Still, the outbursts caused heavy losses downstream, claimed lives and disrupted links with China for months. Scientists say the devastation caused by the outburst of a previously overlooked glacial lake points to even greater risks ahead. A joint assessment by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development and the United Nations identified 47 glacial lakes in the Hindu Kush Himalayas as potentially dangerous. Of those, 21 are in Nepal, 25 in China and one in India. Researchers are now calling for updated risk mapping across the Himalayan region. Nepal has already lowered water levels in two glacial lakes – Imja and Tsho Rolpa – and plans to do the same at four others: Thulagi, Hongu 2, Lower Barun and Lumding Tsho. Officials say each project requires millions of dollars. But Nepal is struggling to secure the funds. Meanwhile, potential outbursts have left downstream communities living under constant threat. The government and its partners are seeking financing from the Green Climate Fund to reduce water levels in high-altitude lakes and prevent future disasters. “It’s hard to estimate the loss in downstream areas. So, we are preparing to lower down four glacial lakes after securing the fund from GCF,” said Deepak KC, a climate scientist working in lake lowering projects. “Keeping the Himalayan region safe from climate catastrophe is a huge challenge.” Impact at ground zero Across South Asia, communities are on the front line of climate-driven disasters. In Nepal, at least 250 people die in climate-related disasters each year, with more than 70,000 directly affected, according to the Climate Risk Index. Annual economic losses are estimated at $221.3 million. Pakistan faced even heavier losses during last year’s monsoon season. According to Plan International, climate-related disasters killed more than 1,000 people, injured 1,100, damaged over 12,500 homes and destroyed nearly 240 bridges. Rising temperatures are accelerating ice melt across the Himalayas, increasing risks for downstream countries such as Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. In India, more than 4,000 deaths were linked to extreme weather in the first nine months of 2025 – a 48% increase over the previous four years – according to a report by the Centre for Science and Environment, a Delhi-based think-tank. For communities already struggling with water shortages, the growing frequency of disasters is making daily life even harder. “Getting water, especially in the dry season, is too difficult. We have to wait for hours and carry water even for cattle,” said local resident Balram Katwal. “How can locals do that when one has to spend the whole day collecting a vessel of water from far-flung water resources?”

Union Budget 2026-27 & the Environment and Energy sector

Trishant Dev, Deputy Programme Manager, Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) Duty exemptions for lithium-ion cell manufacturing and solar glass inputs frame India’s energy transition within a broader push for industrial competitiveness and resilient supply chains, supporting domestic production of critical inputs and access to key minerals. Sehr Raheja, Programme Officer, CSE The Budget’s focus on critical minerals—through duty exemptions and Rare Earth Corridors—signals growing emphasis on supply chain security and domestic value addition, both critical for green industrialisation and the energy transition.

Need to learn from ancient traditions of resource utilisation, conservation: Sunita Narain

Noted environmentalist Sunita Narain says ancient Indian traditions of water harvesting, food diversity, and agriculture are required in present times to address contemporary environmental challenges. Narain, who was delivering the keynote address at IHC Samanvay at India Habitat Centre on Friday, spoke at length about India’s ecological traditions, restraint, reverence for nature and ethical responsibilities that accompany development. “Why in these very troubled times that we are living in, it's so important for us to rethink the way we are doing development. What do we know about the knowledge, what do we know about the way we are moving ahead and how is it that we can learn both from the extraordinary traditions that we've had but more importantly we have to learn from the principles that drove those traditions,” Narain said.

Reviving Ancient Traditions: The Key to Modern Environmental Challenges

Sunita Narain, a distinguished environmentalist, advocates for the revival of ancient Indian traditions like water harvesting and food diversity to address current environmental issues. Speaking at the IHC Samanvay at the India Habitat Centre, Narain emphasized the need to redefine development by drawing from India's ecological past. Narain criticized the superficial celebration of traditions through rituals, such as religious dips in polluted rivers and excessive fireworks during festivals. She called for a rational approach, stressing that genuine culture evolves from principles of humanity and rationality. Highlighting historical water management practices, Narain noted how colonial influences disrupted localized systems, leading to environmental degradation. She urged the return to cooperative, community-driven traditions to ensure sustainable water management and environmental stewardship.

IHC Samanvay 2026 Opens with Reflections on Ecology, Culture, and Responsibility

The keynote address was delivered by Sunita Narain, eminent environmental thinker and author, in a keynote titled “Walking Lightly on the Planet Learning from Ecological Traditions to Build a Sustainable Future”. Drawing from India’s ecological traditions, she spoke of restraint, reverence for nature, and the ethical responsibilities that accompany development. Her address underscored the urgency of re-engaging with inherited knowledge systems to address contemporary environmental challenges. Addressing the audience, Sunita Narain said, “To understand India’s traditions of water conservation, we must first understand the language through which this knowledge was shaped and transmitted. Ecological wisdom in India is embedded in words, practices, and collective memory, and revisiting these traditions has become essential in an era of deepening water scarcity.”