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Winter in the air: AQI in Delhi slumps to 'very poor' first time this season

NEW DELHI: Delhi's air quality deteriorated as it entered the "very poor" category for the first time this season. The overall air quality index (AQI) of the city was 303 on Tuesday as against 281 in the "poor" category on Monday. Experts said the contribution of stubble burning to Delhi's PM2.5 was less due to wind direction, but meteorological factors and local sources of pollution affected the air quality. With winter setting in, calm wind conditions, shallow mixing layer height and low temperature have caused accumulation of pollutants. The minimum temperature was recorded at 14oC on Tuesday and low temperature slows the dispersion of pollution. Before this, the highest AQI of the season was recorded at 298 in the "poor" category on October 17. Though it had touched the "very poor" range that day for some hours, the 24-hour average AQI improved later in the day after rain. Dipankar Saha, former head at the Central Pollution Control Board's air laboratory, said, "The wind speed has been fluctuating between 2 m/sec to 4 m/sec in Delhi. The lowest wind speed recorded in the city at 2 m/s is categorised as calm wind. The low local wind speed has led to accumulation of pollutants. The situation will remain the same for the next few days and pollutants may start dispersing after the festival." The System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR), the forecasting body under the Union ministry of earth sciences, said, "Delhi's AQI is in the 'very poor' category and likely to remain so for the next two days. The impact of stubble burning is expected to be low due to unfavourable winds coming from south-west and east direction. Share of crop residue burning emissions in PM2.5 is about 6% (effective fire count 1,795). Prevailing shallow mixing layer height reduces dispersion of pollutants." SAFAR added that during November 4-6 (Diwali and the next two days), the share of stubble burning in PM2.5 is expected to be in the range of 20-38% as the wind direction is likely to change to north-westerly. Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director (research and advocacy), Centre for Science and Environment, said, "We have hit the first 'very poor day' of the season. Air quality is expected to worsen with winter conditions hardening and trapping pollution. We need a clear strategy in Delhi and across the region to prevent a full-blown smog episode."

Despite ban, crackers make their presence felt in Delhi

Firecrackers have been banned in entirety by the Delhi government, and an older ban by National Green Tribunal (and endorsed by the Supreme Court) bans the sale and use of ones made with barium-based formulations in the National Capital Region (NCR) In spite of a ban on the sale and use of firecrackers, a black market has sprung up in various parts of the national Capital, a spot check by HT correspondents found, in what could allow people to violate the restrictions on Diwali and trigger an air pollution crisis. In at least six localities, HT’s correspondents were told by people ranging from local shop owners to auto-rickshaw drivers that they could help procure firecrackers and deliver them at the doorstep to minimise the risk of being caught. In two of these places, the people allowed the stocks to be inspected for purchase. Firecrackers have been banned in entirety by the Delhi government, and an older ban by National Green Tribunal (and endorsed by the Supreme Court) bans the sale and use of ones made with barium-based formulations in the National Capital Region (NCR). The ones without barium are known as green firecrackers, but their certification and veracity has been difficult to determine. In the week leading to Diwali, which is on Thursday, both types of firecrackers were available at multiple spots that HT visited: Kabir Nagar, Rohini, Ghazipur, Bhalswa, Tilak Nagar, and Munirka. In Kabir Nagar, an auto driver offered to get boxes of green varieties of “anar, phuljhari, and rockets” for a commission. The price quoted by the driver for two boxes each anar (flowerpots), two boxes of phuljhari (sparkles) and one box of rockets eventually came to ₹4,580 and the driver insisted on upfront payment. “I can deliver it to your house but you will have to pay the full amount in cash right away,” the driver said, asking not to be identified, before showing some samples. In Rajouri Garden, two men approached HT’s correspondents after they made enquiries about where firecrackers could be bought. The two made their way to a small grocery store where the shopkeeper said the items will be home delivered “the next day” with an option of paying later. The shopkeeper showed some samples and a handwritten rate card, but was not able to say if the firecrackers that he would deliver were of the “green” variety. The samples shown were in green packaging but did not carry any verifiable barcode comes with the CSIR-National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (Neeri) certification for green firecrackers. “What is Diwali without a few crackers? The government has completely finished Diwali,” he said. Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on September 15 announced a complete ban on firecrackers till January 1, citing the annual deterioration of air quality crisis that happens during winter. On Tuesday, the air quality index entered the red ‘very poor’ zone for the first time and an analysis by government experts said that even if 50% of the amount of firecrackers burst in 2019 is used this year, air pollution levels will shoot up to ‘severe’. The ban on all firecrackers has been opposed by traders. A group of over 50 licensed firecracker sellers moved the Delhi high court against the ban on Monday, although their plea was turned down. Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva, while hearing the plea by traders seeking permission to sell the so-called green firecrackers in line with the NGT order, was told by the Delhi government its officials have seized over 11,000 kg of firecrackers till October 24 this year. “We are keeping a close watch on the instances sale, storage and use of crackers. But it has come to our notice that cracker bursting is being reported in some parts of the city over the last two weeks. The problem is that Delhi is a small city and because of its porous borders with Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, it becomes easier for people to get access to these banned items. Since there are no such bans in these states, implementation of the ban in Delhi becomes a little challenging,” said a senior environment department official, asking not to be named. A seller at the Gold Star Patakha Godam in Gurugram said that the sale of green firecrackers was allowed in Haryana. “We are not doing anything illegal. Firecrackers are allowed here. If someone from Delhi is buying from here, that becomes their problem and the problem of the authorities there,” he said, asking not to be named. Delhi Police officers said that their action was largely dependent on intelligence inputs, manual checking of legal as well as illegal shops and warehouses, and of vehicles crossing in from Delhi’s borders. “We have the list of permanent as well as temporary firecracker vendors because they either hold licences or apply for one before Diwali. Keeping a vigil on them or their stocks is easy. But when people run an illegal business just during the festival, it becomes difficult. The only way we can catch such new players is either through intelligence inputs or manual checking. Checking every individual at the border is a tedious task,” said a senior police officer, who did not want to be named. According to police officers, all police personnel on duty across the city have been directed to enforce the ban and carry out a “massive crackdown” on people involved in the illegal sale and use of crackers. “We have held several meetings with market welfare associations and shopkeepers to update them about the guidelines on crackers and the legal actions they may face if found violating the orders. Apart from the regular policing, police personnel in plain clothes are also carrying out surprise checks,” said Sagar Singh Kalsi, deputy commissioner of police (north), adding that 17 people have been arrested in seven cases in which nearly 1,700 banned crackers have been seized by the north district police. Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director (research and advocacy), Centre for Science and Environment, said Delhi cannot implement a successful firecracker ban because of close proximity and easy access in neighbouring states.

Experts Unsure of Modi's COP26 Commitments, Claim That the Devil Lies in Detail and Implementation

Welcoming Prime Minister Narendra Modi's announcement of enhancing India's ambition, including declaring that India will go net zero in 2070, at the COP26, experts and stakeholders have also expressed caution that the devil lay in the detail and the actual implementation will matter more than mere announcements. At the high-level World Leaders' Summit at COP26 on Monday, Modi had announced, apart from the net-zero target year, that India will enhance its targets to combat climate change by increasing its non-fossil fuel energy capacity to 500 GW by 2030, meet 50 per cent of its energy requirement from renewable energy by 2030, reduce its projected carbon emissions by 1 billion tons from now till 2030 and bring down the carbon intensity of its economy to less than 45 per cent. "India's national targets, announced by the Prime Minister, are bold and ambitious, but they will be immensely challenging as well to achieve. Going by our comparatively low contribution to global emissions, coupled with the fact that our economy needs to grow and meet the energy needs of millions of poor citizens, we did not need to make such an ambitious pledge - but these are a challenge to the already rich world to step up - the time for procrastination and prevarication is over," Centre for Science and Environment's Sunita Narain said. The commitment to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by 1 billion tonnes also means that India has decided to transform the energy system at a time when there is still the challenge of reaching affordable energy to millions in the country. "As far as the net-zero 2070 is concerned, India's target matches the commitment of the already industrialised. The fact is that the world must reach net-zero by 2050, which means that the OECD countries should get there by 2030 and China by 2040. The net-zero target is not equitable or ambitious," she said. Stating that Modi's goals of climate action demand universal strategies from all nations and that India's growth path must increasingly include sustainability as a concomitant objective, CII President, T.V. Narendran, said that Indian industry is making significant progress in the climate mitigation mission and viewed Prime Minister Modi's commitments as an opportunity to teach sustainability actions across its operations, goods and services. "CII stands with the Prime Minister in ensuring that India meets its commitments for a cleaner, greener planet." The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) Director-General, Vibha Dhawan, in a tweet, said: "Announcing the five points highlighting India's Climate Action along with the year of achieving Net Zero is a huge step for the country both in terms of short-term and long-term climate action strategies. India has taken a pragmatic approach by announcing concrete targets in the short term by 2030 as well as achieving carbon neutrality in the long term". Modi's announcements, especially the net-zero target, sent shockwaves across the western world with mixed bag reactions. Referring to that, Professor at the Centre for Policy Research Navroz Dubash said: "Overseas media will focus on India's net-zero by 2070 statement. But while it may mean something diplomatically, it will not be what drives change in India." "Much more intriguing are the announcements on railways, on non-fossil capacity and the benchmark for renewable energy. These are what give scope for India to drive a low-carbon development transition in the next decade," he said. But some experts have feared that with no clarity about details, India seems to have missed out on no new coal opportunity. "Given the changing economics of the energy sector, with renewables and battery storage now cheaper than the new coal, India was well-positioned to commit to No New Coal and a coal peak. The fact that it didn't is worrying and a huge missed opportunity," think tank Climate Risks Horizons CEO Ashish Fernandes said. "What's the plan to stop growing our coal and oil emissions specifically and start phasing down? India cannot afford, for both financial and ecological reasons, to continue expanding its coal sector," he added.

Sommet sur le climat de la COP 26 : pas zéro d’ici 2050, mais des émissions bien inférieures à aujourd’hui

Certains pays imposent déjà des tarifs carbone sur les importations de certains biens, en particulier ceux qui dépendent de l’énergie dérivée des combustibles fossiles. La promesse de New Delhi, lors du sommet sur le climat de la COP 26, de réduire à zéro les émissions nettes de carbone d’ici 2070 a surpris beaucoup car l’Inde avait semblé réticente à accepter une échéance. Des responsables discrets proposaient au bureaucrate standard de dire que l’Inde irait à Glasgow avec un état d’esprit positif, ce qui signifie que cela ne jouerait pas un rôle décisif. Cependant, le Premier ministre Narendra Modi s’est engagé à mettre en place une capacité de production d’énergie non fossile de 500 GW d’ici 2030, date à laquelle 50 % des besoins énergétiques du pays seraient couverts par les énergies renouvelables. Le Premier ministre a déclaré lors du sommet sur le climat que l’Inde réduirait les émissions totales de carbone prévues d’un milliard de tonnes, encore une fois d’ici 2030, et réduirait également l’intensité carbone de l’économie à moins de 45% d’ici la fin de la décennie. La plupart des pays riches se sont fixés des échéances plus précoces, autour de 2050. Cependant, la date lointaine de la Chine, 2060, a été considérée par beaucoup comme le pays n’en faisant pas assez. En effet, l’objectif lointain lui permettrait de continuer à implanter des centrales à charbon. Dans ce contexte, l’Inde 2070 encore plus lointaine pourrait également être perçue comme non significative et les négociations pourraient devenir délicates. Cependant, étant donné le coût de l’exercice, il aurait été difficile pour l’Inde d’en faire plus en moins de temps. De plus, ce n’est pas comme si les pays riches affichaient beaucoup plus d’urgence, en termes de leurs propres plans, qu’ils ne l’ont fait à Paris en 2015. Les experts pensent que l’horizon 2070 donnerait à l’Inde l’opportunité nécessaire pour réaliser son développement ; pour que les pays en développement aient l’espace de se développer, les pays développés devront devenir beaucoup plus ambitieux quant aux objectifs nets zéro pour eux-mêmes qu’ils ne se sont fixés. Étant donné que l’Inde est le troisième émetteur mondial de gaz à effet de serre, la lutte contre les changements climatiques et la réduction des émissions de carbone nécessiteraient un soutien financier et technologique majeur. Le Premier ministre a appelé les pays développés sur les promesses qu’ils ont faites de débloquer des fonds pour l’atténuation et l’adaptation et les a exhortés à aider la transition avec un corpus de 1 000 milliards de dollars, soit une multiplication par dix par rapport aux estimations précédentes. Il n’est pas clair comment les pays développés réagiront à l’augmentation quantique par rapport aux niveaux fixés par eux ; il est difficile de voir des fonds de cette ampleur être engagés même si de nombreux autres pays ont élevé la barre dans leur transition vers l’énergie propre. Les experts qui ont averti que le financement doit être à la fois transparent et mesurable doivent être pris en compte ; Sunita Narain l’observait récemment dans une chronique de Business Standard, ce n’est pas seulement l’ampleur du financement qui doit être décidée, mais aussi les règles qui régiraient le corpus pour que les transferts puissent être comptés et vérifiés. Narain a averti qu’une répétition du mécanisme de développement propre (MDP) compliqué, alambiqué et bon marché devrait être évitée. Outre l’aide mondiale, l’Inde aura également besoin de sources de financement internes ; il est peu probable que des taxes sur le carbone soient prélevées au cours des prochaines années, mais il est possible qu’une sorte de taxe entre en vigueur par la suite. Certains pays imposent déjà des tarifs carbone sur les importations de certains biens, en particulier ceux qui dépendent de l’énergie dérivée des combustibles fossiles. Dans ce contexte, le résultat final du sommet du G20 a été décevant. Bien qu’il y ait eu unanimité pour mettre fin au financement international de la production d’électricité au charbon, aucun objectif n’a été fixé pour l’élimination progressive du charbon au niveau national. Obtenez les cours boursiers en direct de l’ESB, de la NSE, du marché américain et de la dernière valeur liquidative, du portefeuille de fonds communs de placement, consultez les dernières nouvelles sur les IPO, les meilleures introductions en bourse, calculez votre impôt à l’aide du calculateur d’impôt sur le revenu, connaissez les meilleurs gagnants, les meilleurs perdants et les meilleurs fonds d’actions du marché. Aimez-nous sur Facebook et suivez-nous sur Twitter. Financial Express est maintenant sur Telegram. Cliquez ici pour rejoindre notre chaîne et rester à jour avec les dernières nouvelles et mises à jour de Biz.

Las ansias de desarrollo retrasan el compromiso climático de India hasta 2070

Moncho Torres.- EFEverde.- La seguridad energética y la fuerte dependencia del carbón ha empujado a la India a retrasar dos décadas, hasta 2070, el compromiso de alcanzar el nivel de cero emisiones netas de carbono que pide la ONU, una demora que el tercer país con más emisiones y cuyas ciudades respiran uno de los aires más enrarecidos del mundo justifica por su necesidad de desarrollo. El primer ministro indio, Narendra Modi, aprovechó el lunes su discurso en el escaparate mundial de la cumbre del clima COP26 en Glasgow para anunciar por primera vez el plazo marcado por la India para alcanzar la neutralidad de carbono: “El año 2070”. Según la petición de la ONU, las emisiones globales deben reducirse a la mitad para 2030 y llegar al nivel cero neto para 2050, un objetivo al que se han comprometido muchos de los países más industrializados, mientras que otros como China fijaron para 2030 el pico de emisiones y en 2060, la neutralidad. Modi relegó ese dato inédito al final de una lista de cinco objetivos que se impuso este país de 1.300 millones de habitantes para combatir el cambio climático, entre los que estaban también alcanzar para 2030 los 500 gigavatios (GW) de energía no fósil (en 2019 eran 134 GW frente a 228 GW de carbón y gas) y cubrir el 50 % de sus necesidades energéticas con renovables. Además, para 2030, la India se comprometió también a reducir la intensidad de carbono de su economía a menos del 45 %, así como a rebajar sus emisiones de carbono en 1.000 millones de toneladas. La India: 17 % de la población mundial y 5 % de emisiones Todos estos objetivos se producen, advirtió Modi, a pesar de que la India es “un país en desarrollo (…) que está trabajando para sacar a millones de personas de la pobreza, (y que aunque cuenta con) el 17 % de la población mundial, su responsabilidad en las emisiones ha sido solo del 5 por ciento” global. Unos datos similares a los que expone la base de datos de emisiones de la Comisión Europea, que sitúa el porcentaje de China, el mayor contaminante del mundo, en el 30,34 %, el de Estados Unidos en un 13,43 %, y el de la India, en un tercer lugar, en un 6,83 %. Además, las toneladas de emisiones per cápita se sitúan en 1,9 en la India, frente a las 15,5 de Estados Unidos o las 8,1 de China. Por eso, el mandatario remarcó que los países ricos deben responder a su anuncio con un mayor impulso a las ayudas financieras: “La India espera que los países desarrollados hagan que esté disponible un billón de dólares (860.000 millones de euros) en forma de financiación climática tan pronto como sea posible”. Esa petición supera incluso el compromiso no cumplido tomado en el Acuerdo de París en 2015 de financiar con 100.000 millones de dólares anuales a las naciones en desarrollo para limitar el calentamiento global por debajo de los 2 grados, con la esperanza de restringirlo a 1,5 grados por encima de los niveles preindustriales. “Para nosotros, el éxito de la COP dependerá de lo que se entregue en financiación”, afirmó antes de la cumbre a un grupo de periodistas de medios extranjeros, entre los que se encontraba EFE, el secretario del Ministerio de Medioambiente indio, R.P. Gupta. Innovación tecnológica Esa financiación resulta clave para que la India, que en la actualidad “depende demasiado del carbón”, según Gupta, pueda invertir en una tecnología que permita al país reducir las emisiones al tiempo que garantiza la seguridad energética y el crecimiento. El mandatario indio insistió este martes en un acto paralelo durante la COP26, bajo el lema “Acelerar la innovación y el despliegue de tecnologías limpias”, que con esos avances se podrá extraer de fuentes como el sol la energía necesaria, teniendo en cuenta que “la misma energía que consume la raza humana en un año, la proporciona el sol a la Tierra en una hora”. El Centro para la Ciencia y el Medioambiente de la India (CSE) celebró por su parte en un comunicado los objetivos anunciados por Modi en la COP26 como “audaces y ambiciosos, pero su consecución también será un gran desafío”, anotó. “Teniendo en cuenta nuestra contribución comparativamente baja a las emisiones globales, junto con el hecho de que nuestra economía necesita crecer y satisfacer las necesidades energéticas de millones de ciudadanos pobres, no necesitábamos hacer una promesa tan ambiciosa (pero) el tiempo de la procrastinación y la evasión ha terminado”, aseguró la directora general del CSE, Sunita Narain. EFEverde

Bulan Lalu, India Rasakan Udara Terbersih dalam 4 Tahun

Cuaca di India pada bulan lalu menurunkan polusi udara. REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, NEW DELHI -- Kondisi cuaca yang menguntungkan menyebabkan penurunan polusi yang jarang terjadi di ibu kota India, New Delhi. Penduduk menghirup udara terbersih setidaknya dalam empat tahun pada bulan lalu. Monsun yang berakhir, hujan yang berselang-seling, dan peningkatan kecepatan angin yang tajam memastikan kondisi udara menjadi lebih baik. Konsentrasi partikel kecil di udara yang berbahaya yang dikenal sebagai PM2.5 dalam satu meter kubik udara rata-rata 72 pada Oktober 2021. Menurut data yang dikumpulkan oleh Badan Pengendalian Polusi Pusat yang dikelola India, jumlah itu turun tajam dari konsentrasi rata-rata 126 yang tercatat pada Oktober 2020 atau 25 kali di atas batas aman Organisasi Kesehatan Dunia (WHO). Namun ada beberapa faktor yang bisa membuat kualitas udara kembali memburuk. Suhu yang turun, penurunan kecepatan angin musim dingin dan petani bersiap untuk membakar limbah pertanian dari tanaman padi sebelumnya untuk menyiapkan ladang guna menanam tanaman gandum menjadi faktor tersebut. "Karena seringnya hujan, sebagian besar petani tidak bisa membakar tunggul tanaman, dan sekarang mereka memiliki jeda yang lebih pendek untuk membuang limbah tanaman,” kata direktur eksekutif di wadah pemikir Center for Science and Environment, Anumita Roychowdhury. "Saat hujan surut, semakin banyak petani akan bergegas membakar tunggul padi. Itu akan terjadi ketika pola cuaca yang lebih luas akan memungkinkan polutan menggantung di udara, menghasilkan kabut asap tebal," kata Roychowdhury. Pembakaran limbah tanaman menyumbang sekitar seperempat dari polusi udara pada Oktober dan November. Kekhawatiran perubahan kualitas udara pun akan semakin buruk dengan festival lampu Diwali jatuh pada 4 November ketika orang India akan menyalakan petasan sebagai bagian dari tradisi Hindu kuno. Delhi telah melarang penjualan petasan, tetapi pihak berwenang jarang memberlakukan pembatasan seperti itu. "Udara Oktober bersih, tapi kami benar-benar khawatir tentang November. Pembakaran tunggul bisa mencapai puncaknya tepat setelah Diwali," kata seorang pejabat senior pemerintah yang terlibat dalam pembingkaian kebijakan untuk mengekang polusi udara.

Explained: PM Narendra Modi’s commitments at COP26 summit on climate change

Here’s an explainer on what Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi committed at the UN-led COP26 summit on climate change mitigation, held in Glasgow, Scotland In one of the most ambitious targets by a developing country to combat climate change, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday announced that India will achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2070. The announcement, made at the UN-led COP26 climate change summit in Glasgow, will push the developed world to enhance climate finance for the 2021-2030 period. The Indian PM also made it clear that rich countries will have to provide $ 1 trillion in climate finance to the developing world to achieve its climate change mitigation targets, while speaking out in support of vulnerable island nations that are in the danger of submerging because of rising sea levels. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO), a UN body, had said that the global sea level rose by a factor of two - that is, 4.3mm per year - between 2013 and 2021, and the rate of rise is expected to jump further in the coming decade due to rising carbon emissions. India’s five-point climate action plan, which PM Narendra Modi described as “panchamrit (five values)”, is set to give a firm push to India’s plans for increasing renewable energy, and switching to electricity and hydrogen fuels for transport. India is No. 4 in the world when it comes to installed renewable energy capacity, and its non-fossil fuel energy has increased by more than 25% in the last seven years, reaching 40 % of country’s energy mix this year. However, India will continue to grow on fossil fuels for another 20 years, and only after that, its emissions will start to fall, show various studies done on the country’s energy basket. All this will also depend a lot on technology transfer from the western world and the installation of new green energy hubs in India. Here’s an explainer on what India committed at the COP26 climate change summit in Glasgow. Net zero by 2070 A paper done by Montek Singh Ahluwalia, then vice-chairperson of the now dissolved Planning Commission, which was released in October 2021, says India’s emissions can peak around 2035 and then move towards net zero sometime between 2065 and 2070. But another paper, done by the Council for Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), says India will have to peak by 2040 to achieve its target of reaching net zero by 2070. For this to happen, the CEEW said coal-based power generation must peak by 2040 and then come down. The CEEW also said solar electricity generation will have to go up to 5,630GW by 2070, while the wind energy will be second biggest contributor by providing 1,792GW by 2070. To achieve net zero, the share of electric cars and the contribution of biofuels for heavier vehicles will have to reach 84% by 2070, the CEEW said, adding that the majority section of industry will have to shift to cleaner biofuels or hydrogen. As of 2019, India installed a capacity to generate about 134GW of clean energy from solar, wind and nuclear sources, the Centre for Science and Environment said. India, as of today, has about 210GW of coal-based capacity – with 39GW under construction and another 25GW in various stages of approval. “Reducing the life [span] of [such] plants to 25 years can help in achieving net zero,” Montek Singh Ahluwalia said. There is unanimity among energy experts that India’s dependence on coal will have to be cut drastically in the next 10-15 years to achieve its net zero target, and the country will have to swiftly switch to cleaner fuels. Ahluwalia also warned that phasing out coal will have financial implications for poor states such as Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Jharkhand, Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. In Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, for example, close to 15% of the state revenue comes directly and indirectly from the mining sector. In addition, these states will lose out on employment as new employment opportunities in the renewable energy sector will be created in western and southern India, which have better solar and wind resources. With India aiming to cover one-third of its geographical area with trees and forest cover, the country’s carbon reducing capacity will go up considerably. \ Forests can absorb up to 20 % of carbon emissions, according to an environment ministry study conducted in 2011 when India’s green cover was about 24% of the its geographical area. With the green cover increasing, the country’s carbon sequestration ability will also improve. Net zero basically refers to the balance between the quantity of greenhouse gases emitted and the quantity removed from the air. A country is said to have reached net zero when the quantity of greenhouse gases it adds to the atmosphere is equal to the quantity it manages to remove from the air - cancelling each other out. Net zero was the most hotly debated subject at the COP26 talks in Glasgow as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) had said achieving net zero by 2050 is a must to limit an overall global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius to pre-industrial levels by the end of 2100. India is the fourth largest emitter of greenhouse gases after China, the US and the European Union bloc, and according to the IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report released on August 9, it will be among the most severely affected countries. 500GW of non-fossil fuels by 2030 This target is easier said than done even though India has prepared a road map for having installed capacity to generate 450GW by 2030. In an analysis for the 500GW target, the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) said India’s Central Electricity Authority (CEA) has done a projection for the country’s energy mix for 2030 that shows it will need to have solar energy installed capacity of 280GW and wind energy installed capacity of 140GW. The rest of the energy needs will come from nuclear. This would mean India will produce half of its energy requirements from renewables, which PM Narendra Modi promised at the COP26 summit. According to the CEA, India’s total installed electricity capacity will be 1,100GW by 2030. The CSE said that target is achievable if India stops investing in coal. Cutting carbon emissions by 1 billion tonnes Modi announced in Glasgow that India will reduce projected carbon emissions by 1 billion tonnes (Gt) between 2021 and 2030 - but that does not mean India will cut emissions. It basically means 1 billion tonnes of lesser emissions from the business-as-usual scenario. According to the business-as-usual scenario, India’s projected carbon emissions by 2030 will be 4.48 billion tonnes, almost double its present emissions, according to the CSE. This would mean a 22% reduction in carbon emissions. India’s projected emissions in 2030 would be 3.48 billion tonnes, just 9% of the remaining carbon budget of 400 billion tonnes. Of the total global emissions, India’s share will be a relatively small 8.4%, while China and the US will continue to be two biggest carbon emitters, the CSE said. In per capita terms, it would mean India will have emitted 2.98 tonnes of CO2 in a business-as-usual scenario, and going by this target, it will be 2.31 tonnes per capita, less than that of any industrialised country in the world including China. As of today, India’s per capita emissions is 1.98 tonnes of CO2. If you compare this to the world, the US per capita emissions will be 9.42 tonnes in 2030, EU 4.12 tonnes in 2030, India’s will be 2.7 tonnes in 2030 and China’s will be 8.88 tonnes per capita. According to the IPCC, global CO2 emissions must be 18.22 Gt in 2030 for the world to limit the rise in the overall temperature to under 1.5°C. Reducing carbon intensity by 45% Carbon intensity measures emissions of CO2 for per unit of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). So, reducing carbon intensity means India will emit less carbon for its economic growth and its adaptation of cleaner technologies in various sectors of the economy. According to the CSE, India has achieved 25% of emission intensity reduction of its GDP between 2005 and 2016, and is on course to achieve more than 40% by 2030. Achieving 45% won’t be difficult considering India would be meeting half of its energy demand from cleaner technologies by 2030, and there is a broad hydrogen road map for the country to adopt over the next 10 years. India has taken measures to reduce emissions from the transport sector, and the energy intensive industrial sector - especially cement, iron and steel, non-metallic minerals and chemical, which contribute about 30% of the total emissions. In the coming years, India will have to make the measures stringent and force industries to comply with them, Ahluwalia said in his paper. The CEEW said that India will have to reinvent its mobility systems to move people and goods in a more efficient manner. “India can significantly reduce its carbon intensity by giving incentives to adopt hydrogen as fuel for new industries and for non-peak hours,” said Chandra Bhushan, CEO of I-Forest. Climate finance The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) defines climate finance as money from government, private and alternate sources of financing. Climate finance is needed for mitigation because large-scale investments are required to significantly reduce emissions. It is also needed for the adaptation process, as significant financial resources are needed to adapt to adverse effects and reduce the impact of changing climate, according to the UNFCCC. Modi categorically said the developing world expects developed countries to provide climate finance of $1 trillion at the earliest to meet net zero targets and adopt a cleaner growth trajectory. Till end of 2020, the rich countries were able to provide $80 billion dollars of climate finance. In 2009, developed countries pledged to raise $100 billion a year by 2020 to help developing countries deal with the impact of climate change. The finance ministers of rich countries at a G20 meeting pushed back the year to 2023 in a bid to end a possible deadlock at the Glasgow summit.

भारत का धर्मसंकट : जलवायु बचाए तो खड़ा होगा रोजगार संकट, कैसे पूरा करेगा कार्बन उत्सर्जन घटाने का लक्ष्य

भारत द्वारा जाहिर की गई प्रतिबद्धता के तहत 100 करोड़ टन कार्बन उत्सर्जन घटाने के मायने हैं कि हम करीब 22 प्रतिशत उत्सर्जन कम कर लेंगे। यह लक्ष्य हासिल करने का अर्थ है कि भारतवासी 2030 तक औद्योगिकीकरण कर चुके सभी देशों के नागरिकों के औसत से कम कार्बन उत्सर्जन कर रहे होंगे। सेंटर फॉर साइंस (सीएसई) के अनुसार भारत के लक्ष्य महत्वाकांक्षी हैं, चुनौतियों से भरे भी। सेंटर की संस्थापक सुनीता नारायण कहती हैं कि पहले ही भारत के सामने अपने लाखों गरीब नागरिकों की ज़रूरतें पूरी करने की चुनौती है, हमें इस प्रकार की प्रतिबद्धता देने की जरूरत नहीं थी। विकसित देशों को इस बारे ज्यादा योगदान देना चाहिए। दूसरी ओर हमें 2070 तक कार्बन में नेट जीरो उत्सर्जन हासिल करने के लिए अपने ऊर्जा क्षेत्र को भी बड़े बदलाव से गुजारना होगा। साल 2030 तक गैर जीवाश्म ईंधन की क्षमता 500 गीगावाट भारत के केंद्रीय ऊर्जा प्राधिकरण ने पहले ही 2030 तक यह लक्ष्य दे दिए हैं। इनके अनुसार 2019 में हम गैर-जीवाश्म ईंधन से 134 गीगावाट बिजली बना रहे थे, जो 2030 तक 522 गीगावाट तक बढ़ाई जाएगी। इसमें सौर ऊर्जा से 280 और पवन ऊर्जा से 140 गीगावाट उत्पादन होगा। 2030 तक ही हमें कुल 2,51,800 करोड़ यूनिट बिजली की ज़रूरत होगी जो 2019 में 1,37,600 करोड़ यूनिट थी। इसके लिए कुल 817 गीगावॉट क्षमता से हासिल करनी होगी। ऐसे हासिल होंगे लक्ष्य 50% बिजली अक्षय ऊर्जा से : 2019 में देश जरूरत की 9.2 फीसदी बिजली अक्षय ऊर्जा स्रोतों से बना रहा था। इसे 2030 तक 50 फीसदी तक लाना होगा। 630 गीगावाट क्षमता देश को अक्षय ऊर्जा की हासिल करनी होगी। कोयले पर निर्भरता घटेगी : 2019 में 228 गीगावाट क्षमता के साथ 63 फीसदी बिजली कोयले से बन रही थी। 2030 तक कोयले पर निर्भरता 56 फीसदी रह जाएगी। कार्बन उत्सर्जन में 100 करोड़ टन कमी : 2021 में भारत 2.88 गीगाटन (100 करोड़ टन) कार्बन डाई ऑक्साइड उत्सर्जन कर रहा है। यह वृद्धि चलती रहे तो 2030 तक आंकड़ा 3.48 गीगाटन हो जाए। भारत ने इसमें 1 गीगाटन कमी करेगा। प्रतिव्यक्ति कार्बन उत्सर्जन अमेरिकियों से 4 गुना कम : भारत ने प्रतिव्यक्ति 22% कार्बन उत्सर्जन कमी का लक्ष्य भी बनाया है। यह 2030 तक 2.98 टन पहुंच सकता था, अब इसे 2.31 टन पर लाया जाएगा। वहीं, अमेरिकी 9.42 टन, यूरोपीय 4.12 टन और चीनी 8.88 टन उत्सर्जन कर रहे होंगे।

COP26: कार्बन बजट और कार्बन उत्सर्जन के सवाल, किसे और कितनी मिलनी चाहिए इजाजत? पढ़ें विश्लेषण

सुनीता नारायण/अवंतिका गोस्वामी। जलवायु परिवर्तन स्वाभाविक है और हमें पता है कि यह निश्चित है। जलवायु वैज्ञानिकों ने आने वाले समय में प्रलय के बारे में हमें पहले से बता रखा है। संयुक्त राष्ट्र की शीर्ष जलवायु-विज्ञान शाखा, जलवायु-परिवर्तन पर अंतरसरकारी पैनल (आईपीसीसी) ने भी अपनी ताजा छठी आकलन रिपोर्ट (एआर 6) - 'क्लाइमेट चेंज 2021: द फिजिकल साइंस बेसिसÓ में इसकी पुष्टि की है। यह वही सच है जिसे हम जानते हैं, और अपने आस-पास की दुनिया में देखते हैं। उदाहरण के लिए - अत्यधिक गर्मी और नमी के नुकसान से शुरू हुई जंगल की आग, अत्यधिक बारिश की घटनाओं के कारण विनाशकारी बाढ़, और समुद्र व भूमि की सतह के बीच बदलते उष्णकटिबंधीय चक्रवात। रिपोर्ट साफ तौर पर कहती है कि निश्चित ही इन घटनाओं के लिए इंसान की आदतों को ही दोषी ठहराया जाएगा। मानवजनित कार्बन डाइआक्साइड और दूसरी ग्रीनहाउस गैसों ने हमारे ग्रह को इसकी सहनशीलता के स्तर से ज्यादा गरम कर दिया है। संयुक्त राज्य अमेरिका के राष्ट्रीय महासागरीय और वायुमंडलीय प्रशासन के हवाई स्थित मौना लोआ वायुमंडलीय बेसलाइन वेधशाला के आंकड़े के मुताबिक, इस साल मई में, वायुमंडलीय कार्बन डाइआक्साइड का स्तर 419 पार्ट्स पर मिलियन (पीपीएम) तक पहुंच गया था। यह जलवायु परिवर्तन पर अंतर सरकारी पैनल द्वारा स्वीकार किए गए 1750 में 278 पीपीएम के पूर्व-औद्योगिक आधार रेखा से लगभग 45 फीसद ज्यादा है। उससे भी ज्यादा चिंताजनक बात यह है कि दुनिया के पास इस कार्बन से निपटने के लिए अब न तो जगह है और न समय। फिलहाल हम हर साल 36.4 जीगाटन कार्बन डाइआक्साइड उत्सर्जित करते हैं। आईपीसीसी का कहना है कि हमें धरती की प्रसंस्करण क्षमताओं के आधार पर अपने कार्बन उत्सर्जन का बजट बनाने की जरूरत है ताकि औसत वैश्विक तापमान वृद्धि, पूर्व-औद्योगिक स्तरों से 1.5 डिग्री सेल्सियस ऊपर न होने पाए। यही वह सीमा-रेखा है, जिससे हम अपनी दुनिया को जलवायु परिवर्तन की विनाशकारी घटनाओं से बचा सकते हैं। 2018 के आकड़ों के मुताबिक, 2030 तक दुनिया को 2010 के स्तर पर बनाए रखने के लिए उत्सर्जन में 45 से 50 फीसद कटौती की और 2050 तक उत्सर्जन शून्य करने की जरूरत है। यानी केवल वही उत्सर्जन करना है, जो जंगलों और समुद्रों जैसे प्राकृतिक स्रोतों द्वारा सोंका जा सके या फिर जिसे कार्बन कैपचर और स्टोरेज जैसी तकनीकों से साफ किया जा सके। आईपीसीसी की ताजा छठी आकलन रिपोर्ट यानी एआर 6 की मानें तो दुनिया के पास आने वाले संपूर्ण भविष्य के लिए 400 गीगाटन कार्बन डाइआक्साइड का बजट है। इसका मतलब यह है कि एक बार जब हम इस सीमा को पार कर जाएंगे (भले ही जब भी करें), तो तापमान में 1.5 डिग्री सेल्सियस की बढ़ोतरी का खतरा हमारे ठीक सामने होगा। वैज्ञानिकों द्वारा मिल रही इस तरह की सारी जानकारियों से हमें डर लगना चाहिए और फिर वास्तविक और सार्थक कार्रवाई के लिए तैयार होना चाहिए, लेकिन इसके बजाय दुनिया खंडों और देशों में बंट रही है और वैज्ञानिक इस पर बहस कर रहे हैं कि जलवायु-परिवर्तन के सवाल पर किस तरह की राजनीति की जा रही है और कौन कितना कार्बन उत्सर्जित कर रहा है। इन सबके अलावा कार्बन बजट को लेकर पूरी दुनिया में बड़ी अनिश्चितताएं तो हैं ही। तीन कारण हैं, जो कार्बन बजट की इस प्रक्रिया को जटिल बनाते हैं- पहला, कार्बन डाइआक्साइड और मीथेन जैसी ग्रीनहाउस गैसों की उम्र असामान्य तौर पर लंबी होती है। कहा जाता है कि जो कार्बन डाइआक्साइड वर्ष 1900 में उत्सर्जित की गई थी, वह आज भी वातावरण में है। ऐतिहासिक उत्सर्जक भी धरती को उसी तरह गर्म करने में अपनी भूमिका निभाते हैं जैसे-वर्तमान उत्सर्जक। दूसरा, ये प्रदूषक आर्थिक वृद्धि से जुड़े हुए हैं। कार्बन डाइआक्साइड के उत्सर्जन में बड़ा हिस्सा जीवाश्म ईंधन के जलने से होता है, जिसका उपयोग बिजली, परिवहन, सामान और हमारे घरों और कारखानों को बिजली देने के लिए किया जाता है। इसलिए, जब दुनिया जलवायु परिवर्तन पर चर्चा कर रही होती है, तो यह दुनिया की अर्थव्यवस्था पर भी चर्चा होती है, केवल धरती की पारिस्थितिकी की नहीं। तीसरा और आखिरी कारण यह कि चूंकि ग्रीनहाउस गैसें वातावरण में बनी रहती हैं और उत्सर्जन दुनिया के देशों में पूंजी निर्माण से जुड़ा है, इसलिए जलवायु परिवर्तन की लड़ाई, देशों के बीच वृद्धि के बंटवारे की लड़ाई है। इसका मतलब है- कार्बन बजट की साझेदारी। एक बेहद असमान दुनिया में, यह सबसे असुविधाजनक वास्तविकता है, खासकर तब, जब हम समानता और जलवायु न्याय के मुद्दों को ध्यान में रखते हैं। जलवायु परिवर्तन का विज्ञान और राजनीति इस कदर प्रभावित है कि इन्हें अलग नहीं किया जा सकता।इसलिए, हम नीचे दिए गए बिंदुओं का मतलब समझने का प्रयास करते हैं - तब और अब सदियों से बड़े उत्सर्जक कौन रहे हैं, और आज वे कहां खड़े हैं ? प्रति व्यक्ति उत्सर्जन में कौन कहां खड़ा है और किन देशों को विकसित होने के लिए कार्बन बजट के बड़े हिस्से की आवश्यकता है? राष्ट्रीय लक्ष्य राष्ट्रीय निर्धारित योगदान यानी एनडीसी के लिए किस तरह की वक्र रेखा तैयार होगी? स्वैच्छिक राष्ट्रीय लक्ष्य, 2015 पेरिस समझौते के हिस्से हमें किस ओर ले जाएंगे? किन देशों ने अपने लिए कठिन और किन देशों ने आसान लक्ष्य तय किए हैं ? कार्बन बजट दुनिया को 1.5 डिग्री सेल्सियस तापमान पर बनाए रखने के लिए कार्बन बजट कितना है? किस देश ने कितना बजट तय किया है? 2030 का लक्ष्य आगे बढ़ते हुए, 2020-30 में किन देशों के कार्बन बजट को हथिया लेने की संभावना है?

India's targets announced by PM at COP26 immensely hard to achieve: CSE

In a statement, the research and advocacy organisation said by announcing these targets, India is not just walking the talk, but "running the talk" The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) on Tuesday said India's targets announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the global climate summit COP 26 are bold and ambitious but will be immensely challenging to achieve. In a statement, the research and advocacy organisation said by announcing these targets, India is not just walking the talk, but "running the talk". At the ongoing COP 26 in Glasgow, Modi announced "enhanced" targets for India to combat climate change - by 2030, India will increase its non-fossil fuel energy capacity to 500 giga watt, meet 50 per cent of its energy requirements from renewable sources, reduce its total projected carbon emissions by one billion tonnes from now, and bring down the carbon intensity of its economy by less than 45 per cent. And by 2070, India will achieve its target of net zero. "India's national targets, announced by its Prime Minister, are bold and ambitious, but they will be immensely challenging as well to achieve. In fact, by announcing these targets, India is not only walking its talk, it is literally running the talk - and recognising the urgent need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and combat climate change," said CSE director general Sunita Narain. The organisation said that these ambitious pledges are a challenge to the developed world to step up their action. "Going by our comparatively low contribution to global emissions, coupled with the fact that our economy needs to grow and meet the energy needs of millions of poor citizens, we did not need to make such an ambitious pledge - but these are a challenge to the already rich world to step up - the time for procrastination and prevarication is over," it said. The CSE observed that India has committed to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by 1 billion tonnes - roughly 22 per cent from the business-as-usual (BAU) scenario and "this means that per capita emissions in 2030 will be lower than all industrialised countries of the world, including China". "It also means that we have committed to a transformation of our energy system and this when we still have the challenge of reaching affordable energy to millions in the country," it said. The CSE further said that as far as the net-zero 2070 is concerned, India's target matches the commitment of the already industrialised. "The fact is that the world must reach net-zero by 2050, which means that the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries should get there by 2030 and China by 2040. The net zero target is not equitable or ambitious," it said. The CSE also decoded each of the targets announced by Modi. On the bold step to become net zero by 2070, it said that according to the IPCC, global emissions must become half by 2030 and reach net zero by 2050. "Given the enormous inequity in emissions in the world, the OECD countries must then reach net zero by 2030, China by 2040 and India and the rest of the world by 2050. However, the targets for net zero are both inequitable and unambitious. As per this, OECD countries have declared a net zero target for 2050 and China for 2060," said Narain. Therefore, India's net zero target of 2070 is an extension of this and cannot be argued against, the CSE said, adding that this combined net zero goal will not keep the world below 1.5 degree Celsius temperature rise and it means that OECD countries must frontload their emission reductions by 2030. "Most importantly, China which will occupy 33 per cent of the remaining budget and must be asked to reduce its emissions drastically in this decade -- China alone will add 126 Gt in this decade," it said.

After clean spell, air quality set to plummet in India's capital

NEW DELHI, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Favourable weather conditions led to a rare drop in pollution in India's capital New Delhi, with residents last month breathing the cleanest air in at least four years but the authorities are warning that air quality is set to drop sharply in November. A delayed end to the monsoon, intermittent rains and a sharp pick-up in wind speeds ensured that the concentration of hazardous, small airborne particles known as PM2.5 in a cubic metre of air averaged 72 in October when air quality typically takes a turn for the worse. That was sharply down from an average concentration of 126 recorded in October 2020 - 25 times over the World Health Organization's safe limit - according to data gathered by the state-run Central Pollution Control Board. But a confluence of factors, including falling temperatures, a drop-off in winter wind speed and farmers preparing to torch farm waste of the previous rice crop to ready the field for planting the wheat crop, is likely to turn the air hazardous. "Because of frequent rains, most farmers didn't get to burn crop stubble, and now they have an even shorter window to dispose of crop waste," said Anumita Roychowdhury, an executive director at the Centre for Science and Environment think tank. "As rains ebb, more and more farmers will rush to burn rice stubble, and that will happen when broader weather patterns will allow pollutants to hang in the air, resulting in a thick smog," Roychowdhury said. Poor air quality over the capital is a reminder of the challenges India faces in reducing pollution as world leaders meet at the United Nations COP26 summit in Scotland to agree on strategies to fight global warming. read more Adding to the concerns, the Diwali festival of lights falls on Thursday when Indians will set off firecrackers as part of an ancient Hindu tradition. Delhi has banned the sale of firecrackers, but authorities rarely get to enforce such curbs. read more "The October air was clean, but we're really worried about November," said a senior government official involved in framing policies to curb air pollution. "Stubble burning could peak right after Diwali." Crop waste burning accounts for about a quarter of air pollution in October and November.

Delhi may see its first 'very poor' day around Diwali

NEW DELHI: The city’s air quality, which has been hovering in the poor category for the past six days, is likely to turn very poor around Diwali, which will be celebrated on November 4. Experts said the air quality was likely to start deteriorating on the Diwali day due to stubble burning and winter inversion and, if banned firecrackers were burnt, it might get badly impacted. Data from Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), which has been measuring the air quality index (AQI) since 2015, showed 2016 had the most polluted Diwali with a reading of 431 and 445 on the day after. Delhi’s 2020 Diwali was the worst since 2016 as the festival was observed in mid-November with unfavourable meteorological conditions. AQI, which was severe at 414 on Diwali, increased to 435 the next day. In 2019, an AQI of 337 — very poor — was recorded on Diwali, which stayed in the same category at 368 the next day. A bigger spike was seen in 2018 when AQI rose from 281 — poor — on Diwali to 390 — very poor — the next day mainly due to firecrackers. Similarly, AQI deteriorated from very poor to severe in 2017, despite the festival falling in October. Experts said Delhi had not recorded a very poor air day this winter, but the air quality might turn worse during Diwali. SAFAR’s founder project director, Gufran Beig, said, “The wind direction is likely to change from easterly to northwesterly on November 4, making it favourable for transportation of pollutants released by stubble burning in neighbouring states to Delhi. High local wind speed is currently allowing dispersion of pollutants, but calm wind conditions are expected from that evening.” The Diwali pollution blows up when the bursting of firecrackers, calm wind and colder nights are combined with stubble burning, he added. Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director of research and advocacy at Centre for Science and Environment, said, “There is an additional concern this time that stubble burning may get concentrated within a shorter time frame and contribute to the first smog episode during Diwali.” Dipankar Saha, former head at CPCB’s air laboratory, said AQI might reach around 350 on Diwali. “The other triggering factor is the atmospheric thermal boundary layer, which is generally low due to short day.”

Prime Minister Modi in Glasgow: Running the talk or headline management?

While Modi’s announcements at Glasgow have been hailed widely, the response at home has been more guarded. PM sprang a surprise that seems to have caught his own ministers and officials off guard Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address at COP26 in Glasgow has elicited mixed reactions at home. Environmentalist and Director of Centre for Science & Environment Sunita Narayan tweeted that India had posed a challenge to the world by enhancing its targets for emission control and clean energy. “This is running the talk”, she tweeted, and not just walking the talk. Former Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh is however sceptical. Before the Glasgow summit, he had said that he expected Prime Minister Modi to go more for headlines in Glasgow than deadlines. And the PM’s announcements have indeed made headlines as India announced ambitious plans to achieve ‘Net Zero’ emission by 2070 and reducing thermal power generation to 50% by 2030 from the current level of 70%. But a sceptical Jairam Ramesh tweeted, “Mega announcements by the PM at Glasgow is one thing. What matter are actions at home. ALL environmental & forest laws are being diluted, standards are being relaxed, and enforcement bodies are being weakened. This is THE reality—not some tall promise for a very distant 2070.” There is good reason for the scepticism as the announcemeny by the PM is at variance with what Indian officials and even union minister Piyush Goyal had been saying in Glasgow. There does not seem to have been much of a discussion among the Indian delegation before the PM, as is his wont, sprung a surprise. Typically, the unilateral announcements were designed to dazzle and startle the audience and observers were duly impressed. But at home the enthusiasm is muted because of the PM’s own past record on delivery of promises. Jairam Ramesh could barely suppress his amusement while commenting on the PM’s address. “Need climate change in syllabi to educate children, says PM in Glasgow. Wow! This from a man who said on TV to school children that climate has not changed, humans have!!” while attaching a video clip in which the Indian PM can be heard telling schoolchildren that the climate was not changing but people are getting older. Ramesh also told Deccan Herald in an interview that unlike during the UPA years, this time there was no consultation with the opposition and no representation from the opposition either at Glasgow. Before the Cancun summit, there were two discussions in parliament on climate change, and two after the summit. He as Environment Minister had written to the Lok Sabha Speaker to nominate MPs for attending the conference. But no such course was followed for Glasgow. More importantly, while the PM walks the talk globally and says the right things, he said, at home the Modi Government has been doing the opposite. The Forest Conservation Act, the Environment Protection Act, Environment Impact Assessment regulations, the Coastal Regulation Zone regulations were all being amended and diluted, he alleged. Even pollution norms for thermal plants have been ‘loosened’, he said. Beyond rhetoric, grandstanding and moralizing, he expected realistic goals set in Glasgow and international accountability fixed. Even six years after the Paris summit in 2015, even the rules had not been finalized, he pointed out. In 2009, he pointed out, solar power cost Rs 15 per unit in India but it has plunged now to Rs three per unit. The dramatic fall was anticipated and India rightly pushed for more solar energy. But India would have to significantly increase the share of nuclear energy from the current 3.3% to 10% and beyond to reduce the country’s dependence on coal. “An even more ambitious goal than Net Zero emission etc. could have been to declare that by 2045 there will be no petrol or diesel vehicle,” the former Union Minister said.

Delhi: At 3,971, single-day farm fires touch season's peak

NEW DELHI: At 3,971, the season's highest single-day stubble burning fire count was recorded in neighbouring states on Monday, according to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR), the forecasting body under the Union ministry of earth sciences. Before this, the highest fire count in a single day this season was 1,826 fires on Saturday, SAFAR data shows. The overall Air Quality Index (AQI) of the national capital was 281 in the 'poor' category on Monday. Though the count of farm fires rose from 1,734 on Sunday to 3,971 on Monday, the impact of stubble burning to Delhi's air was less. The share of stubble burning to Delhi's PM2.5 was just 7% on Monday due to unfavourable wind direction and speed. The farm fires mostly remained low in October this year as compared with the same month in 2020, but experts said the fire count is likely to witness peak in November. Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director of research and advocacy, Centre for Science and Environment, said, "Due to frequent rains and delayed withdrawal of monsoon, stubble burning, which usually picks up in October, got deferred this year. Farm fires can spike soon as farmers will be in a rush to dispose of the stubble. The agencies concerned should be prepared with an emergency action plan to control fire and smog." In 2020, the highest number of single-day farm fires was recorded at 4,528 on November 6. Experts said during peak stubble burning window, the fire count is expected to go up to 3,000-4,000 a day. SAFAR, in its bulletin on Monday, said, "The air quality of Delhi is likely to remain in upper end of poor category for the next two days due to prevailing winds coming from west/south-west direction, reducing transport of emissions from stubble burning. Prevailing shallow mixing layer height reduces dispersion of pollutants."

Delhi faces key pollution fight as fires rise, mercury drops

The city recorded its lowest temperature of the season at 13.6°C on Monday morning – cold conditions cause winds to die down, trapping pollutants – and the number of farm fires in Punjab and Haryana crossed 3,000 on Sunday. The Capital breathes its most polluted air between November 1 and November 15.(Sanchit Khanna/HT file photo) The cleanest October in years is likely to be followed by heavy air pollution days in November, weather experts have predicted, as the Capital faces its most crucial bad air challenge over the next two weeks with winter conditions setting in ahead of Diwali, and farm fire starting to surge in the neighbouring states of Punjab and Haryana. The air quality index (AQI) on Monday was 281, in the same range as the 289 the day before. The city recorded its lowest temperature of the season at 13.6°C on Monday morning – cold conditions cause winds to die down, trapping pollutants – and the number of farm fires in Punjab and Haryana crossed 3,000 on Sunday. The Capital breathes its most polluted air between November 1 and November 15, when the smoke from stubble fires and illegal firecrackers plunge the city into a health emergency, a Delhi government analysis of average PM2.5 (particulate matter with diameter less than 2.5 micrometres) levels over the last five years showed. Though firecrackers are banned in the Capital, their illegal use during the festival (November 4 this year) leads to a peak in pollution levels, with people breathing poisonous air amid a thick blanket of smog. Experts also warned that, till now, Delhi has benefitted from south-easterly winds not typical for this time of the year but that could change around Diwali when toxic emissions form firecrackers is also expected to linger in the air. Temperatures have dropped and this was the coldest morning of the season so far, but a change in wind direction has helped as emissions from stubble burning are not reaching Delhi completely. The minimum is expected to be around 15 degrees Celsius for the next couple of days and wind directions will primarily stay easterly and south-easterly,” said a meteorological department official, asking not to be named. The change to north-westerly winds is likely around November 4. According to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR), a body under the ministry of earth sciences, the contribution of stubble burning in Delhi’s overall PM 2.5 concentration was just 7% on Monday, down from 8% on Sunday and 12% on Saturday. According to Safar’s estimates, there were 3,971 farm fires in and around NCR – in Punjab and Haryana, according to data accessed by HT, Nasa satellites recorded 3,140 farm fires. Fires in these areas particularly impact Delhi since they lie upwind when the direction of north-westerly. Anumita Roy Chowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy at the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) says more farm fires are expected in November now, as farmers will get a shorter window to clear their fields and plant the next crop. “Rains which have continued till late October have disrupted the burning pattern too and it is possible we may record incredibly high farm fire counts in a short period,” she said. Delhi recorded a maximum temperature of 31.2°C on Monday – one degree above normal, while the minimum was of 13.6°C, two notches below normal. Ayanagar was the coldest location across Delhi, recording a minimum of 13 degrees. Another forecasting system – the Early Warning System (EWS) for Delhi meanwhile predicted air quality is expected to deteriorate slightly in the next 48 hours, with a possibility of touching the ‘very poor’ category. “Air quality over Delhi is likely to remain in the ‘poor’ category on Monday and be between ‘poor’ and the lower end of the ‘very poor’ category on Tuesday and Wednesday. For the subsequent five days, air quality is expected to deteriorate by November 5 and 6 and may reach upper end of the ‘very poor’ category, with PM 2.5 to be the pre-dominant pollutant,” it said. Grap, a set of emergency measures approved by the Supreme Court in 2016, kicks in from October 15 and continues to be in force till March 31 depending on the air quality of the region. It lists out a set of institutionalised measures to be taken when air quality deteriorates and reaches a certain level.

Air quality set to plummet in India's capital after clean spell

But a confluence of factors, including falling temperatures, a drop-off in winter wind speed and farmers preparing to torch farm waste of the previous rice crop to ready the field for planting the wheat crop, is likely to turn the air hazardous. "Because of frequent rains, most farmers didn't get to burn crop stubble, and now they have an even shorter window to dispose of crop waste," said Anumita Roychowdhury, an executive director at the Centre for Science and Environment think tank. Favorable weather conditions led to a rare drop in pollution in India's capital New Delhi, with residents last month breathing the cleanest air in at least four years but the authorities are warning that air quality is set to drop sharply in November. A delayed end to the monsoon, intermittent rains, and a sharp pick-up in wind speeds ensured that the concentration of hazardous, small airborne particles known as PM2.5 in a cubic meter of air averaged 72 in October when air quality typically takes a turn for the worse. That was sharply down from an average concentration of 126 recorded in October 2020 - 25 times over the World Health Organization's safe limit - according to data gathered by the state-run Central Pollution Control Board. But a confluence of factors, including falling temperatures, a drop-off in winter wind speed, and farmers preparing to torch farm waste of the previous rice crop to ready the field for planting the wheat crop, is likely to turn the air hazardous. "Because of frequent rains, most farmers didn't get to burn crop stubble, and now they have an even shorter window to dispose of crop waste," said Anumita Roychowdhury, an executive director at the Centre for Science and Environment think tank. "As rains ebb, more and more farmers will rush to burn rice stubble, and that will happen when broader weather patterns will allow pollutants to hang in the air, resulting in a thick smog," Roychowdhury said. Poor air quality over the capital is a reminder of the challenges India faces in reducing pollution as world leaders meet at the United Nations COP26 summit in Scotland to agree on strategies to fight global warming. Adding to the concerns, the Diwali festival of lights falls on Thursday when Indians will set off firecrackers as part of an ancient Hindu tradition. Delhi has banned the sale of firecrackers, but authorities rarely get to enforce such curbs. "The October air was clean, but we're really worried about November," said a senior government official involved in framing policies to curb air pollution. "Stubble burning could peak right after Diwali." Crop waste burning accounts for about a quarter of air pollution in October and November. Since 2018, India has been giving individual farmers a 50% subsidy and farm cooperatives 80% subsidy to buy machines that dispose of rice paddy stubble left out in the field by mechanized harvesters. Despite government subsidies, the machines that collect crop stubble and turn them into mulch are too expensive to buy. Farmers also complain that they need to pay upfront and then claim subsidies later - a process that takes about 10 months. "The Punjab and Haryana governments are responsible for implementing the subsidy program, and their implementation may be flawed to some extent, but every year more and more farmers are using this equipment to get rid of crop stubble," the government official said, referring to India's two breadbasket states. In October this year, crop waste burning came down by 52% against the same month last year, government data showed. In Pakistan's Lahore city, not far from the border with India, the air quality index rose to 341, the worst in the world on Monday, according to IQ Air. On Tuesday, air quality in Pakistan's second-most populous city was 162. In the winter months, industrial and vehicular emissions, smoke from brick kilns, and crop fires lead to a sharp spike in air pollution in Lahore, just like in India.