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Our future is at stake in Glasgow

The world must recognise climate justice, call out advanced economies and China, frontload emissions reduction targets to 2030, phase out coal When leaders meet in the United Kingdom (UK) for the 26th conference of parties (COP) to discuss the climate crisis, they do so knowing that this time and there is no going back on the need for urgent and drastic action to combat the crisis. We no longer need science to forecast the possibility of the impacts of a changing climate. We see it in our world – extreme weather events are increasing in frequency and intensity and devastating life and economy. So, what is the agenda for COP26? First and foremost, climate negotiations must recognise the imperative of climate justice. This is not a moral issue alone. The reasons are inconvenient, yet simple; Carbon dioxide (CO2) has a long residence time in the atmosphere and, so, what is emitted in the past has accumulated and will force temperatures to rise. Then, CO2 is linked to the way the world runs its economy — fossil fuels (coal or gas) are still determinants of growth. And most important is the fact that millions of people are still waiting to get the advantages of economic progress, which means access to affordable energy. This, at a time, when the world has literally run out of carbon space to accommodate its need for development. So, what will this part of the emerging world do? Their growth — use of fossil fuels — will add to the jeopardy that awaits us. The question then is how can this growth be reinvented so that it is low-carbon, yet affordable? It is not enough to berate and bully the emerging world countries (including India) to action. This needs supportive policies and real transfer of global finance to enable the transformation. For far too long, the world has worked overtime to erase or dilute climate equity in negotiations. This is why the 2015 Paris Agreement was lauded — it got rid of the very concept of historical emissions, and consigned climate justice to a postscript. It even removed the idea that loss and damage that countries would suffer because of the climate crisis would have to be “compensated”. Worse, it created a weak and meaningless framework of climate action that would depend on what a country could do; not what it was expected to do based on its contribution to the stock of emissions or fair share. It should not surprise us, then, that the sum of the nationally determined contributions (NDC) — United Nations jargon for national reduction targets — takes the world towards a minimum of 3°C temperature rise or more. This is why future actions must accept the reality of climate equity and the need to address it. Second, COP26 must not dilly and dally around empty promises of net-zero targets for 2050. It must discuss how countries will frontload emission reductions for 2030. The fact is that the “old” industrialised countries and the new entrant, China, have appropriated 73% of the carbon space till 2019, and even with the reduction targets they have given, these countries will still occupy 70% of the budget by 2030. China alone will take up 33% of the available carbon budget between 2020 and 2030. It has not set emission reduction targets as yet; and while it has made grand promises of its move to renewable energy, the fact is China’s non-fossil fuel energy generation in 2019 was lower than India’s. It is time China was de-hyphenated from the Group of 77 and also from India. COP26 needs to have the spunk to call this out. Third, COP26 must recognise the need for transformational action – this is the order of our times, not diversionary and pusillanimous efforts. This is where the issue of coal must be discussed. The fact is coal use for generation of energy has been the biggest contributor to emissions in the past; today it adds 40% of the CO2 emissions and will do so in the future as well. The agenda has to be to phase out coal in the already industrialised world and then China — and let’s be clear this is not happening yet. And simultaneously to work on not building new coal plants in countries such as India or the continent of Africa. These countries need scaled up and affordable access to energy sources. But talk is cheap and real transformation needs hard financial transfers so that countries can build energy systems that can provide affordable power to the poorest in the world. India’s coal question is also critical for domestic reasons so that we can meet the twin objectives of clean air and energy access. This needs us to phase out old and highly inefficient thermal power plants, and to ensure that all the current plants are retrofitted with state-of-the-art technologies to control pollution. The fact is our energy problem is not only coal but our broken distribution system. Today, we use the cheapest and dirtiest raw material for energy generation, but when it is supplied, it becomes one the most expensive in the world. It is also unreliable, and this is also why industry burns coal in small and inefficient boilers and adds to horrendous and toxic local air pollution. This is what must be fixed so that India can be electrified and that this “electricity” is clean — good for combating the climate crisis and local air pollution and provision of energy access to the poorest. Climate crisis is the biggest existential threat that faces our world. This is what is at stake at COP26. Nothing less. Sunita Narain is director general, Centre for Science and Environment, New Delhi

World on the line

Reclaiming leadership and voice to rebuild the trust of people — both rich and poor — should top the agenda at Glasgow It's a make-or-break time for the world. When leaders gather in Glasgow, Scotland, for the 26th Conference of the Parties (CoP26) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), they meet with the recognition that time has run out. Science has already spoken about the dire emergency that stares us in the face; the UN chief has sounded "Code Red for humanity" based on the findings of climate scientists. But we no longer need scientists to tell us this. We can see the devastation in our world — every day there is news about another region that has faced an extreme weather catastrophe. As I write this, my mind is numbed by images from the northern Indian Himalayan state of Uttarakhand and the southern state of Kerala, where mountains have crashed and lives and homes have been lost. Also Read - The truth and the lies The sheer fury of nature must make us think about what the future will be like and about the crises we must avert at all costs. CoP26 — meeting as it is, though delayed by a year due to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic — has the task to rework its own agenda and functioning. But the fact is negotiations on climate change are going nowhere. If you read the papers prepared by the secretariat of UNFCCC, you would understand that these are written by people from another planet. Over the past few decades, climate negotiations have been ossified to such an extent that they have kind of lost their purpose. A myriad of committees, institutions and funds have been set up purportedly to manage climate change — but this maze is just full of papers and wordage. You could say that the impacts of climate change have outgrown the global institutions, or that these institutions have become detached from reality. This is why the negotiations are lost in fights over commas, full stops and other punctuations, and discussions and decision papers that make no sense to even most negotiators. They have literally become meaningless. Also Read - Simmering tensions CoP26's top agenda should be to reclaim its leadership and voice to rebuild the trust of people — both rich and poor. This means making the agenda for action clearer and much more focused on what needs to be done — now, not even tomorrow. The first step is to lose the endless process, which turns everything into nothing. This is not about taking climate negotiations out of the UN. In fact, I believe such negotiations demand multilateralism, which requires global institutions to be in the lead. But these negotiations, which are now behind the crisis, must shape up and take charge. They must build trust and be sharply focused on what needs to be achieved; by whom; and how. They must also hold the powerful polluters to account; not just bully the poor into submission. Also Read - Custodians of faith Second, there is a desperate need to front-load action on mitigation — to plan for 2030, and to ensure that China, which will occupy 30 per cent of the already-shrunk carbon budget between 2020 and 2030, is in the spotlight. China is yesterday's USA and it is important to speak truth to this power. Then there is a need to discuss the remaining carbon budget, necessary to limit the temperature rise to 1.5 degree Celsius, and how it should be allocated — not just appropriated. We cannot have an ambitious agreement unless it is equitable. So, COP26 must not repeat the mistakes of the past by trying to erase equity and climate justice. Also Read - Setting priorities right The Paris Agreement may be lauded by rich countries because it managed to expunge any mention of historical emissions; it may be celebrated because it said that any discussion on loss and damage cannot be seen as a way to affix liability or to demand compensation; it may be the best treaty achieved because it allowed countries to set low and inadequate national targets and because it did nothing to finance adaptation or mitigation. But it does not matter. In five years, events have overtaken the Paris Agreement. The fact is that the carbon budget of the world has been appropriated by a few countries and only crumbs are available for the rest of the world. This part of the world will need to exercise its right to development and in the process will exceed the available budget. This means all will be at risk in an interdependent world. We know countries like India must not make the same mistakes that the already rich have made. The world needs to secure pathways for low-carbon growth and to pay for this transformation in the still-developing world. Finger-pointing and shaming the emerging world for future and inevitable emissions will cut no ice with them. At CoP26, we need to confront the reality of this inequity and ensure that it is addressed. Third is the agenda for "how" this will happen. The availability of finance must be made transparent and measurable — it will help overcome the trust deficit. So, it is not just the scale of finance that has to be discussed and agreed upon, its rules must also be made so that this fund transfer can be counted and verified. It is not enough to preach the need for transparency; there is a need to act on it. The "how" agenda is also connected to the discussions on markets — Article 6 of the Paris Agreement — which is on the table at CoP26. The current effort is to find smart and cheap ways to build a market instrument that will reduce the cost of carbon purchase from the developing world. A repeat of the complicated, convoluted and cheap Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) must not be allowed again. The reality is this time, unlike when the Kyoto Protocol's CDM was finalised, all countries have to take on emission reduction targets. Therefore, there is no reason any country should agree to "trade" and "sell" their cheap options for carbon abatement. This must be done through climate finance for transition. The market should be used for transformational action so that projects that will bring "big bang" carbon reductions can be paid through this instrument. The market must be driven by public policy and intent, and not left to discover new scams in the name of carbon offsets. This is also where discussions on nature-based solutions, or REDD+, must be firmly rooted. We must not miss the wood for the trees—literally in this case. There is an opportunity to use the ecological wealth of poor countries and communities for mitigation as trees and natural ecosystems sequester carbon dioxide. So, this should not be viewed as carbon sticks but as opportunities for livelihoods and the economic well-being of the poor. The rules for carbon offsets for forests must be developed with this in mind—deliberately and with statecraft. All this then brings the world to the discussions on adaptation and loss and damage—completely lost in the multiplicity of institutions, committees, funds, and all without any money or impact in the real world. This agenda needs to be rescued desperately—just try and make sense of the technical paper to measure the progress on the Global Adaptation Goal and you will understand what I am saying. The elephant in the room (that we would like not to discuss) is finance—this is where the discussions must be on adaptation and on loss and damage. We do not need rocket science to calculate the crippling losses being suffered by countries and communities because of climate change-induced extreme weather events. This is why COP26 must not be lost to prevarication in negotiations and to pusillanimous leaders. Let's hope that this COP stands out and is counted as different. It is the order of our times. DTE The writer is the Director-General of CSE and editor of DownToEarth. Views expressed are personal http://www.millenniumpost.in/opinion/the-truth-and-the-lies-457495?infinitescroll=1

Why You Must Brace For Peak Of Farm Fire Impact

New Delhi: An analysis of data from the Union earth science’s forecasting body System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR) determined that the share of stubble burning in Delhi’s PM2.5 is highest between October 29 and November 15. The data shows that the highest proportion of farm-fire emissions in Delhi’s PM2.5 level on a single day was 58% in 2018, 44% in 2019 and 42% in 2020. During the peak season, the single-day contribution varies between 20% and 30%. This year, the highest single-day share of stubble burning has been 15%, said SAFAR. It has mostly remained below 5% due to rain. Delhi’s air quality index (AQI) on Tuesday was 139 in the ‘moderate’ category and the contribution of stubble burning was measured at 8%. SAFAR started calculating the share of stubble burning in the PM2.5 pollutants in 2018 using indigenous technology. Its data shows the maximum effect of stubble burning is a single-day share of 58%, but the marks above 30% isn’t too consistent in a season. There were two days in 2020 when the contribution of smoke to Delhi’s PM2.5 concentration touched 40% or above. In 2019 and 2018, there were just one day each. Last year, the maximum share of farm fire emission in the city air was 40% and 42% in the 62 days of the harvesting season. Similarly, 2020 saw five days when the 24-hour share of stubble burning was between 31% and 39%, but only two such days each in 2019 and 2018. Congratulations! You have successfully cast your vote SAFAR’s founder project director Gufran Beig said, “The contribution of stubble burning to PM2.5 pollution fluctuates. The higher number of farm fires does not necessarily mean a more severe impact.” He explained that factors determining the adverse effect of farm fires to the city’s poor air quality included speed of transport wind and wind direction. The transport height had to be above surface level and wind should be blowing from the burning sites towards Delhi. Besides, calm local conditions also play an important role because they cause accumulation of pollutants released from stubble burning. Anumita Roy Chowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy, Centre for Science and Environment, said, “The ground report from Punjab and Haryana suggests that farmers couldn’t burn the harvest remnants earlier due to rain and they are likely to incinerate the stubble in the first week of November. Strong preventive action to check such burning is required from authorities concerned.”

Expect India to pitch 450GW renewable energy target in Glasgow: Alok Sharma

Alok Sharma, the COP26 president, said India’s informal goal of 450GW should be formalised in its NDC before the UN climate change talks get underway in Glasgow on October 31 Just days before a major UN-led summit on climate change opens in Glasgow, Alok Sharma, the president of the event popularly known as COP26, said he expects India to present its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) at the talks with a 450GW renewable energy target by 2030 incorporated in it. Saying that every country starts with a different energy mix, Sharma added that India’s informal goal of 450GW should be formalised in its NDC before the COP26 gets underway on October 31. “That is what I told Indian officials and ministers when I was there,” said Sharma at a virtual press conference organised on Tuesday by Covering Climate Now, a global collaboration of journalists and newsrooms to produce more informed and urgent climate change stories. HT is a part of the initiative. The COP26 annual summit on climate change action is also called the United Nations Climate Change Conference. There is no confirmation on what India’s submission at COP26 is likely to be. At an informal briefing on COP26 to select journalists last week, officials said details related to the submission and stance are yet to be approved by the union Cabinet. These decisions are taken at the highest level and have to be passed by the Cabinet before they are announced,” said an official. Officials have not commented on whether India will present an updated NDC. In response to a question about the depleting carbon budget and if he sees developed countries taking up advanced net zero targets, Sharma said it’s an issue that was raised when he was in New Delhi. “The CBDR (Common But Differentiated Responsibilities) is part of the Paris Agreement. My consistent message to every country is that we all need to play our part. I am impressed with the target of 450GW. What I want is that should reflect in the NDC.” Over 120 world leaders, including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, are expected to attend the summit on November 1 and 2. Sharma said Chinese President Xi Jinping has not confirmed his presence, but a Chinese negotiating team will be present in Glasgow. Sharma said Glasgow will be more challenging than Paris. “Our overarching ambition is to say at the end of Glasgow that we have kept [the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting global warming preferably to] 1.5 degrees Celsius alive,” Sharma said. He said an agreement is likely at the end of Glasgow on how the world will keep global warming under 1.5 degrees Celsius. “Glasgow will be the biggest event for the UK since the 2012 Olympics, but there is the added complexity of looking to reach an agreement with 200 parties,” he said. Sharma underlined the need to bend the curve towards 2 degrees Celsius. “But it is still not what the Paris Agreement said. If all the commitments made are not well below 2 degrees Celsius, then we have to reflect on how in this decade we need to come back and reappraise the commitments that have been made. Again, we have to build consensus around this. We have to look to reach some agreement.” A 14-15 member delegation with officials from the ministries of power, finance, earth sciences, agriculture, new and renewable energy, environment, and water will represent India at COP26. Environment minister Bhupender Yadav will head the Indian delegation. PM Narendra Modi and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson are expected to make a joint statement on a mission dubbed “Green Grids Initiative - One Sun One World One Grid (GGI-OSOWOG)” at COP26. he GGI-OSOWOG project will bring technical, financial, and research cooperation to help facilitate cross-border renewable energy transfer projects as part of the International Solar Alliance. Yadav is expected to lead India during the negotiations in the second week of COP26 when issues related to the Paris rulebook are likely to be deliberated. The rulebook is a set of guidelines for implementing the 2015 Paris Agreement. Officials have maintained it is not mandatory for India to update its NDC. “It can update it during the global stocktake in 2023. Whatever India announces will be on a voluntary basis,” said an official, requesting anonymity. “Developed countries have been pushing India to announce a net zero emissions target. But for us, our position is clear. Action has to be taken based on historical responsibility, which means they (developed countries) transition to net zero emissions first, leaving the carbon space for us to grow.” India is expected to push for climate change justice, and equity and contribution based on historical responsibility during negotiations with a similar stand as that of 24 other like-minded developing countries, including China. Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, has announced plans to reach net zero emissions by 2060. The UAE became the first Gulf nation to commit to net zero emissions by 2050. Russia and China have also announced plans to transition to net zero by 2060. According to the UN, 130 countries have set or are considering a net zero emissions target by mid-century. Centre for Science and Environment director general Sunita Narain said India should announce an enhanced NDC, not because of its responsibility or contribution to the greenhouse gas emissions, but because it is in the country’s best interest. “For us, climate action is for co-benefit,” Narain said. World Resources Institute director Ulka Kelkar said India is entitled to carbon space, but can consider a suitable target year for net zero CO2 emissions. “India is already putting in place the building blocks of a net zero future, such as scaling up renewable energy and investing in green hydrogen. Over time, it can also consider adding a carbon tax and retiring old inefficient thermal power plants, which will yield economic gains and health benefits.”

South MCD has vehicles to fight pollution, but no drivers

There is a shortage of over 40 drivers for vehicles like water tankers, jetting machines, garbage picking vehicles and mechanical diggers, said standing committee chairperson B K Oberoi. The number of these vehicles is around 150. The South Delhi Municipal Corporation is “fighting a war against pollution without guns” — the standing committee observed — after it was informed that there is a shortage of drivers leading to several vehicles being halted for months. There is a shortage of over 40 drivers for vehicles like water tankers, jetting machines, garbage picking vehicles and mechanical diggers, said standing committee chairperson B K Oberoi. The number of these vehicles is around 150. The issue was brought up during the standing committee meeting of the South MCD Tuesday by BJP councillor Poonam Bhati, who said that the corporation is facing a shortage of drivers. “Twenty vehicles remain stationed in offices of SDMC in Amar Colony, Lajpat Nagar and other areas,” said Bhati. “The shortage is for a year, and I have been raising the issue for two months now,” Bhati added. This situation led to Oberoi pulling up officials, saying, “Now there will be a rise in pollution, how are you prepared, you all know that you do not have drivers, you are fighting a war without guns.” Later, he said that the civic body is somehow managing with its current strength but a lack of funds is also coming in the way of hiring more manpower. “Many people retired, some passed away but there was no hiring,” he said. The air quality in Delhi worsens during the month of October and November due to the effect of stubble burning combined with vehicular pollution and other external factors. The System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Researching (SAFAR) has said that the impact of farm fires on Delhi’s air quality is likely to increase from October 27 due to the favourable speed and direction of winds from Punjab and Haryana and slim chances of rainfall. While Delhi has enjoyed a relatively cleaner pre-winter period (September 1-October 15) this year as compared to previous years, as per an analysis by the Centre for Science and Environment, experts attributed this to the extended rainfall as well as the delayed paddy harvest in Punjab and Haryana. With paddy stubble burning expected to rise in the next few days, pollution levels are also expected to go up.

उम्मीद है कि भारत ग्लासगो में 450GW अक्षय ऊर्जा लक्ष्य को पूरा करेगा: आलोक शर्मा

ग्लासगो में जलवायु परिवर्तन पर संयुक्त राष्ट्र के नेतृत्व वाले एक प्रमुख शिखर सम्मेलन के कुछ ही दिन पहले, COP26 के नाम से लोकप्रिय कार्यक्रम के अध्यक्ष आलोक शर्मा ने कहा कि उन्हें उम्मीद है कि भारत 450GW अक्षय ऊर्जा के साथ वार्ता में अपना राष्ट्रीय स्तर पर निर्धारित योगदान (NDC) पेश करेगा। इसमें 2030 तक का लक्ष्य शामिल किया गया है। यह कहते हुए कि हर देश एक अलग ऊर्जा मिश्रण से शुरू होता है, शर्मा ने कहा कि भारत के 450GW के अनौपचारिक लक्ष्य को 31 अक्टूबर को COP26 शुरू होने से पहले अपने NDC में औपचारिक रूप दिया जाना चाहिए। शर्मा ने मंगलवार को कवरिंग क्लाइमेट न्यूज़ द्वारा आयोजित एक वर्चुअल प्रेस कॉन्फ्रेंस में कहा, “जब मैं वहां था, तब मैंने भारतीय अधिकारियों और मंत्रियों से यही कहा था।” एचटी पहल का एक हिस्सा है। जलवायु परिवर्तन कार्रवाई पर COP26 वार्षिक शिखर सम्मेलन को संयुक्त राष्ट्र जलवायु परिवर्तन सम्मेलन भी कहा जाता है। COP26 में भारत के सबमिशन के क्या होने की संभावना है, इस पर कोई पुष्टि नहीं हुई है। पिछले सप्ताह चुनिंदा पत्रकारों के लिए COP26 पर एक अनौपचारिक ब्रीफिंग में, अधिकारियों ने कहा कि प्रस्तुत करने और रुख से संबंधित विवरण को केंद्रीय मंत्रिमंडल द्वारा अनुमोदित किया जाना बाकी है। यह भी पढ़ें: भारत को 2020 में जलवायु आपदाओं से 87 अरब डॉलर का नुकसान: रिपोर्ट एक अधिकारी ने कहा, “ये फैसले उच्चतम स्तर पर लिए जाते हैं और इन्हें घोषित करने से पहले कैबिनेट द्वारा पारित किया जाना चाहिए।” अधिकारियों ने इस पर कोई टिप्पणी नहीं की है कि क्या भारत एक अद्यतन एनडीसी पेश करेगा। घटते कार्बन बजट के बारे में एक सवाल के जवाब में और अगर वह विकसित देशों को उन्नत शुद्ध शून्य लक्ष्य लेते हुए देखते हैं, तो शर्मा ने कहा कि यह एक ऐसा मुद्दा है जिसे तब उठाया गया था जब वह नई दिल्ली में थे। “सीबीडीआर (कॉमन बट डिफरेंशियल रिस्पॉन्सिबिलिटीज) पेरिस समझौते का हिस्सा है। हर देश को मेरा लगातार संदेश यह है कि हम सभी को अपनी भूमिका निभाने की जरूरत है। मैं 450GW के लक्ष्य से प्रभावित हूं। मैं जो चाहता हूं वह एनडीसी में प्रतिबिंबित होना चाहिए।” भारतीय प्रधान मंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी सहित 120 से अधिक विश्व नेताओं के 1 और 2 नवंबर को शिखर सम्मेलन में भाग लेने की उम्मीद है। शर्मा ने कहा कि चीनी राष्ट्रपति शी जिनपिंग ने अपनी उपस्थिति की पुष्टि नहीं की है, लेकिन ग्लासगो में एक चीनी वार्ता दल मौजूद रहेगा। शर्मा ने कहा कि ग्लासगो पेरिस से ज्यादा चुनौतीपूर्ण होगा। “हमारी व्यापक महत्वाकांक्षा ग्लासगो के अंत में यह कहना है कि हमने रखा है [the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting global warming preferably to] 1.5 डिग्री सेल्सियस जिंदा, ”शर्मा ने कहा। उन्होंने कहा कि ग्लासगो के अंत में एक समझौता होने की संभावना है कि दुनिया ग्लोबल वार्मिंग को 1.5 डिग्री सेल्सियस के नीचे कैसे रखेगी। “ग्लासगो 2012 ओलंपिक के बाद से यूके के लिए सबसे बड़ा आयोजन होगा, लेकिन 200 पार्टियों के साथ एक समझौते पर पहुंचने की अतिरिक्त जटिलता है,” उन्होंने कहा। यह भी पढ़ें: CoP 26 की बैठक से पहले: बातचीत की रणनीति शर्मा ने वक्र को 2 डिग्री सेल्सियस की ओर मोड़ने की आवश्यकता को रेखांकित किया। “लेकिन यह अभी भी वह नहीं है जो पेरिस समझौते ने कहा था। यदि किए गए सभी वादे 2 डिग्री सेल्सियस से कम नहीं हैं, तो हमें इस पर विचार करना होगा कि इस दशक में हमें वापस आने और किए गए प्रतिबद्धताओं को फिर से लागू करने की आवश्यकता है। फिर से, हमें इसके इर्द-गिर्द आम सहमति बनानी होगी। हमें किसी समझौते पर पहुंचने के लिए देखना होगा।” बिजली, वित्त, पृथ्वी विज्ञान, कृषि, नवीन और नवीकरणीय ऊर्जा, पर्यावरण और जल मंत्रालयों के अधिकारियों के साथ 14-15 सदस्यीय प्रतिनिधिमंडल सीओपी26 में भारत का प्रतिनिधित्व करेगा। भारतीय प्रतिनिधिमंडल की अध्यक्षता पर्यावरण मंत्री भूपेंद्र यादव करेंगे. पीएम नरेंद्र मोदी और ब्रिटिश प्रधान मंत्री बोरिस जॉनसन से COP26 में “ग्रीन ग्रिड इनिशिएटिव – वन सन वन वर्ल्ड वन ग्रिड (GGI-OSOWOG)” नामक एक मिशन पर एक संयुक्त बयान देने की उम्मीद है। GGI-OSOWOG परियोजना अंतर्राष्ट्रीय सौर गठबंधन के हिस्से के रूप में सीमा पार अक्षय ऊर्जा हस्तांतरण परियोजनाओं को सुविधाजनक बनाने में मदद करने के लिए तकनीकी, वित्तीय और अनुसंधान सहयोग लाएगी। सीओपी26 के दूसरे सप्ताह में वार्ता के दौरान यादव के भारत का नेतृत्व करने की उम्मीद है, जब पेरिस नियम पुस्तिका से संबंधित मुद्दों पर विचार-विमर्श होने की संभावना है। नियम पुस्तिका 2015 पेरिस समझौते को लागू करने के लिए दिशानिर्देशों का एक समूह है। अधिकारियों ने कहा है कि भारत के लिए अपने एनडीसी को अपडेट करना अनिवार्य नहीं है। एक अधिकारी ने नाम न छापने का अनुरोध करते हुए कहा, “यह 2023 में वैश्विक स्टॉकटेक के दौरान इसे अपडेट कर सकता है। भारत जो कुछ भी घोषणा करेगा वह स्वैच्छिक आधार पर होगा।” “विकसित देश भारत को शुद्ध शून्य उत्सर्जन लक्ष्य की घोषणा करने के लिए प्रेरित कर रहे हैं। लेकिन हमारे लिए हमारी स्थिति स्पष्ट है। ऐतिहासिक जिम्मेदारी के आधार पर कार्रवाई की जानी है, जिसका अर्थ है कि वे (विकसित देश) पहले शुद्ध शून्य उत्सर्जन में संक्रमण करते हैं, जिससे हमारे लिए कार्बन स्पेस बढ़ जाता है। ” भारत से अपेक्षा की जाती है कि वह चीन सहित 24 अन्य समान विचारधारा वाले विकासशील देशों के समान रुख के साथ बातचीत के दौरान जलवायु परिवर्तन न्याय, और इक्विटी और ऐतिहासिक जिम्मेदारी के आधार पर योगदान पर जोर देगा। दुनिया के सबसे बड़े तेल निर्यातक सऊदी अरब ने 2060 तक शुद्ध शून्य उत्सर्जन तक पहुंचने की योजना की घोषणा की है। संयुक्त अरब अमीरात 2050 तक शुद्ध शून्य उत्सर्जन करने वाला पहला खाड़ी देश बन गया है। रूस और चीन ने भी 2060 तक शुद्ध शून्य में संक्रमण की योजना की घोषणा की है। संयुक्त राष्ट्र के अनुसार, 130 देशों ने सदी के मध्य तक शुद्ध शून्य उत्सर्जन लक्ष्य निर्धारित किया है या उन पर विचार कर रहे हैं। विज्ञान और पर्यावरण केंद्र की महानिदेशक सुनीता नारायण ने कहा कि भारत को ग्रीनहाउस गैस उत्सर्जन में अपनी जिम्मेदारी या योगदान के कारण नहीं, बल्कि इसलिए कि यह देश के सर्वोत्तम हित में है, एक उन्नत एनडीसी की घोषणा करनी चाहिए। “हमारे लिए, जलवायु कार्रवाई सह-लाभ के लिए है,” नारायण ने कहा। विश्व संसाधन संस्थान के निदेशक उल्का केलकर ने कहा कि भारत कार्बन स्पेस का हकदार है, लेकिन शुद्ध शून्य CO2 उत्सर्जन के लिए एक उपयुक्त लक्ष्य वर्ष पर विचार कर सकता है। “भारत पहले से ही एक शुद्ध शून्य भविष्य के निर्माण खंड स्थापित कर रहा है, जैसे कि अक्षय ऊर्जा को बढ़ाना और हरित हाइड्रोजन में निवेश करना। समय के साथ, यह कार्बन टैक्स जोड़ने और पुराने अक्षम थर्मल पावर प्लांटों को सेवानिवृत्त करने पर भी विचार कर सकता है, जिससे आर्थिक लाभ और स्वास्थ्य लाभ मिलेगा। Continue reading at https://careermotions.com/%E0%A4%89%E0%A4%AE%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AE%E0%A5%80%E0%A4%A6-%E0%A4%B9%E0%A5%88-%E0%A4%95%E0%A4%BF-%E0%A4%AD%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%A4-%E0%A4%97%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B2%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%B8%E0%A4%97%E0%A5%8B/ | Career Motions

Pollution focus on Delhi, but NCR towns fare worse

As Delhi-NCR have the same ‘airshed’ — a region sharing a common flow of air — pollution in neighbouring cities adversely affects the national capital as well. As a result, experts have said measures taken to reduce air pollution in Delhi need to be applied across NCR. While Delhi is in the spotlight each time air quality takes a turn for the worse, other parts of the National Capital Region appear to be more polluted, data from the Central Pollution Control Board’s (CPCB) daily bulletins shows. As Delhi-NCR have the same ‘airshed’ — a region sharing a common flow of air — pollution in neighbouring cities adversely affects the national capital as well. As a result, experts have said measures taken to reduce air pollution in Delhi need to be applied across NCR. Earlier this month, several cities in the NCR began to record worsening air quality. Ballabgarh, a town in Haryana’s Faridabad district, for instance, recorded its first ‘poor’ air day (AQI of 221) this season on October 7. This was much higher than Delhi’s AQI of 127 for the day. Faridabad similarly recorded a ‘poor’ AQI of 236 on the day, CPCB daily bulletins show. While AQI of Ballabgarh and Faridabad was in the ‘poor’ category on October 8, Bhiwadi in Rajasthan’s Alwar district, also recorded a ‘poor’ AQI of 242 on the same day. While Delhi’s AQI remained in the ‘moderate’ category, other areas in the NCR like Bulandshahr, Ghaziabad, Greater Noida and Meerut have been recording ‘poor’ AQI intermittently from October 9 onwards. Delhi recorded its first ‘poor’ air day this season on October 16, remaining in the category on October 17 and 20. The same day, Greater Noida, Ghaziabad, Karnal, Noida and Bhiwadi all saw AQI in the ‘very poor’ category. The air quality in Ghaziabad has, in fact, remained ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’ from October 16-24. From October 21-24, Delhi’s AQI remained in the ‘moderate’ category, while Panipat and Sonipat deteriorated to ‘poor’ on October 21. AQI for Panipat remained ‘poor’ on October 22, and Sonipat recorded ‘poor’ AQI on October 23 and 24 as well. According to an analysis report by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), Delhi’s winter PM 2.5 average was 192 last year (October 15, 2020 to February 15, 2021). Some parts of the NCR recorded higher levels. For Ghaziabad, this figure stood at 229, for Greater Noida it was 204, 203 in Noida, and 198 in Bulandshahr. How this affects Delhi The Decision Support System developed by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune, predicts the contribution of 19 nearby districts to PM 2.5 levels in Delhi, based on numerical modelling of atmospheric pollutants along with observational data from these districts. The forecast for October 24 said that Faridabad is likely to contribute around 11.5% of PM 2.5 levels to Delhi around 6 am, while Ghaziabad could contribute around 0.2% at the same time, and Bulandshahr could be 2.24%. Scientists associated with the project maintained that precise contributions from these areas could be difficult to ascertain. “When cool, calm conditions in winter trap pollutants, this happens across the Indo-Gangetic plain, and you can’t create small green islands. Each city will require its own action plan and must take note of its local sources of pollution. But we also need a region-wide harmonisation of action. There is an asymmetry in action – Delhi might not have any coal-fired power plants, but the NCR has 11. We need strong regional action with clear targets,” said Anumita Roychowdhury, Executive Director, Research and Advocacy, CSE.

At COP26, Could India Become a Champion, Not Just a Casualty, of the Climate Crisis?

If the nation’s call to leadership in the twentieth century was decolonization, in this century it is decarbonization. In “The Ministry for the Future,” published last year, the science-fiction author Kim Stanley Robinson imagines a course by which the world might arrive at a new sort of utopia, on the other side of the climate crisis: a “good Anthropocene.” It’s a hard road, and many dystopias are glimpsed along the way. The novel opens in a town in Uttar Pradesh, in northern India, as it is hit by a “wet-bulb” heat wave, in which high temperatures and humidity combine in a manner that makes it impossible for bodies to cool without air-conditioning. Then the power grid collapses. Twenty million people in the region die, including nearly every inhabitant of the town. The scene is dreadful and vividly described, yet it stirred me less than what happens next: India abandons its apathy and half-measures, and becomes the first large country to truly revolutionize in order to meet the demands of the climate crisis. “Time for the long post-colonial subalternity to end,” Robinson writes. “Time for India to step onto the world stage, as it had at the start of history, and demand a better world. And then help to make it real.” A national workforce sets about refurbishing the national grid and building wind, solar, and free-river-hydroelectric plants to replace coal-burning stations. In the next five hundred pages, the country leads the world by example in the defining challenge of the twenty-first century. To describe this radical climate praxis, Robinson invokes existing models of decentralized governance and regenerative agriculture from progressive Indian states, such as Kerala and Sikkim. He mentions dozens of real organizations that are making advances in ecosystem restoration, reforestation, income generation, and water harvesting. The book does not advocate policy. Rather, it gestures at a wide horizon of local ideas and expertise. In an e-mail, Robinson told me that he has not spent time in India, but he has in the Nepali Terai, a region that borders the hot, crowded state of Uttar Pradesh. He said he was “very concerned to write a version of India into our near future that is positive and powerful.” Growing up in Bangalore, in the nineteen-nineties, I learned to think of India, for all its sins and failures, as a country that the world admired and even looked to for enlightened moral and political alternatives. The past decade has largely buried that reputation, under headlines about corruption, demagoguery, and hate crimes. “The Ministry for the Future” taps a vein of national identity that has receded but not disappeared: India as a society ready to redeem a broken model of modernity. After all, it did so once before. The country helped lead the globe through what was, for most of the world’s people, the defining challenge of the twentieth century: decolonization and democratic self-rule. This year, India kicked off its celebration of the seventy-fifth anniversary of independence from the British Empire, which formally took place on August 15, 1947. With that transition, the number of people with suffrage nearly doubled worldwide. Not only did India lay a claim on democracy, the vaunted reserve of imperial rulers; it aimed to outdo them at it. From the first independent election, in 1951-52, every citizen over the age of twenty-one could vote. The lowest castes, formerly known as the “untouchables,” were guaranteed representation in Parliament. It’s hard now to grasp how audacious India’s gambit was. Skeptics, even among the country’s allies, were everywhere. Chester Bowles, the American Ambassador to India, expressed a typical sentiment, writing, in his memoir “Ambassador’s Report,” that he was “appalled at the prospect of a poll of 200 million eligible voters, most of whom were illiterate villagers.” He anticipated “a fiasco,” but what he observed changed his view of whom democracy was for. “I have seen women defy old customs and cast their first vote. . . . I have seen ‘untouchables’ walk for miles to stand in the voting line next to Brahmans.” He concluded, “In Asia, as in America, I know no grander vision than this, government by the consent of the governed.” India’s transition from colony to sovereign democracy encouraged a wave of decolonization and democratic experiments across Asia and Africa. “When the time came for me to do something about gaining the political independence of my own country,” Kwame Nkrumah wrote about Ghana, ten years later, “it was a natural thing that I should take inspiration from India and her leaders.” The leaders of the independence movement left political and ethical legacies that could also help shape a climate revolution. Gandhi, from the time of his first published book, developed his argument against British rule through a critique of industrial civilization, its “indefinite multiplicity of wants,” and its relentless hunt for new lands, resources, and people to exploit. Gandhi’s corollary, swarāj, referred not just to political self-rule but also to decentralized, self-sufficient ways of living. (His belief in the Indian village as a scene of potential swarāj was fraught—it was also a scene of caste and gender violence, as one of his critics, Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, pointed out.) Yet Gandhi was prescient about the pathways of industrial growth. “God forbid that India should ever take to industrialization after the manner of the West,” he wrote in 1928, in his paper “Young India.” “If an entire nation of 300 million took to similar economic exploitation, it would strip the world bare like locusts.” Gandhi’s writings are still a touchstone for natural farmers and organic initiatives across India; Robinson name-checks many of them in “The Ministry for the Future.” A 2019 editorial in the journal Nature concluded that “Gandhi’s commitment to what we now call sustainability is perhaps more relevant today than in his own time.” Ambedkar was born into an “untouchable” caste, but he became a founding jurist of the Republic of India. As a ferocious critic of Gandhi on the issue of caste, and as the chief draftsman of India’s Constitution, he made sure that the country’s struggle against foreign exploitation and empire did not legitimize exploitation inherent in Indian society. Ambedkar’s influence is rising among young Indians, and his analyses of social power and eye for the hypocrisies of crusading élites are as critical for the climate movement as they were for India’s independence movement, which was steered mostly by upper-caste men. Another spur to India’s climate transition is the legacy left by its first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru. His progressive, internationalist outlook extended beyond the dismantling of empire, and was proactive about the new perils faced by the world at large. I was reminded of this while reading about Bertrand Russell and Albert Einstein’s manifesto of 1955, signed by the world’s leading atomic scientists—a landmark ethical renegotiation of war in light of the nuclear bomb. It also called for an international conference of scientists to confront this existential threat to the human species. While Russell was drafting the text, Nehru wrote to him offering to host the conference in New Delhi. Russell agreed, but that plan was derailed by the Suez Crisis; the event moved to Nova Scotia, giving rise to the Nobel Prize-winning Pugwash Conferences. These legacies still have vast subscription among Indians today, and the power to persuade hundreds of millions. Alongside them is India’s ecological heritage, with roots in both peasant traditions—such as Chipko, the original and literal tree-hugging protests to save forests in the Himalayan foothills—and tribal cultures, which defend hills and streams against extractive mining in central India. Advertisement If India’s call to leadership in the twentieth century was decolonization, in this century it is decarbonization. “Colonialism, like slavery, was profitable because it could discount the deaths and immiseration of hundreds of thousands of people. The carbon economy is similar; it’s only profitable because you’re not counting the costs to everyone in the future,” Omair Ahmad, a political writer in New Delhi and an editor of the Third Pole, an online journal of climate and water issues in Central and South Asia, told me. “India is in a great position to argue this point. India’s strength as an anti-colonial leader rested not on its wealth or its power, because it frankly didn’t have any, but on its example. We are in a position to do that again. We’re big enough to create a model that works.” The question ahead of COP26, the United Nations Climate Change Conference that starts next week in Glasgow, is whether India’s present government has the resolve and the clarity of vision of its forebears. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is self-consciously an agent of historical change, as much as Nehru, but often in an antithetical mode. Whereas Nehru was a cosmopolitan socialist devoted, like Gandhi, to interreligious harmony, Modi was raised in the Hindu-nationalist fold—a movement intent on relitigating India’s distant past, especially its encounter with Islam, and settling thousand-year-old scores with an increasingly impoverished and vulnerable Muslim minority. Since 2014, when Modi came to power, his government has worked to efface Nehru (from official publicity about the seventy-fifth anniversary of independence, for instance) but also to erode that generation’s legacy: the fundamental rights and constitutional checks and balances that protect minority lives. As a result, India is slipping in international rankings of democratic standards and human freedoms, but also in those of hunger and child malnutrition. Modi likes to speak of India’s role as a vishwaguru, a world teacher. But it’s unclear what he wants it to teach, unless it is a path to an “elected autocracy,” as Sweden’s V-Dem Institute designated India earlier this year. Nehru famously regarded big dams as the “temples of modern India.” Modi seems to view matters the other way around. But neither represents the way forward for a country already battered by extreme weather and confronting a perverse new climate norm: floods in the midst of droughts. Instead, we might put our faith in small, decentralized water-harvesting networks, such as those suggested by Sunita Narain, the director of New Delhi’s Centre for Science and Environment, who argues for “millions and millions of connected and living water structures that will capture rain, be a sponge for flood, and a storehouse for drought.” Climate action, in fact, is one area in which Modi is not completely at odds with progressives. He has had the advantage, over many right-wing heads of state around the world, that his base is not ideologically mired in climate denial. The year after his first election, Modi created a new ministry for renewable energy; set hopeful targets for generating solar and wind power, and also for reduced emissions by public utilities; and began to lay the groundwork for a turn toward electric vehicles on Indian roads. He also convened the International Solar Alliance, a coalition of mostly developing “sun belt” countries, to promote the capture of solar power and a global grid to channel that power across borders—allowing regions in daylight to power others where the sun has set. Last week, the U.S. climate envoy, John Kerry, addressed the I.S.A.’s fourth general assembly, and called India “a red-hot investment destination for solar power.” The country’s initiatives have “already set an example for emerging economies,” Kerry said, citing India’s ambition to generate four hundred and fifty gigawatts of renewable energy by 2030. Yet Kerry was disappointed by a September visit to New Delhi, where he was unable to win a commitment by the Indian government to reach net-zero greenhouse-gas emissions by 2050. The Climate Action Tracker, run by Climate Analytics and the NewClimate Institute, both in Germany, still rates India’s efforts as “highly insufficient,” far behind countries such as Peru, Nigeria, and South Africa. Beyond the expanding solar farms is a vexing policy landscape, in which forest protections are being axed, new coalfields are opened to mining, and coal-burning plants are under construction. A burgeoning clean-energy fund, paid for by a tax on mined and imported coal, goes mostly unspent. College-age climate activists are jailed for sedition when their organizing dents Modi’s image. Billionaire industrialists close to Modi speak ardently about green energy but are regional fossil-fuel giants, with planned coal projects that threaten ecosystems as far away as the Great Barrier Reef. By these ties alone, Modi’s position is “desperately problematic,” Ahmad, the political writer, said. But, he added, “it is unconscionable to give up on India. There is no equation where that works.” In “The Ministry for the Future,” a choral voice sometimes speaks for India, and its words chime with Modi’s choice of idiom. “India is coming into its own. We are the new force. People around the world have begun to take notice,” the voice says, midway through the country’s decarbonization process. “Is India now the bold new leader of the world? We think maybe so.” In the book, though, these triumphant notes are justified by a journey of national redemption. In the actual world, they are mostly bluster or, worse, a cynical spin. Modi has a desire for global prestige, for the country and for himself, and a barely hidden ambition to eclipse Nehru as the icon of modern Indian statesmanship. For the former, he will need to turn the country’s hollow, histrionic debates over nationalism toward the real end of advancing national interest, survival, and renewal in ecological terms. And, to outshine his rival of seventy-five years ago, he will need to help preside over the end of an unjust, unsustainable global order. If he wants to try, he should begin in Glasgow.

Podcast | Cumbre del clima: Sunita Narain y la acción desde el ámbito local

La contaminación del aire se ha convertido en un problema de primer orden para la India, tanto en lo sanitario, como en lo social y en lo económico. El segundo país más poblado de la tierra por detrás de China es también el segundo mayor consumidor de carbón a nivel mundial y los expertos ponen en duda que sus gobiernos -el actual y los venideros- vayan a poder promover un proceso de descarbonización suficientemente ambicioso de su economía las próximas décadas y al mismo tiempo proporcionen electricidad a un precio asequible para 1.400 millones de personas. A las advertencias de los principales organismos internacionales se suman cifras como las que ha puesto sobre la mesa la revista médica 'The Lancet'. En el año 2019, antes de que estallase la pandemia de coronavirus y de que muchas industrias se vieran obligadas a parar la producción, 1,67 millones de personas murieron en la India a consecuencia de la contaminación del aire. Solo la capital, Nueva Delhi, registró el año pasado 54.000 fallecimientos prematuros que se han relacionado directamente con la toxicidad del aire, una cifra mucho más elevada que en cualquier otra gran metrópoli global. Los datos los ha hecho públicos un informe elaborado por Greenpeace en el sudeste asiático y por la empresa IQAir. En una semana en la que Glasgow (Reino Unido) acapara la atención mediática con el arranque de la cumbre del clima, la COP26, a las grandes naciones les va a tocar retratarse. Naciones Unidas ya advirtió el pasado mes de agosto en un informe demoledor que las emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero provocadas por el hombre son responsables de que la temperatura del planeta se haya elevado en más de un grado solo desde el año 1900. Los autores del informe advertían de que el clima está cambiando en todos los rincones del planeta a una escala no vista en miles de años y que algunos de estos cambios serán irreversibles también por miles de años. Ante este drama, hay quienes han tomado la iniciativa, están desarrollando propuestas para atajar este problema que están siendo tenidas en cuenta por sus propios gobiernos. Es el caso de la protagonista de este podcast, Sunita Narain, CEO del Centro de Ciencia y Medio Ambiente de La India, activista política, ecologista y escritora. La revista 'Time' la ha situado entre las cien personas más influyentes del planeta y en la lista de las 15 mujeres que más han hecho por combatir el cambio climático.

Prémio Gulbenkian para a Humanidade: Depois de Greta quem vai ganhar esta 2.ªedição?

Esta terça-feira o mundo vai ficar a conhecer o vencedor da segunda edição do Prémio Gulbenkian para a Humanidade, no valor de um milhão de euros. Este prémio foi instituído pela Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian em 2020 com o propósito de distinguir pessoas, grupos de pessoas ou organizações de todo o mundo que se tenham evidenciado no combate à crise climática e cujas contribuições se destacam pela originalidade, inovação e impacto. No ano passado a vencedora foi a ativista sueca Greta Thunberg, que anunciou de imediato, que ia doar metade do valor do prémio, 500 mil euros, a dez organizações ambientais em vários continentes. Este ano, o júri é composto por personalidades da área, nomeadamente, Miguel Bastos Araújo, Hans-Joachim Schellnhuber, Johan Rockström, Mariana Mazzucato, Miguel Aries Cañete, o príncipe Constantijn van Oranje, Runa Khan, Sandra Díaz, Sunita Narain e Rik Leemans. “A humanidade enfrenta uma crise climática severa e sem precedentes, com consequências devastadoras para as pessoas, a natureza e a economia”, refere a Fundação num preâmbulo de apresentação do prémio. Na mesma nota, a Gulbenkian acrescenta ainda: “Os últimos cinco anos foram os mais quentes desde que há registo e este aumento da temperatura global, causado por níveis excessivos de gases de efeito de estufa na atmosfera, está a provocar graves desequilíbrios no Planeta”. “Além dos impactos no ambiente – a perda de biodiversidade e o colapso dos ecossistemas naturais-, as alterações climáticas afetam componentes essenciais do bem-estar humano e do desenvolvimento socioeconómico”, afirma acrescentando que “sem uma mudança drástica, a humanidade continuará a sofrer estas consequências, especialmente aqueles que se encontram em situação de maior vulnerabilidade”.

Hardlook: Delhi holds its breath

Delhi air pollution: With winter round the corner in the capital, extended rainfall has meant relatively cleaner air so far. But this relief could be shortlived. Every winter, the national capital and surrounding NCR areas grapple with severe air pollution from multiple internal sources such as dust and vehicular emissions as well as meteorological conditions like low wind speed, temperature, and humidity. Add stubble burning to this cocktail and Delhi is enveloped in a grey haze for the entirety of winter. While Delhi has enjoyed a relatively cleaner pre-winter period (September 1-October 15) this year compared to previous years, as per an analysis by the Centre for Science and Environment, experts attributed this to the extended rainfall as well a delayed paddy harvest in Punjab and Haryana. With paddy stubble burning expected to rise in the next few days, pollution too is expected to go up. The harvest and the consequent paddy stubble burning are just starting off in Punjab. The delay this year is because of the monsoon, which withdrew later than usual. Around 28% paddy has been harvested in the state till October 22 against 41% last year on the same date. Between September 1 and October 22, Punjab’s fire count was 5,772 — lower than the fire count of 11,664 till October 22 last year, the highest figure since 2016. But this year’s count is higher than that of 2019 (4,042) and 2018 (3,502). Haryana’s fire count till October 22 was 2,413, up from 2,121 last year. In 2019, the figure for the same time frame was 2,755, while it stood at 2,503 in 2018. This is as per figures provided by Pawan Gupta, senior scientist, Earth Sciences at the Universities Space Research Association, NASA Marshall Space Flight Centre, USA, of data from the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS), an instrument on board NASA’s Suomi National Polar-Orbiting Partnership satellite. Why focus on stubble burning In 2009, the Punjab Preservation of Sub Soil Act was enacted to arrest declining groundwater levels. This delayed the sowing date to match it with the monsoon onset to reduce the burden on ground water for irrigation. Consequently, the harvest was delayed, also reducing the time needed to manage the stubble and prepare for the next crop, said L S Kurinji, programme associate at the research institution, Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW). This then synchronised with the shift in wind direction in October and November which favour the carrying of smoke towards Delhi. Farm fires in the month of September don’t affect Delhi as much since the wind direction then is mostly south westerly, she said. According to the Punjab Remote Sensing Centre (PRSC) at Punjab Agricultural University in Ludhiana, which records farm fires through satellite images, the incidence of stubble burning till October 21 are 4,327 — 3,402 took place in just nine days from October 13 to 21. District-wise cumulative fire counts in Punjab between September 1 and October 22 indicates that Amritsar and Tarn Taran have the highest, in the range above 850. In Haryana, the districts of Kaithal and Karnal show the highest counts (over 460), maps that Gupta provided show. “The fire count is lower this year but comparing it to last year’s figures might not work. Last year, due to the labour scarcity induced by the pandemic, more farmers adopted the ‘direct seeder’ technique which resulted in an early harvest and early burning,” said L S Kurinji, programme associate at the research institution, Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW). Don't Miss | Why does air pollution rise in October every year? Farm fires usually begin in the last week of September, but this year the rains have delayed the harvest in Amritsar and Tarn Taran where the early maturing rice varieties are grown, Kurinji said. These districts are usually where the burning begins, she added. The contribution of stubble burning to PM 2.5 levels in Delhi hit a high of 14% on October 16 this year, having remained below 5% till then. “The fire counts are taken and the area where these counts are is determined before we develop an emission inventory due to these fire counts. Then we run the model to figure out what the contribution from the fire counts is,” said Gufran Beig, founder project director, SAFAR. Alternatives Efforts are on to help farmers switch to the Pusa bio-decomposer, developed by the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) to aid the decomposition of crop residue, which is being touted as a cleaner alternative than setting fire to fields. The Delhi government has begun spraying the solution on harvested paddy fields, covering 4,000 acres out of a total of nearly 14,000 acres under paddy cultivation. Indramani Mishra, head of the Agricultural Engineering Department, IARI, said the Punjab government has procured the decomposer through a licensee to cover around 3,000 hectares while the Haryana government will be covering around 1 lakh acres. The UP government has also procured from a licensee for 10 lakh acres. A licensed private company also plans on providing the decomposer for 3 lakh acres in Haryana and 2 lakh acres in Punjab for free as part of their CSR activity, Mishra said. Going by data available on the website of the Government of Punjab’s Department of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare, an estimated area of 31.49 lakh hectares was cultivated with paddy in 2020-21. However, only a small section of farmers will be using the decomposer, said Harinder Singh Lakhowal, General Secretary, Bharatiya Kisan Union, Punjab. “There isn’t enough time to spray the decomposer and wait for it to work,” Lakhowal said, explaining why farmers were unlikely to use it. Some farmers might want to grow vegetables between paddy and wheat, he pointed out. Besides, the predominant variety of rice being grown in Punjab is PUSA-44 — this one has a higher yield, he said, but it is also the ‘late’ variety, which is harvested later. Alternatives to both the decomposer and burning include a ‘happy seeder,’ which cuts the straw and sows the seeds for the rabi crop at the same time. Even with the subsidy, it remains out of reach for many farmers, Lakhowal said. Manmohan Kalia Joint Director, Farm Machinery Wing, Punjab Agriculture Department and Nodal Officer, Stubble Management, Punjab, said, “Punjab is going to have over 1 lakh machines in the state by this paddy harvesting season. At present, 86,000 machines are available which are sufficient for stubble management machinery because this is not the peak season, which starts in the beginning of November. Farmers, however, are not availing these machines because of increasing diesel costs and other factors.” ‘Burning stubble easier’ Despite spending over Rs 1,000 crore on subsidised machinery to manage stubble in Punjab — which produces around 20 million paddy stubble every year — burning straw across the state continues, with the Majha region on top of the chart currently. In Tarn Taran and Amritsar, which fall in the region, burning fields can be spotted every few 100 metres in around half a dozen blocks. The two districts are also responsible for 43.4% of the total stubble burning in the state till October 21. Farmers here sow short duration varieties of paddy (non-basmati) and basmati rice crops. These were harvested between September 10 and October 20. For them, stubble burning is convenient and cost effective. In Jandiala Guru, Tarsikka, Majitha and Ajnala blocks in Amritsar and Khadur Sahib, and Chohla Sahib blocks in Tarn Taran, farmers sow vegetables like matar (green peas) and table potatoes after harvesting paddy. Peas and potatoes are sown between October 1-20 in these blocks. Jeet Singh, a farmer from Tarn Taran, said, “I harvested the short-duration variety of paddy last week on 5 acres of land. I now have to sow the pea crop; sowing time was up to October 20 which I cannot delay. I was left with just 5-6 days to clear my fields because for sowing vegetables, you need a clean field. It is not like wheat which can be sown in standing stubble with happy seeder or super seeder. It takes at least 5-6 rounds to clear the stubble and the high cost of diesel means machines are out of reach for small, marginal, and semi-medium farmers. We are left with no option but to set our fields on fire, even though it harms the soil and creates air pollution.” Peas are a 65-day crop, which is harvested by the second week of December. Farmers then sow another crop with a late variety of wheat or Rabi season crops. Assembly elections and ongoing protests against the three farm laws also mean that action against farmers who set their fields on fire will be elusive. A senior administrative officer in Amritsar said with elections due in a few months, they cannot take any stringent action against farmers. Till October 21, environment compensation to the tune of Rs 16.46 lakh was imposed, of which only Rs 7,500 could be recovered. No FIRs are being registered this year.

India Leads the World in Crop‑Burning Emissions: Report

A new report has found that India holds the top spot globally for crop-burning emissions. We are responsible for 13% of the total global emissions from crop burning between 2015-2020. With winter just around the corner, this report is an alarming reminder of the horrors to expect in the national capital and its adjoining areas soon. Crop burning, or stubble burning, involves setting fire to fields to remove crop residue from previous harvests. It is an affordable method to remove weeds and pests too. But, unfortunately, it also leads to severe air pollution. As winter approaches, farmers in the country’s northwestern states start burning leftover paddy stubble to get their fields ready in time to plant wheat crops. Researchers estimate that each year, farmers burn about 23 million tonnes of paddy stubble in India. According to reports, the country may witness more crop burning incidents this year. India Today reported earlier this month that the weather has delayed paddy harvesting by a week in Punjab and Haryana — leaving farmers with lesser time to prepare their field for wheat crops. Related on The Swaddle: Environment Ministry Hasn’t Used Nearly 50% of Budget Allocated for Controlling Air Pollution A study from June this year found that curbing stubble burning could reduce high blood pressure in residents of the regions where it’s practiced. “India thus needs effective policies regarding regulation and management of biomass burning. The policy instruments should address the knowledge barrier in the adoption of new clean technologies for managing crop residue and they should provide greater financial support for buying new machinery,” said researchers of the study. Further, it was reported in March that a parliamentary panel had recommended the Ministry of Science and Technology, Environment, Forests, and Climate to come up with ‘innovative’ plans to mitigate air pollution. Among them, lay a suggestion to establish bio-degraders to address the annual problem of stubble burning. To stop stubble burning, the government has tried banning the practice, and even penalizing farmers — by fining, and even imprisoning, them. However, many experts argue that punishment isn’t a solution to the problem. “Imposing a fine is not going to work in our socio-economic conditions for curbing stubble burning. We need to focus on alternative solutions,” Polash Mukerjee, Lead for Air Pollution at the India Programme of the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental advocacy group, told The Hindu in August, explaining that crop burning is often the only economical avenue for farmers so they can get ready for the next sowing season on time. Related on The Swaddle: India’s Outdoor Air Pollution Is as Bad in Villages as in Cities: Study Agreeing with Mukerjee, Anumita Roychowdhury, head of Clean Air Programme at the Centre for Science and Environment, says: “Penalty without access to solutions does not work.” She added, however, that “the government is currently giving equipment to farmers to mix the stubble back into the soil so that they do not have to burn it, but everyone is not getting these machines… The government should ensure their availability to everyone.” In the meantime, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research has developed a proprietary microbial solution called “Pusa” to decompose crop residue and turn it into manure — in just about 25 days. The researchers of the June study also advocated for more sustainable farming practices and providing financial incentives to farmers if they avoid crop burning. “In addition to this farmers should be encouraged to sell their residue for alternative purposes like the use of rice pellets for power generation, use of stubble as fodder for cattle, etc.,” they add. Will any of these suggestions be implemented before winter is upon us this year? Only time can tell.

Green experts ring alarm bells over climate change in northeast

AGARTALA: Ahead of CO UN Climate Change Conference at Glasgow, environmentalists have raised an alarm over a visible change of rainfall pattern and other climate indicators in the northeast, which is conclusively attributed to fallouts of global warming. The conference is scheduled to be held from October 31 to November 12. The latest study of Delhi-based Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) revealed that October has already appeared as one of the hottest months ever recorded so far in the northeast. The most commonly glacier-fed rivers have turned into rain-fed rivers and monsoon rainfall was the main source of water flow in the rivers of the northeast. Congratulations! You have successfully cast your vote The report indicated that the rainfall patterns, especially during monsoon, have been changing, resulting mostly in the region getting dried up. Referring to the Indian Meteorological Department's (IMD) data, the report stated that in 20 of the last 22 years' monsoon, rainfall has been below normal and more than a century-long data set showed a declining trend in many states of the northeast. In the past 30 years or so, northeastern states except for Sikkim have shown a decreasing trend in monsoon rainfall which was attributed to local climate change at the micro level that depend on a lot of factors such as geography and forest cover. Mountain springs, which are the major sources of water in the region, are drying up almost everywhere, thereby affecting the availability of potable water, the study revealed. The researchers, however, also observed that changing climate has influenced changes in biodiversity and it was found that mango has started growing in cold weather at Upper Siang of Arunachal Pradesh. The study found as many as 27% villages in the northeast were watered directly by springs or natural streams but the effect on the perennial water source has impacted agriculture, horticulture, fishing and animal rearing. These changes of climate, specifically the rainfall pattern, has a trickle-down effect in the varieties of rice cultivated in the region. The overall diversity of rice varieties has come down, new pests and insects were being witnessed in some places like Upper Siang in Arunachal Pradesh and Wokha in Nagaland, the study underlined.

Delhi News Live: Capital records 37 new Covid-19 cases; water supply in Gurugram to be affected on October 27 and 28

Delhi Latest Updates, Delhi Covid-19 Cases Live: With paddy stubble burning expected to rise in the next few days, pollution in Delhi too is expected to go up. Delhi Live News: Delhi on Sunday recorded zero Covid-19 fatalities and 37 fresh cases with a positivity rate of 0.06 per cent. As per official data, only four deaths have been recorded so far this month — once each on October 2, October 10, October 19 and October 22. Water supply will be affected in parts of Gurugram from October 27 to October 28, as the master water supply from Water Treatment Plant, Chandu Budhera, towards Boosting Station Sector 51 will be shut, the Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) said in a public notice. As such, residents were advised to use water judiciously on October 26, 27 and 28. In other news, while Delhi has enjoyed a relatively cleaner pre-winter period (September 1-October 15) this year compared to previous years, as per an analysis by the Centre for Science and Environment, experts attributed this to the extended rainfall as well a delayed paddy harvest in Punjab and Haryana. With paddy stubble burning expected to rise in the next few days, pollution too is expected to go up. HC fixes for final hearing pleas to recognise same-sex marriages under law The Delhi High Court Monday listed for final hearing separate pleas, including by two same sex couples, seeking a declaration recognising same sex marriages under the special, Hindu and foreign marriage laws. A bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh granted time to the parties for filing replies and rejoinders in the matter and listed it for final hearing on November 30. In the first petition, Abhijit Iyer Mitra and three others have contended that same-sex marriages are not possible despite the Supreme Court's decriminalising consensual homosexual acts and sought a declaration to recognise them under the Hindu Marriage Act (HMA) and Special Marriage Act (SMA). The two other pleas are -- one filed by two women seeking to get married under the SMA and challenging provisions of the statute to the extent that it does not provide for same-sex marriages, and the other filed by two men who got married in the US but were denied registration of their marriage under the Foreign Marriage Act (FMA).