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Cse In News

Cse In News

SurveySparrow announces hiring initiative of Rs 50K joining bonus for women candidates

Chennai, Mar 13 (PTI) SurveySparrow, an experience solutions service provider, on Saturday announced a hiring initiative--a joining bonus of Rs 50,000--for women candidates. The company said the initiative will cover women candidates who apply for positions of product developers, quality analyst, and technical writers on or before March 15 and join the company by April 15. Citing a study undertaken by Centre for Science and Environment, New Delhi, the company said only 16 per cent of employed women were able to continue their jobs after the lockdown was relaxed. "With reports claiming that the female labour force participation rate has hit its lowest, it is imperative that we all do some swift changes to remedy that," company founder Shihab Muhammed said. The joining bonus follows the launch of first virtual hackathon -- HackerFlow -- an initiative to bring developers, students and coding enthusiasts under one platform. The company plans to double the employee base and grow significantly during the year. Recently, the company announced software as a service (SaaS) product 2021 -- G2 Crowd, garnering over 50,000 customers, the release said.

MoRTH plans to disallow 15-year-old government vehicles from re-registration

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has today issued a draft notification to disallow re-registration of old government vehicles. As per the proposal, all vehicles belonging to the Central and State governments, Union Territories, local government institutions, PSUs, STUs, and other autonomous bodies with the Central and State governments, have been put under the ambit of this new proposed amendment to the Central Motor Vehicle Rules (1989). The Ministry has invited suggestions or objections to its proposal for the next 30 days, and if it is able to sail smoothly, the rule is proposed to to become effective from April 1, 2022. The step could be understood to be in line with the government's recently announced Scrappage Policy, which aims to take old and higher polluting vehicles off the road for environmental protection. There are more than 10 million old and polluting vehicles in India and this move is expected to get rid of old police vans, postal vans, state transport buses and ambulances to name a few. While reducing pollution, the need to replace older vehicles will also drive demand for the domestic automobile industry in terms of supplying new vehicles. According to the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), by 2025, India will have a monumental load of over 2 crore old vehicles (see table below) nearing the end of their lives. These, along with other unfit vehicles, will cause huge pollution and environmental damage. In a recent interview with Autocar Professional, Nishant Arya, executive director, JBM Group, had commented on the Scrappage Policy and said, "The Scrappage Policy, specifically on the commercial vehicle side, would give a boost to the sector and therefore, people are viewing it positively. These are primarily BS-II and BS-III vehicles which would be moving out of the roads and thus reducing vehicular pollution as well." "There will be a thrust towards the M&HCV and HCV segments. I expect there to be substantial purchasing in the coming financial year, thereby giving a much-needed fillip to the sector. It would also give a boost to the logistics sector as the cost of logistics will go down with a new fleet. The cost of older vehicles is higher and we were seeing companies trying to increase their Opex to save their Capex. So, we will see logistics costs becoming more competitive as we move forward."

Weekend Reading: The U.S. Dropped from 48th to 67th in Women’s Representation. How?

The incredible team at the Inter-Parliamentary Union released their 2021 map and report on international women’s representation this week in advance of the 65th session of the Commision on the Status of Women. According to the press release from the IPU, the map “shows the latest data on women’s participation in political decision-making, including the number of countries with women Heads of State and/or Heads of Government, the global share of women Ministers, Speakers of parliament and parliamentarians.” The data that the IPU collects is invaluable and helps to fuel our understanding of the rules and systems that are accelerating the increase in women’s representation around the globe. Note the use of proportional voting systems and gender quotas in most of the top ranked countries. As a reminder, the United States has dropped from 48th to 67th over the last two decades. The full list of countries is below. Kiran Pandey offers a terrific analysis of women’s representation in countries in sub-Saharan Africa on DownToEarth: Every fourth parliamentarian in sub-Saharan Africa last year was a woman, according to a recent report The region ranked at third position after the Americas and Europe with an increase by 0.6 points since 2019, according to the report released ahead of International Women’s Day. Burundi (bicameral), Tanzania (unicameral) and Cameroon (lower chamber) topped the list in the region yet again, with 30 per cent or more women parliamentarians, Burundi has 38.2 per cent of women parliamentarians in the lower house (the National Assembly) and 41 per cent in the upper house (The Senate). This has been due to the implementation of gender quotas in the country in 2005. Burundi was among the few countries in the world that adopted a gender quota for its legislature for promoting the inclusion and participation of women in the political process. The country’s new constitution in 2018 provides for maintaining a minimum 30 per cent gender quota for women’s representation in the legislature and the executive branch and extends it to the judiciary. In Liberia, Madagascar and Ghana, less than 15 per cent of parliamentarians were women. Burkina Faso also slipped in ensuring women representation in its parliament, according to the report. The Comoros, Niger and Mali performed exceptionally well. With less than 15 per cent of women parliamentarians, these countries recorded double-digit increases in women’s representation in their parliaments. Women’s representation in Mali had been slowly decreasing since the late 1990s. It had remained less than 10 per cent for over a decade. But Mali saw the largest progress in terms of the number of seats held by women among all countries holding parliamentary elections in 2020. The percentage of women MPs tripled to nearly 29 per cent from 9.5 per cent previously, thanks to the quota law adopted in 2015. Mali’s parliament was replaced by a Transitional National Council later in 2020, where women hold 26 per cent of the seats. At least 30 per cent of elected and appointed officials were required to be women according to the “quota law”.

One in two coal-based power plants still flouts fly ash disposal norms

CSE study found that Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Odisha have accumulated the most ash in the last decade due to high generation and poor utilisation rates Mumbai: Over half of all coal-fired power plants in India still fall short of the government-set target to fully utilise fly ash, a harmful by-product of the power generation process, according to a report by environment group Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). The government had set December 2017 as the target for power plants to meet fly ash utilisation norms. CSE’s report has found that one in every two power plants still fails to meet the legal requirements. Annual fly ash generation from power plants has risen by almost 76% to 226 million tonnes (mt) in 2019-20 from 123 (mt) in 2009-10. On an average, 35% of fly ash remained unutilised in this decade, leading to its piling up in ash ponds. As per the report, between 2010 and 2020, several major ash dyke breach incidents and cases of unsafe disposal of ash have been reported from many regions. Legacy ash is also a massive challenge for the sector. The study found that Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Odisha have accumulated the most ash in the last decade due to high generation and poor utilisation rates. CSE has found that these states together account for over 76% of the total residual ash stocks generated over the last decade. Due to ash overburden, these states also top the list of coal ash accidents and require immediate attention due to the prevailing serious pollution issues near coal power plants. “Coal being the mainstay of power generation in India, we need to ensure that coal-based thermal power plants are as clean as possible. Only then can we meet the twin challenges of air pollution and climate change. To achieve the 100% utilisation target, power plants need to consistently utilise the new ash they generate annually while clearing the backlog of previous years," said Nivit Kumar Yadav, Programme Director, Industrial Pollution Unit of CSE. Fly ash can be safely used in the cement sector but its use has hovered around the 25% mark over the past many years. Enhancing fly ash use in cement making will not only solve the issue of waste but will also lead to considerable reduction of greenhouse gas emissions reduction from the sector. Over the years, the use of fly ash in the construction of highways and roads has witnessed a positive growth. However, fly ash uptake is still marginal when compared to the tremendous development in this sector. Average fly ash use in roads and flyovers has been a meagre 4%and can definitely be enhanced, CSE said. Besides, there are several logistic, storage, handling and transportation issues that lead to poor utilisation of fly ash in some states. Fly ash needs to be transported to cement plants through rail or road networks. This creates limitations on the immediate utilisation of the ash. Therefore, its effective storage, handling and transportation is a critical aspect towards enhancing fly ash utilisation.

India drags its feet in the face of climate catastrophe

Environment ministry unable to use nearly half the money allocated for controlling air pollution even as the scale of the problem continues to grow In this pandemic year, when climate change and the devastating effects of rising pollution are in more focus than ever, India’s environment ministry has said it has been unable to use nearly half the money allocated for controlling air pollution. To which a parliamentary panel has responded by suggesting that the ministry could show some innovation and use idle funds to boost the infrastructure needed for electric vehicles and set up bio-degraders so that the annual problem of stubble burning – which causes significant pollution in Delhi-NCR and other north Indian cities – can be mitigated. It is no secret that India is waging an increasingly difficult war on pollution. A recent report by the Centre for Science and Environment quotes an earlier study to show that air pollution increased in 33 of the 88 industrial clusters in India between 2009 and 2018; water pollution was up in 45 of these clusters, and so on. Given the scale of the problem, the inability of the Ministry of Science and Technology, Environment, Forests and Climate change to spend allotted amounts in countering pollution is baffling. Nearly half the budgetary allocations for various schemes and programmes this fiscal year have remained unutilised. In the budget estimates for 2020-21, the ministry was allocated ₹460 crore under the head ‘Control of Pollution’. This scheme largely funds the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), the most prominent central initiative to tackle air pollution. The targets under NCAP were stiff: to achieve 20 per cent to 30 per cent reduction in particulate matter concentrations by 2024, keeping 2017 as the base year for the comparison of concentration. Of the ₹460 crore allocated, the ministry had utilised only about ₹190 crore, or 58 per cent, till January end. Overall, the BE for the ministry was ₹3,100 crore but only Rs 1,673.71 crore was used till January 31 this year. This is why the parliamentary standing committee has asked the ministry to innovate and invest the unused funds in, among other things, setting up charging stations for electric vehicles. This would take care of the infrastructure bottleneck being faced by the government in promoting EVs and simultaneously help the fight against air pollution. Investments needed in setting up country-wide charging infrastructure for EVs are scarce. In fact, another parliamentary panel examining the demands of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has suggested that vehicle makers should be asked to invest in developing charging infrastructure. According to a study by the CEEW-Centre for Energy Finance, the government has allotted ₹1,000 crore for charging infrastructure under the FAME II policy for electric vehicles, but the scheme does not provide specifics and no targets have been set. Given this background, it is sensible for the environment ministry to use idle funds in creating the much-needed EV infrastructure. The panel’s other suggestion – about bio-digesters – is also a pertinent one since establishing effective microorganism bio-digester units will not only help increase the efficiency of waste treatment and biogas production in urban areas, but also reduce the problem of stubble burning in north India. Seeking a central mechanism for coordination of various central and state agencies and ensuring accountability through monitoring of the progress of the works undertaken, the parliamentary panel has also asked for audits to be freely accessible to the public and civil society on information relating to expenditure of ‘Control of Pollution’ scheme. And what is the status of research on ecological and environmental topics? Here, too, the ministry doesn’t seem to have exerted itself. In the three years between 2018-19 and 2020-21, just a fourth of the budget for research has been utilised. India has, on the whole, been walking back on its climate goals since the start of the pandemic. The CSE report quoted earlier has pointed out that of the various fiscal stimuli – estimated to be equal to 10 per cent of the GDP – announced by the Centre so far to boost the sagging economy, we seem to be pursuing high-carbon economic production instead of walking the path of sustainability. Then, due to the adverse impact of the pandemic on the economy, the automobile industry is seeking to delay the implementation of Corporate Fuel Consumption Standards for passenger cars; a vehicle scrappage policy for promoting the sale of new vehicles does not provide for safe dismantling of ageing vehicles; power plants have already pleaded for a delayed deadline to meet the new standards beyond 2022; and private investments in the coal sector are being sought for accelerated commercial coal mining while removing end-use restrictions. In this scenario, where growth is expected on the back of lax norms, and the ministry tasked with upholding norms to counter pollution, protect forests and address climate change is unable to spend even budgeted amounts, perhaps a complete overhaul of climate initiatives is the need of the hour.

50% thermal plants do not meet fly ash use norms, says environment group

Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh lead in fly ash generation; most plants blamed for flouting norms are owned by governments Half the coal-fired power plants in India flout norms asking them to use polluting fly ash they generate, said the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) in a report. Some plants don’t even utilise 30-40 per cent of the fly ash. A notification by the ministry of environment, forest and climate change (MoEFCC) in 1999 laid down the targets for utilisation of fly ash. "In the last decade, coal consumption and fly ash generation from coal power plants has jumped up by almost 80 per cent. On an average, 35 per cent of fly ash remain unutilised in this decade, leading to its piling up in ash ponds. As per the report, between 2010 and 2020, several major ash dyke breach incidents and cases of unsafe disposal of ash have been reported from many regions," said the report by the independent environment group. Annual fly ash generation from Indian coal power plants rose to 217 million tonnes in 2018–19 from 123 million tonnes in 2009–10. The legacy fly ash in India stood at 1.6 billion tonne as on March 2019, said CSE. From 2012–13 to 2016–17, the quantity of fly ash utilized has remained stagnant at around 100 million tonnes; however, during the same period, annual generation has been above the 150 million tonne mark, which indicates a huge pile up. Only in the last two years (i.e., 2017–18 and 2018-19) has there been an additional 30 million tonnes increase in utilization each year, said the study. Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh lead in fly ash generation, followed by West Bengal, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha. Most plants with poor ash utilisation rates were run by the central or state governments. A majority belonged to NTPC Limited, Chhattisgarh State Power Generation Company Limited (CSPGCL), Madhya Pradesh Power Generation Company Limited (MPPGCL) and MahaGENCO (in Maharashtra). NTPC units blamed for poor ash utilisation are Barauni, Barh, Kahalgaon, Muzaffarpur, Bongaigaon among others. Reliance Power's Sasan ultra mega power plant in Madhya Pradesh also rates low in ash utilisation.

Serious gaps in ratio of food testing labs to FBOs in the country: Experts

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has in the last few years put up serious efforts in terms of food testing labs availability. However, experts feel that despite its rigorous efforts, the Covid-19 pandemic has shown that food testing laboratories in India have faced major challenges in the domains of manpower availability, equipment and machinery, skill development, R&D (research and development), customer awareness as well as capacity utilisation. It has also come to light that there have been serious gaps in the ratio of labs to the FBOs in the country. Moreover, due to chemical testing being less capital-intensive than pesticide residue and microbiological testing, many labs possessed only the former infrastructure. Industry insiders feel that they must work towards increasing the abilities of these labs and fill the gaps. Recently the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health had also made several recommendations with respect to the FSSAI. On the Committee’s recommendations for a fully Centrally Sponsored Scheme for upgrading manpower, strengthening infrastructure and robust surveillance systems at the state level, FSSAI in its response has stated that it is implementing a Central Sector Scheme for strengthening of food testing laboratories and upgrading manpower. FSSAI is incorporating a Central Sector Scheme for Strengthening of Food Testing Ecosystem with a total expense of Rs 481.95 crore. This includes Rs 300 crore for building up a network of laboratories across the nation as well as provision of mobile food testing labs and other related equipment. Under this scheme, 39 state food testing labs of 29 states/UTs & 10 referral labs have been bolstered with high-end equipment in order to enable efficient testing of safety parameters (pesticides, heavy metals and antibiotics). Till now, 60 mobile food labs have been provided to 32 states/UTs for training, testing and awareness generation even in remote areas. Amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, a total of 179 online training programmes with 37,000 participants have been conducted. Ashwin Bhadri, CEO, Equinox Lab, stated that a core area of enhancing the food safety infrastructure involves strengthening food testing laboratories for better functioning across stages. FSSAI has worked towards the development of new National Food Laboratories (NFLs) at Chennai/Mumbai, investment in training and capacity building efforts for field staff, FSOs as well as food businesses for self-compliance along with INFoLNET, which is a web-based online system created by FSSAI to form a network of food labs across the country. Bhadri added that since the year 2019, FSSAI has made rapid progress towards the use of advanced technologies for food testing. Several new rapid food testing kits/devices for detection of food-borne contaminants and toxins have been introduced that will ensure “faster, better, cheaper” real-time testing of food. So far, FSSAI has approved 30 rapid food testing devices/kits under these norms. These Rapid Tool kits must be popularised to ensure they are widely used. Moreover, FSSAI has made sure that National Food Laboratories at Kolkata and NCR remain functional for uninterrupted import of food. e-Inspections for ensuring food security and extensive use of digital technology have made sure that FSSAI delivers services even in the lockdown. Meanwhile, recently, the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) conducted an investigation into the quality of honey being produced in India. The results stated that honey sold by many popular brands was adulterated, and, in fact, had been spiked with added sugar. Therefore, they should not be branded/sold as honey. The report stated that adulteration has become so sophisticated in India that it is totally possible to cheat the tests that Indian food testing labs conduct to assess the purity of honey. Bhadri stated that FSSAI has therefore worked on new testing methods for detecting honey adulteration and has recently introduced them as part of its standards. The parameters added in the honey standards help detect the adulteration of honey with sugar syrups, especially rice syrups. “With this, ensuring the quality of honey has been made more robust” he said. Also, the unprecedented Covid-19 pandemic has forced every nation to buckle up and augment their food safety and security procedures. Food safety in India experienced the same. Going forward, the adoption of food safety and quality assurance mechanisms such as Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP), Total Quality Management (TQM) including ISO 9000, ISO 22000, Good Hygienic Practices (GHP) and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) by the food processing industry offer several benefits. “It would enable compliance to stringent hygiene and quality norms and in turn, will protect consumer health, enhance product acceptance by overseas buyers, prepare the industry to face global competition and keep the industry technologically in conjunction with the best international practices,” concluded Bhadri.

Crimes increasing, cases piling up: State of India’s environment

33 years to clear judicial backlog, says report Over 50,000 environment-related cases are awaiting trial in India, according to the latest State of Environment report. Environmentalists and advocates worry that if the cases are not given priority and solved at the earliest, it could mean disaster for the environment. Soon after the release of State of Indian Environment, 2021, a report about the current state of the environment in India, public interest litigation was filed in the Supreme Court asking the top court to issue directions for urgently filling up of large-scale vacancies that have been plaguing Indian courts, notably the National Green Tribunal. The plea, filed by Shrikant Prasad, a law student, highlights the long pendency of cases in subordinates courts in India and seeks formal guidelines and rule of procedures for the appointment of judges within the time-bound duration. The absence of judges and other officers of the court is one of the biggest reasons behind the slow pace at which cases, especially environment-related cases are taken up by the courts. The seriousness of understaffing becomes evident from a look at the National Green Tribunal, a special court dedicated to environmental issues. The NGT Act sanctions 10 benches in five zones — northern, southern, central, eastern and western — with two courts in each zone. The NGT should have a chairman and 20 members — 10 judicial and 10 expert — who constitute the benches. However, currently, the NGT has only 6 members, three judicial and three experts, besides chairman, former Supreme Court judge, Justice A.K. Goel. Since its inception, the NGT has never had full strength, leading to a huge pile-up of environmental cases, often very urgent, The annual State of India’s Environment (SoE) report, released by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) late in February, says over 50,000 environment-related cases were pending trial in various courts in 2019. “At the current rate, courts will take about 33 years to clear the backlog of cases for violations under forest, wildlife, environment protection and air pollution laws. Courts would have to dispose of 137 cases a day,” the report read. It further said that in 2019, there were 86 cases on average (under all environment and pollution-related laws) that were disposed of by the courts every day but last year, the pace slowed down due to the pandemic. “We do not consider the environment important enough. Unless it is a huge natural disaster or forced displacement of people from a place, we do not think of the environment impacting humans directly. But looking at the current state of crimes against the environment, if we don’t act swiftly, it will only lead to a higher rate of crimes as consequences are too delayed,” Amrish Mishra, an environmentalist who works with Fridays For Future Delhi (DelhiFFF), part of Fridays For Future India NGO, tells Media India Group. According to the latest available data, 34,671 environment-related crimes were registered in 2019. Over 7,000 cases were pending police investigation. A similar number of cases (34,503) was reported in 2018 according to the previous edition of the SoE. Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Maharashtra accounted for 77 pc of India’s wildlife crimes in 2019. Water, pollution, wildlife & forests cases face delays The SoE report goes on to say that of the total number of pending cases, some categories are impacted more than the others. It says that the worst showing is for the Environmental (Protection) Act and the Air & Water (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act, where it will take over 32 and 33 years, respectively, to clear the huge backlog of pending cases. Over 90 pc court cases remain unresolved under five of the seven Acts related to forests, wildlife, environmental protection and pollution. For instance, under the Forest Act and the Forest Conservation Act, the average number of cases courts disposed of every day in 2018 was 5.56. At that rate, courts will take 9.2 years to complete the backlog. States with the most numbers of offences were Uttar Pradesh (1,436), Rajasthan (471) and Himachal Pradesh (240). Similarly, under Wildlife Protection Act, the average number of cases courts disposed of every day in 2018 was less than one. At the current rate, it will take more than 13 years to clear the backlog of cases. Urgency to resolve environment-related cases Bansagar dam led to the flooding of almost 300 villages in Madhya Pradesh’s Shahdol district To address a large number of pending cases, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) was set up in 2011 to expedite the resolution of environment-related conflicts, preferably within six months. But within a few years, there were 3573 environment-related cases pending in the National Green Tribunal by 2018, according to Press Information Bureau in India. NGT claims that it has disposed of around 28,000 of the 31,000 cases, almost 90 pc, it received between 2011 and 2019, but lawyers dispute it saying cases often do not even come up for hearing. Mukti Gautam is a lawyer and environmental activist practising in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh. In 2006, she took up a case of persons impacted by the construction of the Bansagar dam on the Sone river. The 347 m high dam led to the flooding of almost 300 villages and habitations, home to over 125,000 persons. Over 15 years later, the oustees of the project are yet to receive compensation – house, alternative land and monetary payment that was part of the initial agreement reached with the residents of the area. Gautam says that as the victims of most environmental crimes or violations are poor, the governments tend to ignore them. “The only reason that governments in our country and even the common people do not take these cases seriously and let it pile is that does not have a catastrophic effect immediately,” she explains. She goes on to say that even the United Nations has pointed out that environmental crimes have the potential to threaten the security and sustainable development of nations and must be dealt with a heavy hand and urgently. The pending issues reported in SoE range from cases challenging environmental approvals granted to power projects and those questioning governmental permission to use forest land to issues of air and noise pollution. While NGT, environmentalist Mishra says, has started to work in a better way than before, its orders have often taken a cautious approach. For instance, the NGT has refused to stop work at project sites during the pendency of cases, maintaining that companies cannot claim equity at a later stage, or in other words, take the defence of fait accompli. “This is of little comfort for the affected communities, as the environment once destroyed is hard to restore. While it is perhaps too soon to evaluate the NGT, its very existence brings a much-required degree of prominence to environmental legal issues in India,” he adds. There is little one can do except asking questions from the government, he says. “What we as activists and common people can do is to question the NGT and the government, and make sure that voices reach the Centre as well as the courts, both of who have done little to help the environment in our country,” he adds.

No road map for govt.’s lofty green goals

We aim to convert Delhi’s transport system to electric in 25 years, says Sisodia Delhi Finance Minister Manish Sisodia during the presentation of the budget said that in the next 25 years, the city has to be made free of “environment pollution” and the government plans to convert the entire transport system into an electric vehicle system. But there were no detailed road maps in the budget speech about how to achieve the targets. No new scheme was announced separately. “Environment section has set the ambition for pollution-free Delhi and a target for a fleet of electric vehicles but without stating the scope, targets and specific budgetary support for full range of action,” said Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director of Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), a research and advocacy organisation in Delhi. “However, we appreciate the focus on electrification of fleet and target for buses and overall public transport,” she added. Also, there were no major new major projects or schemes related to the environment announced in the budget apart from progress and completion of multiple ongoing projects. Cleaning the Yamuna The Minister said that the Yamuna can be cleaned in the next three years. “Interceptor sewer project work is also nearly 99% completed. With the help of STP and Interceptor, the Yamuna can now be cleaned completely within the next three years,” he said. In last year’s budget, Mr. Sisodia announced as the first point in the environment section that the government’s aim was to reduce air pollution in the city to one-third of the 2020 level, in five years. The reduction in air pollution to one-third was promised by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in the run-up to the Delhi Assembly election in 2020, as part of the AAP’s 10-point guarantee card too. But this aim or its status did not find any mention in the present budget or the Outcome budget of last year, which was tabled in the Delhi Assembly on Monday. “As we are approaching a century of our Independence, we would all like to put an end to the environmental pollution,” Mr. Sisodia said. Mr. Sisodia said that the installation of two smog towers is in its “final stage”. One of the towers will take at least three more months to be completed, according to several officials. Meanwhile, the second smog tower is not being installed by the Delhi government, but by the Central government. Smog tower is a 20-metre-high structure fitted with several air purifiers to clean the air. “The funds for the smog tower are being released in four instalments. The government is about to release the second instalment. The work is about 50-60% complete and it is expected to be completed in June,” a Delhi government official said. Both towers are being constructed following Supreme Court orders. On January 13, 2020, to control air pollution, the SC ordered the Delhi government to build a smog tower at Connaught Place by April 13. But after missing that deadline, the government was given 10 months’ time in July. The need to establish a smog tower was mentioned in last year’s budget also.

8 Bollywood Eco Warriors Who Are An Inspiration To Those Who Want To Save The World

The environment has been a big concern in recent years. With air pollution increasing and natural disasters occurring all over the globe, it is time for us to ask ourselves, what we have done to the planet! While a lot of world leaders are not taking the threat of climate change and global warming as seriously as they should, there are many celebs who are trying to raise awareness and save the natural world. From green screens to green fields, many Bollywood celebs are on the front lines, fighting as eco warriors in the war for the planet’s survival! Here are some of Bollywood's most vehement eco warriors you should take inspiration from. A huge supporter of conscious environmentalism, Dia Mirza is the UN Environment Goodwill Ambassador for India. She actively participates in drives to make the world a better place, from cleaning up the environment to advocating wildlife preservation. 2. Rahul Bose A protestor for the Narmada Bachao Andolan, Rahul Bose has been championing the environment for a very long time. He was even appointed the Oxfam Global Ambassador in 2007! He works closely with a lot of other environmental NGOs as well. 3. Nandita Das A big advocate for rainwater harvesting and saving water, Nandita Das had been fighting to raise awareness about water pollution, dropping water levels, and more. She has also collaborated with the Centre for Science and Environment to spread awareness about the conservation of water. 4. Alia Bhatt A huge advocate for banning plastic pollution, Aliaa Bhatt changed her own life to inspire many others. She took on the challenge of reducing plastic waste from her life to zero by switching to glass bottles instead. She also urged her followers to beat plastic pollution. 5. Raveena Tandon With a lot of activism under her belt, Raveena Tandon also champions sustainable living and coexisting with the environment. She is part of the Earth Brigade Foundation’s effort to save the wildlife sanctuaries going through a water crisis. She urges people to recycle and preserve the earth! 6. Gul Panag Bringing environmental activism to her home, Gul Panag is one of the celebs who walks the talk. She has switched to an electric car to help lower the air pollution levels, and also uses sustainable solar energy at her home. She is an advocate for sanitation and water disposal as well. 7. John Abraham John Abraham has been a staunch advocate for animal rights for a very long time. He has sworn off meat, and has been very vocal about his support for animals. He is also part of the PowerLight A Village initiative which provides solar power to remote locations. 8. Priyanka Chopra The global actor has made a name for herself by being an active campaigner for clean and green initiatives. She is one of the campaign ambassadors for Greenathon, and she also funded and supported a drive to clean up the plastic waste on the banks of the Yamuna in Agra. The environment is not something we can afford to lose. All of humanity depends upon it. You might think of the green and beautiful as vacation destinations, but the world and the foliage it holds is more than that. It is sustenance and life itself. There are many individuals who are working hard to alert us about the deteriorating environmental standards. We applaud the eco-warriors of Bollywood who are determined to raise awareness about the dismal condition of the earth.

Lockdown improved city’s air, experts say time to think local

Lockdown improved city’s air, experts say time to think local Experts, however, attributed the reduction to the “unprecedented conditions” brought about by the Covid-19 lockdown and called for reforms to curb pollution by local and regional factors. The pollution levels in Delhi last year were the lowest since 2014, according to the economic survey report released on Monday. The outcome budget, also presented on Monday, showed that 79% of government projects, to tackle pollution levels in the national capital and improve the environment, are on track. Experts, however, attributed the reduction to the “unprecedented conditions” brought about by the Covid-19 lockdown and called for reforms to curb pollution by local and regional factors. The government data also showed that the average levels of major pollutants, including that of PM10 (particulate matter with diameter less than 10 micrometres), PM2.5 (ultra-fine particulate matter with diameter less than 2.5 micrometres) and nitrogen dioxide, have been decreasing steadily over the years. The annual average concentrations of PM2.5 decreased from 149 micrograms per cubic meter (ug/m3) in 2014 to 101 ug/m3 in 2020, the survey report tabled by finance minister Manish Sisodia on Monday showed. The economic survey also said the annual average PM10 level also dropped from 324ug/m3 in 2014, to 187ug/m3 in 2020. In India, the acceptable standard for PM 2.5 is 60ug/m3 and for PM10 it is 100ug/m3. The annual average for PM2.5 and PM10, at all monitoring locations in Delhi, exceeded the prescribed standards, the report said. In the outcome budget, only around 15% of the projects to tackle pollution were behind schedule, a finding that bodes well for a city that has been plagued by rising pollution for long, especially during winter months. “All 26 ambient air quality monitoring stations are functional. Around 621 stack samples regarding the emission of industries, power plants, hotels etc., were tested up to December 2020, against the target of 700 samples during 2020-21,” the outcome budget report said. Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director (research and advocacy), Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) said, “Despite the declining trend (year-on-year basis) due to action taken over the past few years — shift to clean fuels for industry and transport, power plants, trucks, old vehicles — the winter PM2.5 concentration has bounced back, unmasking the impact of local and regional pollution. This demands quicker and more ambitious regional reforms to curb pollution.”

Need to expand, remodel drainage system: study

A study commissioned by the NITI Ayog has underlined the urgent need for expanding and remodeling the drainage system in the State Capital. Nalas, drains, water courses and flood plains should be clearly delineated and boundaries fixed in new developments. There should be strict enforcement of relevant byelaws/regulations in the new layouts, the NITI Ayog said. An underground drainage system should be constructed to flush water from any place, whether it is at high or low elevation till the final place of discharge like the Musi river in Hyderabad’s case. The problems in the twin cities including the October last year floods found mention in the report filed by the committee constituted by the NITI Ayog for formulation of strategy for flood management works in the entire country and river management activities and works related to border areas 2021-26. The report said Hyderabad urgently needs to expand and remodel its drainage system. Besides lakes and canals, wetlands and watersheds would play a crucial role in absorbing excess rainfall. “But regrettably, rapid urbanisation in the twin cities has resulted in loss of a large portion of the wetlands,” the report said. Quoting an analysis by the Centre for Science and Environment in 2016, it said 3,245 hectares of water bodies were lost in Hyderabad between 1989 and 2001. In the long term, the effect of flooding due to deluges could only be mitigated if urban planners take into account the hydro-geology and ensure that construction, development and land occupation do not take place in a way that would reduce the area of wetlands. Engineering solutions like linking all the 185 tanks in and around Hyderabad with modern technology to divert the flow of water during the deluge coupled with measures to control floor (rainwater) flow by restoring nalas and removing encroachments would help prevent flooding and inundation. The report lamented that Hyderabad and even Telangana State did not have disaster management plans. They are not fully utilising the Doppler radar which could give advance and precise warnings. “The focus is on disaster response, even while allowing unplanned growth,” the report said.

Are We Talking Enough About The Plight Of Minors And Children Due To The Pandemic?

The serious consequences that challenge us far beyond the current pandemic have yet to cross our mind COVID-19 has not only claimed more than 2.5 million lives around the world, with more than 0.15 million deaths in India, but also future prospects of our children. According to a study by the Centre for Science and Environment on the ‘pandemic generation’: 375 million children, from newborns up to the age of 14, are likely to suffer the long-term effects of malnutrition, stunting, mental health issues, increased child mortality rate and losses in education. The Invisibles According to UNICEF report, 99% of children under 18 worldwide (2.34 billion) live in one of the 186 countries with some form of movement restrictions in place due to COVID-19. Sixty per cent of all children (1.4 billion), worldwide, live in one of the 82 countries with a full (7%) or partial (53%) lockdown. More than 500 million children were forced out of school all over the world, with India accounting for over half the number. The government’s helpline for children (1098) received more than 4.6 lakh calls during the first phase of the nationwide lockdown. 30 per cent of calls were simply pleas for food and about 9,385 of these calls were cries for help from children who were being subjected to physical, emotional or sexual abuse, or being trafficked, or abandoned. Children from the marginalized and invisible sections of the society, who live in child care institutions (CCIs), observation homes, street children and child labourers, have been the silent collateral victims of the lockdown to date. Children are generally the most vulnerable in any crisis because they do not have any representation in the polity. The picture becomes even bleaker for children who were born or growing up during the pandemic especially from the marginalized and invisible sections of the society. They are at a greater risk of disease, poverty, malnutrition, sexual violence and poorer access to basic rights such as education and healthcare. Street children have always been exploited in normal times, but now the worry is that these children are also probably being sexually exploited and facing abuse because they are not visible anymore. According to a United Nations survey of high-income economies, a third of the countries worldwide did not implement any policies designed to support children during the first wave of the pandemic. Singapore, for one, requested the pre-school programmes and student care centres to cut their fees by 50 per cent for a short time. However, India chose to look the other way. The governmental expenditure on children has been cut down by almost Rs 16,000 crore in the Union Budget 21-22, while the NEP made lofty claims about online education and increasing the student enrolment ratio by 50 per cent with little clarity on how the policy will be implemented. Children may not have been the face of the pandemic, but they are one of the worst affected, especially those who are already vulnerable. The pandemic could very well become yet another mutation called the child rights crisis with its impact on their health, learning, and mental well being. Only a holistic approach by the whole society can prevent it so that children do not become its worst victims.