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Rising air pollution led to 41,090 deaths in Punjab in 2019: Report

The report, which was released on Saturday, stated that 1.67 million Indians died due to air pollution in 2019 as per the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 on health and economic impact of air pollution in the states of India. Punjab reported as many as 41,090 deaths attributable to air pollution, which is 18.8% of the total fatalities, in 2019, revealed the Down to Earth and Centre for Science and Environment’s annual report titled “State of India’s Environment 2021”. The report, which was released on Saturday, stated that 1.67 million Indians died due to air pollution in 2019 as per the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 on health and economic impact of air pollution in the states of India. Half of these deaths were in just five states including Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, West Bengal and Rajasthan. In Punjab, 1,148 million US dollars (1.49% state GDP) economic loss was ascribed to air pollution. “As many as 34,119 deaths (19% of total deaths) were attributable to air pollution range in Haryana in the year while the state pegged 1,566 million US dollars economic loss due to air pollution,” the report said. The report mentioned that two Punjab industrial clusters, including Jalandhar and Batala, were among 33 of the 88 clusters of the country where air quality evaluated in 2009 had worsened by 2018. In 2009, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) developed the Comprehensive Environmental Pollution Index (CEPI) to identify problematic industrial areas in the country. In the 2009 CEPI study, a total of 88 industrial clusters were identified as polluted industrial areas (PIAS) by CPCB and state PPCB.” Water pollution up in Ludhiana The report said that the industrial cluster of Ludhiana was among 45 of total 88 clusters where water pollution had increased. The city scored over 70 (CEPI score out of 100) in 2018, under the critically polluted cluster category, since 2009 in absence of adequate action to reduce the pollution. “Jalandhar and Batala were among 35 of the 88 industrial clusters between 2009 and 2018 where overall environmental degradation was witnessed in the period. In this category, CEPI score of Jalandhar was around 70 in the year 2009, but it has increased nearer to 80 (out of 100), while Batala scored over 60 in 2009 while it was closer to 70 in 2018,” the report said. The report underlined that despite environmental concerns, an industrial park was approved in July near the Mattewara forest range and the Sutlej in Ludhiana. Govt making all efforts: Environment secy Punjab environment secretary Rahul Tiwari said the Punjab government has been making efforts to curb air pollution. The government has cleared 23 plans to check pollution in the state. The plans are regularly monitored by his office and quarterly by the Punjab chief secretary and NGT panel.

State Of India’s Environment: Our Air, Water, Land Have Become More Polluted Between 2009 And 2018, Says Centre For Science And Environment Study

According to a new study released by the Centre for Science and Environment, a non-profit organisation based in Delhi, there has been lack of action over the years to control and reduce pollution in the areas that were already identified as ‘critically’ polluted New Delhi: As the country continues to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a need to plan a green recovery from it, in order to avoid future diseases caused by interaction of animals and humans (called as zoonotic diseases), says the State of India’s Environment 2021 report released by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), a non-profit organisation based in Delhi. It has highlighted that there has been slackening of environmental regulations across sectors which can produce enormous pollution and carbon in the future, affecting the health of the people. While talking about the findings of the report, Sunita Narain, Director General, CSE, said, The overall assessment is that our air and water quality is under stress; all trends show that pollution is increasing and this has massive impacts on our health. Even during the lockdown, data shows that river pollution did not reduce. Clearly, we need to do much more to improve the quality of the air we breathe and the water we drink. She further said that people and the government are learning to do things differently in order to adopt sustainable living. She said, We are adopting technologies that will be affordable to large numbers and so, sustainable. This is where the answer will be – in differently done sewage treatment, to mobility systems that will move people and not cars. We need to practice the learning that for a country like India, we cannot improve the environment without inclusive and equitable growth for all. And do this at scale. This is the challenge and the opportunity. The report has tried to shed light on the poor status of the country in achieving the targets set under the Sustainable Development Goals. The country ranked 117 among 192 nations in terms of sustainable development and was now behind all South Asian nations except Pakistan. When ranked on the basis of achieving SDGs, the best performing States were Kerala, Himachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Telangana. The worst performers were Bihar, Jharkhand, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and Uttar Pradesh, the report said. State Of India’s Environment: Our Air, Water, Land Have Become More Polluted Between 2009 And 2018, Says Centre For Science And Environment Study Best and worst performing states in achieving sustainable development goals Also Read: Reversing Global Warming: Bill Gates Talks About Ways To Reduce Pollution And Protect The Environment The Menace Of Pollution India’s air, water and land have become more polluted between 2009 and 2018. Of 88 major industrial clusters in the country, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), 35 showed overall environmental degradation, 33 pointed to worsening air quality, 45 had more polluted water and in 17, land pollution became worse. Tarapur in Maharashtra emerged as the most polluted cluster in the period of 2009-2018. According to the report, 6.7 crore Indians died due to air pollution in 2019. The experts have pointed out in the report that there has been lack of action over the years to control and reduce pollution in the areas that were already identified as ‘critically’ polluted. It further said, The countries across the globe have targeted to reduce carbon emissions to zero by 2050. But, unless we reduce our emissions drastically soon, we cannot be net-zero. The report has also asserted that contrary to popular belief, the country’s river did not see any significant improvement in their water quality during the COVID-19 pandemic induced lockdown. The report has claimed that of country’s 19 major rivers, five, including Ganga, ran dirtier in the COVID-19 period. Rising Habitat Loss And Increasing Threat To Biodiversity The report has emphasised on the rising threat to the biodiversity in the country. It said, What is well known is that India’s flora and fauna is under threat. What is relatively unknown is the scale – 438 plant species (of which 95 per cent are flowering plants, including food crops) and 889 vertebrates and invertebrates are threatened. It highlighted that the forest over in the country may not have really grown by over 5,000 square kilometers since 2017, as claimed by the Government of India. This is because, the Forest Survey of India considers trees as forests and counts orchards, plantations and even trees along highways as parts of forest and tree cover, said the report. The Wrath Of The Pandemic According the report, millions of children and pregnant mothers have been kept away from essential health services due to the disruption in the systems caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This may increase child mortality by as much as 45 per cent in 118 low-income and middle-income countries, says the report. About 375 million children (from newborns to 14-year-olds) are likely to suffer long-lasting impacts, ranging from being underweight, stunting and increased child mortality, to losses in education and work productivity because of the pandemic. Ms. Narain, said, COVID-19 has made the world’s poor poorer. About 115 million additional people might get pushed into extreme poverty by the pandemic – and most of them live in South Asia. The study has underscored the importance of access to clean drinking water, sanitation and healthy environment. Climate change and environmental degradation are making matters worse as they help viruses mutate faster, thus increasing the rate of spread, the report highlighted. It further said, Human activities that drive climate change and biodiversity loss also drive pandemic risk through their impacts on our environment. Changes in the way we use land, the expansion and intensification of agriculture; unsustainable trade, production and consumption disrupt nature and increase contact between wildlife, livestock, pathogens and people. The places where the disease is most likely to breed are where settlements are overcrowded; where water supply and sanitation are inadequate; and where people have no way to stay safe. The report said that no country in the world- rich or poor had the preparedness or capability to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. It has called for strengthening the public healthcare system and said that the pandemic has shattered the belief that private sector led health services are efficient and responsive.

The new vehicle scrap policy: Expectations and challenges

The FM’s announcement in the Budget of a voluntary vehicle scrapping policy is aimed at reducing pollution and galvanising sales. While consumers keenly await the list of incentives and the industry as to who foots the subsidy bill, the challenges are many — an aversion to let go of possessions, lack of preparedness to deal with waste and the complex reality of the Delhi-NCR experience The end-of-life for petrol automobiles in the Delhi-NCR region is 15 years and for diesel 10. The order was passed in 2018 by the Supreme Court as a desperate measure to rein in the precipitous fall in the national capital’s air quality index, blamed largely on emission of noxious fumes by ageing vehicles. The move substantially reduced the resale value of vehicles, but a ready market emerged overnight — be it in the adjoining states, Chandigarh, or even Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, which do not have such strict provisions. Environmentally, the pollution burden of Delhi-NCR continues to get shifted to other areas. A 2016 study by the Central Pollution Control Board and GIZ (a German development company) estimated that more than 87 lakh vehicles reached the end-of-life (ELV) status in Delhi-NCR by 2015. “By 2025, the ELV numbers are expected to be 2.18 crore. Two-wheelers account for about 80 per cent,” says Anumita Roychowdhury, who heads the air pollution and clean transportation programme of the Centre for Science and Environment, New Delhi. “Old vehicles are used extensively in India,” she adds, pointing to the grim reality of how a vehicle deemed un-roadworthy and certified as having outlived life in the national capital region could change hands several times before being considered for disposal as scrap — if at all. It is not just automobiles that are subjected to the reuse-recycle craft of ‘jugaad’. A vibrant second-hand market ensures a price for practically every item, but the problem arises when it comes to disposal. And the absence of a clear policy on disposal can turn it into an arbitrary, crude, unscientific and dangerous process, like in the case of e-waste. “The Supreme Court in Delhi-NCR and the High Court in Kolkata as well as the National Green Tribunal (NGT) have made good interventions. Some cities, including Kanpur and Lucknow, initiated the phase-out of older vehicles while states like Maharashtra and Karnataka levy green tax that increases with the age of vehicles to disincentivise old vehicles. The NGT has issued a directive to identify cleaner areas in the country where these polluting vehicles could be exported,” says Roychowdhury. However, transferring unfit vehicles elsewhere defeats the very purpose of air pollution control to protect public health. “The fact is that most cities do not meet the National Ambient Air Quality Standards required to implement clean air action plans under the Centre’s National Clean Air Programme for the target of 20-30 per cent reduction in particulate pollution by 2024. They may have phase-out strategies for old vehicles, but in the absence of a comprehensive policy guidance and legislative backing, only some cities, where the judiciary is directing action on air pollution, have issued specific directions to cap the age of old vehicles for phase-out,” she adds. This is one part of the story about the much-delayed but much-needed scrapping policy which the BJP-led NDA is planning to bring. There are others, including the tricky one about subsidies and incentives. Who will foot the bill, the government or the company, to replace the vehicle offered voluntarily for scrapping? And what do states have to say? Envisioning new start In her Budget speech on February 1, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the government will “separately announce a voluntary vehicle scrapping policy to phase out old and unfit vehicles”. This, she added, will help in encouraging fuel-efficient, environment-friendly vehicles, thereby reducing vehicular pollution and the oil import bill. Vehicles would undergo fitness tests in automated centres after 20 years in the case of personal vehicles, and after 15 in the case of commercial vehicles. Officials say a draft note is being finalised for Cabinet approval. Several rounds of inter-ministerial consultation have been held, and the states would need to be brought on board. Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari’s post-Budget observations did indicate the broad outline of what the policy, expected to stimulate investment of Rs10,000 crore and create 50,000 jobs, will look like. “The policy would cover an estimated 51 lakh light motor vehicles (LMV) that are above 20 years of age, and another 34 lakh LMVs above 15 years. It would also cover 17 lakh medium and heavy motor vehicles, which are above 15 years, and currently without valid fitness certificates. These are estimated to cause 10-12 times more pollution than the latest vehicles,” Gadkari said, highlighting benefits like recycling of waste metal, improved road safety, reduction in air pollution and oil imports due to greater fuel efficiency. With India becoming an automobile hub, the industry turnover is expected to more than double in the years to come. The policy, it is being claimed, will boost new technologies with better mileage and promote green vehicles, strong hybrids, electric vehicles, and those running on alternative fuels like CNG/ethanol, etc. It is estimated that one crore vehicles will be scrapped for harvested material like steel, plastic, rubber and aluminum used in the manufacturing of automobile parts, thereby reducing their cost by 30 to 40 per cent. The keyword here is ‘voluntary’, and those opting for scrapping will be incentivised, apparently by the manufacturer. Those who opt out will have to pay green taxes, higher levies, registration charges, etc. Such vehicles will also have to undergo strict fitness tests. Vehicles that fail will face heavy penalties and can also be impounded. The green tax is to be used for reducing pollution. Farm equipment like tractors, tillers and harvesters is expected to remain out of the purview. Bumps and roadblocks Industry experts agree the policy will boost efforts to position India as a global manufacturing hub, help clean the environment and improve road safety. However, there are speed-breakers that need to be dealt with, like incentives. A top industry representative, who did not wish to be identified, said for the policy to succeed, the major chunk of incentives should come from the government. “It has already announced disincentives, but there must also be clear incentives. On any car sale, the manufacturer makes 10 to 15 per cent and the government more than 50 per cent by way of taxes, registration, etc. Therefore, the government should give incentives for every incremental vehicle sale. The whole concept is based on incrementality rather than revenue loss, assuming that the vehicle will not be sold if the policy is not there,” he explains. There is more. Industry watchers say the concept (of a scrapping policy) came when India, Delhi-NCR in particular, was fighting environmental pollution. However, while the industry made the transition in Bharat Stage (BS) emissions standards from III to IV to VI, old vehicles kept operating. “Earlier, it was called the Voluntary Vehicle Fleet Modernisation Programme. It was after the industry and economy hit a rough patch that growth became a priority. But the transition from BS-IV to BS-VI (in 2020), which reduced emissions substantially and improved road safety, came at a huge cost to the industry,” points out an industry representative. In other words, the government may be open to offering more incentives but the industry may not be as keen to increase its share on the grounds of an economic slowdown and investments made to ‘leapfrog’ to BS-VI. This even though the policy is expected to affect car-buying, usage patterns, and increase demand. Environmental & other gains Roychowdhury says old, ill-maintained and malfunctioning vehicles can become energy guzzlers and emit high amounts of heat-trapping carbon dioxide that causes global warming. The other tangible benefits from the policy are scientific disposal and recovery of waste. Recycle and reuse can contribute towards import substitution and improve India’s balance of payments. “The ultimate scrappage policy is to minimise the environmental footprint of junk vehicles and clunkers. This requires maximum recovery of material for reuse, an increase in the share of recyclable material, and a reduction in the usage of environmentally harmful materials. This calls for a strong waste recycling and recovery system and cooperation from manufacturers.” Great expectations, but not impossible ones. A tailor-made policy needed for India Currently, a vehicle that has outlived all its possible uses is sold to a ‘kabaadi’, who pays by the kilo. Automobile expert H Kishie Singh says India has no organised system of disposing of a car or any motorised vehicle. “Different countries have different policies for scrapping old/unfit vehicles. No country has a foolproof system that can be emulated. England, France and Germany have a ‘cash for clunkers’ policy that has not been successful. The government is said to be considering new taxes for those who opt out. But taxing and re-taxing is not the solution to pollution, rather the whole exercise is counterproductive,” he says. Therefore, Singh says, any policy India formulates has to be an original one. “It should have different classes for different cars. For example, vintage and classic cars should be a separate category. Every component in a car can be recycled and the scrapping policy should address these aspects intelligently. For example, in Canada, old tyres are used to build roads. Rims and engines can be melted to create a new economy. Which is why the policy should pass through a whole lot of thought and experts who know automobiles and engines well.” Projected Gains A 30 pc boost expected for the Indian automobile industry from the present Rs4.5 lakh crore turnover to a likely Rs10 lakh crore turnover in future The export component of Rs1.45 lakh crore of the present turnover is likely to go up to Rs3 lakh crore Availability of scrapped material like steel, plastic, rubber, aluminium, etc, will increase. This will be used in manufacturing of automobile parts, which in turn will reduce their cost by 30 to 40 per cent Will boost/promote new technologies with better mileage of vehicles besides promoting green fuel and electricity Will decrease India’s huge Rs10 lakh crore crude import bill Will lead to new investments of around Rs10,000 cr and create as many as 50,000 jobs Disincentives Green tax, higher levies, registration charges on pollution-causing ageing vehicles Older vehicles that fail fitness test will attract huge penalties and can also be impounded Green tax will be utilised to tackle pollution Vehicles to be exempted Strong hybrids, electric vehicles Those using alternative fuels like CNG, ethanol and LPG Farm and agricultural equipment like tractors, tillers and harvesters What is proposed Personal vehicles would undergo fitness test after 20 years, commercial vehicles after 15 Policy would cover an estimated 51 lakh Light Motor Vehicles above 20 years of age, while another 34 lakh LMVs are above 15 years Also covered would be 17 lakh medium and heavy motor vehicles which are above 15 years and without valid fitness certificates

Kochi: Overall better but sees rise in pollution peaks

KOCHI: The pollution levels stayed well under control in the city for almost six months from April-September during the lockdown period, but the city recorded more pollution peaks during the winter season compared to the same period previous year, according to a study conducted by Centre for science and environment (CSE). Track the pollution level in your city It means that the city recorded more “severe” days with high PM 2.5 levels compared to the same period previous year. image According to the study, which was conducted in 99 cities based on real time data from various monitoring stations, Kochi ranks third in the country with the cleanest air quality with Mysuru and Satna claiming the first and second positions, respectively. The average PM 2.5 levels in the city declined 19% during the 2020-2021 winter compared to the 2019-2020 winter. “The seasonal average PM 2.5 levels from November-January 2021 is very good but the point of concern is that the average peak pollution has gone up by almost 40%,” said Avikal Somvanshi, programme manager in CSE’s Urban Lab team, Sustainable Cities Programme. He said the city should start taking precautions so that it does not reach the kind of pollution levels being noted in other cities. According to the study, winter pollution is only an indicator of what is going wrong across regions. To curb the rising pollution levels, overall annual average levels have to reduce substantially on a year-on-year basis. The good news has been that cities in Kerala including Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode have been recording stable or declining seasonal average. “The winter PM2.5 concentration has risen compared to the 2019-20 winter in many cities across regions. This bouncing back of pollution post-lockdown unmasks the high impacts of local and regional pollution. This demands quicker regional reforms to curb pollution from vehicles, industry, and waste burning to curb the winter pollution and also sustain annual improvement at a regional scale with speed,” says Anumita Roychowdhury, CSE’s executive director in charge of research and advocacy. Overall winter PM2.5 levels have worsened significantly in 43 cities out of 99 cities that have valid daily PM2.5 concentration data for over 75% of days for this and previous winter seasons. Pollution board officials said while Vyttila station recorded the highest levels of pollution in the state, PM2.5 levels have been rising in areas around MG Road and Eloor during the post-lockdown period.

चिंताजनक : महामारी से 37.5 करोड़ बच्चों की सेहत प्रभावित, 50 करोड़ बच्चों का स्कूल छूटा

सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एन्वॉयरनमेंट (सीएसई) की स्टेट ऑफ इंडडया इन्वॉयरमेंट ररपोटा के 2021 अनुसार, कोरोना महामारी के कारण देश भर में 37.5 करोड़ बच्चों के स्वास्थ्य और आधर्ाक हािात पर स्र्ायी असर पड़ा है। सीएसई की महाननदेशक डॉ. सुनीता नारायण ने ररपोटा जारी करते हुए बताया, नवजात से िेकर 14 वषा तक के बच्चों को स्वास्थ्य संबंधी तकिीफें ज्यादा होंगी। इसमें बच्चों का कम वजन, उम्र के अनुसार, शारीररक ववकास न होना और मृत्यु दर में बढ़ोतरी की आशंका है। बच्चों की खराब सेहत के कारण मशक्षा और काया क्षेत्र में भी दुष्प्रभाव देखने को ममि सकता है। ऑनिाइन जारी की गई इस ररपोटा को दुननयाभर के सार् पयाावरण और अन्य ववशेषज्ञों ने ममिकर तैयार ककया है। बढ़ता प्रदूषण सेहत के मिए और घातक ररपोटा के अनुसार, बीमारी, कुपोषण, अत्यंत गरीबी जैसी समस्याओं से मुजचकि होगी। हवा और पानी में प्रदूषण स्तर बढ़ने का सीधा असर स्वास्थ्य पर पड़ रहा है। िॉकडाउन में भी नददयों के प्रदूषण में कोई कमी नहीं आई है। सांस िेने के मिए हवा और पीने के मिए साफ पानी के मिए बहुत बड़े स्तर पर काम करना होगा। महाराष्ट् का तारापुर प्रदूवषत क्िस्टर कें द्रीय प्रदूषण ननयंत्रण बोडा के अनुसार, देश के 88 प्रमुख औद्योधगक किस्टर में से 35 में समग्र रूप से पयाावरण में धगरावट आई है। 33 स्र्ानों पर हवा की गुणवत्ता खराब, 45 स्र्ानों पर साि भर दूवषत पानी जबकक 17 स्र्ानों पर भूमम प्रदूषण अधधक र्ा। महाराष्ट् का तारापुर सबसे प्रदूवषत क्िस्टर र्ा। महामारी से 50 करोड़ बच्चों का स्कूि छूटा महामारी के कारण दुननया भर में 50 करोड़ बच्चों का स्कूि छूट गया। इसमें से 50 फीसदी से ज्यादा बच्चे भारत में है। सुनीता नारायण ने कहा, महामारी के कारण अनतररक्त 115 करोड़ िोग अत्यंत गरीबी के दायरे में आ चुके हैं। इसमें से अधधकतर दक्षक्षण एमशया में रहते हैं। 192 देशों में भारत 117वें स्र्ान पर सतत ववकास िक्ष्य हामसि करने में भारत दुननया भर के 192 देशों की सूची में 117वें स्र्ान पर है। पाककस्तान को छोड़कर सभी दक्षक्षण एमशयाई देशों से पीछे हैं। सतत ववकास िक्ष्यों को पाने में 5 राज्य केरि, दहमाचि प्रदेश, आंध्र प्रदेश, तममिनाडु और तेिंगाना बेहतर है। बबहार, अरुणाचि प्रदेश, मेघािय और यूपी सबसे पीछे हैं। 2025 तक स्रैपेज नीनत की जरूरत ररपोटा के अनुसार, भारत को वषा 2025 तक वाहनों के स्रैपेज के मिए नीनत की जरूरत होगी। देश में दो करोड़ वाहन ऐसे हैं जजनका जीवन अंत की ओर है। अगर सही समय पर इनका ननस्तारण नहीं ककया गया तो आने वािे समय में यह पयाावरण के मिए सबसे बड़ी चुनौती बनेंगे। भारत में वषा 2019 में 16.70 िाख िोगों की मौत वायु प्रदूषण के कारण हुई हैं। 889 जीवों पर मंडरा रहा खतरा भारत में 430 पौधे जजसमें 95 फीसदी फूि और खाद्य पदार्ा वािे हैं। वे खात्मे की कगार पर हैं। रीढ़ और रीढ़ ववहीन 889 जीवों पर भी खतरा मंडरा रहा है। पयाावरण से जुड़े आपराधधक मामिे बढ़े हैं। 2019 में 24,671 केस दजा हुए र्े जबकक 49,877 मामिे िंबबत हैं।

देश अब एक ‘महामारी जनरेशन’ में प्रवेश करने के लिए िैर्ार, बच्चों में र्दखेगा कोरोना का कुप्रभाव

संजीव गुप्ता, नई ददल्िी। कोववड-19 संरमण भिे ही कम हो गया हो और इसकी वैक्सीन भी आ गई हो, िेककन इस महामारी का कुप्रभाव अभी वषो तक देखने को ममिेगा। खासकर बच्चों का शारीररक ववकास इससे सवााधधक प्रभाववत होगा। बच्चों की मृत्युदर में भी इजाफा हो सकता है और उनकी पढ़ाई-मिखाई भी बीच में ही छूट सकती है। यह दावा ककया गया है सेंटर फार साइंस एंड एन्वायरमेंट (सीएसई) की वावषाक ररपोटा स्टेट आफ इंडडयाज एन्वायरमेंट 2021 में। सीएसई की महाननदेशक सुनीता नारायण सदहत देश भर के 60 से अधधक पयाावरणववदें ने एक सार् यह ररपोटा बृहस्पनतवार शाम वचुाअिी जारी की। इस ररपोटा के मुताबबक भारत अब एक ‘महामारी जनरेशन’ में प्रवेश करने के मिए तैयार है। 37.5 करोड़ बच्चे (नवजात मशशु से िेकर 14 साि के बच्चों तक) िंबे समय तक चिने वािे कोरोना के कुप्रभावों की चपेट में आ सकते हैं। उनकी रोग प्रनतरोधक क्षमता प्रभाववत होने से यह कुप्रभाव कम वजन, कम िंबाई और मृत्यु दर में वृवद्द से िेकर मशक्षा के नुकसान के रूप में भी सामने आ सकता है। अब इस मागा पर यातायात सुगम होने की उम्मीद बढ़ गई है। ववचव भर में पचास करोड़ से ज्यादा बच्चे स्कूि से बाहर हो गए हैं। इसमें आधे से ज्यादा बच्चे भारत में हैं। ररपोटा में यह भी बताया गया है कक पूणा िाकडाउन के बावजूद भारत संरमण मुक्त नहीं रहा। यहां आबादी का एक बड़ा दहस्सा स्िम, झुग्गी-झोपडड़यों और घनी आबादी वािे क्षेत्रों में रहता है। वहां न तो पीने का साफ पानी उपिलध है और न सफाई ठीक से होती है। ऐसे में संरमण फैिने की गुंजाइश रहती है। कान्क्िेव की अध्यक्षता पीएचडी चेंबर आफ कामसा एंड इंडस्ट्ीज के हररयाणा चेप्टर के अध्यक्ष प्रणब गुप्ता ने की। बाघों की संख्या बढ़ी, मगर घट गया वन क्षेत्र देश में वनस्पनत और वन्य जीव खतरे में हैं। पयाावरण संबंधी अपराध के मामिे बढ़ रहे हैं, पर उनका ननपटान धीमा है। वषा 2019 में 34,671 अपराध दजा ककए गए, जबकक 49,877 मामिे िंबबत हैं। सरकारी दावा है कक वषा 2017 के बाद से भारत का वन क्षेत्र 5,188 वगा ककमी हो गया है। हािांकक सीएसई इससे इत्तेफाक नहीं रखता। बाघों को िेकर भी आंकड़ा भ्रममत करता है। सरकारी दावा है कक भारत में 714 बाघों को जोड़ा है, पर बाघों के कलजे वािा क्षेत्र 17,000 वगा ककमी (वपछिे चार सािों में) पहिे से मसकुड़ गया है। राजीव चौक के बाद ये दूसरा सबसे गहरा मेट्ो स्टेशन बन गया है। Delhi Metro News: जाननए ददल्िी मेट्ो नेटवका में ककस िाइन पर और कहां है सबसे गहरा मेट्ो स्टेशन यह भी पढ़ें सतत ववकास में भारत 192 में से 117वें नंबर पर सतत ववकास के मामिे में भारत 192 देशों में से 117वें स्र्ान पर है। हैरत की बात यह कक अब भारत पाककस्तान को छोड़ सभी दक्षक्षण एमशयाई देशों से भी पीछे हो गया है। सतत ववकास के िक्ष्यों को पूरा करने के मामिे में देश में सबसे अच्छा प्रदशान वािे पांच राज्य केरि, दहमाचि प्रदेश, आंध्र प्रदेश, तममिनाडु और तेिंगाना हैं, जबकक सबसे खराब प्रदशान करने वािे पांच राज्य बबहार, झारखंड, अरुणाचि प्रदेश, मेघािय और उत्तर प्रदेश हैं। चाटाडा ववमानों के मिए शुरू ककए गए जनरि एववएशन टममानि से हवाई याबत्रयों का समय बच रहा है। अब यह जांच करने का समय आ गया है कक कोरोना महामारी हमारे मिए दीघाावधध में क्या छोड़ने वािी है। एक खोई हुई पीढ़ी, जो अस्वस्र्ता, कुपोषण, गरीबी और शैक्षखणक उपिजलधयों में दुबािता से नघरी हुई है। चुनौती यह भी है कक पयाावरण का उपयोग सतत ववकास के मिए ककया जाए, ताकक जिवायु-जोखखम वािे समय में हम आजीववका, पोषण सुरक्षा में सुधार कर सकें । (- सुनीता नारायण, महाननदेशक, सीएसई)

CSE’s State of Environment Report: Inching Closer to Ecological Disasters ‘The pandemic has demonstrated

‘The pandemic has demonstrated another brutal reality: A crisis’ impacts trickle faster to the poor. It is estimated that 12,000 more people would die every day due to hunger extended by the pandemic,’ the report said. Amid an ongoing pandemic and the worsening of climate systems across the globe, the Center for Science and Environment’s State of Environment report cautioned that the world is inching closer to ecological disasters. The report, released at an online event on February 25, highlighted the degradation of systems that have led to the creation of the COVID-19 pandemic across the globe, and said the world will face pandemics like the current one more frequently. It added that the adult generation of 2040 would be stunted with a lower human capital and that it would be the toughest developmental challenge for the world due to the impact of the pandemic. “The pandemic has demonstrated another brutal reality: A crisis’s impacts trickle faster to the poor. It is estimated that 12,000 more people would die every day due to hunger extended by the pandemic,” it added. In a chapter on COVID-19, the report stated: “Deforestation for large-scale industrial animal husbandry is thus tantamount to inviting these viruses into our future most electronic devices are made from materials extracted from mines of metals and minerals, such as copper, nickel, silver and cobalt. Most of these mines are in old forests, which have to be cleared and habitats destroyed to start mining there. That’s how we end up bringing viruses closer to us.” “We are currently faced with multiple crises, including ones like the ongoing pandemic. Amidst this, it is key to focus on the environmental crisis we are creating which is leading to more vulnerabilities among the marginalised communities, those who are on the frontlines of witnessing the effects of climate change,” Director of CSE, Sunita Narain, said. The report highlighted how the ongoing climate crisis is creating newer vulnerabilities at the cost of the marginalised communities. “Livelihoods of many workers depend on industrialisation. Their course is restricted use of resources and revival of natural ecosystems. This would mean using resources responsibly and restoring areas back to their original glory after extraction has ended. Urbanisation is increasing and biodiversity diminishing,” it added. At the launch of the report, Biswajit Mohanty, secretary, Wildlife Society of Odisha, said that India’s ecology and environment “have never faced such enormous pressure and degradation, driven by rapacious corporate interests growth is happening at unforgivable and irreversible damage, sustainability, ecology and law have been cast aside to fatten the balance sheets while our policy makers and regulators are silent.” Last year witnessed massive campaigns against one of the moves by the Narendra Modi government to pave way for easier environmental clearances for corporates to envisage projects in vulnerable-eco sensitive zones. CSE has critiqued the EC process and recommended ways in which it can be streamlined (for ease of doing business) and strengthened (for environmental and social integrity). Some of these are to consolidate clearances—environmental, forest, wildlife, coastal—and make the document public so that the project impact is fully understood and decisions taken are timely. The assessment should be openly scrutinised to take care of people’s concerns. The report stated: “Currently, these committees are not responsible to ensure the projects cleared do not have a serious environmental impact. They delay clearances by repeatedly asking for information, or they clear with a list of conditions, knowing the conditions will not be monitored, or may not even be feasible.” Amid this rapid industrialisation, India’s power plants have already pleaded for a delayed deadline to meet the new standards beyond 2022. The study by CSE has shown that about 70% of the power plants in the country cannot meet the standards by 2022. The recovery package calls for private investments and ease-ofdoing business in the coal sector for accelerated commercial coal mining, and removes end-use restrictions. Rules on ash content of coal have been waived off. This will flood the market with dirtier and cheaper coal leading to more vulnerabilities for indigenous populations as well as natural resources. Activist and journalist Patricia Mukhim, while discussing the state of mining in Meghalaya said, “It is being projected as if there is no coal mining, but on the protocols, polluting river systems causing acid rains from the mining activity.” The report also elaborated on the ethics of landscape conservation, agro-ecological systems of food production and of controlled fire interventions, among several other methods, as the way forward. It laid special emphasis on the involvement of the indegeous communities to ensure planetary justice.

कोविड महामारी का भयावह सच, देश के 37 करोड़ बच्चों को दशकों तक भूख, कुपोषण, अशिक्षा का सामना करना होगा

सीएसई की रिपोर्ट में कहा गया है कि कोविड-19 महामारी के कारण भारत में 37.5 करोड़ बच्चों को भूख, कुपोषण, अशिक्षा और कई अनेदेखी परशानियों का सामना करना होगा. इसका प्रभाव कई दशकों तक दिखाई देगा. नई दिल्लीः कोविड-19 महामारी का प्रभाव कई दशकों तक दिखाई देता रहेगा. बच्चों की एक पूरी पीढ़ी इससे बुरी तरह प्रभावित हो सकती है. Centre for Science and Environment की सालाना स्टेट ऑफ इंडियाज एनवायरनमेंट 2021 की रिपोर्ट में यह बात कही गई है. रिपोर्ट के मुताबिक कोविड-19 महामारी के कारण 0 से 14 साल के 37.5 करोड़ भारतीय बच्चों पर लंबे समय तक बुरे असर का साया रहेगा. इन बच्चे को कुपोषण, अशिक्षा और कई अनदेखी दुश्वारियों का सामना करना पड़ सकता है. रिपोर्ट तैयार करने में विश्व बैंक, यूनिसेफ और ग्लोबल हेल्थ साइंस का सहारा लिया गया है. और गरीब हो जाएगी दुनिया सीएसई की निदेशक सुनीता नारायण ने कहा है कि कोविड-19 ने पहले से गरीब विश्व को और गरीब बना दिया है. उन्होंने कहा, कोविड-19 के प्रभाव के कारण दुनिया भर में 11.5 करोड़ अतिरिक्त लोग अत्यंत गरीबी में जीने के लिए विवश होंगे. इनमें से ज्यादातर दक्षिण एशिया के होंगे. रिपोर्ट के मुताबिक 31 दिसंबर 2020 तक भारत में 2.5 करोड़ से ज्यादा बच्चों ने जन्म लिया। यानी एक पूरी पीढ़ी ने सदी की सबसे लंबी महामारी के दौरान जन्म लिया. जब ये बच्चे बड़े होंगे तो इनकी याददाश्त में महामारी एक निर्णायक मिसाल के तौर पर होगी. इस महामारी के कारण मौजूदा पीढ़ी के 35 करोड़ से ज्यादा बच्चे इसके अलग-अलग तरह के असर को अपनी जिंदगी तक ढोएंगे. सतत विकास में बिहार, यूपी सबसे पिछड़े राज्यों में यूनिसेफ के मुताबिक लॉकडाउन के कारण दुनिया भर के बच्चों को सरकारी स्कूल से मिलने वाला भोजन नहीं मिला. भारत में करीब 9.4 करोड़ बच्चे लॉकडाउन के कारण मिडडे मिल से वंचित रहे. रिपोर्ट में कहा गया है कि दुनिया भर में करीब 50 करोड़ बच्चों को स्कूल से मजबूरन बाहर होना पड़ा. इनमें आधे बच्चे भारत के हैं. इतना ही नहीं 2030 तक बच्चों में ठिगनापन (बौनापन) को 2.5 प्रतिशत तक लाने का जो भारत का लक्ष्य था, वह भी कोविड 19 के कारण प्रभावित हुआ है. सतत विकास के लक्ष्य को प्राप्त करने की दिशा में भारत 192 देशों में 117 वें स्थान पर है. इस मामले में भारत पाकिस्तान को छोड़कर सभी दक्षिण एशियाई देशों से पीछे है. सालाना स्टेट ऑफ इंडियाज एनवायरमेंट 2021 की रिपोर्ट के मुताबिक सतत विकास लक्ष्य के मामले में केरल, हिमाचल प्रदेश, आंध्र प्रदेश, तमिलनाडु और तेलंगाना को बेहतर प्रदर्शन वाला पांच राज्य घोषित किया गया है जबकि इसमें बिहार, झारखंड, अरुणाचल प्रदेश, मेघालय और उत्तर प्रदेश को सबसे खराब प्रदर्शन वाला राज्य बताया गया है.लॉकडाउन में साफ नहीं हुई गंगा रिपोर्ट में कहा गया है कि भारत में वायु प्रदूषण के कारण 2019 में 16.7 लाख लोगों की मौत हुईं। इसके कारण देश को 360 करोड़ डॉलर का नुकसान हुआ जो कुल जीडीपी का 1.36 प्रतिशत है. रिपोर्ट में इस बात को खारिज कर दिया गया कि लॉकडाउन के कारण भारत की नदियां साफ हुई है. रिपोर्ट की मुताबिक गंगा सहित 19 नदिया और ज्यादा गंदी हो गईं.

Environmental crime cases piling up: State of India’s Environment report

February 27, 2021: Even with a drop in the number of wildlife crimes in the country between 2019 and 2020, India sees two cases recorded every day. At the same time, courts are disposing cases at a rate much lower than that of new cases recorded, leading to a pile-up and delays -- says the 2021 State of India’s Environment (SoE) report, an annual publication brought out by Down To Earth magazine in association with Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). The report was jointly released here Saturday at an online event by over 60 environmental thinkers and activists, journalists and academics from across India. In 2019, a total of 34,671 environment-related crimes were registered. Over 7,000 cases were pending police investigation, and almost 50,000 cases were pending trial in courts. Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Maharashtra accounted for 77 per cent of India’s wildlife crimes in 2019. Between 2018 and 2019, some states saw an increase in wildlife crimes: these included Gujarat, Maharashtra, Bihar, West Bengal and all the states of the northeast. “We have a long way to go, when it comes to dealing with environmental crimes,” says Down To Earth’s wildlife and forest reporter Ishan Kukreti. “At the rate at which we are going, courts will need to dispose of a humongous 137 cases a day to clear the existing backlog within a year.” The courts are, understandably, stretched. In 2019, the average number of cases (under all environment and pollution-related laws) they managed to dispose of every day stood at about 86. The SoE’s analysis shows that in all of 2019, only 0.13 cases under the EPA (Environment (Protection) Act) could be disposed of every day – at this rate, courts would take more than 20 years to clear the backlog of cases under this Act. Similarly, cases under the Wildlife Protection Act (a mere 0.66 were disposed off per day in 2019) would take over 13 years. Says Down To Earth managing editor Richard Mahapatra: “The maximum number of cases that courts are managing to dispose of currently come under the Cigarette and Other Tobacco Products Act and the Noise Pollution Act. We need to clear the backlog under the other laws as well. Environmental crimes – as the United Nations has pointed out – have the potential to threaten security and sustainable development of nations, and must be dealt with a heavy hand.”

Pandemic will leave 375 million children with health impacts: State of India’s Environment 2021 report

NEW DELHI: India is likely to see a pandemic generation with 375 million children under the age of 14 years suffering from long-lasting impacts ranging from being underweight, stunting and increased child mortality to losses in education and work productivity, according to the 2021 State of India’s Environment report. But that is not all. The compendium by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) says that Covid pandemic also has its hidden victims over 500 million children forced out of school globally and India accounts for more than half of them. “Covid-19 has made the world’s poor poorer. About 115 million additional people might get pushed into extreme poverty by the pandemic and most of them live in South Asia,” the report said. “The time has now come to investigate what the pandemic is going to leave behind for us in the longer term a lost generation, scarred by ill-health, malnourishment, acute poverty and a debilitating break in educational accomplishments,” CSE director general Sunita Narain said. Ranked 117 among 192 nations in terms of sustainable development, India is now behind all South Asian nations except Pakistan. With respect to meeting the Sustainable Development Goals, the five best performing states are Kerala, Himachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Telangana while Bihar, Jharkhand, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and Uttar Pradesh languish at the bottom. “The overall assessment is that our air and water quality is under stress; all trends show that pollution is increasing and this has massive impacts on our health. Even during the lockdown, data shows that river pollution did not reduce. Clearly, we need to do much more to improve the quality of the air we breathe and the water we drink,” Narain said.

Air and water quality of India under unprecedented stress: Narain

* India ranks 117 among 192 nations in terms of sustainable development – it is now behind all South Asian nations except Pakistan * 67 million Indians died due to air pollution in 2019. The economic cost was over US $36,000 million, equivalent to 1.36 per cent of India’s GDP * Contrary to popular belief, India’s rivers did not see any significant improvement in their water quality during the lockdown. Of India’s 19 major rivers, five – including Ganga – ran dirtier in the Covid-19 period. * 438 plant species (of which 95 per cent are flowering plants, including food crops) and 889 vertebrates and invertebrates are threatened or on the verge of extinction. These are some of the facts surfaced thanks to the Centre for Science and Environment's (CSE’s) deep dive in the study of environmental degradation, raw data and numerous field reports, put together in the form of CSE’s annual State of India’s Environment (SoE), 2021. “The overall assessment is that our air and water quality is under stress; all trends show that pollution is increasing and this has massive impacts on our health. Even during the lockdown, data shows that river pollution did not reduce. Clearly, we need to do much more to improve the quality of the air we breathe and the water we drink,” said Sunita Narain, director general, CSE and editor, Down to Earth, while releasing the annual publication. “The good news is that we are learning to do things differently. We are adopting technologies that will be affordable to large numbers and sustainable. This is where the answer will be – in differently done sewage treatment, to mobility systems that will move people and not cars,” she added. “From climate change, industry, air pollution and water to rural development, renewable energy, waste, habitat and forest, the 2021 edition – like its predecessors – covers it all, and more. It also has three special sections: an assessment of the pandemic and its impacts a year after, a data analysis of how India’s states are faring on environment and development parameters, and a tribute to the decade of biodiversity,” said Richard Mahapatra, managing editor of Down To Earth: “The challenge also is to use the environment for development, so that in these climate-risked times we can improve livelihood, nutrition security and build resilience of communities. SoE 2021 looks at the climate change threat from extreme weather events on one hand, and the success of MNREGA in building ecological assets like water structures on the other. We need to invest in building natural resource-based economies which are both sustainable and also create local wealth and wellbeing,” said Narain.

Data drive: The pandemic generation

Although the western world is bearing the brunt of Covid-19 with cases rising and deaths piling up, the after effects of the pandemic will be borne by low- and low-middle income countries. Although the western world is bearing the brunt of Covid-19 with cases rising and deaths piling up, the after effects of the pandemic will be borne by low- and low-middle income countries. The Centre for Science and Environment’s State of the Environment 2021 report shows that children under the age of five in low-income countries are going to be five times more affected than children in higher income countries. In the higher income countries, the largest impact will be on school-going children. While income decline in low-income countries (LICs) is less than the higher income ones—these instituted harsher lockdowns—poverty is also expected to increase which would ultimately impact LICs. The report states that the world will not meet SDG by 2030 and even in the best case scenario—which envisages a 9.9% per capita growth and 50% reduction in income inequality—nearly 3% of the population shall remain extremely poor.

India’s Forests Expanded This Decade, Yet Indigenous Communities Are Still Being Forced Out: Report

India’s total amount of forest cover expanded over the past decade, according to the “State of India’s Environment 2021,” a new joint report by the Centre for Science and Environment and Downtoearth.org. But forest cover is not the same as forested land, which is increasingly being lost to industry and development. The definition of forest cover used by the Forest Survey of India allows gardens, orchards, plantations, and even the trees lining roads to be counted as forest cover. “It is a case of mistaking trees for forests, quite literally,” according to the report. Forest land, by contrast, is static on paper, designated as such in government records. Even as industrial projects are increasingly being allowed on this land, the area is still recorded as forested land. Combined, this means, that even as India made overall gains in total tree cover, the number of trees within forest land reduced. Only 5.1 lakh square kilometers of trees actually cover 7.6 lakh square kilometers of India’s forests. The area of difference is increasingly devoted to irrigation, mining, and infrastructure projects. Plus, India’s widespread groundwater depletion signals irrigation projects are only likely to become more prevalent and critical. In addition, mining has already expanded, which means actual forested land is likely to continue to be lost. Related on The Swaddle: Rajasthan’s Wildlife Board Rezones Protected Forest to Allow Mining of Unique Sandstone As a result, biodiversity will be more and more threatened. Already, the reallocation of forested land to industry and development has had an effect on India’s tiger population. While India recorded an increase in the overall tiger population over the last five years, “five states — Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana — which have the largest forestland diversions for mining are also the states that registered a decline in their tiger populations,” according to the report. More importantly, however, communities indigenous to forests will continue to be forced out of their homeland. The homes of one million forest-dwelling people have been caught up in long, drawn-out legal battles over eviction since early 2019, which the convoluted bureaucracy ostensibly designed to protect their rights seems ill-equipped to efficiently resolve. Additionally, eight coal mining projects since 2015 are on forested land originally deemed inviolate by the Forest Survey of India. Among other things, these will lead to a total loss of more than 1 million trees and the eviction of more than 10,000 families — roughly half a million people, by estimating off of India’s average family size. When not battling eviction from their homes, forest communities face threats to their livelihoods. One such threat is the practice of fragmenting an industrial project, which spreads out industrial activities across patches of non-forest land interspersed with forested land. It’s a loophole in the frameworks actually intended to preserve forest land and people, and it ignores the interconnected nature of ecosystems, critics argue. “[Approval] is not given for a patch of land, but for the entire project. There will be issues of underground water, rivers, and people’s rights under the Forest Rights Act. How will that be taken care of?” the report quotes Supreme Court lawyer Shomona Khanna. At best, the forested patches between the project land will be polluted or their resources drained away by the industry, at worst, communities have no other option but to move on because of this. Until the true area of forested land is reflected in Indian records, it’s unlikely any of this will be solved. Acknowledging that forested land requires actual tree cover means acknowledging official activities have ravaged the biodiversity and communities who were there first — and that maybe, just maybe, those communities deserve a bigger say in how that land is used. The end of 2020 brought a draft of “new guidelines that give gram sabhas more power in the management of community forest rights (cfr) and habitat rights….” Hopefully, next year’s report will say the guidelines have been enacted — and maybe even implemented.

COVID Pandemic Will Leave 375 Mn Children With Poor Health & Educational Losses, Says Report

The country is all set to usher in a ‘pandemic generation’, with 375 million children (from newborns to 14-year-olds) likely to suffer long-lasting impacts, ranging from being underweight, stunting and increased child mortality, to losses in education and work productivity according to the State of India’s Environment (2021) Annual reports. “The defining event of the year that has gone by has been the COVID-19 pandemic, something which the world is still struggling to come to terms with. The time has now come to investigate what the pandemic is going to leave behind for us in the longer term – a lost generation, scarred by ill-health, malnourishment, acute poverty and a debilitating break in educational accomplishments. This is what the State of India’s Environment Annual reports and brings to life,” said Sunita Narain, director general, Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) and editor, Down To Earth, while releasing the annual publication. Portraits Of Children Show How Childhood Is Different Around The World BCCL The SoE – as the State of India’s Environment report is referred to – is an annual publication of Down To Earth magazine, brought out in association with CSE. The 2021 edition, a 442-page compendium of news, views and analysis, was jointly released here today at an online event by over 60 environmental thinkers and activists, journalists and academics from across India. What the 2021 annual report says The country is all set to usher in a 'pandemic generation': 375 million children (from newborn to 14-year-olds) may suffer long-lasting impacts, ranging from being underweight, stunting and increased child mortality, to losses in education and work productivity. The pandemic also has its hidden victims -- over 500 million children forced out of school globally. Asymptomatic COVID-19, Asymptomatic COVID-19 Spread, Asymptomatic COVID-19 Kids, Asymptomatic COVID-19 Virus Load Reuters India accounts for more than 50 per cent of them. “Covid-19 has made the world’s poor poorer,” says Narain: 115 million additional people might get pushed into extreme poverty by the pandemic – and most of them live in South Asia. students Representational Image In her appraisal in the SoE, Narain adds: “The pandemic is a shock response to our dystopian relationship with nature. It has amplified the inequity and deep divisions in our world. The places where the disease is most likely to breed is where there are no urban services; where settlements are overcrowded; where water supply and sanitation is inadequate; and where people have no way to stay safe.”

CSE’s State of Environment Report: Inching Closer to Ecological Disasters

‘The pandemic has demonstrated another brutal reality: A crisis’ impacts trickle faster to the poor. It is estimated that 12,000 more people would die every day due to hunger extended by the pandemic,’ the report said. Amid an ongoing pandemic and the worsening of climate systems across the globe, the Center for Science and Environment’s State of Environment report cautioned that the world is inching closer to ecological disasters. The report, released at an online event on February 25, highlighted the degradation of systems that have led to the creation of the COVID-19 pandemic across the globe, and said the world will face pandemics like the current one more frequently. It added that the adult generation of 2040 would be stunted with a lower human capital and that it would be the toughest developmental challenge for the world due to the impact of the pandemic. “The pandemic has demonstrated another brutal reality: A crisis’s impacts trickle faster to the poor. It is estimated that 12,000 more people would die every day due to hunger extended by the pandemic,” it added. In a chapter on COVID-19, the report stated: “Deforestation for large-scale industrial animal husbandry is thus tantamount to inviting these viruses into our future most electronic devices are made from materials extracted from mines of metals and minerals, such as copper, nickel, silver and cobalt. Most of these mines are in old forests, which have to be cleared and habitats destroyed to start mining there. That’s how we end up bringing viruses closer to us.” “We are currently faced with multiple crises, including ones like the ongoing pandemic. Amidst this, it is key to focus on the environmental crisis we are creating which is leading to more vulnerabilities among the marginalised communities, those who are on the front-lines of witnessing the effects of climate change,” Director of CSE, Sunita Narain, said. The report highlighted how the ongoing climate crisis is creating newer vulnerabilities at the cost of the marginalised communities. “Livelihoods of many workers depend on industrialisation. Their course is restricted use of resources and revival of natural ecosystems. This would mean using resources responsibly and restoring areas back to their original glory after extraction has ended. Urbanisation is increasing and biodiversity diminishing,” it added. At the launch of the report, Biswajit Mohanty, secretary, Wildlife Society of Odisha, said that India’s ecology and environment “have never faced such enormous pressure and degradation, driven by rapacious corporate interests growth is happening at unforgivable and irreversible damage, sustainability, ecology and law have been cast aside to fatten the balance sheets while our policy makers and regulators are silent.” Last year witnessed massive campaigns against one of the moves by the Narendra Modi government to pave way for easier environmental clearances for corporates to envisage projects in vulnerable-eco sensitive zones. CSE has critiqued the EC process and recommended ways in which it can be streamlined (for ease of doing business) and strengthened (for environmental and social integrity). Some of these are to consolidate clearances—environmental, forest, wildlife, coastal—and make the document public so that the project impact is fully understood and decisions taken are timely. The assessment should be openly scrutinised to take care of people’s concerns. The report stated: “Currently, these committees are not responsible to ensure the projects cleared do not have a serious environmental impact. They delay clearances by repeatedly asking for information, or they clear with a list of conditions, knowing the conditions will not be monitored, or may not even be feasible.” Amid this rapid industrialisation, India’s power plants have already pleaded for a delayed deadline to meet the new standards beyond 2022. The study by CSE has shown that about 70% of the power plants in the country cannot meet the standards by 2022. The recovery package calls for private investments and ease-of-doing business in the coal sector for accelerated commercial coal mining, and removes end-use restrictions. Rules on ash content of coal have been waived off. This will flood the market with dirtier and cheaper coal leading to more vulnerabilities for indigenous populations as well as natural resources. Activist and journalist Patricia Mukhim, while discussing the state of mining in Meghalaya said, “It is being projected as if there is no coal mining, but on the ground, coal mining is ongoing without protocols, polluting river systems causing acid rains from the mining activity.” The report also elaborated on the ethics of landscape conservation, agro-ecological systems of food production and of controlled fire interventions, among several other methods, as the way forward. It laid special emphasis on the involvement of the indegeous communities to ensure planetary justice.