Nasheman

India's largest selling Urdu weekly, now also in English

You are here: Home / Archives for Environment

NGT slaps Rs 50-cr penalty on Karnataka for neglecting Bengaluru lakes

by

 

 The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Thursday imposed Rs 50 crore penalty on Karnataka for allegedly neglecting two lakes — Bellandur and Varthur — in the city’s southeast suburb, said non-governmental organisation Namma Bengaluru Foundation (NBF) here.

“Karnataka has been directed to pay Rs 50 crore as environmental compensation or penalty, which shall be deposited with the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) for restoring the environment,” said the Foundation in a statement, citing the Tribunal order.

The Tribunal also directed the city corporation (BBMP) to pay Rs 25 crore to the CPCB and transfer Rs 10 crore to the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KPSCB) for the logistics of Justice Santosh Hegde Committee it formed to oversee the implementation of its orders.

The Tribunal has directed the state government to furnish a performance guarantee up to Rs 100 crore to ensure execution of the action plan.

“State of Karnataka will also undertake to pay Rs 100 crore if there is failure to implement the plan,” said Foundation’s senior counsel Sajan Poovayya, who appeared for the petitioners, including the Foundation (NBF).

The lakes, about 20km from the city centre, are filled up with sewage, effluents, solid municipal waste, construction and demolition waste and weed, leaving no clean water in them.

“The twin lakes have been in the news due to immense foaming and frothing as they became the largest septic tanks in the city due to sheer callousness and indifference of the authorities concerned,” recalled Poovayya.

Declaring the grave situation as an environment emergency, the Tribunal noted that the authorities concerned have failed to discharge their obligations to the society and their dues.

“The colossal neglect has caused immense harm to citizens and brunt of which will be borne by generations. There is no justification for such environmental loss,” said the green tribunal.

On the basis of various inquiry reports, including the Panjwani Committee, the Tribunal found the state government negligent in protecting its lakes and in keeping the storm water drains free from encroachment.

“As water pollution is a criminal offence, measures have to be taken to control such pollution and close polluting units,” said the Tribunal, adding that the officers charged with the duties are accountable for their failures.

The watchdog also directed the state government to ensure no pollutant or waste is discharged into the water bodies, lakes and streams.

IANS

India’s polluted air killed 1.24 million in 2017: study

by

Lancet study says India’s average life expectancy would be higher by 1.7 years if air quality was at healthy levels.

India’s toxic air has claimed 1.24 million lives in 2017, or 12.5 percent of total deaths recorded in the year, says a study.

The study, published in the journal Lancet Planetary Health on Thursday, said more than 51 percent of the people who died because of air pollution were younger than 70.

Of the total, about 670,000 died from air pollution in the wider environment and 480,000 from household pollution related to the use of solid cooking fuels.

The Indian capital, New Delhi, was most exposed to the tiny particulate matter, known as PM2.5, that can reach deep into the lungs and cause major health problems, the study said.

‘They are in grave danger’: Delhi’s homeless struggle with smog

Some north Indian states closer to New Delhi were almost as bad.

The study said the average life expectancy in Indiain 2017 would have been higher by 1.7 years if air quality was at healthy levels.

This wasn’t as gloomy as a recent report by the University of Chicago which said prolonged exposure to pollution reduces the life expectancy of an Indian by over four years.

The new study said India has a higher proportion of global health loss due to air pollution – at 26.2 percent of the world’s total when measured in deaths and disability – than its 18.1 percent share of the world’s population.

“The findings suggest that the impact of air pollution on deaths and life expectancy in India might be lower than previously estimated but this impact is still quite substantial,” the study said.

The study, conducted by academics and scientists from various institutions in and outside India, was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Indian government and the Indian Council of Medical Research.

Earlier this year, the World Health Organization (WHO) said India was home to the world’s 14 most polluted cities.

‘Capital’ punishment

The quality of air in New Delhi – the world’s most polluted major city – has swung between “severe” to “hazardous” levels multiple times in the past two months.

On Tuesday, the National Green Tribunal (NGT), India’s environment watchdog, slapped the Delhi government with a $3.5m fine for failing to enforce rules to reduce smog.

The NGT penalised the capital’s administration for its lack of oversight after it emerged that some polluting industries were still burning harmful waste in the open.India: Delhi pollution level deteriorates to ‘hazardous’ category

The tribunal was hearing a plea from Delhi residents complaining about factories flouting laws as the city tackles the crisis plaguing its 20 million residents every year.

Each winter, Delhi chokes through haze so extreme that levels of airborne pollutants routinely eclipse safe limits by more than 30 times.

Delhi, which has shut down power plants and banned heavy trucks from the city in a bid to curb smog, has accused other states of not playing their part.

In particular, the capital has blamed governments in neighbouring Punjab and Haryana for crop fires that burn every year, sending smoke eastwards.

Aljazeera

Bollywood Round Up 3

by

 
Ramesh Sippy – Dipendra Manocha – Rummi Seth – Narendra Joshi Discuss Audio Description For The Visually Impaired
IFFI Goa 2018 in its endeavor to promote inclusivity, screened 2 Hindi films, namely Sholay & Hitchki with audio description for the visually impaired. Ramesh Sippy, the Indian film director & producer, best known for directing Sholay, was seen in a conversation with Dipendra Manocha, Rummi Seth & Narendra Joshi. The discussion session titled, Saksham: The Visual Made Verbal was about making cinema accessible to the visually impaired. 
Dipendra Manocha is working as the Developing countries coordinator & Lead of Training And Tech Support with the DAISY Consortium. He is member of the Executive Committee of the World Blind Union & also the managing trustee of the Saksham Trust, which works towards empowering communities by creating multiple opportunities & also providing platforms for the visually impaired for sustainable social upliftment, thus enabling them to emerge as significant contributors in India’s growth story.
While speaking on the topic, Dipendra Manocha said, “Whenever a producer makes a film internationally, they treat audio description to be an integral part of making that film. So, whenever the film reaches people’s homes or when the family chooses to watch it in the theatres, the visually impaired can enjoy the movie with their family. Film watching in our country is an exercise in social inclusion. It helps forge social bonds. We should now move beyond special shows, like the one held at IFFI Goa 2018 & have an audio description for every movie released in India.”
Ramesh Sippy said, “This movement is great & it should be developed further. I am ready to extend any form of support from my end towards this. To start  with, films that are being released can perhaps take a few weeks’ time post the movie’s release, to relieve themselves of the stress that comes with the release of the film, to get the audio description in place. Slowly, we can then target releasing the film with the audio description at the same time when it releases worldwide. It might take some time for these systems to be in place but I’m confident that it will happen

 

In Conversation With Cinematographer Pierre Gill

by

The budding cinematographers & students of photography were in for a treat as the International Film Festival of India Film Festival of India (IFFI Goa 2018) had a wonderful session with 2 time winner of American Society of Cinematographers, USA (ASC Award). The Canadian cinematographer Pierre Gill is best known for his work on films such as Black List, The Art of War, Lost And Delirious, The Rocket, Polytechnique & Upside Down. He also served as the 2nd unit director of photography on Villeneuve’s Blade Runner 2049, which won the Academy Award for “Best Cinematography”.
The session gave the audiences & members a technical insight into the world of cinematography. Pierre Gill spoke about the varied factors that make or break “a perfect shot”, such as the type of lens to be used, the light arrangement, the camera angle, whether to use monochrome or colour, and many more.
While stressing on the importance of making the actor or actress look good, Pierre Gill said, “The actress has the power to ask for a specific cinematographer when she knows that she’s going to look good.” The talented lensman then highlighted the importance of lighting up facial features of the actor, such as the eyes. Pierre Gill further said, “The eyes are critical for me. The soul of the person is behind his / her eyes. It is important to choose the lens based on the facial structure of the actor.”

Film Festival Round Up

by

A Glance At Tunisian Cinema
The International Film Festival Of India (IFFI Goa 2018) hosted a special session on Tunisian cinema with the motive of promoting tourism of Tunisia through cinema.
The session, led by Tunisian Ambassador H.E. Nejmeddine Lakhal, began with a 3 minute short film promoting the tourism of Tunisia. The session also included a presentation on the topic, “‘Opportunity of making films in Tunisia”.
The presentation touched upon crucial points that play an important role in making Tunisia conducive as a locale for film shoots, such as the history of Tunisia (how it was formed) & reasons for making films such as strategic locale climate, landscapes, historical ruins, modern infrastructure & logistics, et al. The cost of shooting is said to be 30 % less than the other countries.
H.E. Nejmeddine Lakhal said, “There are movies like Star Wars shot in Tunisia. Indian filmmakers should explore this opportunity. When it comes to technician, actors, accommodations, locales, the logistics & documentations are competitors. You have exemption & custom clearance in 24 hours. One thing you have to do is to connect with the movie production team in Tunisia and they will do anything for you. If you need equipment, technician, tourist certificate from the army that will take one week to 12 days.”
IANS

Rs 3,719 cr assistance given to Kerala, Nagaland, Andhra

by

 The Centre on Thursday approved additional assistance of Rs 3,719.07 crore to Kerala, Nagaland and Andhra Pradesh that were affected by floods, landslides and cyclone over the past few months.

From the National Disaster Response Fund, Rs 3,048.39 crore will be provided to Kerala, Rs 131.16 crore to Nagaland and Rs 539.52 crore to Andhra Pradesh, said a Home Ministry statement.

The decision was taken in a committee meeting chaired by Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh, Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba and senior officers of the three ministries attended the meeting.

India, China’s coal consumption rise, global emissions may hit record high

by

 Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions will rise in 2018 with a new record from fossil fuels and industry for the second consecutive year, a leading scientific study released in this Polish city on Wednesday said, naming India and China among the top 10 emitters for the rise in coal consumption.

The emissions are projected to increase by more than two per cent to a new record, mainly due to sustained growth in oil and gas use, the study said.

The projection by the Global Carbon Project estimates that CO2 emissions will rise a projected 2.7 per cent, with an uncertainty range between 1.8 per cent and 3.7 per cent.

Carbon emissions grew by 1.6 per cent in 2017 after a three year break.

The findings come from the 2018 Global Carbon Budget published by the Global Carbon Project in the journals Nature, Environmental Research Letters and Earth System Science Data.

The announcement comes as world meets in Katowice for the annual UN climate negotiations (COP24).

The 10 biggest emitters were China, the US, India, Russia, Japan, Germany, Iran, Saudi Arabia, South Korea and Canada, with the EU28 as a whole ranking third.

Indian emissions, accounting for seven per cent of global emissions, look set to continue their strong growth with about 6.3 per cent (4.3 per cent to 8.3 per cent) in 2018, with growth across all fuels (coal plus 7.1 per cent, oil plus 2.9 per cent and gas plus 6.0 per cent).

Chinese emissions, accounting for 27 per cent of global emissions, look set to grow about 4.7 per cent this year, reaching a new all-time high. Renewed emissions growth in China seemed closely linked to construction activity and economic stimulus.

The rapid growth in low carbon technologies are not yet sufficient to cause global emissions to peak, let alone drive emissions aggressively down as required by the Paris agreement (global warming “well below two degrees Celsius”).

“The 2018 rise in fossil CO2 emissions place us on a trajectory for warming that is currently well beyond 1.5 degrees Celsius,” said lead researcher Corinne Le Quere, director of the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at the University of East Anglia.

“It is not enough to support renewables. Fossil energy needs to be phased out and efforts to decarbonise need to be expanded throughout economies.”

This growth in global CO2 emissions puts the goals set out in the Paris Agreement in jeopardy.

Global fossil CO2 emissions (fossil fuels, industry and cement) grew at over three per cent per year in the 2000s, but growth has slowed since 2010, and from 2014 to 2016 emissions remained relatively flat with only a slight increase.

But global energy growth, especially in oil, gas and coal, is effectively outpacing decarbonisation efforts, fuelled by rising coal use and increasing demand for personal transport, freight, aviation and shipping.

“The continued rise in global emissions is of utmost concern. The recent IPCC report on risk of 1.5 degrees warming was a sombre wakeup call even for many of us deep in the science,” said Future Earth’s Executive Director Amy Luers.

Although global coal use is still three per cent lower than its historical high in 2013, it is expected to grow in 2018, driven by growth in energy consumption in China and India.

Oil and gas use have grown almost unabated in the last decade.

Gas use has been pushed up by declines in coal use and increased demand for gas in industry. Oil is used mainly to fuel personal transport, freight, aviation and shipping, and to produce petrochemicals.

“Addressing climate change is this century’s biggest opportunity. It brings a multitude of health and social benefits to people everywhere. We are excited to be part of our local and global community working hard to ensure we bend the curve of rising emissions and reach net zero by 2050,” Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra said in a statement to IANS.

Reacting to the Global Carbon Project estimates, published Christian Aid’s International Climate Lead Mohamed Adow told IANS: “All the warm words spoken at the UN climate summit in Poland won’t help prevent climate change.

“The climate does not respond to lofty rhetoric, it responds to carbon dioxide emission reductions.”

He said with droughts, heatwaves, floods and storms causing mayhem across the world in 2018 the fact “emissions are actually increasing this year shows the greater urgency that governments need to show”.

IANS

Tsunami alert on Pacific islands after 7.5-magnitude quake

by

 A 7.5-magnitude earthquake shook off the coast of the Pacific island of New Caledonia, prompting warnings that tsunami waves of up to three metres can reach New Caledonia and Vanuatu.

The earthquake struck at a depth of 10 km on Wednesday, with its epicentre 168 km east-south-east of Tadine, a town on one of New Caledonia’s Loyalty Islands, the BBC reported.

New Caledonia is part of the Pacific’s “Ring of Fire”, where many earthquakes occur. It is a French overseas territory with a population of about 270,000.

“Based on the preliminary earthquake parameters, hazardous tsunami waves are possible for coasts located within 1,000km of the earthquake epicentre,” warned the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre (PTWC), saying waves could reach between one and three metres high.

The New Caledonian High Commission issued a tsunami warning for all of New Caledonia, ordering the “immediate evacuation” of people to refuge areas and the “application of safety instructions”, with residents being alerted by urgent text message instructing them to go to refugee shelters.

Those unable to reach a shelter were asked to move more than 300 metres away from the coast or seek refuge in elevated areas.

A spokesman for the Vanuatu Geohazards Observatory said the sparsely populated island of Tanna was expected to be the most affected part of the country but no evacuations had been ordered, the Guardian reported.

New Zealand’s Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management, however, tweeted that there was no tsunami threat to the nation’s coasts even though the tsunami alert issued for coasts within 1,000 km.

The United States Geological Survey also recorded a series of aftershocks, two of them at 5.9 magnitude.

More than 20 Pacific islands and countries, including Hawaii and New Zealand, could also register a slight increase in wave height, authorities said.

“The national authorities will determine the appropriate level of alert for each country,” the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said.

Mist, ‘very poor’ air continue in Delhi

by

 It was a misty morning in the national capital on Wednesday that again witnessed ‘very poor’ air quality with minimum temperature recorded at 8.4 degrees Celsius, a notch below the season’s average, the Met said.

The humidity at 8.30 a.m. was 95 per cent, an unfavourable condition for pollutants to disperse. “The sky will remain clear throughout the day,” an Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) official told IANS.

According to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR), the overall air quality here was recorded as ‘very poor’, third ady this week.

The maximum temperature was likely to hover around 27 degrees Celsius.

On Tuesday, the maximum temperature settled at 26 degrees Celsius, a notch above the season’s average while the minimum temperature was recorded at 8.6 degree Celsius, the season’s average.

Expected Heavy rain in parts of coastal Tamil Nadu

by

Heavy rains are likely to lash parts of coastal districts of Tamil Nadu in the next two days following a trough of low over Bay of Bengal, the regional weather office said Tuesday.

In the last 24 hours ended 8.30 AM today, there were widespread rains in many parts in coastal Tamil Nadu and neighbouring Puducherry, Deputy Director General of Meteorology, S Balachandran told reporters here.

The trough of low over Southwest Bay of Bengal and neighbourhood now runs from Comorin area to southwest Bay of Bengal off south Andhra Pradesh coast, he said.

“Due to this, there were widespread rains in the last 24 hours in the coastal ares of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry,” he added.

According to the rainfall data at 8.30 AM today, Ponneri and Cholavaram in Tiruvallur district recorded 13 cm and 8 cm, respectively, followed by Kelambakkam (Kancheepuram) at 7 cm.

The regional weather office further forecast heavy rains in one or two places in the coastal disticts of Tamil Nadu in the next two days, while light showers were likely in most places in the state and Puducherry.

There would be intermittent showers in and around Chennai and the neighbourhood during this period, it said.

PTI

 

KNOW US

GET INVOLVED

PROMOTE

Archives