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Sustainability Outlook Headlines
In Maharashtra village farmers switch to solar pumps, experts fear groundwater exploitationIn Maharashtra's Jalgaon village, many farmers spend sleepless nights to irrigate their fields, as power for irrigation isn't available during the daytime for 15 days a month, but Dattaji Balaji Kikole, 62, doesn't need to strain himself. Reason: Kikole has got a three-horsepower (hp) solar pump installed under the Atal Solar Krishi Pump Yojana launched by the state government in 2017. Now, uninterrupted and free power is available during daytime at the push of a button, he says. In the last two years, 45... Read more.. |
India should focus on full value chain of solar manufacturing: TERITo achieve India's solar energy target of 100 GW by 2022, India should take up full value chain of solar manufacturing from polysilicon to modules in a phased manner, says a report. In the first phase, about 15 GW capacity could be targeted over a period of two to three years for manufacturing of cells and modules with full value addition and with an overlapping backward integration plan, the report by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) said. TERI Director General Ajay Mathur said the challenge is to... Read more.. |
Indian activists oppose oil refinery project citing environmental concerns, as protests flare upIn March 2019, following large protests from farmers and environmental activists, the Indian government moved a planned $44 billion ‘green’ oil refinery project out of the ecologically sensitive Nanar region in Ratnagiri on the Konkan coast. Recently, calls from pro-refinery supporters to bring the project back to Ratnagiri have stoked fears among activists and farmers that the project will be reinstated in the area, causing damage to the environment and affecting livelihoods. The joint venture between Saudi... Read more.. |
India must step up efforts to tackle climate changeThe climate crisis is damaging the ability of the land to sustain humanity, according to a landmark United Nations (UN) report that was released on August 8 in Geneva. Explaining the process, the report — Climate Change and Land: an IPCC special report on climate change, desertification, land degradation, sustainable land management, food security, and greenhouse gas houses in territorial ecosystems — said that land is heating up faster than the oceans. The average surface temperature is now 1.5C higher than... Read more.. |
Car emission to be worst polluter in Mumbai by 2030Increasing use of private vehicles over public transport is one of the key reasons that will see transport emission replace industrial fumes as the worst source of air pollution in the city by 2030, warned pollution monitors on Friday. Transport sector emission of particulate matter (PM) 2.5, a key air pollutant, will rise from 9,450 tons in 2018 to 15,600 tons in the city 2030 (see box), said UrbanEmissions.info, a Delhi-based watchdog at a meeting on air pollution. Traffic congestion is a major contributor... Read more.. |
Centre sanctions 50 electric buses for Tripura under FAMEAs a part of the Green India Mission under climate change mitigation compliance, the Union ministry of heavy industries has sanctioned 50 electric buses for Tripura under the phase II of the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles in India Scheme (FAME). After Assam, Tripura is the second state in the northeast to have been included in the scheme. All the 50 electric buses will run in Agartala while 100 such buses will run in Assam, out of which 50 will be in Guwahati and 25 each in Silchar and... Read more.. |
Godrej urges industry to focus on water recycling“Climate change is not just a crisis of our time but also of our future,” Chairman Godrej and Boyce Manufacturing Company Chairman, Jamshyd N Godrej said Saturday. Delivering the 8th C K Prahalad Memorial Lecture on “Climate Crisis & Bio- Diversity Preservation Challenge: Role of Industry and Civil Society,” Godrej cited recent biodiversity report highlighting that more than 80 per cent of the known species of flora and fauna have become extinct, which has gone unnoticed by a common man. Though India is... Read more.. |
Will establish eco-friendly public transport infrastructure: BMC chiefPardeshi says number of private vehicles on road will be reduced Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) chief Praveen Pardeshi on Friday said the government is working on strengthening the city’s public transport infrastructure to ensure a cleaner environment. Mr. Pardeshi made the statement at a consultative workshop organised by the Conservation Action Trust (CAT) and Waatavaran, two NGOs working on environmental issues in the country. Titled ‘Clearing the Air on Air Pollution: The Reality in Mumbai’, the... Read more.. |
E-Mobility Mission to be Implemented in Phases Based on Auto Industry Feedback: MeghwalThe National Electric Mobility Mission will be implemented in phases based on the feedback from the auto industry, Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal said on Friday. The Minister of State for Heavy Industries promised all support to the auto industry on policy matters to ensure the smooth and efficient transformation of the automotive industry from internal combustion (IC) to electric powertrain. He informed that three lakh electric vehicles have already been sold under the FAME India Scheme. The minister said... Read more.. |
Over 10k green houses built in 8 yrsAs many as 10,933 green houses have been constructed in Madurai district from the year 2011 to 2019 for the people living below the poverty line under the chief minister’s solar powered green house scheme. The scheme to build these houses, which are powered by solar energy for the benefit of the people below poverty line, was introduced by late chief minister J Jayalalithaa in 2011-2012. These houses were built over an area of 300 square feet at a cost of Rs 1.80 lakh and are fully funded by the government.... Read more.. |
IFC pledges Rs 1,300 mn in Srinivasa FarmsAs part of strategic investment to support India’s agribusiness sector, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, has committed to invest Rs 1,300 million (or USD 18.75 million equivalent) in Srinivasa Farms. Srinivasa Farms is partnering with IFC in its pursuit to expand pan India with capacity enhancement and product diversification. The first tranche of Rs 650 million (or USD 9.37 million equivalent) has already been invested. The company is involved in the integrated... Read more.. |
Green bonds issuance to cross a record $200 billion this year: Moody’sThe global green bond market hit a new all-time quarterly high in the second quarter of 2019 as issuers brought $66.6 billion of green bonds to market globally, propelling the first half of 2019 issuance to a record $117 billion, credit rating agency Moody’s Investors Service said. “Following its strong performance so far this year, the green bond market remains on course to eclipse our 2019 forecast of $200 billion of total issuance,” the agency, an arm of the financial services firm Moody’s Corporation,... Read more.. |
Govt sanctions over 5,500 electric buses under FAME Phase IIThe Department of Heavy Industry has approved the sanction of 5,595 electric buses to 64 cities, state government entities, and state transport undertakings for intra-city and inter-city operation under FAME India scheme Phase II to push for clean mobility in public transportation. The FAME scheme aims at encouraging faster adoption of electric and hybrid vehicles. In February 2019, the government had approved Rs. 10,000 crores for FAME Phase II to support a million electric two-wheelers, half a million three... Read more.. |
Mahindra Confirms Three Electric Vehicles Launch in India by 2021With the Government of India announcing massive GST concessions on the manufacture and use of electric vehicles, the demand for the same is increasing manifold. Mahindra, a market leader as far as electric cars are concerned, is focusing on launching three new electric vehicles, namely Mahindra e-KUV100, Mahindra e-XUV300 and Mahindra e-Ford Aspire to support the Mahindra e-Verito that is already available today. Mahindra had to discontinue another electric vehicle, the E20 because of its inability to satisfy... Read more.. |
Tamil Nadu set to receive 595 electric busesThe Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises has a total of 595 electric buses for Tamil Nadu under the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles (FAME) India scheme. Though the allotment of electric buses for Chennai city was yet to be announced, the officials of the State Transport Department point out around 300 e-buses would be plying in the city very soon. A senior official said the State has been allotted the fourth highest under the FAME project with Maharashtra getting the... Read more.. |
IIT Madras, NIOT Researchers Developing Turbines To Convert Wave Energy To ElectricityIndian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras and National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) researchers are working towards developing better turbines that can harness the power of ocean waves to generate electricity. Their most recent studies on turbine-chamber coupling have been published in the reputed peer-reviewed International Journal of Energy Research, a statement from IIT Madras said. The research is being headed at IIT Madras by Dr. Abdus Samad, Associate Professor, Department of Ocean Engineering... Read more.. |
RRB Energy in plans for a new strategic business model to strengthen its presence in India RRB Energy Limited (RRBEL), a premier leader in wind power sector, is taking strategic steps in order to ramp up business in India, and become a debt-free organization in the near future. The company plans to introduce a new business model, sign up newer partnerships and products that will suit the current regulatory and business requirements. The company will continue to focus on reducing its liabilities and invest in introducing newer products and services in the wind power generation sector in India. RRB... Read more.. |
Govt plans import tariffs on green equipment to boost local industryThe Union government may raise tariffs on imports of green energy equipment in a bid to boost their local manufacturing and protect domestic companies from cheaper imports, said Anand Kumar, secretary in the ministry of new and renewable energy (MNRE). The fast-growing domestic market for solar components is dominated by Chinese companies due to their competitive pricing. The surge in imports led the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government in its previous term to impose a safeguard duty from 30 July... Read more.. |
ADB Study: More food for less water in southern AsiaRice is one of the staple foods in southern Asia. It needs large amounts of water to be grown and population increase and climate change are major challenges for irrigation farming in the region. Modernisation is required to achieve improvements in irrigation system management and to control water flows more precisely. A study by Tractebel commissioned by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) provides the basis for concrete measures. The recommendations of the study are helping the ADB to optimise its procedures... Read more.. |
Tamil Nadu electric vehicle policy draft may have sops for early adoptersTamil Nadu plans to offer a raft of incentives and special sops for 3-5 years to attract electric vehicle manufacturers and allied industries to complement the central government push to 100% EV mobility in the future. The state will give investors in the electric vehicle industry the option to choose from GST refunds, capital subsidies, and payroll-based incentives in a first such offer for any sector, provided its draft electric vehicle policy gets implemented, a top government official dealing with the... Read more.. |
Odisha CM launches 22 projects including Rs 150.90 cr Hindalco Solar plantOdisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday launched 22 new projects, involving a total investment of Rs 4,461.42 crore. The projects are expected to create employment opportunities for 9451 people. "I congratulate all the companies concerned on this achievement and assure everyone for complete facilitation support from the state government," Patnaik said. He said these projects will usher in the next era of industrial growth in the state and will contribute towards the vision of an industrially... Read more.. |
1.8 billion of world’s population live in water-stressed regionsAmidst one of the hottest months in recorded history, Chennai faced acute water shortage- the reservoir providing drinking water to 4.6 million people dried up. This reservoir was India’s largest and when the news of it drying up spread, it shocked everyone. Authorities were forced to get water in by train by other parts of the country to sustain its people. Chennai’s plight is not an isolated incident. The water levels in various parts of the world have been dangerously low. Europe has been experiencing a... Read more.. |
Indian hydropower project an example of good practice in sustainabilityThe Teesta-V hydropower station, in Sikkim in northern India, has been rated as an example of international good practice in hydropower sustainability, according to an independent report. The 510 MW power station, owned and operated by NHPC Limited, was reviewed by a team of accredited assessors using the Hydropower Sustainability Assessment Protocol. Their report, which looked at the project’s operation, has now been published and is available to view online. The assessment, the first of its kind in India,... Read more.. |
Super-efficient ACs to be available in six more cities: EESLEnergy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) today announced the expansion of its Super-Efficient Air Conditioner Programme to six more cities. In addition to Delhi-NCR, the first-of-its-kind AC will now be available in Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Chennai and Jaipur, too. These ACs are available at a price of Rs 41,300 including GST and delivery charges with one-year free warranty. Since their launch a month back, the super-efficient ACs have witnessed 7,500 registrations. The company, a joint venture... Read more.. |
India looking at cutting west coast refinery capacity as cost escalates to $60 bnIndia is looking at cutting capacity at its biggest oil refinery to match lower fuel demand projections and contain costs which jumped to USD 60 billion due to meeting stringent environment norms and relocation of the plant, top officials said. State-owned Indian Oil Corp (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) together with Saudi Aramco and Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC) plan to set up a 60 million tonnes refinery-cum-petrochemical complex on Maharashtra coast. The... Read more.. |
