Sustainability Outlook Headlines

House panel in Dharamshala reviews smart city projects

The ongoing developmental projects in the town were reviewed by a sub-ordinate committee of Himachal Pradesh Vidhan Sabha on Saturday.

The committee was headed by Jogindernagar legislator Gulab Singh Thakur. It held a meeting with the district administration and reviewed the various schemes being implemented under housing laws. Committee members Bikram Singh, Kishori Lal and Vijay Agnihotri were also present... Read more..

India's solar power generation capacity at 8.7 GW: Piyush Goyal

Addition of 1,964.76 MW in the first seven months of the current fiscal has taken the total solar power generation capacity in the country to 8,727.62 MW, Lok Sabha today. 

In another reply, the minister stated that 1,964.76 MW of solar power generation capacity has been added in the country till October end of this financial year. 

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UN climate conference to conclude with a resolve to raise ambition of emission cut

Amid reports that six G20 nations - Argentina, Australia, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the United States - have failed to take action in line with their Paris Agreement pledges, the countries on penultimate day of the UN climate change conference (COP22) on Thursday appeared to have more or less agreed on content of the upcoming draft which will call the nations to urgently raise their ambition of emission cuts and strengthen cooperation in terms of finance and technology to meet the long-term... Read more..

Delhi government may ask Supreme Court to waive the environment compensation charge (ECC) for some time

The Delhi government may move the Supreme Court seeking waiver of the environment compensation charge (ECC) on commercial vehicles entering the Capital in view of the cash crunch being faced by drivers.

At a meeting at his residence on Thursday, according to an informed source, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal assured representatives from 200 prominent transport businesses operating in Delhi that the... Read more..

Builders liable to face consequences for air pollution in New Delhi: NGT

The principle that "polluter pays" was on Thursday applied by the National Green Tribunal which said that it is builders and not the construction workers who will have to face "consequences" for polluting ambient air quality in the national capital.

The green panel clarified that whenever work is halted due to air pollution caused by construction activity in the city, it the builder who has to face all its... Read more..

Green panel glare on Puri, Bhubaneshwar hotels

At least 166 hotels in the beach town of Puri face the threat of closure for running without valid pollution control certificates.

In June, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) had made it mandatory for hotels to obtain consent from the Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB) to run its operations, failure of which could invite closure of the hotels.

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India overtook China in number of deaths due to pollution: Report

India had more people dying every day as a result of outdoor air pollution in 2015 than China – a first since 1990.

According to a Greenpeace India report released here on Wednesday, India overtook China in the number of deaths caused by air pollution last year. Analysing the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) data compiled by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington in... Read more..

India Power completes acquisition of Meenakshi Energy, plans to invest Rs. 3500 cr for setting up plant in Bengal

Integrated power utility company India Power Corporation (IPCL), which on Wednesday announced completion of the acquisition of Meenakshi Energy from French power giant Engie, is planning to invest around Rs. 3500 crore for setting up a 450 MW power plant in West Bengal’s Haldia.

Engie sold Meenakshi Energy to IPCL, a publicly listed Kanoria Foundation entity, as a part of its plan to exit thermal power... Read more..

Wheels India ties up Spain's Fluitecnik to make components for wind turbines

Wheels India Ltd, a part of TVS Group and one of the leading suppliers of wheels to commercial vehicles, has tied up with Spanish firm Fluitecnik SA for manufacturing hydraulic components used in wind turbines. “The company has entered into a technology transfer agreement with Fluitecnik SA, Spain for the manufacture of hydraulic components for supply to wind mill manufacturers in India,” said Wheels India in a BSE filing yesterday.

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Purti Group co develops bio-CNG for vehicles

Manas Agro Industries and Infrastructure Limited (MAIIL) of the city, an extension of Purti Group of Industries, has developed a process of producing bio-CNG (compressed natural gas) that can be used as fuel for vehicles. MAIIL is planning to set up fuel stations or bio-CNG dispensing units in the city in about 8-9 months. The fuel will be produced from molasses and will be carried in cascades to the fuel stations unlike other CNG which is transported through pipeline.

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India, other countries signed International Solar Alliance framework agreement

 In what is yet another indication that the countries were moving ahead on a low carbon path, the India, France, Brazil signed the framework agreement putting the International Solar Alliance on track to becoming an intergovernmental body registered under the UN charter. 

Countries have three months to formally join the agreement. The agreement will enter into force after fifteen countries ratify or officially... Read more..

PowerGrid to set up energy highways to meet demand growth

Power Grid Corporation of India Limited (PGCIL) is planning to build energy highways across the country to meet a projected growth in demand and ease the load on the national grid.

The highways include 11 high-capacity corridors, each with a capacity of about 4,000 Mw, and three high-capacity HVDC (high-voltage, direct current) systems (6,000 Mw each). The central transmission utility will also develop eight... Read more..