Sustainability Outlook Headlines

Government toughens emission norms for auto manufacturers

All automobile manufacturers will have to give detailed declarations about the emission levels of vehicles they manufacture from next April.

In a recent notification, the road transport ministry has amended Form 22 under the Central Motor Vehicles Act, which is used to provide the initial certification of compliance with pollution standards, safety standards of components quality and road-worthiness... Read more..

National level entrepreneurship programme on micro solar dome starts off in Kolkata

A national level entrepreneurship development programme started off in Kolkata on Tuesday in connection of developing micro solar domes that has been conceptualised and invented in the country by solar power expert S.P. Gon Chaudhuri.

The micro solar dome that has been named as 'Surya Jyoti' recently got recognition from the government of India. The centre is planning to install 10 million micro solar domes... Read more..

September 2016 hottest on record: NASA

Last month was the warmest September in 136 years of record-keeping, meaning 11 of the past 12 consecutive months dating back to October last year have set new monthly high-temperature records, NASA said.

According to a monthly analysis of global temperatures by scientists at NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in the US, September 2016's temperature was a razor-thin 0.004 degrees Celsius... Read more..

Ashok Leyland unveils India’s first indigenous electric bus

Ashok Leyland, flagship of the Hinduja Group, today unveiled India's first Circuit electric bus at its corporate office in Chennai. Designed and engineered entirely in India, the bus is launched as a zero emission vehicle created specifically for Indian road and load conditions.

"India's first ever fully electric bus, developed for India and made in India, is a big leap in mass public transport and we are... Read more..

Gujarat delegation to meet leading companies, govt officials in China, Hong Kong

A high-level delegation from Gujarat will visit China and Hong Kong to meet leading companies and senior government officials there to as part of the international outreach programme.The delegation will visit China from 17th to 20th October 2016 and Hong Kong from 21st to 22nd October 2016. The focus sectors of the delegation will be to attract investment in electrical equipment, Precision, Engineering, Infrastructure, Textiles, Auto & Auto parts, Manufacturing of building materials, Solid waste/Waste... Read more..

Dutch Living Lab Smart Charging to set example for EV charging

The Dutch Living Lab Smart Charging campaign supported by the Dutch government aims at making all electric cars in the country driving on the power of the sun and the wind.

Already 325 municipalities (including Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Utrecht and The Hague) have joined the Dutch Living Lab Smart Charging representing 80 percent of all public charging stations.

... Read more..

Waste-to-energy plant to come up at Bhalswa by December

North Delhi Municipal Corporation has announced an ambitious project to install a waste-to-energy plant and a methane extractor plant at the Bhalswa landfill site by December. This is a bid to curb frequent fires at the sites and reduce its load.

"The plant will have the capacity of processing over 1,200 metric tonnes of waste per day of which 94% will be converted into compost and fuel. The remaining 6%... Read more..

Ford Aims to Reduce Water Use 72%, to Zero Potable Water Use in Manufacturing

Ford is aiming to reduce its use of the world’s most precious resource – water – by nearly three-fourths as it takes its next step toward using zero potable (drinking) water for vehicle manufacturing.

By 2020, Ford aspires to have reduced its water usage per vehicle by 72 percent and will have saved more than 10 billion gallons of water since the turn of the millennium. In layman’s terms, that roughly means... Read more..

ReNew Power plans to raise $500 million via offshore bonds

Green energy producer ReNew Power Ventures Pvt. Ltd plans to raise around $500 million (Rs3,300 crore) through an offshore bond sale and use the proceeds to repay part of its domestic debt, said three people aware of the development.

ReNew Power, backed by Goldman Sachs and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), has hired HSBC Holdings Plc as the lead manager and is in talks with more investment banks,... Read more..

Burning of municipal waste discolouring Taj Mahal: study

Burning of municipal solid waste in the vicinity of the iconic Taj Mahal is significantly contributing to the discolouring of the world heritage monument, an Indo-American research team has found. The research compared the impact of dung cake burning versus the burning of municipal solid waste (MSW) on browning of Taj Mahal and on the health of people living nearby. Using new field methods, researchers, including Ajay Nagpure from the University of Minnesota and Raj Lal of Georgia Institute of Technology in... Read more..

Narendra Modi, Vladimir Putin set to sign energy deals ahead of BRICS

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Narendra Modi are set to seal energy and defence deals Saturday that officials say are signs of a deepening partnership between the nations. 

Putin will hold talks with Modi after arriving in the Indian tourism state of Goa for a BRICS summit also involving the heads of leading emerging nations Brazil, China and South Africa. 

... Read more..

India to collaborate with Germany to improve rail connectivity of ports

In a move that could give a boost to the country’s logistics sector and exports, Germany and India have agreed to collaborate on projects for improving rail connectivity of Indian ports. The two countries will reportedly work together on projects worth Rs 1 lakh crore being implemented by the Indian Port Rail Corporation Ltd (IPRCL).

The Minister of Road Transport & Highways and Shipping, Nitin Gadkari,... Read more..