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Both Kharif and Rabi rainfall are expected to increase in the coming years due to climate change, leading to higher rates of soil erosion, stated by Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Union minister for rural development, told the Lok Sabha.
Kharif rainfall is expected to rise by 4.9-10.1 per cent and 5.5-18.9 per cent by 2050 and 2080, respectively, the minister said, citing data shared by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR). Rabi rainfall is anticipated to increase by 12-17 per cent and 13-26 per cent by 2050 and 2080, respectively.
This rise in rainfall could lead to soil erosion of 10 tonnes per hectare per year from croplands by 2050.
The area affected by salinity is also expected to grow from 6.7 million hectares to 11 million hectares by 2030.
ICAR carried out simulation modelling studies to evaluate the effects of climate change on soil degradation, rainfall pattern projections and crop yields.
The Union Ministry for New and Renewable Energy is spearheading the National Green Hydrogen Mission, with the aim of establishing India as a leading centre for the production, utilisation and export of green hydrogen and its derivatives, said Shripad Yesso Naik, Union minister of state for new & renewable energy and power, addressing the Rajya Sabha.
By 2030, India’s green hydrogen production capacity is expected to reach 5 million tonnes annually, he shared. A production capacity of 412,000 tonnes per year of green hydrogen has been allocated, along with an electrolyser manufacturing capacity of 3,000 megawatts per year, the minister stated.
The price of solar energy production equipment, especially solar PV modules, has decreased significantly in the country over the past few years, now costing Rs 15-25 / watt-peak, said Naik to the Rajya Sabha. This price drop makes solar energy more economical compared to other fossil fuel-based energy sources.
The nation’s solar energy capacity is also expanding rapidly, the minister noted. In 2023-24, around 15 gigawatts of solar energy capacity was installed, and by January 31, 2025, some 18.5 GW has already been installed, he shared.
India successfully met the goal of eliminating Kala-azar in 2023 by lowering the disease incidence to fewer than one case per 10,000 people across all 633 Kala-azar endemic blocks in 54 districts spanning four states: Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh, said Anupriya Patel, Union minister of state for health and family welfare, in the Rajya Sabha. The country has also been maintaining this status, she added.
To qualify for WHO certification in 2027, this status must be upheld for three years, Patel shared.
A study conducted by the Food Packaging Forum Foundation in Zurich, Switzerland, found that 189 (21 per cent) out of 909 potential mammary carcinogens were present in food contact materials, said Prataprao Jadhav, Union minister of state for health and family welfare, to the Rajya Sabha.
Among these, 30 showed direct carcinogenic evidence in rodent models, and 67 were suspected due to genotoxicity.
However, the minister added, while these findings suggest potential risks, further research is necessary to understand the exact mechanisms and implications for human health.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India is responsible for establishing science-based standards for food articles and regulating their manufacture, storage, distribution, sale and import to ensure the availability of safe and wholesome food for human consumption, Jadhav noted.
The number of cancer cases in Karnataka is on the rise, Jadhav mentioned in the Rajya Sabha, citing data available with the Indian Council of Medical Research-National Cancer Registry Programme.
The southern state recorded around 87,000 new cancer cases in recent years, according to the yearly / monthly review of hospital statistics: 2020-2023 published by the Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology in 2024.
Since 2018-19, under the revamped National Bamboo Mission, 10 bamboo nurseries have been set up in Assam to produce high-quality planting materials, boosting sapling production capacity to 250,000 per year, said Ramnath Thakur, Union minister of state for agriculture and farmers welfare, in the Lok Sabha.
Consequently, 1,856 hectares have been dedicated to bamboo cultivation in the state, the minister stated. Additionally, the total bamboo-bearing area in Assam’s recorded forests has grown from 10,659 square kilometres in 2021 to 11,246 sq km in 2023.