The Centre has sanctioned treatment works for landslide and subsidence mitigation amounting to Rs 357 crore for 17 locations on NH-107 from Rudraprayag to Gaurikund near Kedarnath in Uttarakhand, Nitin Jairam Gadkari, Union minister of road transport and highways told the Rajya Sabha on August 6, 2025.
Works have been completed at eight locations costing about Rs 172.56 crore. Bidding process has been initiated for works at three locations costing about Rs 39.25 crore, he added.
The Centre has conducted field surveys along India’s coastline between 2022 and 2025 through the National Centre for Coastal Research to assess microplastic and marine debris levels, Jitendra Singh, minister of state for the Union Ministry of Science and Technology and Earth Sciences told the Lok Sabha.
Assessment of microplastics in both water and sediment has been carried out along the east and west coasts of India. On the west coast, 19 transects were surveyed from Porbandar (Gujarat) to Kanyakumari (Tamil Nadu). On the east coast, around 25 transects were sampled from Puri (Odisha) to Thoothukudi (Tamil Nadu).
The findings indicate that the predominant sources of microplastic pollution are riverine inputs and Abandoned, Lost, and Discarded Fishing Gear or ALDFG.
A national level assessment of beach litter regarding marine debris is being conducted every year during the International Coastal Clean-up Day on the third Saturday of September under the ‘Swachh Sagar Surakshit Sagar’ programme. It covers coastal states and Union territories.
The assessments reveal that the major sources of beach litter are tourism-related and recreational activities. The data indicates a declining trend in beach litter over the years, with plastic litter contributing 67 per cent in 2018 and reducing to 43 per cent in 2024, Singh added.
India’s installed nuclear power capacity currently comprises of 24 reactors with a total capacity of 8780 MW, excluding RAPS-1 (100 MW), which is under long term shut down, said Singh.
Among these 24 reactors, four — Tarapur Atomic Power Station Units-1&2 (2 x 160 MW), Madras Atomic Power Station Unit-1 (1x220 MW) and Kaiga Atomic Power Station Unit-1 (1x220 MW) — are presently in project mode for carrying out refurbishment and upgradation activities.
The remaining 20 reactors are operational, added Singh.
The Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) supports bioenergy projects such as waste to-energy, biomass, and biogas projects by providing the central financial assistance under the National Bioenergy Programme.
The ministry till June 30, 2025, has sanctioned a total of 78 waste-to-energy, 118 biomass, and 39,530 biogas projects under the programme.
Eight waste-to-energy and 19 biogas projects are under commissioning while all the rest have been commissioned, Shripad Yesso Naik, minister of state for new & renewable energy and power told the Lok Sabha.
A total allocation of Rs 858 crore has been earmarked under Phase-I of the National Bioenergy Programme, across its three key components—Waste to Energy, Biomass, and Biogas Programmes, Naik added.
As on June 30, 2025, a total 840,947 solar pumps have been installed under PM-KUSUM, Naik told the Lok Sabha.
As on June 30, 2025, it is estimated that the installation of solar pumps has saved 580 million litres of diesel per annum and solar plants under PM KUSUM have mitigated 6 million tonnes of CO2 emissions, Naik said.
MNRE is implementing PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana (PM-SGMBY) across India since February 2024. The scheme targets to achieve rooftop solar installations in 10 million households in the residential sector by 2026-27.
Some 58,01,654 applications have been submitted on the National Portal and 16,50,969 households have benefitted with rooftop solar installations under the scheme as on July 31, 2025, Pralhad Joshi, Union minister of new & renewable energy and consumer affairs and food and public distribution told the Lok Sabha.
According to the 20th Livestock Census, the population of camels, donkeys, horses and ponies in India are 251,799, 122,899 and 342,226, respectively. But the Union Territory of Ladakh has informed that there has been an alarming decline in the population of Ladakhi donkeys and Zanskari ponies, primarily due to the reduced utility of these animals as a means of transportation with modern transportation facilities, S P Singh Baghel, minister of state for the Union Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying told the Rajya Sabha.