According to the Roadmap for Ethanol Blending in India 2020-25, prepared by an inter-ministerial committee, using 20 per cent ethanol-blended petrol (E20) results in a marginal reduction in fuel efficiency for four-wheelers designed for E10 and calibrated for E20, Suresh Gopi, Union Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas, told the Rajya Sabha.
The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers informed the committee that modifications in engine hardware and tuning can help reduce the efficiency loss caused by blended fuel. The committee report also highlighted that no major issues were observed in vehicle performance, engine component wear or engine oil deterioration with E20 fuel.
As reported by States and Union Territories on the Swachhatam portal, a total of 2,424 dumpsites (each containing more than 1,000 tonnes of waste) and 23.57 crore tonnes of waste have been identified for remediation in urban areas, Tokhan Sahu, Union Minister of State in the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, told the Rajya Sabha.
As of March 12, 2025, 701 dumpsites have been fully remediated, while remediation work is ongoing at 1,179 sites. A public dashboard provides live data for transparency and project monitoring. Under Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0, remediation proposals worth Rs 9,197.35 crore, with an admissible central share of Rs 3,697.9 crore, have been approved.
According to the Tamil Nadu government’s report on the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) portal, the state has undertaken 18 sewerage and septage management projects worth Rs 5,670.8 crore under the mission, Sahu told the Rajya Sabha.
A total of 2.52 million sewer connections (new and serviced), including households covered through faecal sludge and septage management, have been provided under AMRUT and related initiatives.
Additionally, 289.97 million litres per day of sewage treatment plant capacity has been developed. No funds have been released for industrial units for commissioning zero liquid discharge and common effluent treatment plants under AMRUT in Tamil Nadu, the minister stated.
The Uttarakhand government, in coordination with the central government, has taken measures to address environmental concerns along the pilgrimage routes to Kedarnath, Hemkund Sahib, Yamunotri and Gomukh, Kirti Vardhan Singh, Union Minister of State in the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, told the Lok Sabha.
Standard operating procedures have been developed for the registration of tourists, equines and vehicles, as well as for law and order, sanitation, health and general administration. Measures taken by the state government include limiting the number of vehicles, restricting the number of tourists — especially during peak season — controlling the number of mules and equines based on carrying capacity studies and planning infrastructure for waste management.
Additionally, designated areas have been identified where environmentally incompatible activities are either prohibited or regulated. The government is also discouraging the use of plastic-packaged food products and encouraging waste disposal at designated sites. A monitoring mechanism has been put in place, the minister stated.
India is phasing out the production of hydrochlorofluorocarbon-22 (HCFC-22) for controlled applications, such as in the air-conditioning and refrigeration industry, in accordance with the accelerated phase-out schedule under the Montreal Protocol, Singh told the Lok Sabha.
The timeline for phasing out HCFC-22 is as follows:
10 per cent reduction by January 1, 2015
35 per cent reduction by January 1, 2020
67.5 per cent reduction by January 1, 2025
Complete phase-out by 2030
From 2030 to 2040, 2.5 per cent of baseline production (average of 2009-2010) will be permitted for servicing existing refrigeration and air-conditioning equipment.
India has already met the phase-out targets for 2015, 2020 and 2025, as per the Montreal Protocol’s accelerated phase-out schedule.
According to trade association National Association of Software and Service Companies report Advancing India’s AI Skills, published in August 2024, India’s artificial intelligence (AI) talent pool is expected to grow from 600,000-650,000 professionals to over 1.25 million professionals by 2027, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15 per cent, Shobha Karandlaje, Union Minister of State for Labour and Employment, told the Lok Sabha.
The expansion of AI is expected to create jobs in various fields, including data science and data curation. So far, 865,000 candidates have enrolled in AI-related courses, including 320,000 in AI and big data analytics technologies.
There are currently 58 tiger reserves in India. The latest All India Tiger Estimation conducted in 2022 recorded an estimated tiger population of 3,682 (ranging between 3,167 and 3,925), compared to the 2018 estimate of 2,967 (range: 2,603-3,346) and the 2014 estimate of 2,226 (range: 1,945-2,491), Singh told the Lok Sabha.