India's emission capitals

The national capital region of Delhi has the highest annual carbon footprint in the country. In fact, Delhi’s annual CO2 emission of 69.4 million tonnes is equal to the CO2 emission of Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chennai put together. When it comes to per capita CO emission, Chandigarh and Vadodara are far ahead of the rest with 3.9 tonnes and 3.5 tonnes respectively.

Dark spots in Ujjwala

Connections-based approach does not necessary bolster usage A scheme that was introduced to ensure better penetration of clean energy in the hinterlands of the country, reduce indoor pollution levels and in turn, the deaths it caused, has become successful in terms of numbers but not in intent. Transition from biomass to LPG cylinders has not happened in real sense. Expense, perception of LPG …

What's polluting the air of India's major cities

Out of the 15 most polluted cities in the world in terms of PM 2.5 concentration, 14 are in India. The country is certainly one of the riskiest places in the world to breathe. While Delhi, India’s capital city, may be notorious for smog episodes and choking air that is now changing the colour of Taj Mahal, at least dozens of other Indian cities are dealing with severe pollution too. …

Changing face OF AFRICA

All five regions in Africa have been experiencing an increase in temperature. This trend is likely to worsen in the coming decades. There has also been a decline in precipitation indicating less rainfall, which could make the continent even more food insecure

100% ELECTRIFIED, But still in the dark

On April 28, when Leisang, a tiny hamlet in Manipur, was connected to the grid, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted that it would be "remembered as a historic day in the development journey of India" as India has achieved 100 per cent electrification. What he forgot to mention is the fact that there are more than 32 million households in the country that are yet to be electrified. They are …

EBOLA: TRACING THE OUTBREAK

This relatively new virus killed more than 11,000 people across West Africa from 2014-16. After an unprecedented epidemic, the diseases continued to rear its ugly head time and again. But do we know that this rapid spread of Ebola is triggered by environmental destruction? Destroying rainforest and similar habitats of animals (bats), which are natural carriers of Ebola virus, has made …

Disparity in life span

People around the world are now living longer, even in some of the poorest countries, but are they still living long enough? There is a huge disparity in how long people from the most affluent and impoverished countries are living. Life expectancy gap is increasing. The low-income countries, which are already bearing a huge burden of poverty, are dragging down the global average life …

Exporting Pollution

While the world is rapid moving towards cleaner fuel, obsolete and outdated vehicle technologies continue to be shipped to developing countries through second-hand vehicle market. Thanks to regulatory loopholes, old vehicles make their way into developing and transitional markets, mainly in Africa, undermining the gains made in other areas of intervention, including air quality and fuel quality.

Mining mired in illegalities

Mining in India is a scam bigger than 2G and Commonwealth Games but has failed to catch people's attention because of difficulty in linking it with big political names, its eventual beneficiaries. It is difficult to estimate the loss to public exchequer because of illegal mining across states. To some, it is not less than Rs 1,76,000 crore estimated loss to government because of the 2G …

Born wild but caged for life

Wild animals are not born to be bred in captivity and spend their entire lives in an unnatural and stressful environment. From being hauled from one place to another in crammed trucks to being coerced to perform, these animals are tricked into leading miserable lives. Lately, there has been a growing consensus on ending cruelty against these animals by putting a ban on their presence in circuses.

The Trump Card

From calling climate change a ‘hoax’ to trashing scientists’ arguments on impact of global warming, Donald Trump has blatantly given economy the precedence over environment. He has shown sheer disregard to environment protection roadmap created by his predecessor under the pretext of making America Great Again. This infographics chronicles the President’s journey that …

India's Health Burden

We are disappointed by the lack of ambition of the Modi government. It intends to invest only 2.5 per cent of its GDP into health care by 2025, when the global average for countries is about 6 per cent. What is even worse is that high debt forces almost one in every four households in the country to take loans or sell their assets to pay medical bills

Large businesses; larger emission footprints

Out of 250 largest emitters, India's state-owned company, Coal India, topped the list with largest GHG emission - 2076.2 million tonnes. Besides Coal India, three other Indian companies are among 100 global businesses with the highest carbon footprint.

Waiting for the bus

India's bus sector is certainly underperforming. The country does not have enough buses to run on their routes and cater to their citizens, leaving them at the mercy of private vehicles. Even as governments push for improving public transport ridership, the country’s transport infrastructure sees a continuous decline. Bus fleets are declining year after year. In just one year, the …

Are you aware of Climate Change...?

With every passing day, climate change is making its presence felt; sometimes by affecting new regions, and sometimes by demonstrating its raging power. Yet, it remains an elephant in the room with climate change deniers staying away from meaningful discussions on the most pressing issue of the 21st century. To act responsibly and to tackle this environmental issue, we need to understand the …

Polluting plastics die hard

By 2050, our oceans will be holding more litter than fish and an estimated 99 per cent of all seabirds will have ingested plastic. Are countries serious about tackling the plastic menace? How far have they succeeded?

Over 100 years of India's urban revolution

Between 2014 and 2050, India is projected to add 404 million urban dwellers and the number of rural residents is expected to decline by 52 million. As NITI Aayog recently released a three-year action plan for facilitating urbanisation in the country and dealing with key challenges like affordable housing, infrastructure development, public transport and promotion of Swachh Bharat, we take a …

No place to grow old

Today's over-60 population is the fastest growing group. Currently, there are around 962 million people aged 60 or over, representing 12.3 per cent of the global population. By 2050, this will increase to 2.1 billion or 21.5 per cent of the global population. But are we taking care of them?

The ECO-warriors

15 start-ups in Africa contributing to a greener economy They are young and restless to make real improvements in poverty eradication and environmental sustainability. These locally led green start-ups across Africa are not just promising but also innovative in their approach. From providing clean energy to ensuring safe sanitation and reducing carbon emission to improving public health, …

Infants without safeguards

If all the countries are to reach at least 90 per cent coverage for routine life-saving vaccinations, 9.9 million additional children would need to be vaccinated in 64 countries. Three in four of these children live in fragile countries, including those which are affected by conflict; 4 out of 10 live in the three countries that are yet to prevent polio transmission—Nigeria, Afghanistan …

Hunger can't wait any longer

It is a constant and chronic pain gnawing at people in Africa In the sub-Saharan region, 33 out of 38 countries have 'serious' or 'alarming' Global Hunger Index scores. Violent conflict, poor governance and climate-related impacts on agriculture ensure that hunger continues to affect the continent.