-The Hindu How significant is the development of the Dhara Mustard Hybrid-11 (DMH-11)? Why are some activist groups opposing the commercial release of the crop? What are their allegations? How many transgenic crops are commercially cultivated in India? The story so far: The Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC), India’s apex regulator of genetically modified plants and food products, has approved the environmental release of Dhara Mustard Hybrid-11 (DMH-11), a genetically-engineered variant of...

-PTI/ The Hindu Despite the legal deterrent in place, people in many parts of the city started bursting crackers by dusk A large number of high-decibel firecrackers thundered throughout Deepavali night on Monday as people in Delhi flouted the ban imposed on these by the city government. Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai last week said bursting firecrackers in the national capital on Deepavali will attract a jail term of up to six months...

-NDTV blog A huge part of India - northwest and central - has just experienced its hottest April on record. This is not just another heatwave. This is what scientists have been warning for decades, that global warming will lead to more frequent and more intense extreme weather events. And frequent spells of heatwaves. This time though something seems to have changed. A climate emergency has led to immediate repercussions outside the...

-PTI/ NDTV.com India Heat Wave: India Meteorological Department Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said northwest and west central parts of the country - Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab and Haryana - will continue to experience above normal temperatures in May as well. New Delhi: Northwest and central India experienced their hottest April in 122 years, with average maximum temperatures reaching 35.9 and 37.78 degrees Celsius respectively, the weather office said on Saturday. Addressing a press conference,...

-Hindustan Times The European Space Agency’s website also showed land surface temperatures to be nearing 55 degrees Celsius over many parts of northwest India and crossing 60 degrees Celsius over several pockets. New Delhi: Surface land temperatures exceeded 60 degrees Celsius over some parts of northwest India, according to imagery captured by satellites on Saturday. Images of land surface captured by INSAT 3D, Copernicus Sentinel 3 and a NASA satellite indicated that...