-Hindustan Times The fight against air pollution extended to nearby towns in NCR on Saturday as the Supreme Court-mandated Environment Protection Control Authority (EPCA) directed seven districts across Haryana and Uttar Pradesh to stop the registration of diesel autos, taxis and buses with immediate effect. In a move to phase out diesel-run public transport facilities from NCR, the statutory body directed all authorities concerned in the seven districts to stop issuing fitness...

-The Hindu Chennai: Completely unprepared for disasters: the hospitals in Chennai — private as well as government — were particularly vulnerable, improvising solutions as the situation developed. As water levels rose, Chennai saw every single system associated with modern life abysmally fail —houses collapsed, roads caved in, communication networks went down, sewage pipelines were wrecked, and carcasses floated on roads. Patients in government and private hospitals across the city took a beating. Completely...

-Civil Society Online Bhubaneswar: Laxman Goud, a 35-year-old farmer in Thakurpalli village in Komna block of Nuapada district of Odisha, used to lead a very simple life. He was a devoted follower of Mahima Dharma, a subaltern religion practised by underprivileged castes in Odisha. One morning, he took his life in desperation. He couldn’t repay Rs 19,000 he had borrowed from a local moneylender at 36 per cent interest. Goud had invested...

-The Telegraph Gaijara (Bundu): There is no approach road to this village of 200 families. Some electricity poles were erected around one and a half years ago, but electrification work remained abandoned. All three hand pumps are defunct since long. The one on the primary school premises is also non-functional. For drinking water, a nearby waterfall is the only option. The nearest health centre at Taimara village is around 8km away. Although...

-Business Standard Interim order stops registration of new diesel vehicles in Delhi In a significant measure to curb the alarming pollution level, the National Green Tribunal on Friday issued an interim order that new diesel-run vehicles will not be registered in Delhi and there will be no renewal of registration of such vehicles which are more than 10-year-old. The tribunal also asked the Centre and Delhi governments to consider not buying diesel...