-Hindustan Times The National Green Tribunal (NGT) had found faults with the ministry’s 2017 notification by which new norms for effluent discharge by sewage treatment plants (STPs) in waterbodies were laid down. It held that the new notification would lead to deterioration of the water quality and prescribed stricter standards based on the recommendations of an expert committee. The Supreme Court on Monday remarked that the ministry of environment should also act...

The rise in COVID-19 daily new cases and daily new deaths compelled many state governments to impose local level lockdowns during April-May 2021. As of 20th April, 2021, partial lockdowns were noticed in 10 states across the country and complete lockdown was imposed in Delhi. As of 8th May, 2021, nearly the entire country was under complete lockdown as a result of either partial lockdowns and night curfews or complete...

-Hindustan Times While recognising that women’s and girl’s empowerment is a moral imperative, investing in academic, vocation, and life skills for girls and young women represents one of the most significant opportunities for sustainable and inclusive development Even after decades of work and attention, gender inequality remains a significant barrier to human development. Women and girls worldwide are still discriminated against in accessing healthcare, education, political representation, and employment, impeding the realisation...

-NetworkIdeas.org In terms of economic policy, the Modi government must be perhaps the most conservative in the world. During the entire period of the pandemic when millions of people lost their incomes and livelihood support, most governments around the world provided universal cash transfers to the people, but not the Modi government. True, many other third world countries too did not provide such universal cash transfers, but their hands were tied;...

-Down to Earth There is scientific consensus that rapid and deep cuts to emissions in this decade, and not later, will avoid scenarios of uncontrollable warming and high mitigation costs later this century Most countries have set a target timeline — 2030 is the commonly chosen horizon — to achieve the goals outlined in their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) to the Paris Agreement, 2015. The Paris Agreement is the international treaty to help...