An independent study says some 250 thermal power projects that have got clearances may be meant just to grab land and water resources. THERE have been a growing number of headlines that speak of an energy crisis and the energy deficit in India in the last few years. The disparities in the demand-supply scenario, the increasing prospects of disruptions in the global supply of fuel and the consequent results of higher...

-The Telegraph   An atmospheric depression that created a zone of rain across parts of Orissa caused water levels to rise in several rivers, meteorologists said today. The depression had delivered rain over Balasore, Keonjhar, Angul districts late last week, causing the upper Brahmani and lower Brahmani to swell, but scientists today said they expect no rainfall over the next two days. “At 9 this morning, the Brahmani (river) at Jenapur had risen to...

-The Telegraph   After Mahanadi, Brahmani and Baitarani are wreaking havoc and the two rivers have left as many as 1,114 villages marooned. Six choppers of the navy and air force were pressed into service for airdropping relief material in the flood-affected pockets. Two more helicopters are expected to reach by tomorrow to expedite the relief operation. “The next 36 hours will be crucial as the water level of the Brahmani is rising,” said...

As I write this my city Delhi is drowning. It started raining early this morning and within a few hours the city has come to a standstill. The television is showing scenes of traffic snarled up for hours, roads waterlogged and people and vehicles sunk deep in water and muck. The meteorological department records that some 60 mm of rain has fallen in just about 6 hours; 90 mm in 24...

-BBC   More than a million people have been displaced and at least 16 killed as floods in India's Orissa state submerged entire villages, officials say. Heavy monsoon rains submerged about 2,600 villages across 19 districts. Several rivers, including the Mahanadi, are overflowing and flood waters have severed a number of key road links. In Pakistan, the UN has begun relief operations after weeks of rain affected millions in the south. At least 199 people have...