-TheWire.in The manifestoes of major political parties in the fray in all five states promise both great infrastructure development and greater environmental safeguards. Kochi: In February and March, people in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Goa and Manipur will vote to elect their next chief ministers and ruling parties. If not at any other time of the year, the public consciousness of environmental issues is heightened in these states today, as both the...

-Down to Earth Blaming farmers alone won’t work; prices for crops other than paddy must be remunerative The Election Commission has announced the dates for Assembly elections in five states of the country including Punjab. The atmosphere regarding the Assembly elections is getting more and more dramatic every day. As in many previous Assembly elections, promises, claims and new promises are being made and repeated by the various political parties to win...

-Down to Earth Experts express concern, point at state pollution control board for poor implementation The National Green Tribunal (NGT) January 18, 2021 ordered 15 chemical industrial units in Haryana to remain shut for flouting green norms. The companies were manufacturing formaldehyde without environmental clearance (EC) and requisite safeguards. Out of the 15 industrial units, 10 are located in Yamuna Nagar district, two in Jhajjar, two in Karnal and one in Ambala. These water-guzzling...

-Down to Earth 77% packaged drinking water units in 18 states operating without no-objection certificates The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) conducted the performance audit of Groundwater management and regulation to analyse the extent of Groundwater scarcity in the country. The audit report was presented in the Parliament December 21, 2021. The audit was conducted on the basis of five years of data (2013-2018) on Groundwater management and regulation in India. The...

-Down to Earth Uranium concentration in Groundwater exceeded 30 μg/l, more than the WHO-prescribed limit, in 57 out of 73 villages  A chemical analysis of Groundwater in 73 villages of Karnataka has found high levels of uranium concentration in Groundwater of at least 57 villages. The uranium concentration in these villages was at least 30 micrograms per litre (μg / l). In 48 of these villages, the levels exceeded 60 μg / l. In...