-TheThirdPole.net Climate change made the Uttarakhand flash flood possible, and poor development policies made it disastrous The February 7 flash flood in the Rishi Ganga river in the Himalayas has shone a spotlight on the deadly combination of climate change and ill-planned roads and dams. The latest death count is 68; bodies are still being taken out of the hydropower project tunnels next to the destroyed Tapovan dam; and after two weeks...

-TheWire.in (Science) Never underestimate the power of human stupidity, says Yuval Noah Harari in his book, 21 Lessons For The 21st Century. If anyone doubts this truism she has only to see what we have been doing to the Himalaya for the last three decades, particularly in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, in the name of development. This stupidity also involves ignoring the pleas of local residents/villagers, the advice of experts, and...

-The Indian Express Fuel prices vary from state to state and taxes are levied on them by both central as well as the state governments. So, why are the prices of petrol and diesel rising in India? Take a look The retail price of regular petrol hit a three-figure mark for the first time across the country after it was hiked by 26 paise to Rs 100.13 a litre in Rajasthan’s Sri...

-The Indian Express Governments past and present have used a colonial-era law to charge many ‘seditious’ men and women, most recently during the farmer protests, when a series of cases were filed against journalists and politicians. The Central Hall of Parliament doubles up as a portrait gallery. On its walls hang portraits of leaders who shaped the destiny of India. If a viceroy from British India were to walk into the hall...

-The Indian Express Uttarakhand CM sent letter to PM on jobs, energy security; SC awaits Govt unified stand. At least two power projects hit by the glacial flood burst in Uttarakhand last Sunday — in which over 150 workers are still feared missing or trapped — were in a list of 13 flagged at a meeting in the Prime Minister’s Office exactly two years ago. That meeting, records show, ordered a permanent ban...