To many, ecology clearances coming in quick succession first for the 12-million-tonne steel project, including a captive power complex and a minor port that the South Korean Posco is diligently pursuing for close to six years and then for SAIL’s three mining leases at Chiria in Jharkhand appear as history bending revolutions. This is because the ministry of Environment and forests, led by Environment zealot Jairam Ramesh was till the...

After wrangling with the coal ministry over green concerns, the Environment ministry has cleared eight more CIL projects that have been stalled for about a year. The development comes close on the heels of Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh softening his stance on "no go" status for coal blocks falling in Environmentally sensitive areas during the meeting of a Group of Ministers (GoM) on Coal last week, where he assured that...

The 17,000-crore ultra mega power project planned at Bedabahal in Orissa might not see light of the day as power ministry has not agreed to the conditions imposed by Environment ministry for granting clearance to attached coalmine. Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh has granted mining approval to the project provided NTPC and Orissa Power Generation Corporation give up their respective Dulanga and Manoharpur coal blocks in the vicinity. As per data...

Fifty million "Environmental refugees" will flood into the global north by 2020, fleeing food shortages sparked by climate change, experts warned at a major science conference that ended here Monday. "In 2020, the UN has projected that we will have 50 million Environmental refugees," University of California, Los Angeles professor Cristina Tirado said at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). "When people are...

Investing around $1.3 trillion – or two per cent of global gross domestic product (GDP) – into ten key sectors can kick-start a transition towards a low-carbon, resource-efficient 'green economy' that can also help reduce poverty, says a new United Nations report launched today. The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) presented the report, “Towards a Green Economy: Pathways to Sustainable Development and Poverty Eradication,” to Environment ministers from over 100 countries at...