-Down to Earth Veteran environmentalist spoke to Down To Earth about the ongoing disaster in Uttarakhand   Since the past one week, a major tragedy has been unfolding in the high Himalayas of Uttarakhand. The historic temple town of Joshimath, the gateway to the shrine of Badrinath, has been witnessing scenes of panic and anger as locals protest the cracks in the area. From houses to temples to commercial establishments, nothing has...

-Scroll.in The High Court has directed a high-powered committee to suggest measures to bring these kids back to schools. In Karnataka, 10.12 lakh students are out of schools and anganwadis, a survey submitted before the High Court on Wednesday said, The Hindu reported. According to the report, submitted before a division bench by senior advocate KN Phaneendra, 4,54,238 children aged zero to three are not enrolled in schools or anganwadis. Similarly, 5,33,206 children...

The transport sector is important for the smooth functioning of an economy. The supply chains for various products and by-products (both domestically as well as internationally) can work efficiently only if the transportation of raw materials and inputs, and final goods and commodities takes place without disruption.   Due to economic growth, India’s annual CO2 (i.e., carbon dioxide) emission has expanded from 1.19 billion tonnes in 2005 to 2.44 billion tonnes...

-Newsclick.in Slope destabilisation, soil erosion and sequestered carbon loss have increased, according to Ravi Chopra. Noted Dehradun-based environmentalist Ravi Chopra recently resigned as the chairman of the Supreme Court (SC)-appointed High Powered Committee (HPC) overseeing the environmental impact of the Narendra Modi government’s Rs 12,000 crore 889-km Char Dham highway widening project in Uttarakhand.  The Char Dham project, one of the largest road-widening projects in the Himalayan region, intends to connect the four...

-Down to Earth The belief that the HPC could protect this fragile ecology has been shattered. I can do no more, Ravi Chopra wrote Environmentalist Ravi Chopra has resigned as chairman and member of the High Powered Committee (HPC) for the Char Dham Project, citing an assault on the Himalayas in an explosive letter. Chopra was offered the chairmanship of the HPC in September 2019. He mentioned what compelled him to take it...