Order of the National Green Tribunal in the matter of In Re: News Item titled "Futala Lake’s charm fades amid neglect and poor maintenance appearing in ‘The Times of India’ dated 25.05.2025". The original application was registered suo-motu based on the news item titled "Futala Lake’s charm fades amid neglect …
THE RIR had raised considerable expectations in western India. The report, however, came as a damp squib. The only substantive comment made by the report relates to basic hydrology, which states, "We found that there is good reason to believe that the project will not perform as planned." The reference …
Gandhian activist M K Ghosh can rightly be called the father of the solar cooker which is being promoted in India today. When he was in prison with Rajendra Prasad during the Quit India Movement, Prasad offered him Rs 5,000 to design a working model of a solar cooker. Ghosh's …
THE SOLAR cooker programme may soon grind to a halt as a result of mandatory ISI standards to be introduced this year. The Department of Non-Conventional Energy Sources (DNES) has already notified that subsidies would be given only to cookers complying with ISI standards. When the DNES and the Bureau …
LARGE parts of India are again in the grip of drought -- from the dry regions of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Marathwada and Vidarbha to the high rainfall state of Kerala. By official meteorological accounts, this was a near normal year. The pundits in New Delhi's Mausam Bhawan have a map of …
THE morning hours in Barapal, near Udaipur, present a curious sight. Hundreds of headloaders crowd around the national highway looking for vehicles to transport charcoal or firewood to Udaipur. All of them are victims of drought. Selling wood illegally felled from government forests is their last resort for survival. Kesa …
IT is at a time like this that the famous Ralegan Siddhi village in Ahmednagar district -- the handiwork of a social worker, Anna Hazare -- stands out with a difference. It is green and it is surviving. There is indeed stress but no distress. The village has received only …
An integrated approach to energy planning, when applied to large hydroelectric projects, requires that the energy-opportunity cost of the land submerged under the reservoir be incorporated into the planning methodology. Biomass energy lost from the submerged land has to be compared to the electrical energy generated, for which we develop …
It is popular in periods of Hindu religious fasting like Navratri. It is also commonly found on the shelves of health food stores. But for the tribals in the Sahyadri hills in Maharashtra, buckwheat is a way of life. Unlike in the hilly regions of northern India where kuttu, as …
ALL the 18 villages that will be affected by the proposed airport at Navi Mumbai boycotted the public hearing held on May 5. The government acquired the land for urban development almost 40 years ago, but until the airport project was planned for the site, villagers did not fear losing …
AN EXPERT committee, appointed by the Maharashtra government to study the effect of mobile phone towers on public health, has recommended a ban on these structures near schools and hospitals, and restricted access to rooftops of buildings having such towers. The panel, headed by additional chief health secretary, was set …
In a debate moderated by TIMES NOW's Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami, panelists --Nawab Mallik, MLA & Chief Spokesperson, NCP; Tehseen Poonawalla, Political Analyst & Columnist; Sunita Narain, Director, Centre for Science and Environment; Anjali Damania, Convener, Aam Aadmi Party and Dr. Subodh Wagle, Trustee & President , Prayas debate the issue.
24 power projects are being proposed in Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg districts, in the Konkan region of Maharashtra, which is the second most bio-diverse region in India. Watch why people living in this region are opposed to this dangerous plan. A film by Kurush Canteenwala.
Fire from a burning garbage dump, which has been on for days, is resulting in high pollution levels in Mumbai. Lakhs of people are breathing in toxic air; more than 70 government schools in affected parts of the city have been shut down. There is an acrid smell in the …
Plastic has an ubiquitous presence in our lives, it's all encompassing. A wonder substance that can never be destroyed, that has revolutionalised convenience, that has played a critical role in all technological advancements, from computers to replacement heart valves. Yet, it is now threatening plants, animals, marine life and even …
The word ‘Prayas’ means ‘focused effort’. Prayas is a non-governmental, non-profit organisation based in Pune, India. Members of Prayas are professionals working to protect and promote the public interest in general, and interests of the disadvantaged sections of the society, in particular. Prayas Energy Group (PEG) has been active since …
Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) is implementing various environmental legislations in the state of Maharashtra, mainly including Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, Water (Cess) Act, 1977 and some of the provisions under Environmental (Protection) Act, 1986 and the rules …
