As a country grappling with political and infrastructural problems, there are very few issues that do not evoke extreme, often diametrically opposite, reactions in India. Population control Bills, vaccination policy, farmer income initiatives, river water sharing mechanisms or surrogacy laws—there is no dearth of topics that have triggered controversy, and …
It isn't just the ministries that are misinforming the public about cng and ensuring the non-implementation of the Supreme Court order on cng. The Tata Energy Research Institute (teri), a New Delhi-based energy consultancy, has also contributed to such efforts. The teri -industry nexus is strangulating adoption of cng . …
More than one million cng vehicles are plying in different parts of the world. Argentina, Italy, Russia and the us have the largest share. The natural gas vehicle market is expected to grow dramatically in the us . The main reason for this is the thrust on clean fuels and …
A study says particles emitted by diesel engines can harm the foetus, breaching the safety of the womb. Another study says the risk of developing cancer is four times higher among children travelling in a diesel bus as compared to someone travelling in a car in front of the bus. …
the us has its way once again as an upcoming climate change conference scheduled for May-June 2001 has been postponed. Jan Pronk, president of the climate change conference held in November 2000 and environment minister of the Netherlands, announced that the negotiations would now resume sometime in the middle of …
The us wants to delay the sequel to the failed November 2000 climate meet until the new Bush administration gets its act together. Along with Japan, Canada, New Zealand and Australia, the country has formally requested that the conference of parties to the un Framework Convention on Climate Change (unfccc) …
The rashes and burns on his scaly skin are not due to his advancing years. With red patches on his limbs and torso, this aged man is literally suffering from a two-year itch. His frail body stoops, overburdened not just with age but also the agony caused by his recalcitrant …
Just a small story in the Business Standard about Europe, but with big implications. The story says that the European Commission has asked the European Court of Justice to approve a fine of us $159,000 per day on Britain for not cleaning up its dirty beaches. That amounts to about …
the Delhi government has once again proved that is not serious about implementing the Supreme Court's order of July 28, 1998. The order states that all Delhi Transport Corporation's (dtc) buses should be run on Compressed Natural Gas ( cng ) by March 2001. The number of cng buses should …
a loan of us $215 million will be granted to Ukraine by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). The loan will help Ukraine build its two nuclear power stations, Khmelnytsky-2 and Rivne-4. A few environmental pressure groups allege that ERBD has bowed down to pressure from Ukraine, which …
as preparations for yet another anniversary to mark the Bhopal gas tragedy got underway, a rude shock awaited the victims. The Madhya Pradesh government was reportedly planning to close the down the Gas Relief and Rehabilitation department. Sixteen years ago, a leak of the deadly methyl isocyanate from the Union …
amid the controversy over the relocation of polluting industries, a private bill introduced in the Delhi Assembly on November 23, 2000, which aimed at protecting the city residents from environmental hazards, was rejected. The Environmental Related Diseases (Prevention and Control) Bill, 2000, was introduced by former Delhi health minister Harsh …
The latest environmental fix in Delhi, once again under the pressure of the Supreme Court, is the relocation of polluting industries situated in the areas that are in non-conformity with the city's Master Plan. Four years went by without the government taking any serious action and now that the court …
The petroleum industry in India has always resisted the use of ethanol as a blending stock in fuel, favouring methyl tertiary butyl ether ( mtbe), a known carcinogen. This time around the representatives of ethanol industry got together at the seminar
With ether-based oxygenates falling out of favour, ethanol is emerging as one of the most favoured options worldwide. According to H B Mathur, professor emeritus at the Delhi College of Engineering, petrol-ethanol blend can reduce carbon monoxide and hydrocarbon emissions by up to 35-55 per cent. According to Saroj Misra …
delhi had not seen the kind of protests that prevailed on November 20-21 in recent years. Thousands of angry workers took to the streets in several parts of the capital disrupting traffic, burning vehicles and resorting to widespread arson and looting to protest against the Delhi government's decision to seal …
british politicians are facing one disaster after another but the way they are facing them should be a lesson for the tribe that exists in India. As in our country, the high fuel prices have become a source of major contention and with fuel blockades being threatened there is panic …
For many developing countries, the un represents half a chance at fair play in an increasingly globalised world. Many see it as their only chance of countering the World Trade Organisation's obsession with free trade. Many of them prefer to strengthen the un rather than create an altogether new World …
pakistan's military rulers have announced plans to allow entry of multinational companies in the agricultural sector as part of its economic reforms. Corporate farming is being seen as the future of the country's agriculture. The controversial decision was made public when the finance minister unveiled the annual budget for 2000-2001 …
