Goats give good returns only as long as fodder is free. Unlike cattle that are fed crop and crop residue, goats and sheep graze in wasteland, common grazing land and forests. In western Rajasthan, where degrading farm land and feed shortage forced people to abandon farming and cattle and turn …
Some model experiments predict a large-scale substitution of Amazon forest by savannah-like vegetation by the end of the twenty-first century. Expanding global demands for biofuels and grains, positive feedbacks in the Amazon forest fire regime and drought may drive a faster process of forest degradation that could lead to a …
India has expressed concern over the increasing use of food grains for the production of bio fuels. Stating India's position at the "Third International Grain Summit-2008' at Sharm-el Sheikh, Egypt, minister of state for food and public distribution Akhilesh Prasad Singh said this had resulted in an unprecedented increase in …
Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's recent visit to India with a 100-strong industry team should be seen against the need to contextualise south-south cooperation amidst the fait accompli of globalisation. That apart, the visit highlights the good fit between Brazil and India in the matter of economic cooperation. …
For years, anti-poverty campaigners railed against low commodity prices, which depressed farmers' incomes in developing countries. In recent months, the world price of virtually all staples has shot up, but the activists are still not cheering. They worry that this boom (intensified by "green' subsidies for biofuel crops) may worsen …
The City-based National Institute of Engineering (NIE), which is known for its research facility and talent, has organised a six-day workshop for rural folk, imparting knowledge on various energy-based technologies. The workshop was inaugurated by Director N Ramanuja here on Tuesday. The annual workshop will showcase simple instruments such as …
The structure, water use, fertiliser intake, sucrose content, and the very nature of sugar production in sugarcane are likely to undergo major changes with the modern tools of biotechnology and genetic modification. Field trials of GM sugarcane crops for these traits are being undertaken in Brazil and Australia. Cane Technology …
It's not only our carbon footprint we should worry about. Experts are looking for solutions to our growing water foot-print, as urban populations explode and the demand for bio fuels adds stress on water for farmland. The threat to climate change has drawn attention to carbon footprints, the amount of …
Could biofuels do more damage to the climate than the fossil fuels they replace? That's the fear casting doubt on the wisdom of a law that from next month will require a certain proportion of vehicle fuel to come from biological sources.
Inflation management has to remain centre stage in macroeconomic policymaking. The price of everything is likely to be determined by what the oil cartel can squeeze out of us today. THIS column last month had in its title
Brazil, the world's largest ethanol producer, has thrown open its doors to investment by Indian companies in sugarcane farming, extracting ethanol and exporting it back home for mixing in petrol. "Yes, yes sure. They can buy ethanol manufacturing companies, invest in cane farming and producing ethanol,' visiting Brazalian Minister of …
Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Murli Deora on Wednesday announced that the percentage of ethanol blending in fuel would be raised to 10 per cent from the present 5 per cent even as the world's largest ethanol producer, Brazil, urged Indian companies to invest in sugarcane farming, extracting ethanol and …
Banning use of virgin habitats or ensuring that bio diverse ecosystems are not lost in the pursuit of bio fuels is well intentioned. However such noble objectives are hard to deliver on the ground. Even if all of the American land under cultivation, today, is used to produce bio fuels, …
Today, with the world already reeling from the initial ravages of climate change, the big question before us is whether we can trust the developed countries that are responsible, in the first instance for bringing the world to the brink of a climate holocaust, to change their unsustainable life styles …
The price of food is soaring. The threat of hunger and malnutrition is growing. Millions of the world's most vulnerable people are at risk. An effective and urgent response is needed. The prices of basic staples
When police bring the traffic to an abrupt halt in Raipur, capital of the remote Indian state of Chhattisgarh, drivers know what to expect next. Soon, flashing red lights atop speeding government vehicles come into view. Raman Singh, Chhattisgarh's chief minister, is passing through. Government motorcades are a common sight …
Tata Chemicals, India's leading manufacturer of inorganic chemicals, has firmed up an investment of Rs 750 crore in next three to four years to pursue its foray into ethanol. In the beginning, the company would invest Rs 50 crore for the development of a prototype 30 kilolitres/day sorghum-based ethanol project …
Despite their green intentions, buyers of blended biofuel may not be getting quite what they are paying for. Chris Reddy, an environmental chemist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts, has developed a test which reveals the proportions of biodiesel and conventional diesel in the fuel mix. It works …
