Ramesh asked the PM why river Ganga is "dirtier than before" even after spending Rs 20,000 crore on the Namami Gange project.
Air pollution may lead to a faster spread of Covid-19 infection as it causes coughing and sneezing, government officials told a parliamentary panel on Friday, according to sources.
Sunil Bharala, the chairman of the state Labour Welfare Council, said stubble burning is an 'age-old practice'.
The Congress on Friday claimed that a 'silent undercurrent' is brewing across western Uttar Pradesh against the 'failures' of the Modi government, as it flagged issues such as 'neglect' of sugarcane farmers and examination paper leaks.
In the wake of the Aazan versus Hanuman Chalisa row in Karnataka, the state government has issued a set of directions on the use of loudspeakers and to remove them if they were not authorised by the 'designated authority.'
IPL matches in Bengaluru under NGT scanner
The city's Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 420 at 8 am on Thursday, compared to 426 at 4 pm on Wednesday. The AQI map prepared by the Central Pollution Control Board showed clusters of red dots (indicating hazardous air quality) spread across the Indo-Gangetic plains.
The green panel said that innocent people drank and bathed in the river with reverence, without knowing that it may adversely affect their health.
Violation of the provisions entails a punishment of a jail term up to five years or with fine up to Rs 1 crore or with both, the ordinance released by the Ministry of Law and Justice on Thursday said.
Amid rising air pollution caused by the burning of crop residue, the Bihar government has decided to identify farmers who are indulging in this practice and put up their names at the block offices, officials said on Saturday.
The Ministry of Environment and Forests is setting up a network for national-level monitoring and reporting of noise pollution. Based on the pattern of existing air and water networks, the setting up of the National Ambient Noise Monitoring Network and development of infrastructure for noise mapping in the country are expected to be in place within five years.
In fresh trouble for Ramdev, the Uttarakhand Pollution Control Board has issued a show cause notice to the herbal food park run by the yoga guru at Padartha in Haridwar district for allegedly releasing untreated waste into the water bodies of the area.
The poisonous haze has been causing significant problems for people with existing respiratory issues, according to doctors.
Directions have been issued to about 48 industrial units polluting River Ganga to close down, the Rajya Sabha was informed on Monday.
The maximum temperature on Saturday settled at 18.1 degrees Celsius, two notches below the season's average, and the minimum was recorded at 3.6 degrees Celsius, four notches below the season's average, the IMD said.
The petition alleged that "illegal mining" was being carried out by Singh, the MP from Kaiserganj, in Majharath, Jaitpur and Nawabganj villages of Tarbganj tehsil in the district.
The city's 24-hour Air Quality Index, recorded at 4 pm every day, stood at 418, up from 334 the previous day, and it may trigger stringent restrictions under the third stage of the graded response action plan to mitigate hazardous conditions.
The Kerala State Pollution Control Board has ordered closure of soft drinks major Coca Cola's plant at Plachimada in Palakkad district.
This time, Delhi saw a sharp improvement in air quality just ahead of Diwali which can be attributed to intermittent rainfall on Friday and wind speed favourable for the dispersion of pollutants.
The companies will have to secure a minimum of 400 points out of 1,000 to be able to participate in the rating system.
The Centre directed Uttar Pradesh and Bihar on Sunday to prevent dumping of dead bodies in the Ganga and its tributaries, and focus on their safe disposal and a dignified cremation after corpses were seen floating in these rivers following a spurt in the number of coronavirus cases.
According to the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), the air quality is considered to be in the emergency category if the PM2.5 and PM10 levels continue to be above 300 micrograms per cubic metre and 500 micrograms per cubic metre respectively for 48 hours or more.
The Central Pollution Control Board has asked Tata Steel to submit the closure schedule of the battery at the earliest, minister of state for Steel A Sai Prathap said in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha. Coke oven battery is a plant where coking coal is converted into coke.
The government asserted that the Central Pollution Control Board will inspect the ship
Vedanta had sought handing over of the plant for three months saying it requires two months to start the unit and the company should be allowed to run it for four weeks to ascertain whether its polluting or not. The interim plea by Vedanta was opposed by Tamil Nadu government which claimed before a bench headed by Justice R F Nariman that the plant had been 'polluting consistently'.
The city recorded a minimum temperature of 14.6 degrees Celsius, a notch above normal, according to the India Meteorological Department.
If industrial units do not have functional PETPs, then they will not be allowed to function any more, the court said.
The big question is whether the regulators will have the courage to prosecute the bigwigs in the cities.
The environment ministry is likely to soon issue regulations that will mandate automakers to recycle a specified percentage of steel from old vehicles, starting from the next financial year, according to people familiar with the matter. "We recently held a meeting with members of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam). "The final regulations are likely to be issued in the next 10 days," a government source informed.
The rains could lead to a rise in the water levels of the Yamuna, which has been flowing above the danger mark of 205.33 metres for days now.
The issue of pollution caused due to the non-degradable material is keeping consumer goods majors - from ITC and Dabur to Nestl and PepsiCo - on their toes.
Violation of the provisions entails a punishment of a jail term of up to five years or with fine up to Rs one crore or with both.
Firecracker bursting till late Sunday night led to a spike in pollution levels amid low temperatures.
The capital witnessed a clear morning on Friday with the minimum temperature settling a notch below normal at 14.6 degrees Celsius.
The Maha Kumbh, billed as the world's largest gathering, concluded on Wednesday after 45 days, with lakhs of devotees taking a dip in the Sangam, the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna, and mythical Saraswati rivers. Despite a stampede that killed at least 30 people, millions continued to visit the Kumbh, seeking salvation through the ritual bath. The event saw a mix of faith, tradition, and technology, drawing pilgrims and tourists from across the globe.
Delhi's overall air quality index (AQI) stood at 463 at 11.30 am, according to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR).
A bench of the NGT, headed by its chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel, directed that the order will also apply to all cities and towns in the country where the average of ambient air quality during November (as per available data of last year) falls under 'poor' or worse category.
Welcoming the reduction in pollution, environmentalists urged the government to treat it as a "wake-up call" and stop its "obsession" with "development" at the cost of the environment.
The national capital on Friday recorded a 24-hour average air quality index of 239. On Thursday, it was 315, the worst since February 12 when the AQI was 320.
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