Indian farmers practise an agro-silvo-pastoral system and that livestock is a crucial part of their economy. Taking away the meat would demonetise their assets. It would kill their income, says Sunita Narain.
'But one of the important things to remember is that what we are seeing today in India -- the destruction of the forests, the opening up of the forests to mining companies.' 'It's a horrifying thing that's going on.' 'Yet, if you look at who owns the mining companies, you will see that almost always they are vegetarians!' 'They are people, who in their own lives would probably not even hurt an insect, but yet have no qualms about destroying an entire ecosystem.'
A number of cities, including Chennai, are water-scarce.
The tragedy is not the inevitable drought or the inevitable flood. It is our inevitable lack of ability to push and get done what needs to be done, says Sunita Narain.
The city's overall air quality index stood at 306 on Friday.
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.
We need to clarify the rules for legal slaughterhouses and make sure that these can be enforced.
Even as the Uttarakhand floods are being referred to as man-made disasters, experts say such disasters are waiting to happen at places like Ooty and Munnar.
The problem is to integrate the technology with a system of household level segregation so that waste does not end up in landfills, but is processed and reused.
'It is clear that nature is not in a mood to give us leeway to be lazy, inefficient or just do business as usual.' 'It is telling us that we have no time to get things wrong. We need to take drastic actions - now
We need to know that the sources of pollution and the action to be taken are known. But what is needed is to act. Plain and simple. So, focus, on each source and each action; who has to do what and by when
Growing and harvesting trees for productive and economic uses are once again dead in the water, says Sunita Narain.
What are the most worrisome aspects of climate change for India? Can they be solved?
New ventures are emerging to take the stigma out of this garbage sorting business.
India lost around 38.5 thousand hectares of tropical forest in the last decade. Nearly 14 per cent of the country's tree cover! It is one thing for Modi to announce that India will reach a net-zero level of emissions in 2070. But if it is serious, it needs to start today, points out Ramesh Menon.
City governments must work out the treatment system for faecal sludge.
Donald Trump denied it. Hillary Clinton avoided saying it. But the Climate Change crisis is frighteningly real, says Sunita Narain.
Brand ambassadors and their lackeys are busy opposing the idea of being held accountable, even though they are ready to take all the money, says Sunita Narain.
The fact is that BS-IV vehicles, particularly diesel trucks, are much less polluting than BS-III ones, says Sunita Narain.
The advisory body had not met for the past three years.
When Bureau of Energy Efficiency certifies that an AC is star-rated, it does this based on the manufacturer's self or third party efficiency report, points out Sunita Narain.
The new mining policy must be rock solid
The Supreme Court has directed a series of actions to clean the Taj, including bringing in compressed natural gas (CNG) to replace dirty coal.
Adani Ports & SEZ was ordered to pay for damage to environment during the UPA govt
In Budget 2015, the finance minister has opted to take the slow road and has doubled the cess on coal to "balance the need to tax pollution and the price of power" in his words.
Measures under the GRAP's 'very poor' and 'severe' categories came into effect on Tuesday.
E-waste accounts for 70 per cent of Indian landfills.
'Drought in the 1990s was essentially the drought of a poor India.' 'This 2016 drought is of a richer and more water-guzzling India.' 'The severity and intensity of the drought is not about lack of rainfall.' 'It is about the lack of planning and foresight, and criminal neglect.'
Rickshaw pullers and construction workers are the worst hit.
Delhi is a year-round health hazard that visitors shun like the plague, says Sunil Sethi.
The air pollution problem in the national capital won't go away till we take action -- such as ban the use of dirty fuels, ramp up public transport and oversee crop burning, says Sunita Narain.
The national capital woke up on Tuesday morning to 'severe' air quality under a blanket of thick haze, as pollution levels breached the permissible standards by multiple times.
Now we need to fight back to reclaim our food and our habits. The only way to do so is to rediscover food as pleasure and be thrilled, not just by its smells and tastes, but also by the knowledge it embodies, says Sunita Narain.
Banning meat is cruel demonetisation. It is stealing from the poor, nothing less, writes Sunita Narain.
It is clear that the world desperately needs a globalisation model that will work for all and not just some, says Sunita Narain.
What will Indian cities do about its growing mountains of waste?
Lack of sanitation is leading to avoidable deaths of infants, and underweight and stunted children.
Each year, economic damages increase -- and once again, development gains are lost in one season of flood or bad drought.
The disagreements over what needs to be done on floodplains allows for illegal takeover by land mafia till nothing is left, observes Sunita Narain
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