CATEGORIES

Dead end

West Bengal moves to discontinue Kolkata’s trams despite calls to revive the city’s oldest and cleanest mode of transport

A river lost

Unchecked discharge of industrial effluents and inadequate sewage treatment facilities have turned the Hindon water toxic. ROHINI KRISHNAMURTHY tracks the river's journey though seven Uttar Pradesh districts, starting from its origin in Saharanpur

RECKLESS DISREGARD

India is set to expand seaweed cultivation along its coastline by promoting Kappaphycus alvarezii, a known invasive species that has smothered coral reefs in the Gulf of Mannar over the past two decades. Should the country instead focus on its native species?

Joining The Carbon Club

India's carbon market will soon be a reality, but will it fulfil its aim of reducing emissions? A report by PARTH KUMAR and MANAS AGRAWAL

Trade On Emissions

EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, a tariff on imports, is designed to protect European industries in the guise of climate action.

'The project will facilitate physical and cultural decimation of indigenous people'

The Great Nicobar Project has all the hallmarks of a disaster-seismic, ecological, human. Why did it get the go-ahead?

TASTE IT RED

Popularity of Karnataka's red jackfruit shows how biodiversity can be conserved by ensuring that communities benefit from it

MANY MYTHS OF CHIPKO

Misconceptions about the Chipko movement have overshadowed its true objectives.

The politics and economics of mpox

Africa's mpox epidemic stems from delayed responses, neglect of its health risks and the stark vaccine apartheid

Emerging risks

Even as the world gets set to eliminate substances threatening the ozone layer, climate change and space advancement pose new challenges.

Turn a new leaf

Scientists join hands to predict climate future of India's tropical forests

Festering troubles

The Democratic Republic of Congo struggles to contain mpox amid vaccine delays, conflict and fragile healthcare.

India sees unusual monsoon patterns

THE 2024 southwest monsoon has, between June 1 and September 1, led to excess rainfall in western and southern states such as Gujarat, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, while others like Nagaland, Manipur and Punjab recorded a deficit.

Breaking barriers

Women in Uttar Pradesh take on crucial roles at faecal sludge treatment plants SUBRATA CHAKRABORTY AND ALKA KUMARI

Business of dirt

The waste management ecosystem is rooted in poverty, politics, colonialism, corporate greed and environmental injustice, with serious consequences to human health

NATURE'S MAPPERS

Reptiles show an ability fo understand and remember spaces, which makes them a natural insect pest controller

Pathogen benefit-sharing pact thwarted again

Deep political rifts at WHO leave a critical pandemic treaty hanging in limbo as rich nations baulk at equitable vaccine sharing

LOCAL SOLUTIONS

The solution to Sangam Vihar's water supply, sanitation and stormwater problems could lie in decentralised management, suggests a Centre for Science and Environment survey in the unplanned settlement

CATCHING THE WIND

Wind is the missing piece of the climate change puzzle. But lack of data makes it difficult to model wind systems

THE NEW EXTREME EVENT

Wind circulations are slowing in a warming world, adding to the frequency and intensity of extreme events

BRACE FOR STILL WINDS

Wind circulations are slowing down across the globe. It may not be immediately apparent in terms of wind speed, which is a local phenomenon. But scientists say global stilling of wind affects almost every aspect of our lives—from unpredictable rainfall to excess heatwaves to frequent or missing storms. It even affects wind energy production and the aviation sector. Evidence shows a clear connection between global warming and wind stilling. Could this be the missing piece in climate models?

Ground rules

Space agencies and private players must adhere to exploration norms to ensure integrity of space research

Insured against heat

States and private firms are implementing insurance schemes fo protect livestock rearers against milk production losses caused by heat stress

The Next Pandemic

Buoyed by climate change and global trade, pathogens that cause disease outbreaks in food crops are spreading far and wide. They are also evolving fast to reproduce quickly and infect new hosts

India Feels The Heat This May

INDIA WAS under an intense heatwave spell in the second half of May, with temperatures soaring over the northwest region, according to data released by the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

POWER OF PAAN

Betel leaves are not just an integral part of India's culture, but also hold many benefits. Add them to your list of healthy greens

'Fitness our evolutionary advantage, not longevity'

Nobel laureate VENKI RAMAKRISHNAN's latest book, Why We Die, covers a journey that starts in the 1800s, when British biologists Charles Darwin and Alfred Wallace proposed natural selection, and continues to this day, as researchers investigate anti-ageing compounds. But how close are we really to cheating ageing and death? In an interview with ROHINI KRISHNAMURTHY, Ramakrishnan, who received the 2009 Nobel prize in chemistry, says the focus of research is on staying healthy for a bigger fraction of life. He also examines the causes of ageing, the drugs being explored to slow down this deterioration, the people involved in the research and a few controversial claims. Excerpts:

India capitulates on key accord at WIPO

The WIPO treaty on genetic resources is historic, but it will override vital safeguards in India's law to prevent bad patents

Wild guess

Despite being a significant source of greenhouse gases, wildfire emissions remain underestimated

A local national verdict

Issues of unemployment, price rise and agrarian distress seem to have shifted voter sentiment in the recent general elections