CATEGORIES

Landslide Trigger

Leakage from the tunnel carrying water to Parbati II hydroelectric plant in Kullu is just one way how the project threatens the landslide-prone area.

New Systems, Old Habits

Launched in 2014, the continuous monitoring systems for highly polluting industries were expected to usher in a new era of environmental governance in India. But poor planning, hasty execution and lack of enforcement have made the new-age regulatory mechanism a non-starter. Sanjeev Kumar Kanchan reports.

A Clean Miss

The new Swachh Survekshan ranking promotes cities with poor waste management practices.

Dry Run

Nutritional standards for the sale of camel milk, issued for the first time by the government, are a huge threat to the nascent dairy industry.

Out Of The Abyss

The recent surge in earthquakes and the explanation for the formation of the world's largest exposed fault have provided momentum to seismological research. SHREESHAN VENKATESH looks at the latest findings.

Rosewood Fades In India

After putting up a fight at CITES, will India be able to provide an alternative trade regime to rosewood artisans of the country?

Under Salty Waters

Is Andhra Pradesh turning a blind eye to illegal shrimp rearing?

Given To Imperious Decisions

Most of Indira Gandhi's decisions were in the right direction, but were not swayed by people's movements, which are the very soul of genuine environmental activism

No Just An Affair Of The Heart

Indira Gandhi made conservation a part of political discourse and her leadership on environment remains unparalleled globally

Poverty@25, India@70

Poverty remains conditional to one's social status 

Through a Narrow Path

An engineering folly unfolds over a week-long journey along Bihar's Kosi river, a tempestuous tributary of the Ganga.

A Fruitful Journey

A food safari in the desert of Rajasthan reveals a variety difficult to imagine in cities.

Embrace of Chipko

Impacts of the Chipko movement are visible in Chamoli even after four decades, but Tehri Garhwal has taken a different turn.

Serpentine Problem

WHO now recognises snakebite as a neglected disease. But India, which has the highest number of snakebite deaths, is woefully ill-prepared in tackling the problem

Inking Solutions To Pollution

Two Indian startups are converting polluted air particles into inks and paints

Back To Bins

The City Corporation of Panaji wants to discontinue the decentralised waste management system that helped it become a bin-free city

Aral Apocalypse

The Aral Sea has shrunk to a fourth of its size. Neha Mungekar travels to Uzbekistan and recounts how it remains a living sample of a monumental human-made ecological catastrophe

Rise Of The Fall

Fall Armyworm, a deadly but little understood crop pest, poses a threat to food security and livelihoods of millions as it ravages crops in Africa and now Asia. First detected in July 2018 in India, the pest has caused widespread damage to maize crops, raising the possibility that the country may have to import maize.

Bedaquiline And India's Patent Law

Opposition to the new patent claims on the Johnson & Johnson drug is a test of how well the rules against evergreening are working.

Robots Are Here, Almost

The use of industrial robots is growing at an unprecedented rate in India. Are blue-collar jobs under threat?

Hidden Elixir

A one-stop medicine shop, amrakh can be the wow factor in homemade pickles and chutneys.

Encroached Upon

Thirteen years aft er a historic law was formulated to give forest dwellers legal ownership of their traditi th onal land, their fate still hangs in the balance.A recent Supreme Court verdict, which almost made their eviction imminent, has brought the focus back on the tedious righhts recognition process under the Forest Rights Act, 2006.ISHAN KUKRETI reports from Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarli and Delhi, with inputs from PRIYA RANJAN SAHU in Odisha

Of Cacti And Algae

Even after 50 years, India's research on forage crops fails to avert fodder shortage but churns out some unconventional alternatives

Profitable Pods

Yongchak is a Manipuri legume used in salads, pickles and delicacies

Empanel A Jury...

...because solar panel waste is piling up

Farmers Rights Are A Hot Potato

The fallout between US major PepsiCo and Gujarat’s potato growers underlines the looming threat to farmers’ rights in India over ownership of seeds.

Kumbh Raises A Stink

A city that celebrated the festival of faith months ago, is on the verge of an epidemic.

Cyclone Fani - New Gust Of Wind

Cyclone Fani hits Odisha, bringing back horrid memories of the 1999 super cyclone. The state is better prepared now. But a changing climate the chemistry of cyclones as changed. This poses a bigger threat.

The Countdown Begins

In the world’s biggest-ever electoral exercise, the largest democracy has elected a new government. It’s not just a national occasion of celebration and hope; the world is closely watching India. The new government is taking charge when the countdown to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (sdgs) has begun. In just 10 years—by 2030 or in just two tenures of a Union government in India—the world has to deliver on the ambitious 17 sdgs and 169 targets.For each of these goals, India has the pivotal role in defining whether the world will be able to meet these targets. That's because of the sheer number of Indians who are lagging behind in each of these development indices. So, for the new government it is not just a national development agenda, but also a global responsibility. Down To Earth has set a roadmap for the new government, which can also become a framework for the world to ensure development for all

Welfare Interrupted

Sloppy government attitude holds up a project and a technology that can manage faecal waste as well as generate clean fuel SHAGUN KAPIL VALSAD, GUJARAT