CATEGORIES

Out Of The Legal Hole
Down To Earth

Out Of The Legal Hole

There is no such thing as environmentally acceptable and safe rat-hole coal mining and hence this primitive practice must be discontinued

time-read
3 mins  |
February 16, 2019
Will Nudge Come To Shove?
Down To Earth

Will Nudge Come To Shove?

It is crucial that nudge as a tool is used meticulously for political canvassing

time-read
4 mins  |
February 16, 2019
Fatal Test
Down To Earth

Fatal Test

A Maharashtra legislature panel's suggestion to make sex-determination test mandatory could derail decades of efforts to protect the rights of women and the safety of the girl child.

time-read
4 mins  |
June 1, 2017
Landslide Trigger
Down To Earth

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.

time-read
4 mins  |
June 1, 2017
New Systems, Old Habits
Down To Earth

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.

time-read
2 mins  |
June 1, 2017
A Clean Miss
Down To Earth

A Clean Miss

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

time-read
6 mins  |
June 1, 2017
Dry Run
Down To Earth

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.

time-read
4 mins  |
February 01, 2017
Out Of The Abyss
Down To Earth

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.

time-read
8 mins  |
February 01, 2017
Rosewood Fades In India
Down To Earth

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?

time-read
4 mins  |
November 01, 2017
Under Salty Waters
Down To Earth

Under Salty Waters

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

time-read
3 mins  |
November 01, 2017
Given To Imperious Decisions
Down To Earth

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

time-read
5 mins  |
November 01, 2017
No Just An Affair Of The Heart
Down To Earth

No Just An Affair Of The Heart

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

time-read
4 mins  |
November 01, 2017
Poverty@25, India@70
Down To Earth

Poverty@25, India@70

Poverty remains conditional to one's social status 

time-read
3 mins  |
November 01, 2017
Through a Narrow Path
Down To Earth

Through a Narrow Path

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

time-read
10+ mins  |
January 01, 2017
A Fruitful Journey
Down To Earth

A Fruitful Journey

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

time-read
8 mins  |
January 01, 2017
Embrace of Chipko
Down To Earth

Embrace of Chipko

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

time-read
10 mins  |
January 01, 2017
Serpentine Problem
Down To Earth

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

time-read
4 mins  |
August 1, 2017
Inking Solutions To Pollution
Down To Earth

Inking Solutions To Pollution

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

time-read
4 mins  |
August 1, 2017
Back To Bins
Down To Earth

Back To Bins

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

time-read
4 mins  |
August 1, 2017
Down To Earth

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

time-read
5 mins  |
August 1, 2017
Rise Of The Fall
Down To Earth

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.

time-read
10+ mins  |
March 01, 2019
Bedaquiline And India's Patent Law
Down To Earth

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.

time-read
2 mins  |
March 01, 2019
Down To Earth

Robots Are Here, Almost

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

time-read
3 mins  |
March 01, 2019
Hidden Elixir
Down To Earth

Hidden Elixir

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

time-read
3 mins  |
March 01, 2019
Encroached Upon
Down To Earth

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

time-read
10+ mins  |
March 16, 2019
Of Cacti And Algae
Down To Earth

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

time-read
3 mins  |
March 16, 2019
Profitable Pods
Down To Earth

Profitable Pods

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

time-read
3 mins  |
March 16, 2019
Empanel A Jury...
Down To Earth

Empanel A Jury...

...because solar panel waste is piling up

time-read
3 mins  |
March 16, 2019
Farmers Rights Are A Hot Potato
Down To Earth

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.

time-read
5 mins  |
May 16, 2019
Kumbh Raises A Stink
Down To Earth

Kumbh Raises A Stink

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

time-read
5 mins  |
May 16, 2019