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Sustainability Outlook Headlines
Solar projects: Ministry for access to norms before next phase rolloutThe Ministry of Commerce and Industry is gearing up to avoid fresh trouble at the World Trade Organisation over India’s solar energy projects.
With the US criticising the first phase due to the Government’s insistence on high local content for the projects, the Department of Commerce is keen to ensure that the provisions of the second phase are more in line with the norms laid down under the multilateral pact.
The Department now wants the Ministry for New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) to share the draft of the bid documents for the next phase... Read more.. Date : Aug 13 Source: Hindu Business Line
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India's remarkable growth story clouded by a degrading environmentThe past decade of rapid economic growth has brought many benefits to India, but on the flip side the environment has suffered the most, exposing the population to serious air and water pollution. India's remarkable growth record, however, has been clouded by a degrading environment and growing scarcity of natural resources. Mirroring the size and diversity of Indian economy, environmental risks are wide ranging and are driven by both prosperity and poverty. A new report by the World Bank finds that environmental degradation costs India $80 billion per year or 5.7% of its economy.... Read more.. Date : Aug 13 Source: Economic Times
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India: industry targets 25% TSR by 2030The Indian cement industry is failing to realise the potential for alternative fuels and raw material utilisation (AFR), but resolves to raise the thermal substitution rate (TSR) to 25 per cent by 2030, from the current level of less than one per cent. This was the conclusion of a two-day conference on co-processing in cement plants, convened by the Washington-based Institute for Industrial Productivity (IIP) and the Cement Manufacturers’ Association (CMA) of India. In his introductory address to delegates, Mr Ratan Shah, Group Executive President, UltraTech Ltd, noted that... Read more.. Date : Aug 12 Source: CemNet
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New company law to change CSR landscapeIndia’s firm nudge towards philanthropy in the new companies law, which replaces an outdated legislation with more streamlined rules, is being viewed with misgivings by some, but is likely to boost corporate charitable activity in the country. The new law to govern firms doing business in India, which has been approved in Parliament and requires a formal presidential sanction, has for the first time laid down ground rules for corporate social responsibility (CSR). Companies with a net worth of more than Rs.500 crore or revenue of more than Rs.1,000 crore or net profit of more... Read more.. Date : Aug 12 Source: Livemint
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Switch to coal power held back in gas-starved IndiaEssar Power plans to lift coal imports by a fifth after converting plants currently using gas, but the move is unlikely to signal a broader switch to coal by the nation's utilities in response to gas shortages and price reforms. New Delhi in late June approved higher gas prices by pledging to tie prices more closely to market rates to encourage producers to raise output and find supplies. Gas output in India has been declining since April 2010 due to ageing fields and geological issues at a Reliance Industries (RELI.NS)-operated field in the Bay of Bengal, falling 16.7... Read more.. Date : Aug 12 Source: Reuters
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Coal India to spend over $660m to develop overseas assetsState-run Coal India has set aside INR40bn ($660.3m) for capital expenditure this fiscal year to develop overseas assets. The company said in a statement that it looks to develop coal blocks in Mozambique as well as acquire coal assets in other countries outside India. For the Twelfth Five-Year Plan (2012-17) Coal India proposed a capital outlay of INR254bn ($4.19bn), along with an ad hoc amount of INR350bn ($5.7bn) to buy coal blocks abroad as well as develop assets in Mozambique. Mozambique government provided environment permit to Coal India to carry out exploratory... Read more.. Date : Aug 12 Source: Energy Business Review
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India May Decide on Solar Dumping Case Next Week: SIPPAIndia may decide next week whether to impose duties on imports of solar equipment, according to the country’s Solar Independent Power Producers Association lobby. A deadline for submissions to a government study on imports was extended to today, said Jagdish Agarwal, secretary of the group representing project developers opposed to tariffs that would raise building costs. The original deadline was July 25. J.S. Deepak, the Commerce Ministry official overseeing the case, didn’t respond to a call and e-mail seeking confirmation. Indosolar Ltd. (ISLR), Jupiter Solar Power... Read more.. Date : Aug 12 Source: Bloomberg
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Himalayas at risk in hydro dam water grabThe future of the world's most famous mountain-range could be endangered by a vast dam-building project, as a risky regional race for water resources takes place in Asia. New academic research shows that India, Nepal, Bhutan and Pakistan are engaged in a huge "water grab" in the Himalayas, as they seek new sources of electricity to power their economies. Taken together, the countries have plans for more than 400 hydro dams which, if built, could together provide more than 160,000MW of electricity. In addition, China has plans for around 100 dams to generate a similar amount... Read more.. Date : Aug 12 Source: The New Zealand Herald
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Managing resources the 'Disha' wayPitching in their mite to arrest further degradation of biodiversity are residents of 10 villages in Gurupurhobli of Mangaloretaluk, who are managing natural resources available locally. With the supported of Development Initiatives for Sustainable Human Advancement (Disha) Trust, the villagers are practicing natural resource management (NRM) since 2008. The initiative is taken up in collaboration with Anderi Hilfe Bonn, a German-based organization. Date : Aug 12 Source: Times of India
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21-day clean whip for state The Jharkhand State Pollution Control Board today ordered its district offices to seal illegal sand mining and other polluting businesses and submit action reports on them within three weeks, displaying for the first time a willingness to crack down on operators with money and political muscle.
Illegal sand mining apart, the whip covers the entire gamut of illegal stone quarrying, crusher plants, industries, healthcare centres, hotels, vehicle service centres and other business entities running without consent-to-operate certification from the pollution board and... Read more.. Date : Aug 12 Source: Calcutta Telegraph
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Aviation, railways may come under energy norms in IndiaFor the first time in its history, India may see some energy efficiency norms for its aviation sector and possibly railways too. The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) is mulling options to include both aviation and railways, along with a few other large energy-intensive industries, in its second cycle of “Perform, Achieve and Trade' (PAT) scheme set to begin from 2015 onwards. A final decision on whether both aviation and railways would be a part of the scheme would be taken by the beginning of the next financial year. ... Read more..Date : Aug 12 Source: Business Standard
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Only nuclear & solar power can meet India's needs: Dr Anil KakodkarOnly the nuclear and the solar power can meet the mammoth energy requirements of India, former chairman of Atomic Energy Commission Dr Anil Kakodkar said here on Sunday. "If India has to emerge as an economic power then per capita electricity production has to be brought on par with that in the advanced countries," he said. "Today the scenario is such that compared to advanced countries we are 14-15 times behind. The average per capita electricity production in... Read more.. |
'Green zones can prevent landslides in Idukki'Idukki is a classic case where conservation of green zones and large perennial tree growth that can stop soil erosion, mitigating the risks of landslides,'' said MadhavGagdil, the architect of Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP). The WGEEP report had in fact given the top priority to, Idukki, which tops the list of taluks which are in eco sensitive zones1, category. The report recommended that in taluks like Thodupuzha, Udumbanchola, Devikulam and Peermade there need to be a ban on the use of private forest land for non-forest purpose. The report, however, allows extension of... Read more.. Date : Aug 12 Source: Times of India
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India and China Oil Palms DangerouslySoutheast Asia – read Indonesia and Malaysia – are the biggest producers of the oil obtained from the fruit of the oil palm tree, accounting for nearly 85 percent of global output. India and China are its biggest consumers, with Pakistan and Bangladesh emerging as growing markets. As the major buyers, they not only influence price and production, but can also impact the way the oil is produced, currently controversial because of its adverse effect on the environment. ... Read more.. Date : Aug 12 Source: Reuters AlertNet
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India on the cusp of a battery-powered revolutionThis week, the usually staid TIME magazine got poetic with this headline: "EV Market Gets Another Jolt, $5k Price Cut on Chevy Volt". It was just another bit of excitement in a stream of stories from the global electric car market, a stream that totally passed India by. Chevrolet's Volt hybrid had been stagnating. But the new model's $35,000 base price, down $5,000, should change that - and shake up the US car market a bit more. With tax credits, the Volt sedan is down to $27,500, or about Rs.17,00,000. This is not the story of an American car's pricetag. It's the story of... Read more.. Date : Aug 12 Source: Business Standard
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Venezuela delays may mar India's energy security effortsIn what may impact India’s energy security efforts, production from two oilfields in Venezuela’s Orinoco petroleum belt, which was won by local firms in a joint bid, is likely to be delayed. The global grouping that won the bid in 2010 includes Indian Oil Corp. Ltd (IOC), ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL), Oil India Ltd (OIL), Spain’s Repsol YPF SA and Malaysia’s Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas). According to earlier estimates, production from the multi-billion integrated oil project in the Carabobo 1 Norte and Carabobo 1 Centro blocks was to start by June 2014, with an output of 90,000... Read more.. Date : Aug 12 Source: Livemint
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Nip this in the budThe final report of the Supreme Court-appointed Technical Expert Committee (TEC) on field trials of genetically modified crops is packed with revelations on what is wrong with institutional governance and regulation in India when it comes to GMOs (genetically-modified organisms). The report’s release late last month came days before biotech giant Monsanto decided not to submit any further applications for GMOs to the European Union; a decision forced by non-acceptance on scientific grounds and rejection by civil society.... Read more.. Date : Aug 12 Source: The Hindu
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DuPont India turns to 'Power of Shunya' to tap opportunitiesDuPont, a leading global science company, is embarking on a new initiative in India to develop sustainable solutions in collaboration with government, industry and civil society to tap opportunities in one of the fastest growing economies of the world.
Taking inspiration from 'Power of Shunya', the US-based firm is looking at ways on how science powered solutions can help achieve goals such as 'zero hunger', 'zero workplace hazards' or 'zero carbon footprints'.
"The initiative seeks to apply science in collaboration with others to find... Read more.. Date : Aug 11 Source: Economic Times
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Morgan Solar Enters the High-Growth Indian Solar Energy MarketMorgan Solar Inc., a leading developer of Concentrated Photovoltaic (CPV) and intelligent sun-tracking technologies, is hosting a delegation of key government and commercial representatives from India's energy sector today at its Toronto facility. The delegation's aim is to increase technology and knowledge exchange between Canada and India in the area of clean, efficient energy generation and transmission. During the visit, Morgan Solar will showcase its cutting-edge, patented Sun Simba™ CPV module, and the patent-pending Savanna™ dual-axis solar tracker,... Read more.. |
Green agenda on trackThe government has cleared the setting up of a National Institute for Climate Change Studies and Actions, a dedicated think-tank that will undertake and coordinate strategic, economic and scientific studies on the burning topic. The move comes as part of an approval of a new central sector scheme, ‘Climate Change Action Programme’ under the 12 Five-Year Plan. Under the umbrella programme, the government has also cleared a ‘... Read more.. |
Global cleantech industry grows by value and size, despite challenging marketDespite challenging market conditions, the key indicators of population and financial performance of public pure-play (PPP) cleantech companies show signs of improvement according to EY’s annual Cleantech industry performance 2013 report. “We’ve seen a notable upturn in the performance of the 424 public pure-play cleantech companies globally," said Gil Forer, EY’s Global Cleantech Leader. "Despite a challenging period of consolidation in certain cleantech segments, fiscal issues in some countries and the continuing impact of the... Read more.. |
RO water for Delhi slums, resettlement coloniesAbout 8,000-odd residents of SavdaGhevda's slums and resettlement colonies will soon have access to subsidized reverse osmosis (RO) treated water. Delhi Jal Board is setting up a pilot project under which it will provide RO water to the residents for Rs 3-6 per 20 litres. "This area is currently fed through tubewells and tankers. We are often unable to meet the full demand through tankers and would like to replace the system. Under the new project, we will dig one tubewell and treat it through RO. We will then set up kiosks, like... Read more.. |
India to face a shortage of 6.7% in power supply in 2013-14India is likely to face a shortage of 6.7% in power supply for the year 2013-14. States of Southern Region are anticipated to have energy shortage of 19.1% during 2013-14, as per the assessment of demand and supply of power done by Central Electricity Authority (CEA). In order to overcome the shortage of power in the country, the government has taken following measures:
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UP to sign Rs 2,300cr deals for solar powerIn its biggest investment so far, the Samajwadi Party government will enter into agreements worth Rs 2,300 crore with eight firms in the solar power sector on August 8. This will also be the largest investment being brought into UP, after the government instituted the Solar Power Policy 2013. On Thursday, state's New and renewable Energy Development Authority (NEDA) will sign an MoU with the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) for setting up a 100 MW solar power plant in Jalaun. According to the MoU, NHPC will be required to set up a joint-venture within three months.... Read more.. Date : Aug 8 Source: Times of India
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Family Farming: The Key to Alleviating Hunger and PovertyAfter decades of failed attempts to eradicate hunger, development agencies, international research institutions, non-profit organizations, and the funding and donor communities now see family farmers as key to alleviating global poverty and hunger.
Recent estimates show that currently, 1.2 billion people in the world live in extreme poverty, and at least 870 million go to bed hungry every night. As the world gears up for the International Year of Family Farming in 2014, we're working with the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to highlight effective ways... Read more.. Date : Aug 8 Source: Huffington Post
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