Mr Jitender I.P.S at the launch of #dustfreehyderabad campaign

Greenpeace says 1.6 million died due to pollution in India, China in 2015

INDIA Updated: Dec 03, 2016 12:53 IST

PTI 
New Delhi

A Greenpeace report , released on December 2, 2016, said that in India, the air pollution death rate was nearly four times greater than the rate in high-income countries. (Mohd Zakir/HT File Photo )

Around 1.6 million people died in India and China in 2015 due to air pollution caused by fossil fuel, particularly coal, according to a report released on Friday.

“Air pollution due to continued use of fossil fuels, (coal in particular) in both the countries has caused an additional 1.6 million deaths than the projected figure based on the GDP growth rate for the year 2015,” the report by Greenpeace said.

Read | No air to breathe: India beat China in air pollution deaths last year

It said out of the 10 countries with the highest air pollution death rates, half were middle-income countries including India.

“Air pollution generally reduces as a country’s GDP increases. But China and India have particularly bad air pollution despite recent economic growth.

“Although air pollution death rates have fallen in China and India since 1990, they are still worse than in most similar countries. In India, rates have not improved since 2010. Continued use of coal is a major reason for the high air pollution death rates in both countries,” the report said.

In 2015, pollution claimed 138 and 115 lives per 1,00,000 people in India and China respectively, the report said.

According to Global Burden of Diseases (GBD), the actual numbers of deaths in India were about 1.8 million and 1.5 million in China. The expected number of deaths based on GDP in India and China were calculated to be 1.2 million and 5,58,000 respectively.

The report further claimed that in India, the air pollution death rate was nearly four times greater than the rate in high-income countries.

Read | Smog and out of money: A Chinese journo’s cheeky look at Delhi blues

Air pollution is among the top causes of premature death worldwide, causing only slightly fewer deaths than tobacco smoking. In both China and India, indoor air pollution deaths are falling and the rate is now lower than the outdoor air pollution death rate, it said.

The report also underlined the perils of coal power stations.

“One reason coal power stations in India cause particularly large amounts of air pollution is that there are only limited controls on their emissions,” it added.

Delhi Pollution Levels a Death Sentence, Says President Pranab Mukherjee's Doctor

D P Satish | News18.com  dp_satish

First published: November 2, 2016, 1:23 PM IST | Updated: Yesterday

A man rides his bicycle next to Indian soldiers marching in front of India Gate on a smoggy morning in New Delhi.

New Delhi: Delhi's pollution levels are a “death sentence” for the children and the aged, the Indian military’s top doctor and the honorary surgeon to President Pranab Mukherjee, Lt Gen BNBM Prasad, has told News 18.

“The future looks scary,” Lt Gen Prasad, who is the Director General of Armed Forces Hospital Services and a lung specialist by training, told News18 in an unusual intervention on an issue that threatens to define India across the world much like the Great Smog of London in 1952 or the smog in Beijing.

Lt Gen BNBM Prasad during an interactive session/File photo (Courtesy: Sainik School, Kodagu)

“Pollution levels in Delhi have crossed permissible limits long ago. Certain particles have chemicals that can directly go into your blood leading to serious non-respiratory problems. The situation is alarming. Children and the aged people pay for it. It is a death sentence for them,” he said.

Lt Gen Prasad is the Director General of Armed Forces Hospital Services, and heads the hospital services of all the three defence forces. He also serves as the chief doctor to President Pranab Mukherjee.

He felt that school-going children would get affected severely by the pollution as they leave for schools in the early morning.

“It is going to hit them hard. Their immunity level is low. Young bodies can’t take it. It can lead to cough, cold, irritation, numerous respiratory problems at a very young age," he said.

"Delhi NCR has already beaten Beijing in pollution levels. I feel that it is not advisable for the children and the old people to venture out till there is some reduction in the pollution level,” he added.

Prasad said that it reminds him of the infamous London Smog, which finally forced the British government to go on a massive campaign to clean-up its air quality. “The time has come for us to do something similar. The entire national capital is choked. It is leading us to a slow death. Ventilation of the city should be cleaned up. Otherwise it can lead to disastrous consequences in the coming days,” he said.

He said that increasing incidents of cancer is directly linked to pollution levels across Delhi NCR. Prasad said “lot of non-smokers are being detected with lung cancer these days. The number is going up at an alarming rate. What explains this? It is the result of uncontrolled pollution”. He said that the people who spend more time on roads are more vulnerable to this.

Delhi’s deteriorating air quality has been in the news after pollution levels peaked post Diwali celebrations. Emissions from vehicles, road dust fumes from crop stubbles burnt by farmers in neighbouring states, construction debris are the major pollutants in the national capital.

General Prasad warned that air pollution would be the biggest problem in the coming days and India was not fully equipped to handle it. “It is a sad reflection of development. Mere economic growth is not sufficient. It has serious side effects like pollution. It can destroy the public health system if not handled well,” he said.

Talking about the effectiveness of preventive things like masks, air filters etc, top ranking military doctor said that nothing could give full protection. “Masks, filters etc may not be very effective. They don’t work beyond a point. I am really worried about what happens in a year or two,” he said.

Delhi: Pollution gets on government's nerve, Manish Sisodia announces various measures

After Delhi turned into a gas chamber after Diwali, the Delhi government announces a series of measures to tackle air pollution in the city.

Mail Today  | Posted by Yashaswani Sehrawat

New Delhi, November 2, 2016 | UPDATED 12:28 IST

A +A -

Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said vacuum cleaning and sprinkling of water will be done on arterial roads. Also, a team will be constituted focusing on decreasing the dust from construction sites and prohibiting burning of leaves.After Diwali festivities led to a toxic cloud of chemicals and smoke enveloping Delhi, the government announced a raft of measures on Tuesday.

Fireworks pushed pollution in the city to a dangerous level, the worst in three years, with Particulate Matter (PM 10 specifically) going up nine times the permissible limit of 100 ug/m3 on Sunday. Dangerous gases such as Carbon Monoxide, Nitrogen Dioxide and Sulphur Dioxide also shot up substantially.

ISODIA LAYS ROAD MAP TO TACKLE AIR POLLUTION

After a lengthy meeting with concerned departments, Sisodia said a roadmap has been drawn up to tackle air pollution under which the city's 55 crematoriums, including in Lodhi Road and Punjabi Bagh, will be retrofitted with chimneys to treat the smoke before it escapes in air.

A project will be initiated on pilot basis for controlled burning at the landfill sites using piping and venting to reduce uncontrolled toxic emissions at source.

Talks are on with GAIL on obtaining methane gas and covering of landfills with inert material and alum sludge from water treatment plants of Delhi Jal Board (DJB). Sisodia said the PWD has been directed to re-introduce within two weeks vacuum cleaning and sprinkling of water on 1,250 km of roads under the agency.

"The vacuum cleaning of roads was stopped following the monsoon. Jet pressure pump technique will be used for water sprinkling on footpath edges, road bumps and central verges. By doing this, we can control dust particles. In several countries, such technology is being used to curb dust pollution," Delhi deputy chief minister said.

Sisodia said PWD is exploring installation of mist fountain at five important traffic intersections including Mukarba Chowk and Anand Vihar, the most polluted areas of the city.

The PWD is also examining installation of air purifier at traffic intersections. The deputy chief minister said that Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) has been told to strictly carry out regular inspection at construction sites having area more than 20,000 sq metres.

The agency has been also directed to submit a detailed note about dust pollution in construction sites to him. About 90 per cent of dust pollution comes from the construction sites which need to be regulated.

There are 61 major construction sites in Delhi, but there are several small such sites and most of which violate laid down rules.

"Government has decided to make people aware about dust pollution. We will appeal to them to inform it about violations of rules. Swachh Delhi app developed by the urban development department to be also linked with dust complaints from construction sites on which people can complain," he said.

POLLUTION : Prevention is better than postmortem. what were the govt.s doing all these years

Delhi Pollution Levels Soar, Centre Summons 5 Northern States

Press Trust Of India

New Delhi: After a nearly 21-fold increase in pollution levels here on Diwali, the Centre summoned governments of Punjab, Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh over enforcing ban on stubble burning.

The decision comes on a day the Central Pollution Control Board released its report on air quality of Delhi. As per the report, PM 2.5 levels on the day of Diwali (October 30) across each of the 11 pollution monitoring centres were anywhere between a staggering 4 times to 21 times of what they were the week before (October 24). For example, as compared to the previous week, Pitampura recorded 20.63 times higher PM 2.5 levels, while Parivesh Bhavan Centre in East Delhi recorded 11.4 times higher PM 2.5 levels.

The permissible limit for PM 2.5 is 60 micrograms per cubic metre. Pitampura in North Delhi recorded the maximum at 1,238 micrograms per cubic metre on Diwali.

At Janakpuri, PM 2.5 levels were 8.7 times higher and at ITO, PM 2.5 levels were 7.6 times higher.

Similarly, on the day of Diwali PM 10 levels were 1.5-4 times higher as compared to the previous week. For example, PM 10 levels at ITO on Diwali were 4.3 times higher than what they were a week ago.

On this Diwali, as compared to last year, PM 2.5 levels were 2-4.5 times higher and PM 10 levels were 1.5-3 times higher.

The Environment Ministry has attributed the spike in pollution levels to four main factors. "It has been observed that open burning of solid waste in and around Delhi, vehicular emissions in Delhi, dust by the roadside and around construction sites in Delhi and stubble burning of crop residue in neighbouring states of Delhi are major contributors to pollution in Delhi," according to a release by the Ministry.

Accordingly, five states -- Punjab, Harayna, Delhi, UP, Rajasthan -- have been summoned in order to ensure effectiveenforcement of the ban on stubble burning. "The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has summoned the concerned secretaries on 4th November to review the situation and to further deliberate on the strategy to minimise occurrences of open burning in agriculture fields," according to the press statement.

It has also been decided that CPCB will direct local bodies in and around Delhi to check open burning of solid waste and strictly enforce rules related to prevention of gaseous emission from construction activities.

CPCB will also instruct public road owning agencies in Delhi to ensure that roadsides are watered periodically suspension of dust.

Delhi Police, too, will be required to streamline movement of traffic at busy intersections so that pollution due to vehicular emissions is minimised.

the spirit of farmers of an UP village

UP Farmers Build Village Dam Themselves after Waiting for Government Action for 25 Years

 Aditi Patwardhan

 

 October 21, 2016

 

 News, Quick Bytes

---

After waiting for 25 years for the government to build a dam in their village, a group of farmers in UP have finally taken the matter into their own hands and have started building the dam themselves. In Baheri district, the dam that had been built in the British era is in badly damaged condition.  Farmers from over 25 villages in the area have been facing several problems related to irrigation since 1990. However, since there has been no response from the government even after several pleas, the villagers, tired of waiting, have decided to make things happen for themselves.

According to a report in Times of India, the farmers have collected a sum of Rs 70,000 and are constructing a kutcha dam with mud and sand bags, which will be 98 feet long and 20 feet wide when completed.

When contacted by Times of India, the Chief Development Officer (CDO) of the region, S S Awasthi, said, “From the British period to 1990, the district administration used to construct a kutcha dam here every rabi season. This dam would get damaged every year during the monsoon and was remade just before winter. However, the dam construction was stopped after 1990 due to increased input cost. We had sent a proposal to the state government in 2014 for constructing a pucca dam here, but it is still pending.”

“The quality of crops deteriorated as we failed to provide adequate water. We made several requests to the administration and politicians but there was no response,” said Rampal Singh, a farmer from Tehra village.

Things changed when Jaideep Singh Barar, a former MLA and chief of Kisan Kalyan Samiti, persuaded the villagers to construct the dam on their own. The villagers contributed in every way they could.

“When we had met officials earlier, they had told us that we would not be able to make a dam here on our own. But we proved them wrong. After Tehra village, which is nearly 60 km from Bareilly, we will now construct a dam at Khamariya village,” said Barar.

Another farmer, Sukhbir Singh from Naogava village, said, “The dam will now benefit farmers of many villages. Though we have constructed the dam, we want the administration to ensure its safety.”

The CDO said that the district administration will again take up the matter; however, the farmers say they have little reason to expect immediate action.

Mr Jitender I.P.S at the launch of #dustfreehyderabad campaign

good news for Hyderabadis on the water supply front

Water Board to store water in Osmansagar and Himayatsagar to be supplied during summer

With regular inflows into the four main city reservoirs owing to a good spell of rain, Hyderabadis can hope for comfortable drinking water supply for the next two summers.

Against the total level of 1,790 feet and a capacity of 3.9 tmc ft in Osmansagar, the water level touched 1,781.3 feet and 2.2 tmc ft. Himayatsagar received 0.781 tmc ft inflows till Saturday against its capacity of 2.9 tmc ft.

The revival of the two reservoirs has been a good news for Hyderabad Metro Water Supply and Sewerage Board, which has been looking forward to resuming drinking water supply from these reservoirs through gravity. However, with Singur and Manjira almost full too, the Water Board has opted to store water in Osmansagar and Himayatsagar for some more time as there are adequate sources from Godavari and Krishna drinking water supply schemes.

“We are still not drawing water to the full installed capacity from the Godavari and Krishna water schemes. So, we want to store the water in the twin reservoirs for some more time and use during summer,” sources said.

The Singur reservoir has inflows of 29.4 tmc ft as against its total capacity of 29.9 tmc ft, while Manjira has 1.4 tmc ft as against the total capacity of 1.5 tmc ft. The Water board has also stepped up awareness campaign on conserving water so that the city would not feel the pinch even during the summer.

#dustfreehyderabad campaign 2

Today we have  conducted #dustfreehyderabad campaign 2 in association with Walkers Association Sundaraiah Park. GHMC jonal commissioner Mr. Dr. Gaurav Uppal IAS, and corporator Mr.V. Srinivas Reddy were guests to this program. Thanks to all and Special thanks to AURORA COLLEGE STUDENTS.

#dustfreehyderbad campaign launch

we have launched the #dustfreehyderabad campaign with Mr. Jitender I.P.S.,Addl. Commissioner of Police, Traffic presiding over the program. Mr. Chowhan I.P.S., DCP , Traffic along with other senior Police officials graced the occasion & 250 students from various colleges Geetanjali Engg. college, St. Mary's Degree college, Mahbub college, Wesley Degree college & Kasturba Gandhi degree college, have participated.

It has been done outside secunderabad railway station.

Dust make up to 33% air pollution. large amount of dust/mud is accumulated on the road sides. when it rains along with water, it is coming on to the roads. when a vehicle moves on the road this dust is raising in the air, causing lot of inconvenience to all of us.

THIS IS ALSO A MAJOR HEALTH HAZARD CAUSING BREATHING PROBLEMS.

With the help of local community volunteers, we intend to take up the task of making an attempt to make our city dust free.

Interested community groups can call on us.

cities not equipped to handle single day of rain. HOW LONG !

Delhi, Gurugram drown yet again; waterlogging gives commuters a hard time

Last updated on: August 31, 2016 12:30 IST

Traffic in national capital Delhi and adjoining Gurugram went haywire on Wednesday after heavy rains resulted in water-logging in many parts.

The Delhi Police tweeted about the traffic and poor visibility even as commuters continued to have a hard time as vehicular traffic crawled.

In a series of tweets, the Delhi Traffic Police tweeted: "Water logging on Dr Zakir Hussain Marg, W Point, Loha Mandi to Mayapuri, Gol Dak Khana, Kali Bari Marg, Chirag Delhi to Nehru Place flyover."

"Water logging at Alipur Village, Okhla Underpass, Jasola Red Light, Saket M B Road, Saket Metro Station, Lado Sarai T-Point, PTS Red Light."

"Water logging under Modi Mill Flyover, Sadik Nagar, BRT to Moolchand, Lala Lajpat Rai Marg, Nehru Place to Zamrudpur."

"Water logging on Dr Zakir Hussain Marg, W Point, Loha Mandi to Mayapuri, Gol Dak Khana, Kali Bari Marg, Chirag Delhi to Nehru Place flyover."

Puran Kumar, Jt CP, Gurugram said: If it does not rain heavily, traffic is expected to be normal in the next few hours.

US Secretary of State John Kerry's visit to Sisganj Gurudwara, Jama Masjid and Gauri Shankar temple has been cancelled due to the heavy rains, reported ANI. Kerry is on a three-day visit to India.

On Monday, Kerry and his convoy were stuck in massive traffic near Satya Marg due to waterlogging caused by heavy rains while on his way to the hotel from the IGI airport.

The MET department has said that the NCR region is experiencing moderate thunderstorms which will continue for the next few days.

Roads leading to Gurgaon from Vasant Kunj area are completely jammed due to the rains. More jams are also expected across the capital.

Flight operations have also taken a hit with due to bad weather. All flights are delayed at Delhi's IGI airport with one flight being diverted to Jaipur.

Indigo has tweeted that to & fro flights have been affected and delays are expected.

The weather office has forecast thunderstorm with rain through the day. The minimum temperature was recorded at 26 degrees Celsius at 8.30 am.

The city received 3.9 mm of rainfall in the last 24 hours, an official said.

All Photographs: ANI video grabs

WATER IN INDIA & ISRAEL

Israel, a parched land, has transformed itself into a water sufficient nation thanks to an innovative approach to water management. Can India pick up a few tips?

The water scarcity that India is facing even before the onslaught of summers, and the plight of farmer’s in Marathwada have been making headlines every single day. Our water problems have been exacerbated by climate change, rapid development, increasing energy demands and unmindful, extravagant use of this limited resource. To ensure that we have enough water for tomorrow, what we need is more usable water and also better farming methods and policies that aid this initiative. 

Lost Lake, Oregon
Lost Lake lava tube Every winter, a lake appears in Hood County, Oregon, but as the season changes, water drains through a 6-foot wide hole, transforming Lost Lake into a dry meadow. There’s a geological explanation for the bizarre annual occurrence though: The water that drains from the lake like a bathtub flows into a lava tube, a tunnel-like structure formed by flowing lava. Lost Lake is likely constantly draining, but it becomes more evident in drier months when the rate of draining exceeds the the amount of snow and rain. It’s unclear exactly where the water goes when it disappears down the lave tube, but scientist say it’s possible that it seeps into porous volcanic rock and feeds springs in the Cascades.

Karnataka’s worst water problem

  

The state is staring at the worst drinking water crisis in 40 years, the government said on Wednesday. "The inflow into Krishnarajasagar reservoir (KRS) has been very low and this is the worst situation in the Cauvery basin in the last 40 years," said energy minister D K Shivakumar.

 "We require 15tmcft (thousand million cubic feet) of water for drinking till next summer. Currently, we have only 12.68tmcft. It is going to be tough in the coming days if there is no rainfall in the catchment area," he said.

Shivakumar added, "Bengaluru and Mysuru are likely to face a shortage of drinking water because the inflow into the KRS has been very low".

The weatherman has forecast low rainfall in the Cauvery catchment area. Though the initial forecast for the Cauvery catchment area was positive, it was later revised and the probability of rainfall in the next four or five months is low. "We expect an inflow of 15tmcft to 20tmcft into the reservoir, but the demand for water is quite high," Shivakumar said. The reduced inflow has put the state government in a tight spot. "We are concerned about drinking water availa bility but we cannot neglect the water needs of farmers in the Mysur u-Mandya region," Shivakumar said.

"About 50% of the farmers have started agricultural activities in anticipation of water availability and we cannot afford to ignore them. Though water experts have advised us against releasing water for agriculture, we have decid ed to release water for farming into canals till August 30. Release of water will be stopped f rom September 1 to 10. If we have to release water for the next 80 days we will require 40tmcft," he said. The district administration met farmers in Mandya and briefed them on the situation.

 "We have appealed to farmers not to grow water-intensive crops. We have decided to set up a vigilance committee to monitor the type of crops being grown in the Cauvery basin till the crisis eases. Farmers too need to understand the plight of the government and use water judiciously," S hivakumar said.

 The low rainfall has also taken a toll on power generation in the state. "Last year, all electricity companies suffered losses of Rs 2,500 crore because of shortage of hydel power. The situation is grim this year too and we are ready to float a tender for power purchase," he said. Later in the day, the cabinet delved into the water crisis, which may take a serious turn in the coming days. "We expect farmers to irrigating crops in the Krishna and Cauvery basins. The state has been facing a dry spell in the last 15 days and the forecast is not good for the next few weeks," said law minister TB Jayachandra. He said the government is preparing to tackle the water crisis and instructions have been given to use water sparingly for drinking purposes only. Barring Almatti and Narayanpura dams, all other ones are low on water storage, he said.