Ending dependency on fossil fuels and switching to clean energy would create over 15 million new jobs in India by 2025 and nearly two million jobs in G7 countries, said a new report on Wednesday.&nbsp;

The latest report, 'Cutting Bills and Creating Jobs: the economic opportunities of a clean energy transition', published by the We Mean Business Coalition and Cambridge Econometrics, finds that across the G7 nations, policies designed to accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels to net-zero will also create 1.92 million new jobs across the G7 by 2025 as opposed to business as usual.&nbsp;

The report, released just days ahead of the G7 leaders' summit in Berlin, called for phase out of domestic coal-fired power generation by 2030, saying that doing so will save families across G7 countries USD 480 per capita on their total annual energy bills (electricity, natural gas and petrol combined) by the same year.&nbsp;

The Group of Seven or the G7 countries comprise Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.&nbsp;

"The analysis also looked beyond the G7, finding that India would see the creation of over 15 million new jobs by 2025 by switching to cleaner energy," the report said.&nbsp;

Earlier this year, India's Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) had said that the country has achieved its non-fossil fuel-based energy target, something that was to be completed by 2030.&nbsp;

According to the report, shifting to cleaner energy would create 9,00,000 new jobs in the US by 2025 along with a decline in annual energy bills by 25%, or $529, by 2030.&nbsp;

According to the report, in the European Union, household energy bills would be 28% or €409 ($430) lower in 2030 and by 2035 consumers would spend roughly half as much on their energy costs, saving almost €713 ($750) per year, compared to business as usual.&nbsp;

"As many of the world’s major economies experience record increases in gas and electricity bills, inflation, a cost-of-living crisis and more economic shocks expected, the report’s findings offer a clear path for governments to act.&nbsp;

"Setting ambitious climate policies to deliver clean energy will reduce household bills and create more jobs and growth, the report said.&nbsp;

Earlier this year, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) had said that clean energy is one key solution to deploy as fast as possible if the world is to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degree C.&nbsp;

"If governments act now to adopt policies like phasing out coal, increasing energy efficiency and scaling up renewable energy, they will generate savings for households, new jobs and growth," the report said.&nbsp;

Maria Mendiluce, CEO, We Mean Business Coalition said that with heatwaves hitting communities across the world, the climate emergency is more evident than ever.&nbsp;

"People want to see solutions now. This report highlights for the G7 leaders that an accelerated transition to clean energy is achievable.&nbsp;

It can help solve the climate crisis while driving down household costs and bringing more jobs and growth: a huge bonus to businesses and the people they serve and employ.&nbsp;

"To protect the world’s citizens from climate and economic disaster, we urge G7 leaders to implement the policies outlined in this report now," she said.&nbsp;

To accelerate the transition to clean energy, the report called on G7 leaders to commit to achieving fully decarbonized power systems in the G7 by 2035; phase out domestic coal-fired power generation by 2030 and rapidly scale up renewable energy deployment towards achieving 70% of power generation by 2030.&nbsp;

It also asked the G7 nations to commit to 100% sales of zero emissions (ZEVs) by 2035 for new light duty vehicles and increase public spending for energy efficiency, apart from setting out national action plans in 2022 to eliminate all fossil fuel subsidies by 2025.&nbsp;

It also suggested putting a meaningful price on carbon starting in 2022.&nbsp;

Ending dependency on fossil fuels and switching to clean energy would create over 15 million new jobs in India by 2025 and nearly two million jobs in G7 countries, said a new report on Wednesday.

Ending dependency on fossil fuels and switching to clean energy would create over 15 million new jobs in India by 2025 and nearly two million jobs in G7 countries, said a new report on Wednesday. The latest report, 'Cutting Bills and Creating Jobs: the economic opportunities of a clean energy transition', published by the We Mean Business Coalition and Cambridge Econometrics, finds that across the G7 nations, policies designed to accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels to net-zero will also create 1.92 million new jobs across the G7 by 2025 as opposed to business as usual. The report, released just days ahead of the G7 leaders' summit in Berlin, called for phase out of domestic coal-fired power generation by 2030, saying that doing so will save families across G7 countries USD 480 per capita on their total annual energy bills (electricity, natural gas and petrol combined) by the same year. The Group of Seven or the G7 countries comprise Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States. "The analysis also looked beyond the G7, finding that India would see the creation of over 15 million new jobs by 2025 by switching to cleaner energy," the report said. Earlier this year, India's Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) had said that the country has achieved its non-fossil fuel-based energy target, something that was to be completed by 2030. According to the report, shifting to cleaner energy would create 9,00,000 new jobs in the US by 2025 along with a decline in annual energy bills by 25%, or $529, by 2030. According to the report, in the European Union, household energy bills would be 28% or €409 ($430) lower in 2030 and by 2035 consumers would spend roughly half as much on their energy costs, saving almost €713 ($750) per year, compared to business as usual. "As many of the world’s major economies experience record increases in gas and electricity bills, inflation, a cost-of-living crisis and more economic shocks expected, the report’s findings offer a clear path for governments to act. "Setting ambitious climate policies to deliver clean energy will reduce household bills and create more jobs and growth, the report said. Earlier this year, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) had said that clean energy is one key solution to deploy as fast as possible if the world is to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degree C. "If governments act now to adopt policies like phasing out coal, increasing energy efficiency and scaling up renewable energy, they will generate savings for households, new jobs and growth," the report said. Maria Mendiluce, CEO, We Mean Business Coalition said that with heatwaves hitting communities across the world, the climate emergency is more evident than ever. "People want to see solutions now. This report highlights for the G7 leaders that an accelerated transition to clean energy is achievable. It can help solve the climate crisis while driving down household costs and bringing more jobs and growth: a huge bonus to businesses and the people they serve and employ. "To protect the world’s citizens from climate and economic disaster, we urge G7 leaders to implement the policies outlined in this report now," she said. To accelerate the transition to clean energy, the report called on G7 leaders to commit to achieving fully decarbonized power systems in the G7 by 2035; phase out domestic coal-fired power generation by 2030 and rapidly scale up renewable energy deployment towards achieving 70% of power generation by 2030. It also asked the G7 nations to commit to 100% sales of zero emissions (ZEVs) by 2035 for new light duty vehicles and increase public spending for energy efficiency, apart from setting out national action plans in 2022 to eliminate all fossil fuel subsidies by 2025. It also suggested putting a meaningful price on carbon starting in 2022.

Rapid switch to clean energy would create over 15 million new jobs in India: Report

After being ranked at the bottom of the Environment Performance Index (EPI), India has rebutted the findings of the analysis saying its indicators are "extrapolated" and based on "unfounded assumptions".

In a statement issued on Wednesday, India's Environment Ministry said the country does not accept the EPI analysis as "some of these indicators used for assessing performance are extrapolated and based on surmises and unscientific methods."

The EPI is an analysis by researchers of Yale and Columbia University which provides a data-driven summary of the state of sustainability around the world.

India ranked at the bottom with a total score of 18.9, while Denmark was the top scorer as the world’s most sustainable country.

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Rejecting the findings, the environment ministry, said that India has already achieved the target of 40 percent of installed electricity capacity from non- fossil fuel-based sources.

"No indicator talks about the renewable energy, energy efficiency and process optimization. The selection of indicators is biased and incomplete," the ministry said.

Noting that the EPI has a new indicator in the Climate Policy objective which is 'Projected GHG Emissions levels in 2050', the Indian ministry said that "it is computed based on average rate of change in emission of the last 10 years instead of modelling that takes into account a longer time period, extent of renewable energy capacity and use, additional carbon sinks, energy efficiency etc. of respective countries."

It said that both forests and wetlands of the country are crucial carbon sinks which have not been factored in while computing the projected GHG emissions trajectory up to 2050 given by EPI 2022.

"Historical data on the lowest emission trajectory has been ignored in the above computation. The weight of indictors in which the country was performing well has been reduced and reasons for change in assignment of weights has not been explained in the report," India said.

The ministry said that the principle of equity is given very low weightage in the form of the indicators like GHG emission per capita and GHG emission intensity trend.

The CBDR-RC (Common But Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities) principle is also barely reflected in the composition of the index, India said.

"The indicators on water quality, water use efficiency, waste generation per capita which are closely linked to sustainable consumption and production are not included in the Index," the ministry said. 
Pointing out the flaws in the analysis, India said that the Index emphasizes the extent of Protected Areas rather than the quality of protection that they afford.

"Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Protected areas and eco-sensitive regions is not factored into the computation of Biodiversity Indices.

"Again, the index computes extent of ecosystems but not their condition or productivity. Efforts must be made to include metrics that truly capture ecosystem productivity such that regulatory, provisioning as well as cultural services provided by various ecosystems like forests, wetlands, croplands are assessed and reflected in performance," it said.

It also pointed out that indicators like agro-biodiversity, soil health, food loss and waste are not included even though they are important for developing countries with large agrarian populations.

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"India is party to Paris Agreement and has given a goal of NET ZERO by 2070 and hence comparing it to countries with projected 2050 emissions level in 2050 equal to or below zero receiving the maximum score is against the principle of Equity as enshrined in CBDR-RC," the ministry said.

Using 40 performance indicators across 11 issue categories, the EPI ranks 180 countries on climate change performance, environmental health and ecosystem vitality. These indicators provide a gauge at a national scale of how close the countries are to established environmental policy targets.

The United States placed at the 20th spot of the 22 wealthy democracies in the global west and 43rd overall.

The lowest scores went to India (18.9), Myanmar (19.4), Vietnam (20.1), Bangladesh (23.1) and Pakistan (24.6).

Most low-scoring countries are those that have prioritized economic growth over sustainability, or those that are struggling with civil unrest and other crises. India, with increasingly dangerous air quality and rapidly rising greenhouse gas emissions, falls to the bottom of rankings for the first time, the report read. 
China is placed 161st, with an overall EPI score of 28.4.

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After being ranked at the bottom of the Environment Performance Index (EPI), India has rebutted the findings of the analysis saying its indicators are "extrapolated" and based on "unfounded assumptions".

After being ranked at the bottom of the Environment Performance Index (EPI), India has rebutted the findings of the analysis saying its indicators are "extrapolated" and based on "unfounded assumptions". In a statement issued on Wednesday, India's Environment Ministry said the country does not accept the EPI analysis as "some of these indicators used for assessing performance are extrapolated and based on surmises and unscientific methods." The EPI is an analysis by researchers of Yale and Columbia University which provides a data-driven summary of the state of sustainability around the world. India ranked at the bottom with a total score of 18.9, while Denmark was the top scorer as the world’s most sustainable country. Also read | Germany: One dead, eight injured as car drives into a crowd in Berlin Rejecting the findings, the environment ministry, said that India has already achieved the target of 40 percent of installed electricity capacity from non- fossil fuel-based sources. "No indicator talks about the renewable energy, energy efficiency and process optimization. The selection of indicators is biased and incomplete," the ministry said. Noting that the EPI has a new indicator in the Climate Policy objective which is 'Projected GHG Emissions levels in 2050', the Indian ministry said that "it is computed based on average rate of change in emission of the last 10 years instead of modelling that takes into account a longer time period, extent of renewable energy capacity and use, additional carbon sinks, energy efficiency etc. of respective countries." It said that both forests and wetlands of the country are crucial carbon sinks which have not been factored in while computing the projected GHG emissions trajectory up to 2050 given by EPI 2022. "Historical data on the lowest emission trajectory has been ignored in the above computation. The weight of indictors in which the country was performing well has been reduced and reasons for change in assignment of weights has not been explained in the report," India said. The ministry said that the principle of equity is given very low weightage in the form of the indicators like GHG emission per capita and GHG emission intensity trend. The CBDR-RC (Common But Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities) principle is also barely reflected in the composition of the index, India said. "The indicators on water quality, water use efficiency, waste generation per capita which are closely linked to sustainable consumption and production are not included in the Index," the ministry said. Pointing out the flaws in the analysis, India said that the Index emphasizes the extent of Protected Areas rather than the quality of protection that they afford. "Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Protected areas and eco-sensitive regions is not factored into the computation of Biodiversity Indices. "Again, the index computes extent of ecosystems but not their condition or productivity. Efforts must be made to include metrics that truly capture ecosystem productivity such that regulatory, provisioning as well as cultural services provided by various ecosystems like forests, wetlands, croplands are assessed and reflected in performance," it said. It also pointed out that indicators like agro-biodiversity, soil health, food loss and waste are not included even though they are important for developing countries with large agrarian populations. Also read | Pak announces austerity measures as soaring energy cost, inflation bites hard "India is party to Paris Agreement and has given a goal of NET ZERO by 2070 and hence comparing it to countries with projected 2050 emissions level in 2050 equal to or below zero receiving the maximum score is against the principle of Equity as enshrined in CBDR-RC," the ministry said. Using 40 performance indicators across 11 issue categories, the EPI ranks 180 countries on climate change performance, environmental health and ecosystem vitality. These indicators provide a gauge at a national scale of how close the countries are to established environmental policy targets. The United States placed at the 20th spot of the 22 wealthy democracies in the global west and 43rd overall. The lowest scores went to India (18.9), Myanmar (19.4), Vietnam (20.1), Bangladesh (23.1) and Pakistan (24.6). Most low-scoring countries are those that have prioritized economic growth over sustainability, or those that are struggling with civil unrest and other crises. India, with increasingly dangerous air quality and rapidly rising greenhouse gas emissions, falls to the bottom of rankings for the first time, the report read. China is placed 161st, with an overall EPI score of 28.4. WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

India rebuts Environment Performance Index 2022 findings, says indicators are 'extrapolated'

India is the fourth worst-hit when it comes to climate change-induced migration, with more than three&nbsp;million people forced to leave their homes in 2020-2021, the latest report said.&nbsp;

According to the 'State of India's Environment-2022' report, maximum migrations took place in China with more than five million people driven out of their homes due to weather-related disasters. 
Following China, the Philippines and Bangladesh recorded over four million climate change-induced displacements, the report said.&nbsp;

The report found that climate was a bigger problem compared to conflicts and violence as the number of people displaced due to the former was much higher than the latter.&nbsp;

It said that more than 40 million people were forced to migrate across the globe in 2020, out of which 30.7 million migrated due to climatic events like floods, droughts, storms, cyclones, landslides, extreme temperatures and other such events while 9.8 million people were displaced due to conflicts and violence.&nbsp;

Floods and storms in the regions of East Asia, the Pacific and South Asia triggered the most disaster-related displacements, the report said.&nbsp;

In a startling revelation, the report said that nearly 143 million people, which is a little more than the population of India's state of Maharashtra, could be moving within their own countries in the next 30 years because of adverse climate impacts.&nbsp;

It said that 44 million additional people will be forced to migrate due to droughts in 2059, compared with the 2000–2015 period.

Scientists said that by 2020, new internal displacements took place across 42 countries due to conflict and violence and 144 countries due to disasters.&nbsp;

"Human migration and mobility are age-old phenomena, but their triggers are fast changing due to deteriorating environment and ecosystems. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the world saw large-scale displacements triggered by climate and weather events in 2020 and 2021," the report said.&nbsp;

While coastal states of India are seeing a rapid increase in floods and cyclones brought on by the impacts of climate change, interior regions see slower effects such as droughts.&nbsp;

As a whole, the country is at severe risk to climate change, says the Indian government’s Climate Vulnerability Index in 2019-20.

The growing threat of climate change impacts also increases the instances of displacement and migration, making people more vulnerable to trafficking, the report said.&nbsp;

India's states of Bihar, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal are seeing frequent extreme weather events as well as high numbers of trafficking cases, the report said.&nbsp;

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India is the fourth worst-hit when it comes to climate change-induced migration, with more than three million people forced to leave their homes in 2020-2021, the latest report said.

India is the fourth worst-hit when it comes to climate change-induced migration, with more than three million people forced to leave their homes in 2020-2021, the latest report said. According to the 'State of India's Environment-2022' report, maximum migrations took place in China with more than five million people driven out of their homes due to weather-related disasters. Following China, the Philippines and Bangladesh recorded over four million climate change-induced displacements, the report said. The report found that climate was a bigger problem compared to conflicts and violence as the number of people displaced due to the former was much higher than the latter. It said that more than 40 million people were forced to migrate across the globe in 2020, out of which 30.7 million migrated due to climatic events like floods, droughts, storms, cyclones, landslides, extreme temperatures and other such events while 9.8 million people were displaced due to conflicts and violence. Floods and storms in the regions of East Asia, the Pacific and South Asia triggered the most disaster-related displacements, the report said. In a startling revelation, the report said that nearly 143 million people, which is a little more than the population of India's state of Maharashtra, could be moving within their own countries in the next 30 years because of adverse climate impacts. It said that 44 million additional people will be forced to migrate due to droughts in 2059, compared with the 2000–2015 period. Scientists said that by 2020, new internal displacements took place across 42 countries due to conflict and violence and 144 countries due to disasters. "Human migration and mobility are age-old phenomena, but their triggers are fast changing due to deteriorating environment and ecosystems. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the world saw large-scale displacements triggered by climate and weather events in 2020 and 2021," the report said. While coastal states of India are seeing a rapid increase in floods and cyclones brought on by the impacts of climate change, interior regions see slower effects such as droughts. As a whole, the country is at severe risk to climate change, says the Indian government’s Climate Vulnerability Index in 2019-20. The growing threat of climate change impacts also increases the instances of displacement and migration, making people more vulnerable to trafficking, the report said. India's states of Bihar, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal are seeing frequent extreme weather events as well as high numbers of trafficking cases, the report said. WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

India is fourth worst-hit when it comes to climate change-induced migration: Report

For the first time in India, a liquid mirror telescope facility atop a mountain in the Himalayan range will keep a watch on the overhead sky to identify transient or variable objects such as supernovae, gravitational lenses, space debris, and asteroids.&nbsp;

It is a first in India and the largest in Asia, said India's Ministry of Science and Technology on Thursday.&nbsp;

The telescope is commissioned at Devasthal, a hill in India's northern state, Uttarakhand, and will help in surveying the sky making it possible to observe several galaxies and other astronomical sources just by staring at the strip of sky that passes overhead.&nbsp;

Built by astronomers from India, Belgium and Canada, the novel instrument employs a 4-meter-diameter rotating mirror made up of a thin film of liquid mercury to collect and focus light, the Indian ministry said.&nbsp;

It is located at an altitude of 2450 meters at the Devasthal Observatory campus of Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES), an autonomous institute under the Department of Science and Technology (DST) situated in Nainital district, Uttarakhand.&nbsp;

"The scientists from the three countries spun a pool of mercury which is a reflective liquid, so that the surface curved into a parabolic shape which is ideal for focusing light," the ministry said.&nbsp;

Explaining how the telescope functions, the ministry said that a thin transparent film of mylar protects the mercury from wind.&nbsp;

"The reflected light passes through a sophisticated multi-lens optical corrector that produces sharp images over a wide field of view. A large-format electronic camera located at the focus records the images," it said.&nbsp;

Professor Paul Hickson (University of British Columbia, Canada), an expert on liquid mirror technology, said that "the rotation of the earth causes the images to drift across the camera, but this motion is compensated electronically by the camera. This mode of operation increases observing efficiency and makes the telescope particularly sensitive to faint and diffuse objects."&nbsp;

Liquid mirror telescope or ILMT is the first such telescope designed exclusively for astronomical observations installed at the Devasthal Observatory of ARIES, said Dipankar Banerjee, Director, ARIES.&nbsp;

Banerjee mentioned that Devasthal Observatory now hosts two four-meter class telescopes – the ILMT and the Devasthal Optical Telescope (DOT).&nbsp;

"Both are the largest aperture telescopes available in the country," he said, adding that he was enthusiastic about the application of Big Data and Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning (AI/ML) algorithms that will be implemented for classifying the objects observed with the ILMT.&nbsp;

"I am hopeful that this project will attract and motivate several young minds from scientific and engineering backgrounds to take up challenging problems," he said.&nbsp;

Project investigator of ILMT, Kuntal Misra said that the wealth of data generated with the ILMT survey will be exemplary.&nbsp;

"In the future, several young researchers will be working on different science programs utilizing the ILMT data," he said.&nbsp;

Scientists said that when regular science operations begin later this year, the ILMT will produce about 10 GB of data every night, which will be quickly analyzed to reveal variable and transient stellar sources.&nbsp;

The 3.6-meter DOT, with the availability of sophisticated back-end instruments, will allow rapid follow-up observations of the newly-detected transient sources with the adjacent ILMT.&nbsp;

"The data collected from ILMT will be ideally suited to perform a deep photometric and astrometric variability survey over a period of typically 5 years,” said Project Director Jean Surdej (University of Liège, Belgium and University of Poznan, Poland).&nbsp;

The ILMT collaboration includes researchers from ARIES in India, the University of Liège and the Royal Observatory of Belgium in Belgium, Poznan Observatory in Poland, the Ulugh Beg Astronomical Institute of the Uzbek Academy of Sciences and National University of Uzbekistan in Uzbekistan, the University of British Columbia, Laval University, the University of Montreal, the University of Toronto, York University and the University of Victoria in Canada.&nbsp;

The telescope was designed and built by the Advanced Mechanical and Optical Systems (AMOS) Corporation and the Centre Spatial de Liège in Belgium.&nbsp;

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For the first time in India, a liquid mirror telescope facility atop a mountain in the Himalayan range will keep a watch on the overhead sky to identify transient or variable objects such as supernovae, gravitational lenses, space debris, and asteroids.

For the first time in India, a liquid mirror telescope facility atop a mountain in the Himalayan range will keep a watch on the overhead sky to identify transient or variable objects such as supernovae, gravitational lenses, space debris, and asteroids. It is a first in India and the largest in Asia, said India's Ministry of Science and Technology on Thursday. The telescope is commissioned at Devasthal, a hill in India's northern state, Uttarakhand, and will help in surveying the sky making it possible to observe several galaxies and other astronomical sources just by staring at the strip of sky that passes overhead. Built by astronomers from India, Belgium and Canada, the novel instrument employs a 4-meter-diameter rotating mirror made up of a thin film of liquid mercury to collect and focus light, the Indian ministry said. It is located at an altitude of 2450 meters at the Devasthal Observatory campus of Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES), an autonomous institute under the Department of Science and Technology (DST) situated in Nainital district, Uttarakhand. "The scientists from the three countries spun a pool of mercury which is a reflective liquid, so that the surface curved into a parabolic shape which is ideal for focusing light," the ministry said. Explaining how the telescope functions, the ministry said that a thin transparent film of mylar protects the mercury from wind. "The reflected light passes through a sophisticated multi-lens optical corrector that produces sharp images over a wide field of view. A large-format electronic camera located at the focus records the images," it said. Professor Paul Hickson (University of British Columbia, Canada), an expert on liquid mirror technology, said that "the rotation of the earth causes the images to drift across the camera, but this motion is compensated electronically by the camera. This mode of operation increases observing efficiency and makes the telescope particularly sensitive to faint and diffuse objects." Liquid mirror telescope or ILMT is the first such telescope designed exclusively for astronomical observations installed at the Devasthal Observatory of ARIES, said Dipankar Banerjee, Director, ARIES. Banerjee mentioned that Devasthal Observatory now hosts two four-meter class telescopes – the ILMT and the Devasthal Optical Telescope (DOT). "Both are the largest aperture telescopes available in the country," he said, adding that he was enthusiastic about the application of Big Data and Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning (AI/ML) algorithms that will be implemented for classifying the objects observed with the ILMT. "I am hopeful that this project will attract and motivate several young minds from scientific and engineering backgrounds to take up challenging problems," he said. Project investigator of ILMT, Kuntal Misra said that the wealth of data generated with the ILMT survey will be exemplary. "In the future, several young researchers will be working on different science programs utilizing the ILMT data," he said. Scientists said that when regular science operations begin later this year, the ILMT will produce about 10 GB of data every night, which will be quickly analyzed to reveal variable and transient stellar sources. The 3.6-meter DOT, with the availability of sophisticated back-end instruments, will allow rapid follow-up observations of the newly-detected transient sources with the adjacent ILMT. "The data collected from ILMT will be ideally suited to perform a deep photometric and astrometric variability survey over a period of typically 5 years,” said Project Director Jean Surdej (University of Liège, Belgium and University of Poznan, Poland). The ILMT collaboration includes researchers from ARIES in India, the University of Liège and the Royal Observatory of Belgium in Belgium, Poznan Observatory in Poland, the Ulugh Beg Astronomical Institute of the Uzbek Academy of Sciences and National University of Uzbekistan in Uzbekistan, the University of British Columbia, Laval University, the University of Montreal, the University of Toronto, York University and the University of Victoria in Canada. The telescope was designed and built by the Advanced Mechanical and Optical Systems (AMOS) Corporation and the Centre Spatial de Liège in Belgium. WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

Liquid mirror telescope atop the Himalayas. Read its significance and how it functions

More than 70 percent of river monitoring stations in India have alarming levels of heavy toxic metals like iron and nickel, a latest report said on Thursday.

The 'State of India's Environment -2022' report revealed that 40 percent of the river monitoring stations have high levels of total coliform and 15 percent have biochemical oxygen demand beyond permissible limits, which indicate poor wastewater treatment from industry, agriculture and domestic households.

The report, released ahead of World Environment Day to be celebrated on June 5, said that more than a third of India's coastline, spread across 6,907 km, witnessed soil erosion between 1990 and 2018 due to rise in sea level and anthropogenic activities.

India has almost 30 percent of its geographical area under degradation, triggered by various factors which include climate change.

The soil health remains deficient in several key macro and micro-nutrients that are key for sustainable agriculture, it said.

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It warned that while the cost of cultivation has increased, the income from it has gown down.

The cost of cultivation has increased by almost 35 percent between 2012-13 and 2018-19, but the share of income from cultivation in an agricultural household has diminished from 48 percent in 2012-13 to 37 percent in 2018-19, it said.

"At the same time, half of all agricultural households are under debt. As per government data, on an average, at least 29 farmers and farm labourers commit suicide in the country daily," the report said.

Scientists said that forest cover in 244 out of 638 assessed districts across India's 27 states and five union territories has shrunk between 2019 and 2021.

By 2050, the entire forest cover might become a climate hotspot, it said.

The report, prepared by India's environmental think tank Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), made some startling revelations on the various environmental issues in India.

India witnessed an unprecedented heatwave this year, as in impact of climate change, which caused massive crop damage and deaths. &nbsp;

In 2022, India recorded its hottest March. This triggered an early onslaught of heatwaves.

As per the report, the country reported 280 heatwave days between March 11 and May 18, the highest in the past 10 years. This is almost double of what the country experienced in 2012, the second highest heatwave year in the past decade.

Climate triggers more internal displacements than conflicts in the world now and India is the fourth worst hit after China, the Philippines and Bangladesh.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/oil-slides-on-report-of-saudi-arabia-ready-to-pump-more-if-russian-output-sinks-484383" hreflang="en">Oil slides on report of Saudi Arabia ready to pump more if Russian output sink</a>

It said that more than 1.7 million Indians die due to diseases attributable to unhealthy diet and that 71 percent of the country's population cannot afford a healthy diet.

The report said that only five large states in India which are Telangana, Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, and two small states -Mizoram and Telangana- show good overall performance in Health Index that looks at key health indicators and existing infrastructure.

In the energy sector, the report said that one-third of all carbon emissions come from burning coal, making it the single largest contributor to climate change in the world. India has the world's second largest operational coal plants capacity, after China.

"By 2050, the world must reduce its GHG emissions from coal by 99 per cent to restrict the temperature rise to 1.5 degree C by 2100," it said.

India recycled 12 percent and burnt 20 percent of the 3.5 million tonnes of plastic waste it generated in 2019-20, the report said, adding that there is no information on the remaining 68 percent of plastic waste, which most likely ends up in dumpsites and landfills.

The report said that reducing air pollution to meet the World Health Organization's levels would add 2.2 years to global life expectancy and in India, the life expectancy will go up by 5.9 years if the country meets the WHO levels of PM2.5.

In the last 50 years since the Stockholm conference in 1972 started a global debate around environment, the world has seen a 38-fold increase in environmental laws but the condition of the planet continues to worsen, a latest report said on Thursday.

The 'State of India's Environment -2022' report released ahead of World Environment Day to be celebrated on June 5, revealed that India's performance on climate action slipped between 2019 and 2020.

Globally, the report said that annual CO2 emissions have reached 36.7 billion tonnes, which is more than double of what was emitted in 1972 and it will have an impact on the planet's health and biodiversity in the next 50 years, unless corrective measures are fast-tracked.

It warned that with eight years left to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030, under the United Nations, India’s preparedness remains far from satisfactory.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, was adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015, which provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future.

There are 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are an urgent call for action by all countries - developed and developing - in a global partnership.

It said that India has identified 295 primary indicators, but it is monitoring only 115 of these.

Performance of all the states and union territories remains poor in the 13th SDG which is climate action.

"In essence, India is not even monitoring progress on 61 per cent of its indicators. For instance, there are 41 indicators identified under SDG 8, which deals with sustained and inclusive economic growth and productive employment. India monitors just nine of them. It is silent on crucial indicators such as the growth of registered micro, small and medium-sized enterprises," the report said.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/pak-will-break-into-pieces-ex-pm-khan-warns-of-civil-war-if-polls-not-announced-484372" hreflang="en">Pak could split into 3 parts &amp; also lose nuclear deterrent capabilities: Khan</a>

There are 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are an urgent call for action by all countries - developed and developing - in a global partnership.

The report, prepared by India's environmental think tank Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), made some startling revelations on the various environmental issues in India.

It said that India has identified 295 primary indicators, but it is monitoring only 115 of these.

Performance of all the states and union territories remains poor in the 13th SDG which is climate action. 
"In essence, India is not even monitoring progress on 61 per cent of its indicators. For instance, there are 41 indicators identified under SDG 8, which deals with sustained and inclusive economic growth and productive employment. India monitors just nine of them. It is silent on crucial indicators such as the growth of registered micro, small and medium-sized enterprises," the report said.

India witnessed an unprecedented heatwave this year, as in impact of climate change, which caused massive crop damage and deaths. &nbsp;

In 2022, India recorded its hottest March. This triggered an early onslaught of heatwaves. The country reported 280 heatwave days between March 11 and May 18, the highest in the past 10 years. This is almost double of what the country experienced in 2012, the second highest heatwave year in the past decade.

According to the report, 74 percent of river monitoring stations in India have alarming levels of heavy toxic metals like iron and nickel.

40 percent of the stations have high levels of total coliform, and 15 percent have biochemical oxygen demand beyond permissible limits, which indicate poor wastewater treatment from industry, agriculture and domestic households.

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More than 70 percent of river monitoring stations in India have alarming levels of heavy toxic metals like iron and nickel, a latest report said on Thursday. The 'State of India's Environment -2022' report revealed that 40 percent of the river monitoring stations have high levels of total coliform and 15 percent have biochemical oxygen demand beyond permissible limits, which indicate poor wastewater treatment from industry, agriculture and domestic households.

More than 70 percent of river monitoring stations in India have alarming levels of heavy toxic metals like iron and nickel, a latest report said on Thursday. The 'State of India's Environment -2022' report revealed that 40 percent of the river monitoring stations have high levels of total coliform and 15 percent have biochemical oxygen demand beyond permissible limits, which indicate poor wastewater treatment from industry, agriculture and domestic households. The report, released ahead of World Environment Day to be celebrated on June 5, said that more than a third of India's coastline, spread across 6,907 km, witnessed soil erosion between 1990 and 2018 due to rise in sea level and anthropogenic activities. India has almost 30 percent of its geographical area under degradation, triggered by various factors which include climate change. The soil health remains deficient in several key macro and micro-nutrients that are key for sustainable agriculture, it said. Also read | New York mass shooting: Suspect is indicted on a domestic terrorism charge It warned that while the cost of cultivation has increased, the income from it has gown down. The cost of cultivation has increased by almost 35 percent between 2012-13 and 2018-19, but the share of income from cultivation in an agricultural household has diminished from 48 percent in 2012-13 to 37 percent in 2018-19, it said. "At the same time, half of all agricultural households are under debt. As per government data, on an average, at least 29 farmers and farm labourers commit suicide in the country daily," the report said. Scientists said that forest cover in 244 out of 638 assessed districts across India's 27 states and five union territories has shrunk between 2019 and 2021. By 2050, the entire forest cover might become a climate hotspot, it said. The report, prepared by India's environmental think tank Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), made some startling revelations on the various environmental issues in India. India witnessed an unprecedented heatwave this year, as in impact of climate change, which caused massive crop damage and deaths. In 2022, India recorded its hottest March. This triggered an early onslaught of heatwaves. As per the report, the country reported 280 heatwave days between March 11 and May 18, the highest in the past 10 years. This is almost double of what the country experienced in 2012, the second highest heatwave year in the past decade. Climate triggers more internal displacements than conflicts in the world now and India is the fourth worst hit after China, the Philippines and Bangladesh. Also read | Oil slides on report of Saudi Arabia ready to pump more if Russian output sink It said that more than 1.7 million Indians die due to diseases attributable to unhealthy diet and that 71 percent of the country's population cannot afford a healthy diet. The report said that only five large states in India which are Telangana, Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, and two small states -Mizoram and Telangana- show good overall performance in Health Index that looks at key health indicators and existing infrastructure. In the energy sector, the report said that one-third of all carbon emissions come from burning coal, making it the single largest contributor to climate change in the world. India has the world's second largest operational coal plants capacity, after China. "By 2050, the world must reduce its GHG emissions from coal by 99 per cent to restrict the temperature rise to 1.5 degree C by 2100," it said. India recycled 12 percent and burnt 20 percent of the 3.5 million tonnes of plastic waste it generated in 2019-20, the report said, adding that there is no information on the remaining 68 percent of plastic waste, which most likely ends up in dumpsites and landfills. The report said that reducing air pollution to meet the World Health Organization's levels would add 2.2 years to global life expectancy and in India, the life expectancy will go up by 5.9 years if the country meets the WHO levels of PM2.5. In the last 50 years since the Stockholm conference in 1972 started a global debate around environment, the world has seen a 38-fold increase in environmental laws but the condition of the planet continues to worsen, a latest report said on Thursday. The 'State of India's Environment -2022' report released ahead of World Environment Day to be celebrated on June 5, revealed that India's performance on climate action slipped between 2019 and 2020. Globally, the report said that annual CO2 emissions have reached 36.7 billion tonnes, which is more than double of what was emitted in 1972 and it will have an impact on the planet's health and biodiversity in the next 50 years, unless corrective measures are fast-tracked. It warned that with eight years left to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030, under the United Nations, India’s preparedness remains far from satisfactory. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, was adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015, which provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future. There are 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are an urgent call for action by all countries - developed and developing - in a global partnership. It said that India has identified 295 primary indicators, but it is monitoring only 115 of these. Performance of all the states and union territories remains poor in the 13th SDG which is climate action. "In essence, India is not even monitoring progress on 61 per cent of its indicators. For instance, there are 41 indicators identified under SDG 8, which deals with sustained and inclusive economic growth and productive employment. India monitors just nine of them. It is silent on crucial indicators such as the growth of registered micro, small and medium-sized enterprises," the report said. Also read | Pak could split into 3 parts & also lose nuclear deterrent capabilities: Khan There are 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are an urgent call for action by all countries - developed and developing - in a global partnership. The report, prepared by India's environmental think tank Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), made some startling revelations on the various environmental issues in India. It said that India has identified 295 primary indicators, but it is monitoring only 115 of these. Performance of all the states and union territories remains poor in the 13th SDG which is climate action. "In essence, India is not even monitoring progress on 61 per cent of its indicators. For instance, there are 41 indicators identified under SDG 8, which deals with sustained and inclusive economic growth and productive employment. India monitors just nine of them. It is silent on crucial indicators such as the growth of registered micro, small and medium-sized enterprises," the report said. India witnessed an unprecedented heatwave this year, as in impact of climate change, which caused massive crop damage and deaths. In 2022, India recorded its hottest March. This triggered an early onslaught of heatwaves. The country reported 280 heatwave days between March 11 and May 18, the highest in the past 10 years. This is almost double of what the country experienced in 2012, the second highest heatwave year in the past decade. According to the report, 74 percent of river monitoring stations in India have alarming levels of heavy toxic metals like iron and nickel. 40 percent of the stations have high levels of total coliform, and 15 percent have biochemical oxygen demand beyond permissible limits, which indicate poor wastewater treatment from industry, agriculture and domestic households. WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

India's performance on climate action slipped between 2019 and 2020: Report

India, where not even 50 per cent women use disposable sanitary napkins, annually generates around 3.37 lakh tonnes of waste from sanitary napkins and baby diapers.

The report "Sanitary Waste Management in India: Challenges and Agenda" released by India's environmental think tank Centre for Science and Environment estimates that India’s consolidated daily generation of sanitary napkins and baby diaper waste, is approximately 925 tonnes, which accounts for 0.65 per cent of total solid waste.

If adult diapers, tampons, condoms, incontinence sheets, and similar waste, are added to the 0.65 per cent mentioned above, it may go up to 4 percent of the total solid waste generated in India, which is 141,000 tonnes per day.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/ban-on-import-of-key-materials-to-produce-sanitary-napkins-is-forcing-pakistani-women-to-go-pad-less-482509">Ban on import of key materials to produce sanitary napkins is forcing Pakistani women to go pad-less</a>

According to the Menstrual Hygiene Alliance of India (MHAI), 336 million girls and women of reproductive age in India use about 1 billion sanitary napkins per month, or 12.3 billion sanitary napkins annually.

However, there is no adequate mechanism to dispose of this waste, the report said.

Due to unorganised sanitary waste management in cities and villages, poor source segregation, and inadequate collection, transportation, and disposal networks, most sanitary waste ends up in landfills mixed with solid waste or dumped openly, posing significant health and environmental hazards.

According to the Solid Waste Management Rules (SWM), sanitary napkins and diapers are included in the definition of dry waste in the SWM Rules, 2016.

As per SWM rules, every waste generator must collect and segregate all waste into three categories: biodegradable, non-biodegradable, and domestic hazardous waste.

In the case of sanitary waste, the waste generator must wrap the used product in the manufacturer’s pouches or any other suitable wrapping material as directed by the local authorities and collect it with other non-biodegradable waste.

The guidelines of India's top pollution watchdog, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), urge users to dispose of sanitary waste in the wrapper provided by the manufacturer or use newspaper to wrap it.

Watch |&nbsp;Spain to allow menstrual leaves: Which other countries are doing so?

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Under the Swachh Bharat Mission guidelines, sanitary napkins and diapers must be separated, specially marked, and sent to a biomedical waste facility for incineration.

Speaking to WION, Shailshree Tewari, Programming Officer, CSE and the author of the report, said sanitary napkins are not being considered as bio-medical waste in India, which is leading to a lot of problems in their disposal.

She said that there are also inadequate incinerators in India to dispose of sanitary napkins.

A sanitary napkin incinerator disposes of napkins in an environmentally friendly method by burning the pads and converting them into ash.

Tewari said that besides the inadequate number of incinerators in India, the ones available are inconsistent and many do not even meet the emission standards prescribed by the CPCB.

What is even more concerning is that there is no provision for a penalty for not complying with the guidelines, she added.

"While CPCB’s guidelines are legally enforceable, a lack of standards for small-scale incinerators attracts no penalty." Tenders for the purpose of procurement of decentralised incinerators that are publicly available also reflect the same concern, "Tewari said."&nbsp;

Also read |<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/may-28-time-to-shift-focus-to-womens-health-menstrual-hygiene-482748">&nbsp;May 28: Time to shift focus to women’s health, menstrual hygiene</a>

She said there is a dearth of awareness and organized sanitary waste disposal infrastructure and disposal practices in rural and urban locations vary greatly.

In parts of India, women dispose of their sanitary napkins or cloth in drains and potholes; some who are uncomfortable disposing of sanitary napkins in public flush them in toilets.

Many women do not use dustbins because they think it might bring them disgrace as waste collectors might think poorly of them if they notice soiled napkins, the report said.

As per the report, 41.8 per cent of women in the age group of 15–24 use disposable sanitary napkins while 16.4 per cent use locally produced napkins.

Assuming a one-month-old infant uses 10 diapers a day—or 300 diapers per month—a single one-month-old baby could generate around 3,600 used diapers every year, it said.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/entertainment/lifestyle/news-menstrual-hygiene-day-how-women-have-managed-periods-throughout-history-482520">Menstrual Hygiene Day: How women have managed periods throughout history</a>

According to the United Nation Children’s Fund (UNICEF), 25 million children are born in India each year, and the average weight of a soiled diaper is 800 grams. Hence, India generates approximately 548 tonnes of baby diaper waste per day, or 2 lakh tonnes annually.

However, in the last four years, more women have started using sanitary napkins in the states of Bihar, Assam, West Bengal, Maharashtra, and Andhra Pradesh, the report found.

India, where not even 50 per cent women use disposable sanitary napkins, annually generates around 3.37 lakh tonnes of waste from sanitary napkins and baby diapers.

India, where not even 50 per cent women use disposable sanitary napkins, annually generates around 3.37 lakh tonnes of waste from sanitary napkins and baby diapers. The report "Sanitary Waste Management in India: Challenges and Agenda" released by India's environmental think tank Centre for Science and Environment estimates that India’s consolidated daily generation of sanitary napkins and baby diaper waste, is approximately 925 tonnes, which accounts for 0.65 per cent of total solid waste. If adult diapers, tampons, condoms, incontinence sheets, and similar waste, are added to the 0.65 per cent mentioned above, it may go up to 4 percent of the total solid waste generated in India, which is 141,000 tonnes per day. Also read | Ban on import of key materials to produce sanitary napkins is forcing Pakistani women to go pad-less According to the Menstrual Hygiene Alliance of India (MHAI), 336 million girls and women of reproductive age in India use about 1 billion sanitary napkins per month, or 12.3 billion sanitary napkins annually. However, there is no adequate mechanism to dispose of this waste, the report said. Due to unorganised sanitary waste management in cities and villages, poor source segregation, and inadequate collection, transportation, and disposal networks, most sanitary waste ends up in landfills mixed with solid waste or dumped openly, posing significant health and environmental hazards. According to the Solid Waste Management Rules (SWM), sanitary napkins and diapers are included in the definition of dry waste in the SWM Rules, 2016. As per SWM rules, every waste generator must collect and segregate all waste into three categories: biodegradable, non-biodegradable, and domestic hazardous waste. In the case of sanitary waste, the waste generator must wrap the used product in the manufacturer’s pouches or any other suitable wrapping material as directed by the local authorities and collect it with other non-biodegradable waste. The guidelines of India's top pollution watchdog, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), urge users to dispose of sanitary waste in the wrapper provided by the manufacturer or use newspaper to wrap it. Watch | Spain to allow menstrual leaves: Which other countries are doing so? Under the Swachh Bharat Mission guidelines, sanitary napkins and diapers must be separated, specially marked, and sent to a biomedical waste facility for incineration. Speaking to WION, Shailshree Tewari, Programming Officer, CSE and the author of the report, said sanitary napkins are not being considered as bio-medical waste in India, which is leading to a lot of problems in their disposal. She said that there are also inadequate incinerators in India to dispose of sanitary napkins. A sanitary napkin incinerator disposes of napkins in an environmentally friendly method by burning the pads and converting them into ash. Tewari said that besides the inadequate number of incinerators in India, the ones available are inconsistent and many do not even meet the emission standards prescribed by the CPCB. What is even more concerning is that there is no provision for a penalty for not complying with the guidelines, she added. "While CPCB’s guidelines are legally enforceable, a lack of standards for small-scale incinerators attracts no penalty." Tenders for the purpose of procurement of decentralised incinerators that are publicly available also reflect the same concern, "Tewari said." Also read | May 28: Time to shift focus to women’s health, menstrual hygiene She said there is a dearth of awareness and organized sanitary waste disposal infrastructure and disposal practices in rural and urban locations vary greatly. In parts of India, women dispose of their sanitary napkins or cloth in drains and potholes; some who are uncomfortable disposing of sanitary napkins in public flush them in toilets. Many women do not use dustbins because they think it might bring them disgrace as waste collectors might think poorly of them if they notice soiled napkins, the report said. As per the report, 41.8 per cent of women in the age group of 15–24 use disposable sanitary napkins while 16.4 per cent use locally produced napkins. Assuming a one-month-old infant uses 10 diapers a day—or 300 diapers per month—a single one-month-old baby could generate around 3,600 used diapers every year, it said. Also read | Menstrual Hygiene Day: How women have managed periods throughout history According to the United Nation Children’s Fund (UNICEF), 25 million children are born in India each year, and the average weight of a soiled diaper is 800 grams. Hence, India generates approximately 548 tonnes of baby diaper waste per day, or 2 lakh tonnes annually. However, in the last four years, more women have started using sanitary napkins in the states of Bihar, Assam, West Bengal, Maharashtra, and Andhra Pradesh, the report found.

India annually generates over 3 lakh tonnes of waste from sanitary napkins and baby diapers: Report

It has been an extraordinary time for students of class 12 in India, who have been reeling under anxiety and stress with the unconventional online mode of education since the pandemic hit.

It has been an extraordinary time for students of class 12 in India, who have been reeling under anxiety and stress with the unconventional online mode of education since the pandemic hit. It's time now for the students to dive into the fierce competition of getting admission in the university of their choice. For the first time, Indian students will sit for the Common University Entrance Test or the CUET. This test will open the doors of all universities and undergraduate courses for students irrespective of the marks they secure in the 12th board exams. Based on their performance in this one test, students will be able to secure a seat in the course of their choice. So far, more than 10 lakh students have applied for the Common University Entrance Test with more than 6 lakh candidates aiming for the university of India's national capital - Delhi University. But what does India aim to achieve with this new system, and will it make 12th Board exams redundant? will it affect school education adversely? Speaking to WION, Jagadesh Kumar, chief of the University Grants Commission, India's top university regulatory body, said it will take the load off students to score higher in board exams. "The CUET is a standardised approach for admission process in universities. When the admission season comes, students have to run from university to university to fill up entrance exam forms. There has been a lot of variation in the 12th standard marks for admission. With CUET, we wanted to bring a standardised system and an objective test to admit students in universities," Kumar said. He said that close to 11 lakh students have registered and 89 universities in India are participating in the CUET. "We hope that CUET provides window of opportunity to students who may not get high board scores. Now everyone will have the opportunity to apply for CUET and look for opportunity in university. It will provide a level playing ground to all students," Kumar said. The UGC chief urged students to focus on becoming good learners. He said schools should focus on creating an ecosystem so that students become good learners as CUET will take away the stress to score very high in boards. "Now they can focus on becoming good learners. It is important. For eg, students who get admitted in IITs have more than 80 % in their school education which clearly indicates that despite IITJEE being highly competitive examinations, they still focus on studies in school," he said. The application process for CUET began on April 2 this year and was closed on May 22, during which nearly 9.15 lakh students applied for CUET. Due to the heavy load of applications, the registrations were reopened on May 27 for five days. The application process was closed at 9 pm on Tuesday. While university students feel that a common entrance test will reduce the pressure of the cut off system and bring all candidates at par, teachers said that it will reduce the relevance of board exams. "Board exams will become redundant with CUET as students will focus more on preparing for it and scores of board exams won't matter. The CUET has been imposed on us despite our reservations," said DU Professor Rajesh Jha, who is also a former member of the Delhi University Executive Council. He also expressed concern over people coming from different state boards saying it will be unfair for them. However, the UGC chief said that paper setters are being sensitised about this fact. "This is one concern some people have expressed because we are using 12th standard NCERT syllabus and in some state boards, NCERT syllabus is not followed. That is why we have sensitised the paper setters to be aware of these differences. "Since we are using the 12th class syllabus, we are planning to give 50 questions but they have to attempt only 40 questions which gives them a lot of choice," Kumar said. More than 10 lakh students will be sitting for the test which will be conducted in July this year by the National Testing Agency. According to the UGC chairman, no extra preparation is required for CUET and students have to focus on their board exams syllabus only. Total CUET applications till May 31: Nearly 11 lakh Till May 22 Candidates for DU: 6,05,146; Candidates for Jamia Milia Islamia: 1,22,478; Candidates for BR Ambedkar University: 1,30,371 In DU, Over 1 lakh applications each for BA (hons) English, BCom, BCom (hons) In DU till May 22: BA (Hons) English -- total applications- 1,01,157, applications per seat-35 BCom -total applications- 1,05,437, app per seat-13.6 BCom (Hons) - total app- 1,05,780, app per seat- 13.3 Bachelors in Management Studies - 81.9 applicants per seat Bachelors in Business Economics - 80.3 applicants per seat BA (Hons) Psychology - 75.6 applicants per seat WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

Common University Entrance Test (CUET): What does India aim to achieve with this new system?

India saw a sharp 79 per cent rise in road accident deaths due to red-light jumping in the year 2020 compared to 2019, a latest report said.

However, the number of total road accidents and the fatalities declined by 18 percent and 12.8 percent, respectively, in 2020.

Indian Ministry of Road Transport and Highways' report 'Road Accidents in India - 2020' revealed that a total of 3,66,138 road accidents were reported across the country in the calendar year 2020, which claimed 1,31,714 lives and caused 3, 48,279 injuries.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/wheat-how-important-is-it-to-the-world-and-why-has-india-banned-its-export-482315" hreflang="en">Wheat: How important is it to the world and why has India banned its export?</a>

Out of the total road accidents in 2020, 919 were caused by jumping of traffic signal which killed 476 people, which is a significant increase from 2019, when 266 people died due to red light jumping.

Apart from red-light jumping, another category which saw a rise in fatalities was driving on the wrong side of the road.

As many as 3,099 people died in accidents due to driving on wrong side of the road in 2020 compared to 2,726 deaths in 2019.

However, the top cause of road accidents remained over speeding which led to over one lakh road accidents in 2020.

According to the report, the highest decline, of 21 percent, was recorded in fatalities due to drunken driving in 2020 with 1862 deaths compared to 2376 deaths in 2019.

The report cited COVID-19 lockdown as one of the reasons for the decline in the number of accidents and fatalities during 2020 compared to 2019.

Other factors attributed by the Indian government to the reduced number were better traffic management and implementation of the new Motor Vehicle Act.

At least one out of 10 people killed on roads across the world is from India, according to the World Health Organization and though the Indian government's report says the number has declined, it is still huge and accounts for world's 11 percent road accident fatalities.

The report said that young adults in the age group of 18 - 45 years accounted for 69 per cent of fatal road accident victims during 2020 while people in the working age group of 18 – 60 years share 87.4 per cent of total road accident fatalities.

It said that the number of road accidents has been on a decline since 2016 except for a marginal increase of 0.46 per cent in 2018.

"For the second consecutive year, the total number of road accidents fatalities has declined in 2020.

Similarly, the number of persons injured has been on the decline since 2015," it said.

The number of persons injured decreased by 22.84 per cent over previous year’s average, said the report, which provides information on various facets of road accidents in the country during the calendar year 2020.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/yasin-malik-gets-life-imprisonment-pakistanis-shed-tears-for-convicted-terrorist-482275">Yasin gets life imprisonment, Pakistanis shed tears for convicted terrorist</a>

As per the report, Indian states which achieved significant reduction in road accidents in 2020 were Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka.

And the states that saw a significant decline in road accident fatalities in 2020 were Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh.

Fatalities and injuries caused by road accidents are becoming the matters of great concern particularly with the recent surge in motorization, due to increasing population and increased vehicular penetration across the length and breadth of India.

In a bid to reduce the number of road accidents and fatalities, the Indian government is now planning to use artificial intelligence powered solutions to alert drivers and avoid collisions on roads.

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India saw a sharp 79 per cent rise in road accident deaths due to red-light jumping in the year 2020 compared to 2019, a latest report said. However, the number of total road accidents and the fatalities declined by 18 percent and 12.

India saw a sharp 79 per cent rise in road accident deaths due to red-light jumping in the year 2020 compared to 2019, a latest report said. However, the number of total road accidents and the fatalities declined by 18 percent and 12.8 percent, respectively, in 2020. Indian Ministry of Road Transport and Highways' report 'Road Accidents in India - 2020' revealed that a total of 3,66,138 road accidents were reported across the country in the calendar year 2020, which claimed 1,31,714 lives and caused 3, 48,279 injuries. Also read | Wheat: How important is it to the world and why has India banned its export? Out of the total road accidents in 2020, 919 were caused by jumping of traffic signal which killed 476 people, which is a significant increase from 2019, when 266 people died due to red light jumping. Apart from red-light jumping, another category which saw a rise in fatalities was driving on the wrong side of the road. As many as 3,099 people died in accidents due to driving on wrong side of the road in 2020 compared to 2,726 deaths in 2019. However, the top cause of road accidents remained over speeding which led to over one lakh road accidents in 2020. According to the report, the highest decline, of 21 percent, was recorded in fatalities due to drunken driving in 2020 with 1862 deaths compared to 2376 deaths in 2019. The report cited COVID-19 lockdown as one of the reasons for the decline in the number of accidents and fatalities during 2020 compared to 2019. Other factors attributed by the Indian government to the reduced number were better traffic management and implementation of the new Motor Vehicle Act. At least one out of 10 people killed on roads across the world is from India, according to the World Health Organization and though the Indian government's report says the number has declined, it is still huge and accounts for world's 11 percent road accident fatalities. The report said that young adults in the age group of 18 - 45 years accounted for 69 per cent of fatal road accident victims during 2020 while people in the working age group of 18 – 60 years share 87.4 per cent of total road accident fatalities. It said that the number of road accidents has been on a decline since 2016 except for a marginal increase of 0.46 per cent in 2018. "For the second consecutive year, the total number of road accidents fatalities has declined in 2020. Similarly, the number of persons injured has been on the decline since 2015," it said. The number of persons injured decreased by 22.84 per cent over previous year’s average, said the report, which provides information on various facets of road accidents in the country during the calendar year 2020. Also read | Yasin gets life imprisonment, Pakistanis shed tears for convicted terrorist As per the report, Indian states which achieved significant reduction in road accidents in 2020 were Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka. And the states that saw a significant decline in road accident fatalities in 2020 were Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh. Fatalities and injuries caused by road accidents are becoming the matters of great concern particularly with the recent surge in motorization, due to increasing population and increased vehicular penetration across the length and breadth of India. In a bid to reduce the number of road accidents and fatalities, the Indian government is now planning to use artificial intelligence powered solutions to alert drivers and avoid collisions on roads. WATCH WION LIVE HERE -

India experiences 79 per cent rise in road accident deaths due to red-light jumping in 2020

Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered solutions may soon make roads in India a safer place to drive. The Indian government on Tuesday announced that a technology-fueled by AI could reduce the risk of road accidents in the country, which killed over one lakh people in 2020.

In a bid to prevent this from happening, the Indian government said that the AI approach will use a first of its kind dataset consisting of 10,000 images.

It said that this dataset is finely annotated with 34 classes collected from 182 drive sequences on Indian roads obtained from a front-facing camera attached to a car driven around the cities of Hyderabad, Bangalore, and their outskirts.

India's Ministry of Science and Technology said that this unique approach uses the predictive power of AI to identify risks on the road, and a collision alert system to communicate timely alerts to drivers, to make several improvements related to road safety.

It is being implemented in Nagpur, Maharashtra and the government aims to spread it across India.

The project aims to reduce road accidents. According to WHO, road accidents kill as many as 1.35 million people across the world each year.

"The project ‘Intelligent Solutions for Road Safety through Technology and Engineering’ (iRASTE) at Nagpur will identify potential accident-causing scenarios while driving a vehicle and alert drivers about the same with the help of the Advance Driver Assistance System (ADAS).

"The project will identify ‘grey spots’, i.e., by data analysis and mobility analysis by continuously monitoring dynamic risks on the entire road network," the Indian government said.

Grey spots are locations on roads, left unaddressed could become blackspots (locations with fatal accidents).

The system also conducts continuous monitoring of roads and designs engineering fixes to correct existing road blackspots for preventive maintenance and improved road infrastructure, government officials said.

The iRASTE project is under the I-Hub Foundation, IIIT Hyderabad, a Technology Innovation Hub set up in the technology vertical- Data Banks and Data Services, supported by the Department of Science and Technology (DST).

I-Hub Foundation has used techniques ranging from machine learning, computer vision and computational sensing for several other data-driven technological solutions in the mobility sector.

One such solution is the India Driving Dataset (IDD), a dataset for road scene understanding in unstructured environments captured from Indian roads, which deviates from the worldwide assumptions of well-delineated infrastructure such as lanes, limited traﬃc participants, low variation in object or background appearance and strong adherence to traﬃc rules.

The project consortium includes CSIR-CRRI, and Nagpur Municipal Corporation, with Mahindra and Intel as the industry partners.

The Hub is working to coordinate, integrate, and amplify basic and applied research in broad data-driven technologies as well as its dissemination and translation across the country.

One of the primary aims is to prepare a critical resource for the future use by researchers, startups, and industry, mainly in the areas of smart mobility, healthcare along with smart buildings.

"What makes the iRASTE project even more unique is that AI and technology is being applied to create practical solutions, as a blueprint, for Indian conditions. While the initial rollout of iRASTE is in Nagpur, the eventual goal is to replicate the solution in other cities too.

"Currently, talks are on with the Telangana government to adopt the technology in a fleet of buses that ply on highways. There are further plans to extend the scope of iRASTE to Goa and Gujarat also," ministry officials said.

Another dataset called Open World Object Detection on Road Scenes (ORDER) has also been developed using the India Driving Dataset that could be used by autonomous navigation systems in Indian driving conditions for localization and classification of the objects in a road scene.

Besides this, a Mobility Car Data Platform (MCDP) has been designed with several sensors – cameras, LIDARs, with the necessary computing for anyone to capture or process data on the car that can help researchers and start-ups in India test their automotive algorithms and approaches in navigation and research on Indian roads, the Indian ministry said.

A new framework, LaneRoadNet (LRNet), with an integrated mechanism considering lane and road parameters using deep learning, has been designed to address problems of Indian roads, which have several obstacles, occluded lane markings, broken dividers, cracks, potholes, etc. that put the drivers at significant risk while driving, the government said.

In this framework, a road quality score is calculated with the help of a modular scoring function. The final score helps the authorities to assess road quality and prioritize maintenance schedules of the road so as to improve the drivability.

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Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered solutions may soon make roads in India a safer place to drive. The Indian government on Tuesday announced that a technology-fueled by AI could reduce the risk of road accidents in the country, which killed over one lakh people in 2020.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered solutions may soon make roads in India a safer place to drive. The Indian government on Tuesday announced that a technology-fueled by AI could reduce the risk of road accidents in the country, which killed over one lakh people in 2020. In a bid to prevent this from happening, the Indian government said that the AI approach will use a first of its kind dataset consisting of 10,000 images. It said that this dataset is finely annotated with 34 classes collected from 182 drive sequences on Indian roads obtained from a front-facing camera attached to a car driven around the cities of Hyderabad, Bangalore, and their outskirts. India's Ministry of Science and Technology said that this unique approach uses the predictive power of AI to identify risks on the road, and a collision alert system to communicate timely alerts to drivers, to make several improvements related to road safety. It is being implemented in Nagpur, Maharashtra and the government aims to spread it across India. The project aims to reduce road accidents. According to WHO, road accidents kill as many as 1.35 million people across the world each year. "The project ‘Intelligent Solutions for Road Safety through Technology and Engineering’ (iRASTE) at Nagpur will identify potential accident-causing scenarios while driving a vehicle and alert drivers about the same with the help of the Advance Driver Assistance System (ADAS). "The project will identify ‘grey spots’, i.e., by data analysis and mobility analysis by continuously monitoring dynamic risks on the entire road network," the Indian government said. Grey spots are locations on roads, left unaddressed could become blackspots (locations with fatal accidents). The system also conducts continuous monitoring of roads and designs engineering fixes to correct existing road blackspots for preventive maintenance and improved road infrastructure, government officials said. The iRASTE project is under the I-Hub Foundation, IIIT Hyderabad, a Technology Innovation Hub set up in the technology vertical- Data Banks and Data Services, supported by the Department of Science and Technology (DST). I-Hub Foundation has used techniques ranging from machine learning, computer vision and computational sensing for several other data-driven technological solutions in the mobility sector. One such solution is the India Driving Dataset (IDD), a dataset for road scene understanding in unstructured environments captured from Indian roads, which deviates from the worldwide assumptions of well-delineated infrastructure such as lanes, limited traﬃc participants, low variation in object or background appearance and strong adherence to traﬃc rules. The project consortium includes CSIR-CRRI, and Nagpur Municipal Corporation, with Mahindra and Intel as the industry partners. The Hub is working to coordinate, integrate, and amplify basic and applied research in broad data-driven technologies as well as its dissemination and translation across the country. One of the primary aims is to prepare a critical resource for the future use by researchers, startups, and industry, mainly in the areas of smart mobility, healthcare along with smart buildings. "What makes the iRASTE project even more unique is that AI and technology is being applied to create practical solutions, as a blueprint, for Indian conditions. While the initial rollout of iRASTE is in Nagpur, the eventual goal is to replicate the solution in other cities too. "Currently, talks are on with the Telangana government to adopt the technology in a fleet of buses that ply on highways. There are further plans to extend the scope of iRASTE to Goa and Gujarat also," ministry officials said. Another dataset called Open World Object Detection on Road Scenes (ORDER) has also been developed using the India Driving Dataset that could be used by autonomous navigation systems in Indian driving conditions for localization and classification of the objects in a road scene. Besides this, a Mobility Car Data Platform (MCDP) has been designed with several sensors – cameras, LIDARs, with the necessary computing for anyone to capture or process data on the car that can help researchers and start-ups in India test their automotive algorithms and approaches in navigation and research on Indian roads, the Indian ministry said. A new framework, LaneRoadNet (LRNet), with an integrated mechanism considering lane and road parameters using deep learning, has been designed to address problems of Indian roads, which have several obstacles, occluded lane markings, broken dividers, cracks, potholes, etc. that put the drivers at significant risk while driving, the government said. In this framework, a road quality score is calculated with the help of a modular scoring function. The final score helps the authorities to assess road quality and prioritize maintenance schedules of the road so as to improve the drivability. WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

Artificial Intelligence to make roads in India safer to drive

India on Friday reiterated that developed nations must recognise their historic responsibility in the climate crisis and must act now to combat it.&nbsp;Virtually addressing the 8th BRICS Environment Ministers' Meeting, held under the presidency of China, India's Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said that the BRICS nations play a vital role in combating the global environmental and climate change challenges.&nbsp;BRICS nations include Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. &nbsp;

The theme of the meeting was “Foster High-Quality BRICS Partnership, Usher in a New Era for Global Development”. &nbsp;

Also Read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/indias-bro-conducts-breakthrough-blast-of-nechiphu-tunnel-in-arunachal-pradesh-state-480761" hreflang="en">India’s BRO conducts 'breakthrough'&nbsp;blast of Nechiphu Tunnel in Arunachal Pradesh state</a>

"BRICS initiatives can contribute to promoting sustainable development. Developed countries must recognise their responsibility in the climate crisis and there is a need for equity in combating it," the Indian minister said. &nbsp;

During the discussion on ‘Join Hands to Facilitate Green and Low-carbon Development’, India said that existing BRICS initiatives can also contribute towards promoting sustainable and low-carbon development. &nbsp;

"BRICS countries may explore cooperation in solar energy, industry transition, infrastructure and climate resilience," the Indian minister said. &nbsp;

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He highlighted the responsibility of developed countries for consuming the carbon budget; equity at all scales in climate action and sustainable development; lifestyle and curbing unsustainable consumption, in mitigating climate change; Common but Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities (CBDR-RC); national circumstances and priorities; climate justice and fulfilment of commitments made by the developed countries on climate finance and transfer of technology. &nbsp;

Highlighting India’s climate actions, the minister stated that BRICS-led initiatives should be country-driven and voluntary in approach, and underlined the need for international cooperation and multilateralism. &nbsp;

The joint statement for the 8th BRICS Environment Ministers Meeting was adopted in the meeting after hectic deliberation among the BRICS nations.&nbsp;

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India on Friday reiterated that developed nations must recognise their historic responsibility in the climate crisis and must act now to combat it. Virtually addressing the 8th BRICS Environment Ministers' Meeting, held under the presidency of China, India's Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said that the BRICS nations play a vital role in combating the global environmental and climate change challenges.

India on Friday reiterated that developed nations must recognise their historic responsibility in the climate crisis and must act now to combat it. Virtually addressing the 8th BRICS Environment Ministers' Meeting, held under the presidency of China, India's Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said that the BRICS nations play a vital role in combating the global environmental and climate change challenges. BRICS nations include Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. The theme of the meeting was “Foster High-Quality BRICS Partnership, Usher in a New Era for Global Development”. Also Read: India’s BRO conducts 'breakthrough' blast of Nechiphu Tunnel in Arunachal Pradesh state "BRICS initiatives can contribute to promoting sustainable development. Developed countries must recognise their responsibility in the climate crisis and there is a need for equity in combating it," the Indian minister said. During the discussion on ‘Join Hands to Facilitate Green and Low-carbon Development’, India said that existing BRICS initiatives can also contribute towards promoting sustainable and low-carbon development. "BRICS countries may explore cooperation in solar energy, industry transition, infrastructure and climate resilience," the Indian minister said. WATCH WION LIVE HERE He highlighted the responsibility of developed countries for consuming the carbon budget; equity at all scales in climate action and sustainable development; lifestyle and curbing unsustainable consumption, in mitigating climate change; Common but Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities (CBDR-RC); national circumstances and priorities; climate justice and fulfilment of commitments made by the developed countries on climate finance and transfer of technology. Highlighting India’s climate actions, the minister stated that BRICS-led initiatives should be country-driven and voluntary in approach, and underlined the need for international cooperation and multilateralism. The joint statement for the 8th BRICS Environment Ministers Meeting was adopted in the meeting after hectic deliberation among the BRICS nations. You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here. ×

Developed nations must assume responsibility, act to combat climate crisis, says India

India completed the excavation work of Nechiphu Tunnel, located at an altitude of 5,700 feet in its eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh by conducting a final "breakthrough blast", officials said&nbsp;on Friday.

The blast marked the cumulative excavation of more than 4,500 meters, achieved by India's Border Roads Organisation (BRO), in less than two years.

BRO is a road construction executive force in India that provides support to and is now a part of the Indian armed forces. It develops and maintains road networks in India's border areas and friendly neighbouring countries. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;

The Nechiphu Tunnel is a unique 500-metre-long “D-shaped, single tube double lane tunnel” on the Balipara-Charduar-Tawang (BCT) Road in West Kameng district in Arunachal Pradesh.

Once it opens up, the Nechiphu Tunnel, along with the Sela Tunnel, will provide safe, all-weather strategic connectivity on the BCT Road while reducing the carbon footprint in this eco-sensitive area.

Director-General of BRO Lt Gen Rajeev Chaudhry conducted the blast remotely from India's national capital New Delhi.

The tunnel will accommodate two-way traffic and will be equipped with modern lighting and safety facilities, Indian officials said.

The tunnel has been conceived to bypass extreme foggy conditions prevailing around Nechiphu Pass which had caused hindrance to general traffic and military convoys for many decades, officials said.

<img alt="Nechiphu Tunnel " data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="e1cc81a0-195e-48b8-9919-fdef47229638" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/nechiphu%20%281%29.jpg" />

"The tunnel will be provided with a state-of-the-art electro-mechanical system including firefighting devices, auto illumination system and Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) controlled monitoring systems.

"It will also accommodate raised footpaths on both sides for safer pedestrian movement which will have ducts for power cables, optical fibre cables and utility lines to strengthen the civic amenities infrastructure," they said.

The ongoing tunnel construction is being accomplished by cutting through fragile and highly fractured rock strata, officials said.

The attendant challenges are being tackled on daily basis through strict 3D monitoring and through proactive application of desired tunnel support systems in accordance with the New Austrian Tunneling Method (NATM).

The foundation stone of the project was laid by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on October 12, 2020.

In tandem with the Nechiphu Tunnel project, the Project Vartak of BRO has also completed the excavation work on another strategic tunnel, the Twin Tube (1,555 meters and 980 meters) “Sela Tunnel Project” on the same road, on January 22 this year.

Friday's blast thus marks the cumulative excavation of more than 4,500 meters achieved by BRO in less than two years, officials said.

India has taken up tunnelling in a big way with the completion of high altitude and mountainous tunnels. In addition to the Atal Tunnel, Rohtang in Himachal Pradesh, the Chamba Tunnel in Uttarakhand have also been dedicated to the nation in the recent past, officials said.

&nbsp;

India completed the excavation work of Nechiphu Tunnel, located at an altitude of 5,700 feet in its eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh by conducting a final "breakthrough blast", officials said on Friday.

India completed the excavation work of Nechiphu Tunnel, located at an altitude of 5,700 feet in its eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh by conducting a final "breakthrough blast", officials said on Friday. The blast marked the cumulative excavation of more than 4,500 meters, achieved by India's Border Roads Organisation (BRO), in less than two years. BRO is a road construction executive force in India that provides support to and is now a part of the Indian armed forces. It develops and maintains road networks in India's border areas and friendly neighbouring countries. The Nechiphu Tunnel is a unique 500-metre-long “D-shaped, single tube double lane tunnel” on the Balipara-Charduar-Tawang (BCT) Road in West Kameng district in Arunachal Pradesh. Once it opens up, the Nechiphu Tunnel, along with the Sela Tunnel, will provide safe, all-weather strategic connectivity on the BCT Road while reducing the carbon footprint in this eco-sensitive area. Director-General of BRO Lt Gen Rajeev Chaudhry conducted the blast remotely from India's national capital New Delhi. The tunnel will accommodate two-way traffic and will be equipped with modern lighting and safety facilities, Indian officials said. The tunnel has been conceived to bypass extreme foggy conditions prevailing around Nechiphu Pass which had caused hindrance to general traffic and military convoys for many decades, officials said. "The tunnel will be provided with a state-of-the-art electro-mechanical system including firefighting devices, auto illumination system and Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) controlled monitoring systems. "It will also accommodate raised footpaths on both sides for safer pedestrian movement which will have ducts for power cables, optical fibre cables and utility lines to strengthen the civic amenities infrastructure," they said. The ongoing tunnel construction is being accomplished by cutting through fragile and highly fractured rock strata, officials said. The attendant challenges are being tackled on daily basis through strict 3D monitoring and through proactive application of desired tunnel support systems in accordance with the New Austrian Tunneling Method (NATM). The foundation stone of the project was laid by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on October 12, 2020. In tandem with the Nechiphu Tunnel project, the Project Vartak of BRO has also completed the excavation work on another strategic tunnel, the Twin Tube (1,555 meters and 980 meters) “Sela Tunnel Project” on the same road, on January 22 this year. Friday's blast thus marks the cumulative excavation of more than 4,500 meters achieved by BRO in less than two years, officials said. India has taken up tunnelling in a big way with the completion of high altitude and mountainous tunnels. In addition to the Atal Tunnel, Rohtang in Himachal Pradesh, the Chamba Tunnel in Uttarakhand have also been dedicated to the nation in the recent past, officials said.

India’s BRO conducts 'breakthrough' blast of Nechiphu Tunnel in Arunachal Pradesh state

In the next 25 years, India's leather industry aims to become net-zero to meet the environmental norms.

Indian Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh said that with an aim to consciously reduce carbon emissions from the leather industry in the country, India will be offering attractive financial support to start-ups to come up with innovative and market-friendly leather products.

The minister said so while addressing the Platinum Jubilee celebrations of CSIR-Central Leather Research Institute in Chennai on Thursday.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/fir-filed-against-indian-devotee-who-took-his-dog-to-kedarnath-temple-480397" hreflang="en">FIR filed against Indian devotee who took his dog to Kedarnath temple</a>

Referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pitch for new innovations and next-generation technologies, Singh said, the sustainability of the leather sector is likely to emerge as the new challenge for CSIR-CLRI (Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-Central Leather Research Institute) in its journey from the platinum to the centenary.

He said the new vision for leather research and industry in India during the next 25 years may need to be based on sustainability, net-zero carbon footprint, gaining total recyclability of leather-based materials, bio-economy of animal skin-derived products, and ensuring income parity for workers, besides brand building.

According to a UN Study, per square meter of leather emits around 17 kg of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) after the slaughterhouse section of the leather supply chain.

As per to the Indian minister, the project will be implemented in 73 districts in the first phase.

"The carbon footprint of leather processing in India needs to approach zero levels and the bio-economy of animal skin-derived products is the new mantra of the time," the minister said, adding that the carrying capacity requirements of the leather sector in locations like Tamil Nadu demand the implementation of Zero Liquid Discharge as the enforced environmental norm, which is under discussion.

India is looking to design and develop leather footwear into foot care solutions with foot hygiene and wearer comfort as unique selling properties.

The country is also on the path to preparing customised footwear for Indians by using 3D technology to scan a person's feet to make their footwear.

"There are as many as half a million cells in the palm of feet that enable the sweating process and leather enjoys an unmatched potential for transpiration," Singh said.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/indian-industry-maven-ratan-tata-arrives-at-hotel-in-tata-nano-car-without-bodyguards-wins-the-internet-480368" hreflang="en">Indian industry icon Ratan Tata arrives at hotel in Tata Nano car without bodyguards, wins the internet</a>

The Minister also pointed out that diabetic footwear is one such product that ensures a better quality of life due to the reduction in the abnormal distribution of foot plantar pressure. Foot plantar pressure is the pressure field that acts between the foot and the support surface during everyday locomotor activities.

Singh expressed satisfaction that in 2021, export realisation from the leather sector is valued at Rs 40,000 crores.

The Indian minister said that collagen-based innovative biomaterials for applications in human health care are new opportunities and they could become co-products of leather if next-generation leather-making technologies avoid contaminating skin-based matrix materials with lime, sulfide, and many other sensitive chemicals.

"There is a possibility for CLRI to emerge as the game-changer in the knowledge domain and to make the leather sector matter even more for the new India of the future," he said.

In 1947, the Indian leather sector provided livelihood opportunities to about 50,000 people, but today it supports the livelihood of more than 45 lakh people in the country.

The Indian leather sector has made tangible and traceable contributions to social equity. It has been scientifically assessed that technology utilisation in the footwear industry has significantly contributed to women's empowerment, he said, lauding the social equity benefits of women empowerment emanating from the leather industry since 1950.

The Minister also lauded the role of the CLRI in helping the tannery sector in Tamil Nadu to restore operations when the Supreme Court ordered the closure of about 400 tanneries in 1996 through the innovative deployment of "Do Ecology" solutions in all the 764 functional tanneries within nine months.

He concluded that this was a landmark contribution to public-funded research in the country and there are several contributions of CLRI that have formed an integral part of the developments of the leather sector in India.

In the next 25 years, India's leather industry aims to become net-zero to meet the environmental norms. Indian Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh said that with an aim to consciously reduce carbon emissions from the leather industry in the country, India will be offering attractive financial support to start-ups to come up with innovative and market-friendly leather products.

In the next 25 years, India's leather industry aims to become net-zero to meet the environmental norms. Indian Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh said that with an aim to consciously reduce carbon emissions from the leather industry in the country, India will be offering attractive financial support to start-ups to come up with innovative and market-friendly leather products. The minister said so while addressing the Platinum Jubilee celebrations of CSIR-Central Leather Research Institute in Chennai on Thursday. Also read | FIR filed against Indian devotee who took his dog to Kedarnath temple Referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pitch for new innovations and next-generation technologies, Singh said, the sustainability of the leather sector is likely to emerge as the new challenge for CSIR-CLRI (Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-Central Leather Research Institute) in its journey from the platinum to the centenary. He said the new vision for leather research and industry in India during the next 25 years may need to be based on sustainability, net-zero carbon footprint, gaining total recyclability of leather-based materials, bio-economy of animal skin-derived products, and ensuring income parity for workers, besides brand building. According to a UN Study, per square meter of leather emits around 17 kg of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) after the slaughterhouse section of the leather supply chain. As per to the Indian minister, the project will be implemented in 73 districts in the first phase. "The carbon footprint of leather processing in India needs to approach zero levels and the bio-economy of animal skin-derived products is the new mantra of the time," the minister said, adding that the carrying capacity requirements of the leather sector in locations like Tamil Nadu demand the implementation of Zero Liquid Discharge as the enforced environmental norm, which is under discussion. India is looking to design and develop leather footwear into foot care solutions with foot hygiene and wearer comfort as unique selling properties. The country is also on the path to preparing customised footwear for Indians by using 3D technology to scan a person's feet to make their footwear. "There are as many as half a million cells in the palm of feet that enable the sweating process and leather enjoys an unmatched potential for transpiration," Singh said. Also read | Indian industry icon Ratan Tata arrives at hotel in Tata Nano car without bodyguards, wins the internet The Minister also pointed out that diabetic footwear is one such product that ensures a better quality of life due to the reduction in the abnormal distribution of foot plantar pressure. Foot plantar pressure is the pressure field that acts between the foot and the support surface during everyday locomotor activities. Singh expressed satisfaction that in 2021, export realisation from the leather sector is valued at Rs 40,000 crores. The Indian minister said that collagen-based innovative biomaterials for applications in human health care are new opportunities and they could become co-products of leather if next-generation leather-making technologies avoid contaminating skin-based matrix materials with lime, sulfide, and many other sensitive chemicals. "There is a possibility for CLRI to emerge as the game-changer in the knowledge domain and to make the leather sector matter even more for the new India of the future," he said. In 1947, the Indian leather sector provided livelihood opportunities to about 50,000 people, but today it supports the livelihood of more than 45 lakh people in the country. The Indian leather sector has made tangible and traceable contributions to social equity. It has been scientifically assessed that technology utilisation in the footwear industry has significantly contributed to women's empowerment, he said, lauding the social equity benefits of women empowerment emanating from the leather industry since 1950. The Minister also lauded the role of the CLRI in helping the tannery sector in Tamil Nadu to restore operations when the Supreme Court ordered the closure of about 400 tanneries in 1996 through the innovative deployment of "Do Ecology" solutions in all the 764 functional tanneries within nine months. He concluded that this was a landmark contribution to public-funded research in the country and there are several contributions of CLRI that have formed an integral part of the developments of the leather sector in India.

To meet environmental standards, India's leather industry aims at net-zero carbon footprint within 25 years

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