Month: December 2025

    India is staring at a rapidly intensifying groundwater crisis, with several states and major cities moving dangerously close to a point where usable water may simply run out. Across urban neighbourhoods and rural landscapes, scenes of water tankers, empty wells and long queues have become a daily reminder that water scarcity is no longer a future threat but a lived reality for millions. In narrow city lanes, residents wait silently with plastic drums for tankers to arrive, while in villages, women walk kilometres in search of a few litres of water from drying wells and shrinking ponds. These contrasting yet connected realities underline a single truth: despite episodes of flooding in some regions, India as a whole is running short of freshwater. India supports nea...

    Agroforestry practiced on small family farms can deliver major climate benefits while strengthening rural livelihoods, according to a nine-year study conducted by scientists from the Indian Council of Agricultural Research in eastern India. The research shows that even a one-acre farm, when designed carefully with trees and crops together, can act as a powerful carbon sink without compromising food production. The study was carried out in Odisha’s Eastern Ghats, a region increasingly affected by erratic monsoons, intense rainfall, soil erosion and rising crop failures. These climate stresses have worsened food insecurity and livelihood risks, especially for tribal communities dependent on rain-fed agriculture. Researchers worked directly with 15 farmers to develop an...

    Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav on Wednesday reviewed the action plans of municipal bodies in Delhi and Sonipat to tackle worsening air pollution across the Delhi–NCR region, and ordered strict, time-bound measures to cut emissions at their source. Chairing the third review meeting in a series launched earlier this month, the minister stressed that cleaning NCR’s air needs a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach, with decisions grounded in ground realities rather than paperwork. Focusing on construction and demolition activities as a major contributor to particulate pollution, Yadav directed that no demolition or construction work should be allowed unless waste processing facilities exist within 10 kilometres of the site. He also called for a b...

    On one of the coldest mornings of the year, a frail and shivering elephant calf was found lying near the edge of a forest in Odisha’s Kalahandi district, drawing national attention to the growing crisis of human–elephant conflict in India. The calf, believed to be just three to four months old, was discovered by a farmer near a dilapidated hut as dense mist and frost covered nearby paddy fields. According to eyewitnesses, the calf appeared weak and disoriented, unable to follow its herd up a steep forest slope. Moments later, loud trumpeting from nearby trees revealed the presence of the mother elephant and a protective tusker, who stood guard before retreating deeper into the forest. Forest officials believe the calf was not abandoned intentionally, but left behind ...

    The fourth Twenty20 cricket match between India and South Africa was called off midway on Wednesday after dense smog significantly reduced visibility at the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow, forcing officials to abandon play in the interest of player safety. The decision was taken following repeated assessments by match officials, who found that the thick haze made it difficult for players to clearly sight the ball. Soon after the cancellation, questions were raised on social media about the city’s air quality, with several posts claiming that pollution levels in Lucknow had reached dangerous levels. Addressing these concerns, the Uttar Pradesh government clarified that the city’s Air Quality Index stood at 174, which falls under the “moderate” category as per India’...

    Delhi authorities have rolled out some of the strictest anti-pollution measures in recent years as the city continues to choke under dangerously high air pollution levels. The air quality index has remained in the ‘severe’ category, frequently crossing the 450 mark, raising serious health concerns for residents across the national capital. The Commission for Air Quality Management has implemented the highest stage of the Graded Response Action Plan to curb emissions immediately. Under these measures, older and non-compliant diesel trucks have been banned from entering the city, construction and demolition activities have been halted, and strict checks on polluting vehicles have been intensified. Authorities have also introduced hybrid schooling to reduce traffic and ...

    The Kerala government on Wednesday announced a landmark decision to allocate five acres of land for the establishment of a Central Forensic Science Laboratory under the National Forensic Infrastructure Enhancement Scheme. The decision was taken at a Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and is being seen as a significant step towards strengthening scientific support for criminal investigations in the state. The land identified for the project is located at the Phase IV Technocity campus of Technopark in Melthonnakkal village. According to a statement issued by the Chief Minister’s Office, the site will be leased to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs for a period of 90 years at a highly nominal annual fee of ₹100 per acre, reflecting the state’s c...

    In the outskirts of Vietnam’s capital Hanoi, hundreds of informal “craft” recycling villages are grappling with a dangerous paradox. While these villages help recycle a portion of the country’s massive plastic waste and provide income to thousands of families, the absence of regulation has turned them into hotspots of severe environmental pollution and health risks. Vietnam produces nearly 1.8 million tonnes of plastic waste every year, much of which ends up in villages such as Xa Cau and Minh Khai. Here, workers manually sort, shred, and melt plastic using rudimentary methods. Mountains of discarded bottles line roads and rivers, while toxic smoke and untreated wastewater contaminate air and water sources. Health hazards hidden behind economic survival For wor...

    Heatwaves are silently becoming one of India’s most dangerous climate threats, even as they continue to fall outside the country’s formal disaster framework. Unlike floods or cyclones, extreme heat leaves no visible destruction, but it claims lives quietly and steadily, especially among those who are most exposed and least protected. Every summer, temperatures in large parts of India cross 45 degrees Celsius. People collapse at construction sites, in agricultural fields, inside poorly ventilated homes, or while walking long distances for water. These deaths rarely make headlines. Heat-related fatalities are often recorded under causes such as cardiac arrest, dehydration, or respiratory failure, masking the true impact of extreme heat. Public health experts say hea...

    Despite a rapid increase in protected areas across the world, new research warns that nature loss is continuing inside many of these zones, raising serious questions about whether conservation efforts are delivering real ecological results. Scientists say that governments are focusing more on meeting numerical targets for land and ocean coverage than on ensuring actual protection on the ground. Protected areas are widely regarded as one of the most powerful tools to halt biodiversity loss. Under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, countries have pledged to protect 30 per cent of land and oceans by 2030. On paper, progress appears encouraging, with about 17.6 per cent of land and inland waters and 8.4 per cent of oceans currently under some form of pro...