1. Madhya Pradesh to develop Meghdoot forest in Ujjain
Tags: Environment place in news State News
Madhya Pradesh government will develop land freed from illegal encroachments in and around Mahakal temple in Ujjain as an urban forest called as Meghdoot. It is being built under the second phase of Shri Mahakal Lok project.
The Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh Shivraj Singh Chouhan performed bhoomipujan for the proposed Meghdoot forest in Ujjain on 18 October 2022.
Mahakal Lok project has been launched by the Madhya Pradesh Government to develop the Mahakaleshwar temple in Ujjain on the model of Kashi Vishwanath in Varanasi. The first phase of the Mahakal Lok project was inaugurated by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 12 October 2022.
Meghdoot forest
The Madhya Pradesh government has freed about 7 acres of land around the temple area which was under illegal encroachment. This area will be developed by the Ujjain Smart City as an urban forest named Meghdoot, at a cost of Rs 11.36 crore.
In the Meghdoot forest, there will be a beautiful entrance area, greenery area, walkways, along with seating, restaurant and a beautiful environment on the river banks.
Madhya Pradesh
It is the second largest state area wise in India after Rajasthan.
According to the Indian State of Forest Report -2021, Madhya Pradesh has the largest forest cover in the country area wise.
25.14 % of its area is under forest cover.
2. World Bank appoints neutral expert and chairman of Court of Arbitration for ‘Kishanganga’ and ‘Ratle’ hydroelectric project
Tags: Environment National Person in news
The World Bank has appointed a "neutral expert" and a chairman of the Court of Arbitration regarding the Kishanganga and Ratle hydroelectric power plants, in view of disagreements and differences between India and Pakistan over the 1960 Indus Water Treaty.
Under the Indus water treaty if there is a dispute between India and Pakistan on the provisions of the treaty then the World Bank will mediate between the two.
Michel Lino, Chairman of the International Large Dam Commission has been appointed as the Neutral Expert and Sean Murphy has been appointed as Chairman of the Court of Arbitration.
Pakistan asked the World Bank to facilitate the establishment of a Court of Arbitration to consider its concerns about the designs of the two hydroelectric power projects, while India asked for the appointment of a Neutral Expert to consider similar concerns over the two projects.
What is the Indus Waters Treaty?
The 1960 Indus Waters Treaty was mediated by the World Bank and signed by the then prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Pakistan's president Ayub Khan.
- It has allotted western rivers; Indus, Jhelum and Chenab to Pakistan and Eastern flowing rivers; Sutlej, Ravi and Beas to India.
- Under the treaty India will not restrict the flow of the river which is assigned to Pakistan but it can use the river for hydroelectric purposes on the condition that the flow of water to Pakistan is not affected significantly.
- Due to this provision of the Indus water treaty, India has designed the Rattle and the Kishanganga project as run of the river project.
Run of the River project
In the run of the river project, reservoirs are not built for water storage purposes and the natural flow of water from a height is used to run micro turbines to produce electricity.
According to India such hydel projects do not contravene the Indus Water Treaty as river waters are not stored.
Dispute over Kishanganga and Ratle project
Kishanganga or Neelum (for Pakistan) is a tributary of river Jhelum. India has constructed a run of the river hydroelectric projects with a capacity of 330 MW in Jammu and Kashmir.
The project was inaugurated by PM Modi in 2018. Pakistan argues that the flow of the river which enters Pakistan has been affected due to the faulty design of the project.
Ratle Hydroelectric Project
It is also a run of the river hydroelectric project being built on the Chenab river in Kishtwar district of Jammu and Kashmir. In 2013 Pakistan government objected to the project as it was a violation of the Indus water treaty. In 2017 the World Bank allowed India to start the project which was opposed by Pakistan. After fresh objections from Pakistan, both countries approached the World Bank.
3. India and France adopts a joint roadmap on Hydrogen partnership
Tags: Environment National
The visiting French Minister of State for Development, Francophonie and International Partnerships Chrysoula Zacharopoulou and Union Power and New & Renewable Energy Minister R K Singh adopted the “Indo-French Roadmap on the Development of Green Hydrogen" on 18 October 2022, in a meeting in New Delhi.
The French embassy said the roadmap aims at bringing the French and Indian hydrogen ecosystems together in order to establish a reliable and sustainable value chain for decarbonised hydrogen.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the French President Emmanuel Macron in a meeting on 4 May, gave a clear mandate to foster bilateral cooperation on hydrogen. This agreement is a step in that direction.
4. Asia's largest Compressed Bio Gas plant inaugurated in Sangrur by Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri
Tags: Environment place in news Person in news
The Union Minister for Petroleum & Natural Gas and Housing & Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri inaugurated Asia's largest Compressed Bio Gas (CBG) plant in Lehragaga, Sangrur, and Punjab on 18 October 2022.
The plant has been set up by German company Verbio AG at an investment of Rs 220 crore. Initially the plant will have the production of 6 tonnes per day of CBG which is likely to be increased to 33 tonnes per day of CBG.
Benefit of the Compressed BioGas (CBG) plant
The plant will procure 1 lakh tonnes of paddy straw from farmers thereby providing them an additional source of income.
The paddy stubble which is burnt by the farmers in the field will now be used in the plant thereby reducing pollution in the surrounding areas.
This Plant will reduce stubble burning of 40,000 – 45,000 acres of fields, translating into an annual reduction of 150,000 tons of CO2 emissions,
The plant will produce about 600-650 Tons of Fermented Organic Manure per day, which can be used for organic farming.
What is a compressed biogas plant?
Waste/Bio-mass sources like agricultural residue, cattle dung, sugarcane press mud, municipal solid waste, sewage treatment plant waste, etc. produce Bio-Gas through the process of anaerobic decomposition.
The Bio-Gas is purified to remove hydrogen sulphide (H2S), carbon dioxide (CO2), water vapour and compressed as Compressed Bio-Gas (CBG), which has methane (CH4) content of more than 90%.
CBG has calorific value and other properties similar to CNG and hence can be utilized as green renewable automotive fuel.
Thus it can replace CNG in automotive, industrial and commercial areas, given the abundance of biomass availability within the country.
5. 3rd edition of Confederation of Indian Industry’s renewable energy conference starts in New Delhi
Tags: Environment place in news Summits
The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in partnership with the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE), Government of India is organising the 3rd edition of the International Conference & Exhibition on ‘Pathways for Global Partnership in Green Energy: Powering Atma Nirbhar Bharat & the World’ in New Delhi from 17-19 October 2022 .
This initiative aims at furthering global partnership and take concerted steps to develop green economy and unified to power a clean and green world.
The Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goel addressed the conference and said that “India has the potential to grow into a global supplier of renewable energy equipment”. He reiterated India’s commitment to achieve 500 GW renewable energy generation by 2030.
PM Modi has announced India’s commitment to carbon net-zero by 2070. Also, India has set a target to achieve 50% renewables in the overall energy mix by 2030.
While Aatmanirbhar Bharat or self-reliant India focuses on elevating domestic manufacturing capabilities and reinforcing net-zero targets, it also has immense potential to be the global epicentre for renewable energy and green hydrogen ecosystem.
Confederation of Indian Industries (CII)
It is a business lobby group of top business houses in India.
It was set up in 1895.
It works to create and sustain an environment conducive to the growth of industry in India, partnering industry and government alike through advisory and consultative processes.
Headquarters: New Delhi
President: Sanjiv Bajaj
6. NGT impose a fine of Rs 2900 crore on Karnataka government for damaging the environment
Tags: Environment Science and Technology State News
A National Green Tribunal (NGT) bench headed by Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel has held the Karnataka government guilty of causing harm to the environment by its failure in management of solid and liquid waste.
The bench has fined the government Rs 2,856 crore for its failure in liquid waste/sewage management and Rs 540 crore for its failure in solid waste management.
The NGT said that the state government having already deposited Rs 500 crore the state will have to deposit Rs 2900 crore as fine in a separate fund within two months.
The fund will be under the Chief Secretary of the Karnataka government and will be utilized for the restoration of the environment.
The NGT in recent months has imposed fines on a number of states like Telangana, Punjab, West Bengal and the Union Territory of Delhi for their mismanagement of municipal waste.
The NGT is monitoring compliance with the Municipal Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016 and other environmental aspects by the states and Union territories.
The National Green Tribunal was established in 2010 under the National Green Tribunal Act 2010. It deals with matters related to environmental protection and conservation of forest.
Its headquarters is in New Delhi.
Chairperson of NGT : Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel
