Weekly Green News Update for Week 13 (March 23 to 29), 2015

weekly-media-roundup

Weekly environmental news roundup from across different media networks for week 13 (between March 23 and March 29) 2015.

1. Shut down industries operating in residential areas, NGT directs government

The National Green Tribunal on Friday issued directions to close down industries operating in residential areas within a month.

2. NGT pulls up MoEF over mining

The National Green Tribunal has pulled up the Environment Ministry for moving at a snail’s pace in naming a committee to look into the magnitude of damage caused by illegal mining activities on the Yamuna riverbed from Noida to Faridabad.

3. Rehabilitate slums near railway tracks in six months: NGT to DUSIB

The National Green Tribunal has directed Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) and the Municipal Corporations to rehabilitate slum clusters located near railway tracks in the capital within six months.

4. Vehicular pollution checks to become mandatory soon

Want to keep driving your vehicle on Delhi roads? Then make sure you don’t slip up on regular emission checks.

5. Delhi pollution ‘out of control’, HC asks govt for action plan

Terming pollution in Delhi as “terrible” and “out of control”, the high court on Wednesday demanded a detailed action plan from the state government and the Delhi Pollution Control Committee.

6. Clean-up plans fail in muddy Yamuna, NGT seeks action

The National Green Tribunal has asked the Centre and states to hold consultations and submit by March 27 an action plan to ensure there is fresh water flow in the Yamuna.

7. To save Yamuna, Yamuna Muktikaran Abhiyaan begins fast unto death

Eleven members of the Yamuna Muktikaran Abhiyaan (YMA) have started a fast unto death on Saturday at Jantar Mantar demanding that the Centre ensures the “free and natural” flow of water in the river.

8. CM should takes steps to clean Yamuna river: environmentalist

An environmentalist has written to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal seeking action to clean Yamuna while citing the recent report of the Central Pollution Control Board which says Yamuna has an exceedingly high biochemical oxygen demand at three of the five locations in Delhi.

9. How many booked for polluting Yamuna?

Unhappy with the lethargic attitude of the authorities to clean Yamuna, the National Green Tribunal on Friday sought to know how many people have been prosecuted for throwing waste in and along the river and how much fine has been collected so far.

10. National Green Tribunal gives states deadline to mark out Yamuna’s flood plains

In a bid to speed up cleaning of the Yamuna, the National Green Tribunal has set timelines for the governments of Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana to demarcate the river’s flood plain, close unauthorised industrial units and report on the state of common effluent plants.

11. Yamuna will be brought under Environment Protection Act: Government

The government has promised to bring the Yamuna river under the the Environment Protection Act within two months to ensure “free flow of the river”.

12. Ganga campaign on mind, PM to meet CMs on Mar 26

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called a meeting with five chief ministers on March 26 to discuss his ambitious Clean Ganga initiative and get the leaders on board for improving the quality of the river in the next five years.

13. Climate change to have considerable impact on Ganga’s dynamics

Climate change will have a “considerable” impact on the dynamics of the river Ganga, affecting a major portion of north India which is directly dependent on it for its agriculture and industrial needs, a recent study said.

14. Centre seeks action plans from municipalities, ULBs on Ganga

The government has asked 118 municipalities and urban local bodies and 678 industrial units in the five Ganga river basin states—Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal–to submit their action plans for setting up sewage and effluent treatments plants within 15 days.

15. ‘Stop ground water pollution for future’

On the occasion of World Water Day, MP from Meerut Rajendra Agarwal, DIG of Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) K Satyanarayan and environmentalist Arun Tivari showed their concern over the persistent water crises in the country.

16. Activists condemn construction work on Yamuna ghats in Vrindavan

Civic authorities in Vrindavan have built a road right in front of the heritage Yamuna ghats, pushing the river away by several meters.

17. Air pollution may cause anxiety, stroke

Air pollution is linked to a higher risk of stroke, particularly in developing countries, finds a new study, while another study links pollution to anxiety.

Shilpi Chakravarty

Shilpi Chakravarty is an environmental professional with a master's degree in environmental studies from the University of Delhi. She works to use her professional skills for making the planet a better place to live on.

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