Weekly Environmental News Roundup for Week 13, 2025
Weekly environmental news roundup from across different media networks for Week 13 (24 to 30 March) 2025.
1. Budget misses the bus to slash Air Pollution
As new BJP government presented its first Budget on Tuesday, there was scarcely any hint that India’s capital city has repeatedly ranked as the one with the highest air pollution—six times in the last eight years.
2. Delhi budget: Rs 9k crore to make city water clean
The Delhi government has unveiled its budget for the upcoming financial year, with a significant focus on improving water supply and sanitation.
3. Delhi Budget: ₹500 cr for Yamuna cleanup; ₹250 cr for new sewer lines
The BJP government in Delhi has allocated ₹500 crore for cleaning up River Yamuna in the 2025-26 Budget, announced Chief Minister Rekha Gupta in the Assembly on Tuesday.
4. Delhi Jal Board proposes to spend 60 per cent of its budget on repair work
As the Delhi government gears up to present its budget for the financial year 2025-26 on March 25, various departments are finalising their financial proposals.
5. Extra tankers, pumps to meet peak water demand in Capital: Parvesh
In a meeting with Delhi Jal Board officials, Water Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh on Friday said the government will appoint nodal officers in four divisions to handle water shortage issues during the summer.
6. Faecal coliform found in Dwarka rainwater pits, says Delhi Jal Board in NGT report
A survey of rainwater harvesting pits in Dwarka’s societies found that nearly two-thirds (65.3%) of all samples analysed had traces of faecal coliform in water, according to findings submitted to the National Green Tribunal by the Delhi Jal Board.
7. Polluted water flows into river Yamuna from UP, Delhi and Haryana: Haryana environment minister
Haryana Environment Minister Rao Narbir Singh said polluted water flows into the Yamuna from Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, and Haryana, which runs into the Gurgaon canal downstream of the Okhla barrage in the Capital.
8. ‘Yamuna cleanup plan lacks vision’: Experts
Despite the government announcing several key initiatives aimed at rejuvenating the Yamuna River in the latest budget, experts have expressed doubts about the effectiveness of the proposals.
9. Delhi govt appoints nodal officers in four divisions to handle summer water crisis
The Delhi government has announced a series of measures to prevent water shortages and improve supply management in summer season.
10. Delhi Jal Board To Snap Water Connections Of Consumers With Pending Bills
To address the water crisis for the summer months ahead, the Delhi Jal Board is gearing up to snap connections of errant consumers who do not pay bills on time.
11. Delhi Zoo rolls out summer action plan to protect animals from rising heat
As the mercury continues to soar in the national capital — touching a three-year high for the month of March on Wednesday at 38.9°C — the Delhi Zoo has launched a summer action plan to help its animals beat the heat.
12. NGT to transport dept: Pay 95L as environmental compensation for cutting trees for dept in Burari
National Green Tribunal has imposed an environmental compensation of over Rs 95 lakh on Delhi govt’s transport department for illegal cutting of trees and failing to carry out the mandatory compensatory plantation during the construction of bus depots in Burari in 2019.
13. Delhi tree census will take four years, Supreme Court informed
It will take four years to increase Delhi’s green cover to 33% of its total land area and to conduct the city’s first-ever tree census, according to a draft action plan submitted by the Dehradun-based Forest Research Institute to the Supreme Court.
14. Delhi High Court orders survey of encroachments in ridge forests, seeks report
Delhi’s agencies don’t appear to be serious about protecting ridge forests, the high court lamented on Wednesday, ordering a survey of encroachments in and nearby areas.
15. How one man is battling to save the Dwarka forest in Delhi
“The attack has left me traumatised and I have stopped going outside,” said Naveen Solanki. “I don’t know where the next threat will come from.”
16. Casio India Launches “Recycle Responsibly” CSR Campaign to Tackle E-Waste in Delhi NCR
Casio India Co. Pvt. Ltd., a pioneer in consumer electronics, has launched an ambitious Corporate Social Responsibility campaign titled “Recycle Responsibly” across Delhi NCR.
17. Formulate national heat plan amid high temp worry this summer: Parl panel
The parliamentary committee has recommended a slew of measures, including a national Heat Action Plan, allocation of more funds for environment, education, awareness, research and skill development, ensuring the survival of planted saplings, and greater utilisation of funds to control pollution and implement other central schemes to fight climate change and nurture the environment.
Less than 1 per cent of the Rs 858 crore allocated to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change for the ‘Control of Pollution’ scheme in the financial year 2024-25 has been utilised so far, according to a report tabled in Parliament Tuesday.
19. PM Modi pitches for rainwater harvesting, waste recycling
In the 120th episode of Mann Ki Baat, his customary radio address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Sunday pitched for rainwater harvesting, waste water management and recycling of waste for a sustainable future.
20. NGT To Organise National Conference On ‘Environment–2025’
With an aim to foster dialogue and identify gaps in policy enforcement and address issues related to the environment, a two-day-long National Conference on ‘Environment – 2025’ will be organised by the National Green Tribunal in New Delhi on March 29 and 30.
21. Delhi civic body launches annual mosquito breeding prevention plan
Municipal Corporation of Delhi initiated its annual plan to prevent mosquito breeding in collaboration with various departments.
22. Need To Achieve 33% Tree/Forest Cover In Delhi NCT: Supreme Court
The Supreme Court on Wednesday emphasized the need to achieve a target of 33 percent or more green cover in Delhi, as proposed by the Forest Research Institute.
23. Supreme Court: Cutting Trees is Worse Than Killing a Human, Imposes Rs 1 Lakh Fine Per Tree
The Supreme Court of India has made a strong statement on environmental protection, saying that cutting down a large number of trees is “worse than killing a human.”
24. Delhi’s Temperature Swings Over The Years; Raise Climate Change Alarm
In the past few years, Delhi has been affected by rapid changes in temperature, both up and down, indicating the growing impact of climate change and urbanisation on weather patterns.
25. Climate Crisis: India Records Earliest Heatwave, Rising Warm Nights
Heatwave conditions typically manifest between March and June, but dramatic fluctuations in climate patterns have emerged in 2025.
26. India must brace for 9-10 per cent power demand surge in 2025 amid rising temperatures, warn experts
India should prepare for a nine to 10 per cent growth in peak electricity demand this summer with the country expected to experience more heatwaves, experts have warned.
The Climate Reality Project, a nonprofit founded by former US Vice President Al Gore, is launching the ‘Reality Tour’ to build political will, public momentum, and ambition for bold climate commitments leading up to COP 30 in Brazil.
