Weekly Environmental News Roundup for Week 30, 2025
Weekly environmental news roundup from across different media networks for Week 30 (21 July to 27 July) 2025.
1. The New Normal: Delhi-NCR Kids Lose 30+ School Days a Year to Heat and Pollution
Extreme heat, heavy rain, and polluted air are increasingly disrupting children’s lives—often without warning.
A student secured admission into top Delhi University college but faced parental opposition due to Delhi’s pollution.
3. DPCC imposes environmental compensation on banquet vendor for green area violation
Delhi Pollution Control Committee imposed environmental compensation on a private vendor organising a banquet for using 18,500 sq m of green area in the Siri Fort Sports Complex for functions and parties, violating the norms.
4. Delhi Government moves Supreme Court to review blanket ban on older vehicles
The Delhi government has approached the Supreme Court, seeking a review of the ban on older vehicles operating on the roads of the National Capital Region.
5. Delhi Govt Launches Rs 50 Lakh Innovation Challenge To Tackle Pollution From Heavy Vehicles
As the BS-IV diesel heavy vehicles are set to be restricted in Delhi from November 1, the Delhi government has launched an innovation challenge aimed at finding retrofit solutions to upgrade such vehicles to BS-VI standards.
6. ‘Sewage in tap water’: Delhi Jal Board told to take remedial actions
A report by the Central Pollution Control Board has found a “high level” of E. coli bacteria — microbes from human and animal excreta — in drinking water supplied to A1 Block, Janakpuri, by the Delhi Jal Board, as per an order of the National Green Tribunal.
7. Govt depts owe over Rs 63,000 crore in water bills to Delhi Jal Board
Eighteen government departments, both central and state, owe the Delhi Jal Board a staggering ₹63,019 crore in unpaid water bills, government officials said on Friday.
8. ‘No rainwater harvesting systems’: DJB withdraws 10% water bill rebate from 119 societies
The Delhi Jal Board informed the National Green Tribunal on Wednesday that it has withdrawn the 10% rebate on water bills that 119 cooperative group housing societies in the Capital were to receive, as they do not have functioning rainwater harvesting systems.
9. DJB to induct over 100 engineers on deputation to strengthen water infra
In a major administrative overhaul, the Delhi Jal Board has initiated the process to appoint more than 100 experienced engineers on deputation to address critical gaps in its technical workforce.
10. DJB pilot project to study North East Delhi areas to reduce leaks
The Delhi Jal Board has started a pilot project to study areas in North East Delhi for reducing water leaks and improving the water supply transmission network, senior Delhi Jal Board officials said on Friday.
11. NGT pulls up MCD over failure to clean Aya Nagar pond, seeks affidavit from commissioner
The National Green Tribunal has come down heavily on the Municipal Corporation of Delhi for failing to clean and restore a severely polluted pond in Aya Nagar, South Delhi, despite repeated directions and inspections by the Delhi Pollution Control Committee.
12. NGT seeks explanation from authorities on wetland filled with waste in North Delhi
he National Green Tribunal has taken suo motu cognisance of a TOI report on a wetland filled up in the north Delhi area with waste from a landfill, raising speculation that the wetland rules were violated.
13. Fencing, signage revamp to help protect Yamuna floodplain: DDA
Delhi Development Authority will restore and renovate renovate Yamuna signage boards from Wazirabad Barrage to NH-24 on both banks of the river.
14. ‘Nursery kids were shoulder deep in water’: Rain floods MCD school, staff carry students to safety
Some Nursery students standing on benches, some carrying school bags on their shoulders.
15. Delhi shocker: Teen who died cleaning septic tank came to city for Rakshabandhan,
The ambulance stood outside Rao Tula Ram Memorial Hospital, engine off, silence thick.
16. Delhi: Water level of Yamuna rises close to warning level after Hathnikund Barrage release
The Yamuna river saw a rise in water levels by around two meters in the past one day due to increased discharge from Hathnikund Barrage in Haryana.
17. Pollution levels in Yamuan surge despite monsoon rainfall
Despite the monsoon and intermittent rainfall throughout June, pollution levels in the Yamuna have surged significantly, the latest sampling conducted on July 1 has shown.
18. Yamuna riverbed to be dredged after monsoon: Delhi govt
The Delhi government plans to double the water storage capacity of the Wazirabad barrage in north Delhi by dredging the Yamuna riverbed after the monsoon, government officials said on Sunday.
19. MCD set to roll out biogas plants in dairy colonies
In a bid to curb pollution in the Yamuna River, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi is installing biogas plants in dairy colonies to process cattle dung and prevent it from entering the drainage system.
20. Opposition blames MCD for new dumpyard near Majlis Park metro station
The Leader of Opposition in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, Ankush Narang, visited a site near Majlis Park metro station in the Civil Lines zone, allegedly used for dumping waste, on Saturday.
21. Garbage, debris pile up outside DU college despite clean-up efforts
As Delhi University gears up to welcome its new batch of students on August 1, a long-running civic eyesore outside campus walls of the Shaheed Bhagat Singh College continues to fester—the garbage and construction debris heaps continue to grow, defying two decades of clean-up attempts.
22. Delhi govt to notify Southern Ridge after verification of villages
The Delhi government’s department of forests and wildlife has informed the National Green Tribunal that it has begun an on-ground verification across 12 villages in the Southern Ridge, which will pave the way for final notification under Section 20 of the Indian Forest Act, 1927.
23. Drone survey to map 4 green spaces in Hauz Khas
The Delhi Development Authority is set to launch a pilot project to carry out a drone-based photogrammetry survey of four prominent green areas in Hauz Khas area of south Delhi, with one of the aims being preventing encroachment of ecologically significant spaces, officials aware of the matter said.
24. Protest in Delhi demands rollback of gene-edited rice and wildlife compensation law
Farmers’ organizations from across India have staged a demonstration at Jantar Mantar, demanding the immediate withdrawal of recently announced gene-edited rice varieties and the enactment of a national law to compensate people and crops affected by wildlife.
25. Delhi government extends current EV policy till March 2026 to facilitate wider public consultation
Delhi government has extended the current Electric Vehicle (EV) Policy until March 31, 2026, as the draft of the new policy will undergo public consultation, which is expected to take time, Transport Minister Pankaj Singh said on Tuesday.
26. Gurgaon civic body identifies 17,373 illegal water connections, starts sending notices
The Municipal Corporation of Gurugram has begun sending notices in respect to 17,373 illegal water connections across the city, directing affected households to pay outstanding dues and obtain legal metered water connections within 15 days.
27. Greater Noida: Firm blacklisted over illegal tree felling
The Greater Noida authority has penalised and blacklisted a private firm for felling fully grown trees in the green belt of Sector Chi-3, following complaints against the contractor Yogendra Associates who was assigned the civil work in the area.
28. Top court: Sustainable development doesn’t mean clearing forests using bulldozers
Chief Justice of India B R Gavai Wednesday reiterated his criticism of Telangana government’s tree felling in the Kancha Gachibowli area in Hyderabad saying that using bulldozers to clear it overnight cannot be justified as sustainable development.
29. Children may lose 1.5 years of schooling due to climate change: UNESCO
Children exposed to extreme heatwaves could lose up to 1.5 years of schooling, with climate change now directly impacting education systems and threatening to reverse decades of academic progress, according to a new global report from UNESCO.
