Nature News, Vol. 4, Issue No.11 and 12 (Nov and Dec 2015)

BIRDS

The Times of Indian 3 Nov.2015
Common pochard now rare in NCR : EW DELHI: Conservationists were alarmed this week to find one of NCR's once most-commonly sighted wetland bird, common pochard, to have been labelled 'near-threatened' in the latest red list of birds released by International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) for 2015 because of its depleting number. Read more
 
The Pioneer 20 Nov.2015 
Winged guests to get warm welcome in Sultanpur:  Home to 250 different bird species, Sultanpur bird sanctuary is all set to welcome the new migratory birds. For taking care of migratory birds, the officials of Indian Forest Department have installed CCTV cameras. “We maintain the data of visitors manually. Read more

The Pioneer 26 Nov.2015 
514 species of birds in India, says BNHS: India is home to 514 species of birds, according to the Salim Ali Bird Count conducted by BNHS in association with Bird Count India.  Maharashtra ranks first with a total of 123 lists, followed by Kerala with 59 lists and Karnataka and Tamil Nadu with 40 each. Read more

The Indian Express 15 Dec. 2015 
Do birds have a fundamental right to fly: What is the case on the rights of birds that the Supreme Court admitted for hearing last month? What is the fundamental question before the court? On November 20, a Bench led by the then Chief Justice of India H L Dattu admitted a challenge to a Read more

The Pioneer 23 Dec.2015 
Like humans, birds too bear brunt of pollution: Presence of pollutants in the air can disturb food chain and breeding activities of birds in Delhi and Near Capital Region (NCR), according to ornithologists. Associate Professor, AJ Urfi from the Department of Environmental Studies, Delhi University (DU), said besides respiratory diseases, rising air pollution can trouble ecosystem and biological system. Read more

CLIMATE CHANGE

The Hindu 2 Nov.2015 
Solar policy may soon get nod: It has been cleared by environment department and is currently with the power department. After its draft was released in September, the Delhi government is now ready with the final report on the solar policy of the city. According to sources, the Solar Policy is likely to be approved by the Cabinet soon. Read more

The Times of India 17 Nov.2015 
Fighting climate change together: As Paris UNFCCC meet looms, US and India must join forces to save the planet: Sanjha Prayaas, Sabka Vikaas; Shared Effort, Progress for All. Each step we take to strengthen the relationship is a step towards shaping international security, regional and global peace, prosperity and stability for years to come. Read more

The Hindu 30 Nov.2015 
Why India must up the stakes in Paris: While India should not hesitate to defend its interests at the climate negotiations, it should be careful to not paint itself into a corner.
The Paris climate negotiations are a pivotal moment for global climate policy and carry huge implications for India’s developmental future. Read more

The Hindustan Times 30 Nov.2015 
How the world’s big cities are fighting climate change, together: If you thought climate change was only about melting glaciers and sinking islands, you have underestimated it. A report by C40, a global network of 82 megacities including Delhi committed to fighting climate change Read more

The Times of India 3 Dec.2015 
India wants legally binding pact on aid for poor countries' green shift: On the back of reports in the western media terming it `obstructionist' at the on-going climate summit, India on Wednesday strongly put forward its point and made it clear that the country wants a legally binding Read more

The Times of India 10 Dec.2015 
Carbon footprints don’t lie - World’s richest 10% release 50% of its CO2: As the rich countries of the West lock horns with the developing world at Paris on the question of who will cut how much carbon emissions, a new study by Oxfam shows the jaw dropping chasm between emissions of the two sides. Read more

The Indian Express 21 Dec.2015
The Art of a Climate Deal: The Paris conference on climate change was quite the cliffhanger. Even till the last minute, we were left wondering: Will Paris be another Copenhagen, where, famously, the deal had unraveled? Officials worked late into the wee hours, well past the official deadline Read more

ENVIRONMENT

The Times of India 3 Nov.2015 
MoEF proposes new watchdog, activists see bid to stifle NGT: A new adjudicating authority has been proposed to determine the extent of environmental damage to be caused by any project, Read more
 
The Pioneer 17 Nov.2015 
Green must win for India to live: Even with civil nuclear deals and rapid work on alternative energy solutions such as solar and wind, the bulk of India's power needs over the next decade will come from coal-fired thermal power plants. And regardless of the spin that is given, coal power is not ‘green' Read more

The Hindu 18 Nov.2015 
A clean-up act with a short sweep: The Environmental Laws (Amendment) Bill is the first step in quantifying and penalising environmental damage but it falls short in gauging the scope and ramifications. New Delhi is in the news again as irrespirable particulate matter is said to have crossed hazardous limits. Read more

FORESTS & BIODIVERSITY 
The Times of India 5 Nov. 2015  
Maha proposes to trim W Ghat eco zone by 66%:  A report submitted by the Maharashtra government to the ministry of environment, forests and climate change (MoEF) has suggested that only 6,719 sq km of the Western Ghats in the state be declared as ecologically sensitive area (ESA). Read more

The Pioneer 9 Nov.2015 
Tiger reserves have immense economic values - Study: Tiger Reserves are not just all about tigers and wildlife conservation, but have immense economic values as well. A recent study conducted by the Centre for Ecological Services Management in Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM) Read more

The Pioneer 11 Nov.2015 
Illegal trade taking toll on Star tortoise:  The Indian Star Tortoise is threatened by a booming illegal trade, due to their growing international demand as exotic pets, reaching as far as Thailand and China. In a study conducted by World Animal Protection, researchers have Read more

WETLANDS, RIVERS & WATER

The Times of India 14 Dec.2015 
Ganga has many faces - India needs to repair its rivers while retaining hydropower as a vital part of its energy mix: Whenever discussion takes place on pollution in the Ganga, as it does so often in the context of the Namami Gange project, the issue of upstream construction on the river obstructing the natural flow of waters comes up. Read more

The Pioneer 17 Nov.2015  
Study to look into medicinal value of River Ganga water: As the Government aims to make River Ganga to be one of the cleanest river systems of the world by October 2018, the Union Health Minister JP Nadda on Monday proposed a study to be conducted by country’s top research institutes to investigate whether its water has medicinal properties Read more 

WILDLIFE & ENDANGERED SPECIES 

The Indian Express 4 Nov.2015 
Cement firms up against 2% of project cost for wildlife funds; Centre relaxes policy : In a policy revision that is likely to benefit companies seeking to expand existing projects close to national parks and wildlife sanctuaries, the Centre has eased the burden of shelling out at least 2 per cent of the project cost for impact mitigation and conservation.  Read more

The Pioneer 10 Dec.2015 
A deadly war at the genetic level: There is something magical about butterflies in different colors flitting around from one flower to another. India is home to 1,800 species and subspecies that are increasingly being valued for aesthetic reasons. But what we overlook is that these beautiful  Read more

The Pioneer 22 Dec.2015 
India has ‘too many’ tigers! : As India is home to nearly 70 per cent of world’s tiger population, the Union Environment Ministry is planning to relocate some of the big cats to Cambodia, Thailand and Myanmar, where they have either become extinct or are on the verge of it. Read more