Environment & Ecology
Climate, biodiversity, pollution control and environmental legislation
CAFE 3: Car prices to rise up to ₹1.25 lakh; ₹1.48 lakh cr industry impact
India's Corporate Average Fuel Efficiency Phase III (CAFE III) norms are set to take effect from April 1, 2027, running through March 31, 2032. Car prices ar...
In a first, migratory honey bees get ‘warm womb’ to stay back in winters in Kashmir
Scientists at CSIR-IIIM (Council of Scientific and Industrial Research – Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine), Pulwama, have developed a scientific wint...
Four cheetahs from South Africa arrive in Bengaluru, to be housed at Bannerghatta National Park
Four cheetahs (two male, two female) from South Africa arrived at Bengaluru's Bannerghatta Biological Park on April 18, 2026, under an Animal Exchange Progra...
Explained: Odisha becomes first state to launch Marine Spatial Plan. Here is what to know
Odisha signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the National Centre for Coastal Research (NCCR) on April 16, 2026, in the presence of Chief Minister Mohan C...
Below-normal monsoon and West Asia conflict cloud India's agriculture outlook: BoB
The Bank of Baroda's (BoB) economic research unit flagged that India's agricultural outlook for 2026–27 is threatened by a dual shock: a below-normal monsoon...
Pope condemns use of AI to fuel 'polarisation, conflict, fear and violence'
Pope Leo XIV, speaking at the Catholic University of Central Africa in Yaoundé, Cameroon on April 17, 2026, condemned the use of artificial intelligence to f...
H5N1 virus detected in Hesaraghatta poultry centre near Bengaluru; no need for panic, says Dinesh Gundu Rao
H5N1 Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) was confirmed at the state-run poultry centre in Hesaraghatta, on the outskirts of Bengaluru, Karnataka, follow...
Storage in India’s major reservoirs down to 42.5% of capacity
India's 166 major reservoirs monitored by the Central Water Commission (CWC) held only 42.5% of their total live storage capacity as of mid-April 2026, down ...
India not to host COP 33 in 2028, Government confirms
India has formally withdrawn its offer to host the 33rd Conference of the Parties (COP 33) to the UNFCCC in 2028, as confirmed by the Union Ministry of Envir...
‘Cruelly hot’: Japan devises new term for heatwave days
Japan's Meteorological Agency (JMA) announced the creation of a new temperature classification term — "kokusho-bi" (酷暑日), meaning "cruelly hot day" — for day...
Explained: Below normal monsoon, but no cause for alarm
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued its first long-range forecast on April 13, 2026, predicting that India's southwest monsoon (June–September 2...
EU planning to include 180 more products under CBAM
The European Commission proposed expanding its Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) to cover approximately 180 additional downstream products, primarily...
CAFE III norms near industry-wide consensus
A high-level government meeting on April 16, 2026, convened Secretaries from the Ministries of Power, Heavy Industries, and Road Transport & Highways to deli...
EU's proposed CBAM expansion may impact Indian exporters: GTRI
The Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) assessed that the EU's proposed CBAM expansion to 180 downstream steel- and aluminium-intensive products could sh...
Isro, ATREE partner to map grasslands, improve land use planning
The Space Applications Centre (SAC) of ISRO and the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (Mo...
India's fossil fuel power output sees sharp decline in March amid push for renewables
India recorded one of the sharpest declines in coal-fired power generation among major economies in March 2026, driven primarily by a surge in solar and wind...
First-ever bat conservation assessment flags threat to species, data dark spots
India's first-ever comprehensive bat conservation assessment has been published, flagging multiple species as threatened and highlighting a significant data ...
Dry days: On rainfall deficit forecast
An editorial analyses the India Meteorological Department's (IMD) April 2026 forecast of a below-normal southwest monsoon, and cautions against both undue al...
After war, rain: Below-average monsoon emerges as new inflation risk
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued its first Long Range Forecast for the 2026 Southwest Monsoon on April 13, 2026, predicting below-normal rain...
India's green fuel plans collide with farmers' water fears
India's aggressive ethanol blending programme — targeting 20% ethanol blending in petrol (E20) — is triggering resistance from farmers in multiple states who...