Environment & Ecology
Climate, biodiversity, pollution control and environmental legislation
India adds record 44 GW solar capacity in 2025, total reaches 150 GW
India added a record 44 gigawatts (GW) of solar power capacity in 2025, its highest-ever annual addition, bringing total installed solar capacity to 150 GW. ...
Who are Barkha Subba and Parveen Shaikh, the Indian conservationists among this year’s ‘Green Oscars’ winners?
Two Indian conservationists — Dr. Barkha Subba and Parveen Shaikh — are among six global winners of the 2026 Whitley Awards, popularly known as the "Green Os...
Maize emerges as India’s top ethanol feedstock as supplies surpass 515 crore litres
India's cumulative ethanol supplies reached approximately 515 crore litres in the first half of Ethanol Supply Year (ESY) 2025-26 — nearly 49% of the contrac...
China may not join alliance on conservation of big cats
The International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) is holding its first-ever summit in New Delhi from June 1–2, 2026, under the theme "Big Cats, Save Humanity, Save E...
PM's appeal: Diesel consumption in agriculture can be scaled back with use of alternative energy, experts say
A high-level appeal has been made for scaling back diesel consumption in the agricultural sector, prompting expert discussion on viable alternative energy pa...
India to invest substantially in green energy corridors to support renewable energy expansion: MNRE Secretary
The Secretary of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) stated that India will make substantial investments in green energy corridors to address cur...
Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation, Shri Amit Shah, reviews country's preparedness to deal with potential floods and heat waves in a comprehensive manner during an important high-level meeting held in New Delhi
A high-level review meeting assessed the country's preparedness for the upcoming monsoon season and anticipated heatwave events. The meeting directed authori...
Environment clearance to Great Nicobar Project given without adequate study: Jairam Ramesh
In a letter to the Union Environment Minister, a senior parliamentarian has raised serious objections to the environmental clearance granted to the Great Nic...
‘Save KBR’ protests intensify over tree cutting near national park
Protests under the 'Save KBR' campaign have entered their tenth consecutive day in Hyderabad, opposing tree felling for infrastructure works in and around Ka...
India released nearly 3,000 climate-resilient crop varieties during 2014-25: Govt
The government announced that 2,996 climate-resilient varieties of crops were released under the National Agricultural Research System (NARS) led by the Indi...
Forest Department may take up drone survey to verify land claims in Anamalai Tiger Reserve
The Forest Department in Tamil Nadu is considering deploying drone surveys to verify land claims filed under the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Fores...
Can data centres in orbit solve for AI models’ soaring energy demand?
Google's Project Suncatcher is an active research initiative to deploy data centres in low-Earth orbit (LEO), powering AI workloads using solar energy collec...
Why India curtailed solar energy during peak summer power demand
India recorded an all-time peak power demand of 256 GW on 26 April 2026, driven by summer heat waves and rising air-conditioning loads. Despite record demand...
Sleepless planet: Why nights are warming faster than days
Scientists have documented that global minimum (nighttime) temperatures are rising faster than global maximum (daytime) temperatures — a phenomenon termed "a...
India didn’t discover ethanol in crisis — It prepared for it
India achieved 20% ethanol blending in petrol (E20) in 2025, roughly five years ahead of the original 2030 target set under the National Policy on Biofuels 2...
Calcutta High Court to hear pleas against Great Nicobar project in June; overrules Centre’s objections
The Calcutta High Court has upheld the maintainability of Public Interest Litigations (PILs) challenging alleged violations of the Forest Rights Act, 2006 in...
Oceans nearing record heat globally as El Nino conditions begin emerging: Copernicus
A report by CSIRO (Australia's national science agency) has flagged that global ocean temperatures are approaching record highs, with El Niño conditions begi...
Three of every four key Indian reservoirs are half-empty
Central Water Commission (CWC) data shows aggregate live storage in India's 166 monitored major reservoirs has fallen to 66.830 BCM out of a total capacity o...
Calcutta HC to hear pleas against Great Nicobar project in June; overrules Centre’s objections
The Calcutta High Court has upheld the maintainability of Public Interest Litigations (PILs) challenging alleged violations of the Forest Rights Act, 2006, i...
EU-Mercosur trade deal enforced amid farmers’ fears of unfair competition
The EU-Mercosur trade agreement provisionally came into effect on 1 May 2026, after approximately 25 years of on-again, off-again negotiations that first beg...