Environment & Ecology
Climate, biodiversity, pollution control and environmental legislation
Tepid promises: On India and non-fossil capacity
India has pledged to achieve 500 GW of non-fossil fuel-based electricity capacity by 2030, a commitment made at COP26 (Glasgow, 2021) and enshrined in its up...
Reliance Industries refutes purchasing any Iranian oil
Reliance Industries, operator of the world's largest private refinery complex at Jamnagar, Gujarat, publicly refuted reports that it had purchased Iranian cr...
Global initiative marks taking steps to curb illegal and unsustainable taking of migratory wildlife
A global initiative has marked significant steps to curb Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing, highlighting progress under international framew...
Toothless ban: Single-use plastic rules 84% of surveyed sites in four cities
A new report titled "Revisiting Single Use Plastic Ban" by Toxics Link — a New Delhi-based environmental research and advocacy organisation — found that bann...
ICICI Bank projects India’s FY27 growth at 6.9% amid energy supply strain
ICICI Bank's Economic Research Desk released a report on March 26, 2026 revising India's FY27 GDP growth forecast downward to 6.9%, from its earlier projecti...
‘Giving sectarian colour to support from India’—Iran embassy’s selective tweets play on ‘Kashmir angle’
The Iranian Embassy in New Delhi posted, then deleted, messages on X (formerly Twitter) thanking the "kind people of Kashmir" and India for humanitarian supp...
Israel Defence Minister claims Iran Guards navy commander killed in strike
Israel's Defence Minister announced that Alireza Tangsiri, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy, was killed in an overnight pre...
‘Designated authority’, takeover clause: What FCRA Amendment Bill means for NGOs under govt lens
Following the introduction of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026 in the Lok Sabha, a detailed analysis of its two most consequential ...
General Elections and bye-elections 2026: Scrutiny of Nominations concludes
The scrutiny of nomination papers for the 2026 General Elections to Legislative Assemblies of Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, and the Union Territory...
Death of winter: In Ladakh, a fading cold season is rewriting life in the high Himalayas
Ladakh recorded its warmest winter in years during 2025-26, with the average temperature in Leh rising to -2.3°C, approximately 2°C above the long-term histo...
India’s CO2 emissions grew at the slowest pace in over two decades in 2025: Analysis
India's carbon dioxide emissions grew by approximately 0.7% in 2025 — the slowest annual increase in more than two decades, excluding the anomalous drop duri...
Why is Chennai’s microplastic problem bigger than it looks? | Explained
A study on Chennai's beach sediments reveals that despite a relatively low mean microplastic abundance of 30.13 ± 3.13 MPs/kg, the ecological risk assessment...
Climate study shows drying of Cauvery to persist until 2050, even as other rivers swell
A new climate study warns that the Cauvery river faces a "near-term decline" of approximately 3.5% of its water volume between 2026 and 2050, even as norther...
Why has Madras High Court ordered eradication of seemai karuvelam? | Explained
The Madras High Court issued 34 detailed directions on March 18, 2026 for the eradication of Prosopis juliflora — commonly known as seemai karuvelam or vilay...
India unveils new UN climate target: 47% emissions intensity cut by 2035, 60% non-fossil power capacity
The Union Cabinet approved India's new Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) for the period 2031–2035, to be submitted to the UNFCCC under the Paris Agree...
West Asia war: how finding oil changed the Persian Gulf’s ecology
A feature article examines how the discovery of oil in the Persian Gulf region — and the subsequent industrial buildup — fundamentally altered one of the wor...
India raises clean-energy ambition with 60% non-fossil fuel power goal by 2035
The Union Cabinet approved India's Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) for the period 2031–2035 on March 25, 2026, to be communicated to the UNFCCC unde...
Climate study shows drying of Cauvery to persist until 2050, even as other rivers swell
A new climate study projects that the Cauvery river will face a "near-term decline" of approximately 3.5% of its total water flow between 2026 and 2050, even...
India targets 47% emission intensity cut, 60% electricity capacity from non-fossils by 2035
The Union Cabinet approved India's enhanced Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) for the period 2031–2035, to be submitted to the UNFCCC under the Paris ...
Next phase of demand-led growth of ethanol to focus on higher blending target, flex-fuel vehicles and E-100
India is entering the next phase of its ethanol demand-side strategy, focusing on higher blending targets beyond E20, promotion of flex-fuel vehicles (FFVs),...