City Image

World’s first temporary stadium

STADiUM 974 iS the first football stadium in Doha, Qatar, that will be dismantled after the FIFA World Cup 2022 tournament and will be donated and reused. It is the only waterfront venue constructed entirely using standard certified shipping containers and modular steel elements. The stadium is naturally ventilated due to its design and location, ensuring costeffectiveness, bringing down the usage of water at the venue by almost 40 per cent given that there is no need for advanced cooling technology. The stadium has achieved a five-star rating under the Global Sustainability Assessment System, setting new standards for building sustainable venues.

nEWSCAn CAG report: Improper implementation of housing schemes in Karnataka

BENGALURU: Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG), who identified shortcomings in the implementation of housing programmes in Karnataka, stated in its report that the housing Department has only completed 88,395 dwelling units (DUs), against the target of 5.17 lakh for the urban poor as of March 2021, or only 17 per cent. it further stated that as of March 2021, only 5,17,531 of the 13,71,592 potential beneficiaries, which is only 38 per cent, identified through demand survey had chosen to participate in Affordable housing in Partnership (AHP) and Beneficiary Led Individual House Construction (BLC) projects.

According to the report, urban local bodies did not conduct the survey to determine the demand for housing in accordance with the guidelines. As only 13.72 lakh prospective beneficiaries were identified as homeless, as opposed to the 20.35 lakh envisaged under the Karnataka Affordable housing Policy (KAhP), there is possibility that the incorrect survey excluded many eligible beneficiaries. The report went on to note that just 3.43 lakh beneficiaries were identified following proper validation using unique identification such an Aadhar number.

According to the report, inconsistencies in the selection of recipients were highlighted when it was discovered that 41 per cent of the homes built under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban (PMAY-U) programme were expensive multistory structures with carpet areas larger than 30 square metres.

Residents to contribute in Chennai’s Master Plan 2027-2046

CheNNAi: The consultation process to begin in 28 assembly constituencies of The Chennai Metropolitan Area (CMA), involving the officials and the residents, for the preparation of Chennai’s Third Master Plan 2027-2046.

The expansion and development of the Chennai Metropolitan Planning Area (CMPA) will be based on the regional planning approach, and it will be integrated with the Third Master Plan of Chennai.

S Muthusamy, Minister for housing and Urban Development, Government of Tamil Nadu, initiated the process of engagement with the stakeholders to prepare the vision document of master plan. On the same day, the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) launched a workshop to solicit suggestions from the stakeholders, including residents, who could provide their views and suggestions through the website of CMA.

The minister said that the CMDA will reach out to all the villages in the metropolitan area seeking cooperation from residents in the consultation process. he added, “Public consultation is very important. Residents will be able to give innovative ideas about urban planning.” he noted, “we are also planning to implement land pooling for development of villages along 62 km of Outer Ring Road.” Minister also said that he has asked the officials to include projects of the Tamil Nadu Housing Board (TNSB) in the redevelopment process.

Delhi Govt to spray biodecomposer on fields to reduce stubble burning

Gopal Rai, Minister of environment, Forest and Wildfire, Government of Delhi, said the government would spray bio-decomposer solution on almost 5,000 acres of rice fields in Delhi this year to reduce stubble burning. The indian Agricultural Research institute (iARi) created a bio-decomposer solution that speeds up the decomposition of stubble by converting it into manure over the course of 15 to 20 days, decreasing the requirement to burn the stubble as is done every year in the winter. Representatives from the revenue and agriculture departments have been roped in to form 21 teams for the spraying process.

`4.33cr collected from

violators of plastic ban in Karnataka

The Government of Karnataka informed the legislative Council that `4.33 crore has been collected as penalty from the violators of the single-use plastic ban since July 2022. in line with the directives of the Government of india, Karnataka has banned the use, purchase and storage of single-use plastic. The state has imposed a penalty of `5,000 per tonne on manufacturers, `500 on waste generators, `2,000 on retail sellers and `200 on street vendors in case of first time violation. however, in the second and third instances, the penalty amount will be doubled.

nEWSCAn Rajasthan comes up with 512 new Indira Kitchens

JODhPUR: Chief Minister of Rajasthan Ashok Gehlot inaugrated 512 new indira Rasois (indira Kitchens). with 358 of them already in place, there will be a total of 870 indira Rasois in the state. it should be noted that in August 2020, Gehlot began building 358 permanent kitchens in 213 urban areas under the slogan ‘No One Sleeps hungry.’

Through indira Rasoi, the underprivileged receive a one-time meal for `8 each. local institutions or NGOs are chosen to manage the kitchen for the execution and monitoring of the programme. According to an official announcement, this programme has already served 7.01 crore food plates, which is 73.23 per cent of the intended number. with the help of 1000 indira Rasois, 13.81 billion food plates will be provided to the poor annually.

Currently, 358 kitchens are in operation, and the government has planned to increase the number of indira Rasois to 1000 in this year’s budget. The project included a provision of `125 crore, which was increased to `250 crore in the budget for 2022–2023. As per the scheme, the State Finance Commission provides a 50 per cent subsidy to the urban local bodies, with the remaining 50 per cent coming mostly from the Chief Minister Relief Fund or other heads as needed.

Bandicoot Robot to assist in internal tank cleaning

New Delhi: The Bandicoot Robot, being hailed as the first robotic scavenger, is developed by Genrobotics, a national award-winning startup, as part of the Make in india and Swachh Bharat Abhiyan initiative. in June 2022, the indian Oil Corporation ltd (iOCl) collaborated with Genrobotics to develop a robotic solution for the internal cleaning of tanks and inspection of refineries. Apart from iOCl, several other PSUs and private firms have collaborated with Genrobotics for this project.

The robot so developed is named Bandicoot and it helps in the mechanical cleaning of closed spaces like sewers, manholes, stormwater manholes and sewer wells, Oily water Sewer (OwS) and Storm water Sewer (SwS) in refineries. Right now, smart cities, urban local Bodies (ULBs), refineries and multinational companies of over 16 states are leveraging Bandicoot Robots, aiming to eliminate manual scavenging that often leads to death of the cleaning workers. On the occasion of its 63rd Foundation Day, iOCl revealed their plans to use more Bandicoot Robots on the premises of its refineries. The robots working for iOCl have shown great potential in eliminating the risk involving the death of cleaning workers, and in reducing the time consumed in the cleaning process. These robots are compact in size, which allows them to reach cramped spaces.

No confidence motion against ULB heads can be used only once in 4 years

The Government of Telangana presented a bill seeking to amend Section 37 of Telangana Municipalities Act 2019, which deals with the matter of no confidence motion against a chairperson or vice-chairperson. The new amendment will increase the period for moving a no-confidence motion against a sitting Chairperson or Mayor of an urban local body (UlB) to four years, while earlier, it could be used once in three years. with this, the state government is aiming to eliminate the threat of municipal councillors or corporators using the noconfidence motion as blackmail.

SEC announce schedule of Bihar Municipal elections 2022

The State election Commission (SeC) of Bihar has revealed the schedule of election for 261 municipal bodies in the state. The local bodies’ elections will be held in two phases, the first on October 10 and the second on October 20. Only seven corporations out of the 19 will follow the earlier reservation policy. in nine municipal corporations, the post of Mayor and Deputy Mayor has been reserved for women candidates. The list of corporations to have women heads includes Ara, Patna, Darbhanga, Bettiah, Begusarai and Sasaram.

nEWSCAn MOHUA launches Swachh Toycathon

New Delhi: The Ministry of housing and Urban Affairs (MohUA), Government of india, launched the Swachh Toycathon under the Swachh Amrit Mahotsav, which is a one-of-itskind competition to create toys from waste. The National Action Plan for Toys (NAPT) and Swachh Bharat Mission (Phase-2) came together to create the competition (SBM 2.0). it looks into potential remedies for the usage of trash in toy production. Swachh Amrit Mahotsav was a fortnight-long series of activities with an aim to promote public engagement and take a step towards the goal of creating ‘Garbage Free Cities’. The events were held from September 17, Seva Diwas, till October 2, Swachhata Diwas.

The Swachh Toycathon competition investigated cutting-edge methods for using dry waste in toy production. The competition will be open to all people and organisations who can present their innovative ideas for producing toys out of dry waste. The creation of effective designs that can be produced on a wider scale will be the main goal of this Toycathon. The toys should be aesthetically pleasing in appearance and must meet the minimum safety requirements. The competition will be held on the MyGov portal, with the Center for Creative learning at iiT Gandhinagar serving as the initiative’s knowledge partner. while addressing the event Roopa Mishra, Joint Secretary, MohUA, highlighted that a comprehensive approach was being taken in the initiative and in the way forward following the competition. She also presented the toolkit of competition along with the modalities of participation in the event. The competition has been designed around three main themes: ‘Fun and Learn’ seeks concepts for early prototypes of toys made from waste at home, at work, and in the environment; ‘Use and enjoy’ seeks concepts for models of games and play in parks and open spaces made from waste; and ‘New and Old’ seeks concepts and solutions for circularity in the toy industry.

The Prime Minister of india, Narendra Modi, first expressed his intent to make india a major centre for toys in August 2020 through his Mann ki Baat address to the nation. To accomplish this, he emphasised the need for expanding india’s global footprint, developing organic synergies across demographics, and utilising the availability of raw materials and artisan skill sets. To support the toy sector, especially handcrafted toys and traditional handicrafts, the National Action Plan for Toys 2020 (NAPT) was introduced. As part of NAPT 2020, a comprehensive action plan was developed to incentivise local production and encourage handicraft manufacturers. Some of the proposed actions outlined in the plan were launching central government schemes, establishing toy production hubs across the nation, enhancing the R&D infrastructure of toys to support self-discovery and self-learning, fostering creativity, skill development of artisans, organising hackathons and competitions to promote creativity and innovation, increasing public awareness and demand for native toys including puppets, wooden dolls, clay toys, and tribal games, etc. NAPT was commissioned by the Department for Promotion of industries and internal Trade (DPiiT) under the Ministry of Commerce and industry, Government of india, but it will be carried out in partnership with 14 central ministries, including those in charge of education, textiles, railroads, science and technology, and information and broadcasting.

At the Toycathon launch, professors Uday Athvankar and Manish Jain from IIT Gandhinagar and Vidyun Goel from the Toy Bank discussed the design of toys and games, cognitive science, and their opinions on how the initiative would affect the toy business.

7-member committee to review state of Bengaluru lakes

BeNGAlURU, Karnataka: K Srinivas, Deputy Commissioner, Bengaluru City, aiming to preserve Chandapura lake from pollution, told that four urban local bodies (UlBs) Jigani, hebbagodi City Municipal Council (CMC), Chandapura Town Municipal Council (TMC) and Bommasandra TMC will establish solid waste management plants which will start working by the end of 2023.

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) took suo moto cognizance of the report of The Indian Express titled, ‘Lakes of Bengaluru: Industrial effluents, Raw sewage; stinky tale of Chandapura lake’, published in 2021. later the tribunal constituted a sevenmember joint committee comprising representatives of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB), indian institute of Science (iiSc), State environment impact Assessment Authority (SeiAA), National wetland Authority, State wetland Authority and District Magistrate of Bengaluru. The joint committee will look into the complaints regarding violation of the buffer zone and solid waste management guidelines at Chandapura lake in the Anekal Taluk. As per the action plan outlined by the district administration for the conservation and restoration of Chandapura lake, a detailed project report (DPR) for the construction of an underground drainage system has been submitted to the state government for approval. The estimated cost of the entire project stands at Rs 262 crores. Additionally, 21 other lakes in Jigani, hebbagodi (CMC), Chandapura and Bommasandra TMC will be preserved with the help of CSR funds pooled by private entities.

The joint committee constituted by NGT highlighted that the upstream lakes connected to the Chandapura lake are polluted, which is contaminating the lake. The committee also found that the municipal waste from the area is being dumped in the lake as there is no common sewage treatment plant (STP) to treat the sewage waste.

Apart from this, in September, a water quality analysis report was prepared by the KSPCB, which found that none of the lakes in Bengaluru has water that is fit enough to drink without any treatment. The main problem behind the contamination of these water bodies was, again, the dumping of untreated sewage waste and industrial effluents.

Bengaluru produces 1458.6 minimal liquid discharge (mld) of sewage per day. An official from KSPCB shared that only 50 per cent of the 1456 mld of sewage that is produced every day in Bengaluru is being treated in sewage treatment plants, so 80 per cent sewage and 20 per cent industrial effluents are the main causes of the lakes’ pollution. The official also added that the Bangalore water Supply and Sewerage Board (BwSSB) is yet to install underground drainage systems in over 110 villages, therefore the sewage produced in these communities enters lakes.in this report, KSPCB examined 105 lakes in the city of Bengaluru and classified them into Class A, B, C and D categories based on the water quality in these lakes. The Class A water bodies contain drinkable water, and water from Class B lakes could be used for outdoor bathing. water from Class D lakes could be used for fisheries and wildlife and class e water for irrigation purposes. however, none of the lakes could make it into group A, B, and C categories, while there were 65 lakes in Class D and 36 in Class e, and it was not possible to take water from four water bodies as they do not have enough water.

Bengaluru produces 1458.6 minimal liquid discharge (mld) of sewage per day. An official from KSPCB shared that only 50 per cent of the 1456 mld of sewage that is produced every day in Bengaluru is being treated in sewage treatment plants, so 80 per cent sewage and 20 per cent industrial effluents are the main causes of the lakes’ pollution. The official also added that the Bangalore water Supply and Sewerage Board (BwSSB) is yet to install underground drainage systems in over 110 villages, therefore the sewage produced in these communities enters lakes.

nEWSCAn

Global Human Development Index 2022 released on September 8

New Delhi: human Development index Report for 2021-2022 was published by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on September 8, 2022. The report titled ‘Uncertain Times, Unsettled Lives: Shaping our Future in a Transforming world’ notes that the whole world is witnessing a new “uncertainty complex” owing to a global pandemic raging since the last three years and the Russia-Ukraine war which has had devastating effects on all aspects of life in the war-torn country. This feeling of uncertainty and insecurity has been continuing since before the pandemic started due to multiple factors including democratic backsliding. Not to be underestimated is the climate crisis driven by the Anthropocene, which is manifesting in the form of extreme weather events like droughts and flooding, global temperature rise, forest fires, storms, mass coral bleaching, etc. A direct consequence of these different kinds of uncertainties is acute mental distress which is a global issue and which impedes human development in a major way. It is the first time ever that the global human Development index (hDi) value has declined for two consecutive years, thereby undoing the progress of the preceding five years. UNDP defines human Development index as the composite measure of three indicators- health, education and standard of living. it aims to show that the true measure of development in a country should be its people and not just the economy. The average value of these three indicators is between 0 and 1. india at 0.633 takes 132nd rank in the list of 190 countries this year which falls in the Medium hDi category. it has fallen by one spot from the previous year. The Medium hDi category includes countries mostly from Asia, Africa and South America. in South Asia, while China (ranked 79th), Bangladesh (ranked 129th), Sri lanka (ranked 73rd), and Bhutan (ranked 127th) are all ranked higher than india, Pakistan (ranked 161st), Nepal (ranked 143rd), and Myanmar (ranked 149th) are ranked lower. Although the fall in ranking is in keeping with the global trend, it is important to note that many economies which are farther behind than india fare much better in the hDi index. it could be an opportunity for us to rethink where our policies are leading us. At the top of the list was Switzerland, followed by Norway and iceland. South Sudan was at the bottom of the list with Chad and Niger preceding it. india ranked 122 on Global inequality index, with the score of 0.49. The labour force participation of females is 19.2 per cent against 70.1 per cent for males. The Gender Social Norms index of this year shows that global gender bias has gone down since 2019 when it was first included in HDI. This has been the trend in india as well.

There is no panacea for these problems, but the report outlines some common policy categories which form the basis for other efforts for human development. These three types of policies are called the Three i’s- investment, insurance and innovation. The need of the hour is ‘nature-based human development’ which protects natural resources, which in turn will secure people’s futures. insurance in the face of social security measures can reduce adverse effects of uncertain situation, like loss of income, drop in income, etc. Innovation can fill the need gap, even in small ways. For instance, fact-checking platforms have been started on social media to counter misinformation which abounds on internet.