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CIty IMAGE Tiny ForesTs in Big CiTies: A good ideA
THE NETHERLaNDS iS growing tiny dense urban forests in its cities. The Muziekplein forest (in the Picture) is one of many such tiny forests in utrecht City. The best thing about this initiative is that citizens, corporates and school children joined hands to convert an unused parking lot into a tiny forest. Over 144 such forests are in the Netherlands and seven in utrecht city. according to iVN Nature Education, the organization leading the country’s initiative, over 200 such tiny forests have been planned. It defines Tiny Forest as a dense, native forest the size of a tennis court. These forests are not only a pleasant place for butterflies, birds, bees and small mammals but also for people.
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Climate Change to increase mortality rate due to excess heat: Lancet
NEW DELHi: in a study published in The Lancet Planetary Health Journal, it has been found that climate change will increase mortality rate six times by the end of the century.
The study, conducted by the university of North Carolina, united States of america, said that high temperatures at night may disrupt normal sleep. Lack of sleep can, in turn, cause damage to the immune system and cause cardiovascular diseases, chronic illnesses or mental health issues. The temperature rise could go up from 20.4 degrees Celsius to 39.7 degrees Celsius in 2090, across 28 cities from East asia, increasing the risk of disease. The results of the study indicate towards a troubling future for the planet, even after restrictions placed by the Paris Climate agreement, which aims to limit the global rise in temperatures to below two degrees Celsius, compared to pre-industrial times. The researchers were able to predict that the probability of death from exceptionally hot nights will nearly double between 2016 and 2100. The mortality risk from daily average warming predicted by climate change models is substantially lower than this projection.
bHubaNESWaR: Chief Minister of Odisha Naveen Patnaik led High-Level Clearance authority (HLCa), on Wednesday, august 10, approved ten industrial projects in areas of green hydrogen, green ammonia, metal and infrastructure. The estimated cost of all the projects stands at `74,620.18 crores. The approved projects include a proposal to set up a Green Hydrogen Plant with a capacity of 20 Kilo-Tonnes Per annum (KTPa) and a Green ammonia Plant with a capacity of 100 KTPa in Jagatsingh district and Paradip district with a total investment of `2000 crore which will generate nearly 2000 jobs. The committee has also given approval to Tata Steel Limited for setting up 60,000 MT industrial structure and 6000 MT steel plant equipment facilities with a total investment of Rs 1000 crores that are expected to generate employment opportunities for 2451 people. adani Enterprises, on the other hand, has got approval to set up Alumina Refinery of 4.0 Million Tonnes Per annum (MTPa) capacity and 175 MW Captive Power Plant (CPP) in Kashipur and Rayagada district with a total investment of `41,653 crore, which will generate over 7750 employment opportunities.
HLCA approves 10 industrial projects worth `74,620 crores
The National institute of Disaster Management (NiDM) has joined hands with the State Disaster Management authority (SDMa) of Meghalaya to organise a 3-day training programme on ‘Psychological Care in Disaster Management’. The training programme was held from august 16 to august 18, at the conference hall of Meghalaya administrative Training institute (MaTi) in Shillong. The programme stressed upon understanding the needs of the survivors of disasters and also understanding the role of a psychological caregiver in helping the survivors deal with their disaster induced trauma.
HP to ban ‘non-woven’ plastic carry bags
The Government of Himachal Pradesh has decided to put a ban on the use of non-woven plastics from January 1, 2023. The usage of non-woven plastic carry bags weighing less than 60 grammes per square metre (GSM) as well as plastic carry bags of all sizes and thicknesses was outlawed by the state administration last month. However, the state government has now decided to completely ban the use of non-woven plastic carry bags, by putting a ban on such bags of more than 60 GSM as well. This is because it was discovered that these bags, which contain nonbiodegradable polypropylene, were being used on a large scale in the markets throughout the hill state.
Assam Logistic Policy 2022 approved by state cabinet
DiSPuR: in a recent meeting, Chief Minister Himanta biswa Sarma led cabinet approved the assam Logistic Policy 2022, and also the amendment to expand the scope of master plan aimed at the development of urban areas in the state. The policy involves proposal and incentives disbursement with the help of the Ease of Doing business (EoDb) Portal. under this policy, the Department of Revenue and Disaster Management, Government of assam, will give priority to the conversion of land, if required, to set up a logistic facility. For the industrial parks developed by the assam industrial infrastructure Development Corporation (aiiDC), it will set aside 15 per cent of their land for the development of logistic infrastructure under the policy. The envisaged logistic infrastructure will include logistic parks, cold storage, warehouses, primary processing centres and truck terminal to facilitate transport. During the meeting, the state cabinet approved an amendment to the Guwahati Metropolitan Development authority act, 1985, for the expansion and implementation of the Guwahati Master Plan. The amendment will pave way for the development of Guwahati Metropolitan area, transit-oriented development and will introduce new land use zones to meet the reform agenda. apart from that, the development of local area plans and town planning schemes are the other component that the amendment deals with.
Nagaland Govt launches eSanjeevani teleconsultation Service
KOHiMa: The Government of Nagaland, on Saturday, august 6, launched the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), the Government of india’s, national level teleconsultation service. The eSanjeevani service is a telecommunication-based doctor to patient consultation service.
S Pangnyu Phom, Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Government of Nagaland, said that the newly launched programme will replace the state’s Naga telehealth, a telecommunication and telemedicine platform aimed at eliminating the rural-urban divide in the healthcare sector. Phom was addressing the gathering that coincided with the felicitation of three healthcare facilities in the state for receiving the National Quality assurance Standards (NaQS) in healthcare service. asangla imti, Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of Nagaland, highlighted that the programme would eliminate the need to visit the healthcare centre personally, and it will ensure the reach of people residing in remote areas to quality healthcare services. BMC sets aside `5800
crore for concrete, pothole-free roads
Following a directive from the Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde that all roads in the state’s capital city should be cement concretised by 2024, the brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (bMC) on august 2, issued notice inviting bids from five companies for the work to do away with the problem of potholes. The bid invitation is for `5800 crore works for 400 km of roads, which is more than twice the amount bMC spends on an average on road repairs, annually. BMC officials said that floating of the tenders was a step towards making the city pothole-free.
Delhi Govt to provide Affordable Rental Housing
The Ministry of Housing and urban affairs, Government of India has notified changes to the Master Plan of Delhi-2021 for the rollout of affordable Rental Housing Complexes (aRHCs) scheme. after widespread reports of reverse migration during the COViD-19 pandemic, the Center established the aRHC programme in 2020, to supply migrant workers with cheap accommodation around the nation. The two models for putting the aRHC scheme into action are either the central government rents out apartments built under the Jawaharlal Nehru National urban Renewal Mission (JnNuRM) and Rajiv awas Yojana, or allowing government organisations or private organisations to construct rental houses on their land.
Delhi government to launch action plan for air pollution
NEW DELHi: Gopal Rai, Minister of Environment, Government of NCT of Delhi, has said that the Delhi government will be launching a 15-point action plan to combat the menace of air pollution in the winter season. The plan will aim to target major sources of pollution, like vehicular emissions, controlling stubble, dust pollution, open burning of trash, industrial pollution, pollution hotspots, real-time apportionment studies, smog towers, e-waste parks, plantations, the Green Delhi application, eco-farming, public involvement, firecrackers, etc. in a meeting, Rai will go over each of the 33 departments’ concerns in depth. The winter action plan will take into account their comments and advice. The revised Graded Response action Plan’s implementation will also be discussed during the meeting. according to Rai, local sources account for 39 per cent of Delhi’s air pollution, with the remaining coming from nearby National Capital Region areas. a revised version of the Graded Response action Plan (GRaP) will be implemented from October 1, 2022. GRaP is a set of guidelines to be followed during those months, when air quality in Delhi dips to a dangerously low level. The plan is coming into action 15 days before its usual date every year. until now, the authorities would only put the measures into Most polluted cities in PM 2.5 exposure Rank City Annual Average Exposure Levels µg/m3
1 Delhi, India 110
2 Kolkata, India 84
3 Kano, Nigeria
84 4 Lima, Peru 73 5 Dhaka, Bangladesh 71 6 Jakarta, Indonesia 67 7 Lagos, Nigeria 67 8 Karachi, Pakistan 64 9 Beijing, China 55 10 Accra, Ghana 52 Top 10 cities in terms PM 2.5 death toll (2019) City No of deaths
Beijing, China Chengdu, China Kyiv, Ukraine
124 118 114 Kharkiv, Ukraine 114 Jakarta, Indonesia 106 Delhi, India 106 Shanghai, China 105 Kolkata, India 99 Bucharest, Romania 90 Calarasi, Romania 90
place once the PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations reached a certain point. The updated plan, which is part of a new policy created by the Commission for air Quality Management (CaQM) to reduce air pollution in Delhi-NCR, and relies on forecasts to enact bans up to three days in advance.
The revised plan also calls for a ban on bS iV four-wheeler diesel cars in Delhi and the NCR’s surrounding districts, with the exception of those performing essential services, if the air quality index (aQi) crosses the mark of 450. Delhi’s GRaP has been categorised into four phases of poor air quality: Stage I, ‘Poor,’ (AQI 201-300); Stage II, ‘Very Poor,’ (AQI 301-400); Stage III, ‘Severe,’ (AQI 401-450); and Stage IV, ‘Severe Plus,’ (aQi >450).
Earlier, in august 2022, the ‘air Quality and Health in Cities’ report released by the State of Global air initiative of the Health Effects institute (HEi), Delhi has been ranked as the most polluted city in the world in terms of annual average population–weighted PM 2.5 concentrations with 110µg/m3. Kolkata, West bengal has been ranked second in the survey with 84 points followed by Kano city in Nigeria, Lima in Peru, Dhaka in bangladesh and Jakarta in indonesia are positioned in the third, fourth, fifth and sixth place respectively. another city in india, Mumbai has been placed in the 14th position.
On the other hand, in terms of death due to air pollution, two cities in india Delhi and Kolkata have been placed in 6th and 8th place with 106 and 99 deaths respectively.
15.3% increase in crime against women in 2021: NCRB Report
NEW DELHi: The National Crime Records bureau (NCRb) published its latest report for the year 2021 on august 29. in 2021, there was a 15.3 per cent increase in crime against women compared to the previous year.
Delhi has been named as the most unsafe city for women, as 13,892 cases of crime against women were registered in the city in 2021, which is notably 40 percent higher from that of last year’s. The total crime against women in all the 19 metropolitan cities stood at 43,414. The national capital is followed by Mumbai and bengaluru. according to the NCRb, 1,357 incidents of girl child victims of sexual offences were recorded under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses act in 2021. according to the data, the number of girl child rape cases reported in 2021 reached 833, the greatest number among major cities. While Delhi recorded the highest number of kidnapping cases amongst the metro cities (in 2020 at 5,475 as against 4,011 in 2020), the cases of murder registered a marginal decline in 2021. The national capital has reported the highest number of crimes in categories including cruelty by husbands (4674) and Kidnapping (3948) in comparison to other metropolitan cities having a population of more than two million in the year 2021.
The number of cybercrimes in the national capital increased by 111% in 2021 compared to the previous year, with the majority of cases being motivated by sexual exploitation, according to NCRb data. The majority of these incidents involved online fraud, online harassment, the publication of explicit content, etc., according to data assessed by NCRb for the year 2021. Despite the Delhi Police’s establishment of a social media centre and a dedicated division for cybercrime, there has been an upsurge. The majority of the offenders in the over 356 incidents of cybercrime that were reported last year were arrested for publishing and transmitting sexually explicit content. Most of the complainants were females or children between the ages of 12 and 17.
Madhya Pradesh, on the other hand, is termed unsafe for senior citizens (above 60 years) with a crime of rate of 92.3, followed by Chhattisgarh and Himachal Pradesh with a crime rate of 70 and 59.6. The crime rate in these states is far higher than the national average that is 25.1. according to the 2022 report, West bengal had the most cases of counterfeit bank and currency notes in the nation last year, with 82 incidents detected. With 75 cases reported, assam came in second, followed by Tamil Nadu in third place with 62 cases. according to the survey, among other states, Maharashtra recorded 55 cases, Rajasthan reported 54 cases, and uttar Pradesh reported 42 cases. india recorded a total of 639 instances of fake bank and currency notes in 2021. According to NCRB figures, there was a 20 percent increase in crimes against children in 2021 over the previous year. in contrast to the 2,121 cases reported in 2020, 2,556 cases of crimes against minors were reported in the previous year under various sections of the indian Penal Code (iPC) and Special acts and Local Laws (SLL). as a result, the rate of crime against children— measured as the number of crimes committed per lakh population— has also skyrocketed, rising to 29.2 in 2021 from 24.3 the year before. 1,40,839 crimes against children were committed in all 28 states. The report figures a 7.6 per cent decline in the number of cases registered in the year 2021 in comparison to 2020. The crime rate per lakh population which stood at 487.8 in 2020 came down to 445.9 in 2021.
The report includes data that is collected from 36 states and union territories in india.
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UP Cabinet approves various proposals on growth of cities, people
LuCKNOW: The cabinet of Government of uttar Pradesh on Tuesday, august 2, provided a major boost for development in ayodhya and Varanasi. The cabinet gave a green signal to a proposal to spend `797.69 crore on construction and widening of a main road in ayodhya that will provide easy access to devotees and tourists to the Ram Temple, which is in the process of getting built. under the Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir Road Widening Project, a stretch of 12.94 km long road from Sahadatganj Nayaghat as the main spine road is to be constructed and widened, for which the cost of land and building acquisition will be `378.77 crore. in addition, the state has developed a project for rehabilitation and compensation to shopkeepers and residents. The Public Works Department will execute the project after completion of the work of acquisition of land and buildings. in a bid to implement ease of doing business, the state cabinet took major decision of clearing uP Shops and Commercial Establishments (Ninth amendment) Rules, 2022. This allows the shops and establishments to register only once, without the need for renewal of licenses. However, the registration fees for them has increased manifold. The new law states that the registration fee will be levied on maximum number of employees in commercial establishments registering during the financial year. For instance, for commercial establishments employing more than 25 persons, the registration fees will be `30,000, which is up from `2000 charged earlier. A shop that employs one to five persons now have to pay a registration fee of `2,250, earlier they had to pay only `150. The shop employing six to ten people will now have to pay `4,500, as opposed to `200, and `7,500 for employing 11 to 25 people earlier. Similarly, for employing 25 the shopkeeper have to now pay 15,000.
The Cabinet also gave green signal to new rules on the safety and security of factory workers of state. under these laws, making an employee work for more than 48 hours in a week will require the employer to give double payment for every additional hour. it also states that women can be employed as long as all rules are followed and including the rest hours, an employee/ worker cannot be asked to work for more than 12 hours in a day. apart from that, the company has to provide for health check-up on ayearly basis for an employee of over 45 years of age, engaged in dangerous work. additionally, the Cabinet approved 11 proposals for expansion of existing local bodies and creation of a new nagar panchayat. aK Sharma, Minister for urban Development, Government of uttar Pradesh, noted that the boundaries of three nagar panchayats, including Khaga in Fatehpur, Nigohi in Shahjahanpur and Sonebhadra in Sonebhadra district had already been extended. in addition to that, the boundaries of seven nagar palikas was also expanded, these nagar palikas include anupshahr in bulandshahar, Shamli in Kairana, Muradnagar, Loni and Modinagar in Ghaziabad and Khatauni in Muzaffarnagar. in another decision in relation to the urban development, the Cabinet approved a plan of spending `550 crore on new local bodies, as proposed in the budget. under the newly introduced Mukhya Mantri Nagar Srijan Yojna, 90 per cent of the funds will be spent on people and 10 per cent on the people. a K Sharma, Minister of urban Development, Government of uttar Pradesh, said that a masterplan will be developed for spending of funds and various activities to be undertaken.
The state has also approved settingup of a regional centre of National Security university, Gandhinagar in the premises of Dr Shakuntala Mishra National Rehabilitation university, free of cost.
