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Germany pushes for greener, multi-modal micromobility

DURInG ITS ‘MoBILITy WEEK’, the city of Stuttgart, Germany inaugurated charging stations at four apcoa parking garages throughout the city. The charging stations reimagine urban parking garages as technology-forward ecosystems for electrification, multimodal travel, and last-mile logistics. Stuttgart is striving to become a ‘showcase city’ by adapting parking infrastructure that can support a shift towards micromobility. This shift can replace an estimated six out of 10 car trips in German cities.

UNICEF releases first ever assessment of Climate Risk on Children

NEW DELHi: On august 2021, a global report prepared on the scale of risks posed by the climate emergency for the world’s children was released by the united Nations’ Children’s Fund (uNiCEF). This came as the first ever Index prepared on Children’s Climate Risk. Children’s Climate Risk index (CCRi) has been developed in collaboration with several partners including the Data for Children Collaborative. it also ranks countries based on children’s exposure to climate and environmental shocks, and based on their access to essential services, it ranks countries on children’s vulnerabilities to those shocks. The index released in beta version will continue to be adjusted, modified, and have new database added. The Small island Developing States, with land area less than 20,000 square kilometers, have not been included in the index due to existing limitations on data availability.

The report established that the very visible climate crisis on Earth is the defining human and child’s rights challenge of the current generation. it said that the crisis is already having a visible devastating impact on the wellbeing of children across the globe. The index was released as a tool to understand where and how children are uniquely vulnerable to this crisis, so that it is appropriately responded to. The report said, “The CCRi provides the first comprehensive view of children’s exposure and vulnerability to the impacts of climate change to help prioritize action for those most at risk and ultimately ensure today’s children inherit a liveable planet.”

Henrietta Fore, Executive Director, uNiCEF, said that climate and environmental shocks are presently undermining the complete spectrum of children’s rights, including access to clean air, food and safe water, education, housing, freedom from exploitation, and even their right to survive. if looked at properly, no child’s life will remain unaffected due to the crisis.

The index included following information tracing the impact of climate crisis on children:

Over 1 in 4 children globally are exposed to vector-borne diseases. This is likely to worsen as temperature suitability and climatic conditions for mosquitos and pathogens that transmit these diseases spread

920 million children globally are exposed to water scarcity. It is likely to worsen as climate change increases frequency and severity of droughts, water stress, seasonal and interannual variability, and contamination

820 million children across the globe are currently highly exposed to heatwaves. Researchers believe that heatwaves are likely to worsen as the global average temperatures keep increasing and weather patterns continue becoming more erratic. In fact, the year 2020 was recorded the hottest year on record Nearly 1 in 6 children globally are currently highly exposed to cyclones. This is likely to worsen as high-intensity cyclones continue increasing in frequency; rainfall intensity grows; and cyclone patterns shift

330 million children currently remain exposed to riverine flooding. It worsens as glaciers melt, and precipitation increases due to higher water-content in the atmosphere as a result of higher average temperatures

Globally, 1 in 10 children are highly exposed to coastal flooding. This will worsen as sea levels continue to rise, with the effects magnified considerably when combined with storm surges 2 billion children (almost 90 per cent of children globally) are currently highly exposed to air pollution that exceeds 10µg/m3. Countries are trying to lessen fossil fuel combustion but the efforts are not enough 815 million children globally are currently highly exposed to lead pollution due to exposure to contaminated air, water, soil and food, due to irresponsible production, consumption, and dumping of leadcontaining products

The report established that children are much more vulnerable to climate and environmental shocks as compared to adults. They are, both physically and physiologically, vulnerable. Toxic substances at lower doses of exposure can affect them in serious ways. Most of all, any deprivation as a result of climate and environmental degradation at a young age can result in a lifetime of lost opportunity.

The report mentioned a vicious cycle where climate and environmental hazards negatively affect children’s access to key essential services, but children’s lack of access to those key essential services, in turn, reduces children’s resilience and adaptive capacity, thereby further exacerbating their vulnerability to climate and environmental hazards. This pushes the most vulnerable children deeper into poverty and simultaneously increases their risk of experiencing the worst and most life-threatening effects of climate change.

CCRi explained how the only longterm solution to the climate crisis is reduction of emissions to safe levels. The entire world will have to reach net-zero emission by 2050 to stay on course for warming that does not exceed 1.5 degree Celsius. However, the description noted that climate dynamics can be tricky and mitigation efforts will probably take decades to reverse the impacts of climate change and for the children of today, it will be too late. Therefore, the report suggested nations to heavily invest in adaptation and resilience of social services for the 4.2 billion children born over the next 30 years, for they will be the ones facing increasing risks to their survival and well-being. Suggestions for investment included sustainable education, access to health services, access to social protection, and reduction of poverty. The report said that the world needs to transition towards a model which can decouple economic growth from fossil fuel consumption, and can thus reduce emissions to safe levels. it also recommended policymakers to consult directly with children as they have important ideas about the world they want and need to thrive. “Only with truly transformative action will we bequeath children a liveable planet,” added the report.

Next-generation infra, inclusive development to become universal before 2047: PM Modi

NEW DELHi: During his independence Day celebratory speech at Red Fort on Sunday, august 15, Prime Minister Narendra Modi talked about transforming india and of the vision to take india to new levels of prosperity, world-class modern infrastructure, and access to quality facilities for all.

PM Modi declared the next 25 years till the centenary year of india’s independence as ‘Amrut Kal’. He appealed to governments at every level to bring down compliance burdens for citizens in a mission mode. He also asked india’s economic agents to aim for ‘world-class’ and ‘next-generation’ targets as the global economy continues to evolve even after the pandemic.

The main focus of PM’s independence day speech remained on the need to work for next generation infrastructure. He said that the nation and its youth especially have to work together for world class manufacturing. “Everyone will have to work together for cutting edge innovation and new-age technology,” PM Modi said in his speech. He also announced the launch of Prime Minister Gati Shakti National Master Plan, which is set to involve around `100 lakh crore worth of infrastructure schemes that will generate employment opportunities. He said that this new master plan is being drawn to keep the foundation of a holistic infrastructure plan that is envisioned to work in silos.

PM Modi also talked about the need for governments to work on moving towards saturation, wherein 100 per cent villages should be connected through roads; 100 per cent of families should have a bank account; 100 per cent of beneficiaries should have Ayushmaan Bharat card; and 100 per cent eligible persons should have ujjwala Gas connection. He mentioned that the Government of india will now target saturation level coverage of eligible beneficiaries under different welfare programmes already in place. Citing reasons behind the plan, PM Modi said that the saturation level target will add to cutting down corruption during the implementation of these schemes.

He highlighted that the new Cooperative Ministry created after the recent Cabinet reshuffle is set to play a pivotal role in achieving the ‘developed’ vision of the nation. according to an official statement released by the Press information bureau, the new Ministry was formed to provide a separate administration and policy framework to further strengthen the cooperative movement of the country. The Ministry will aim to streamline the process for ease of doing business for co-operatives and help in the development of multistate co-operatives.

Moreover, he announced the launch of 75 new Vande Bharat Trains in the next 75 weeks. “The country has resolved that 75 Vande Bharat trains will be connecting every corner of the country in 75 weeks of amrit Mahotsav of independence,” said PM at the Red Fort. He also announced that the authorities are working on improving rail connectivity in the northeast region of the country. He announced that the transit projects will help in job-creating and uplifting the living standards of the northeastern states.

He also announced various welfare schemes like public distribution system and mid-day-meal scheme; Green Hydrogen Mission and girl students’ entry in every Sainik School, among others.

Hyderabad gets India’s first transgender clinic

TELaNGaNa: in a leading initiative, Telangana has set up two transgender clinics in the state’s capital, Hyderabad. The two clinics have been established as part of Government of india’s plan to have exclusive transgender clinics in place in different metro cities across the nation. This plan was made as part of the mandated Transgender Persons Act 2019.

Rachana Mudraboyina, a trans-activist, said that Hyderabad was perhaps chosen as the starting point for the clinic initiative due to the high prevalence of HIV among transgender people in Hyderabad. She quoted that HIV prevalence among transgenders in Hyderabad is 6.47 per cent, which is high as compared with the national average of 3.13 per cent. Rachana said that the Transgender Community clinics in Hyderabad fit well into the mission of USAID and objectives of the Accelerate project to prevent HIV and support antiretroviral therapy treatment services among transgenders. The clinics are completely led by trans-representatives and are open to any member of the community under the larger umbrella. The clinic has been designed to take care of general health-services, guidance, and medication on hormone therapy, gender affirmation procedures, mental health counseling, HIV/STI counseling, prevention and treatment services, legal aid, and social protection services.

Infrastructure to supply gas to TN to be ready by 2022

CHENNai: indian Oil Corporation Limited has said that the infrastructure to supply gas to the entire state of Tamil Nadu, either as a source of energy or as feedstock, will be ready by the end of this year or early 2022. The pipelines division of the PSu is already laying 1450 kilometres of Liquefied natural Gas (LNG) pipelines across the state at a cost of `6000 crore. amid the challenges due to the CoVID-19 pandemic, 85 per cent of the work has been completed till now and the entire work is expected to be completed by the end of this year. P Jayadevan, Executive Director and State Head, indian Oil Corporation for Tamil Nadu, said, “Operators in 17 districts of the state are ready to take Compressed Natural Gas to retail outlets and Piped Natural Gas to households. For the other 21 districts, the operators will be chosen in the next round of bidding by the Government of india in coming months.” “Being the first LnG terminal on the east coast of india, Ennore LNG terminal has the capacity to handle ships ranging from sizes of 65,000 m3 to 266,000 m3 . The capacity of the terminal can also be increased to 10 million metric tonnes per annum, depending on the demand,” said K Ramu, Chief Executive officer, indianOil LNG Pvt Ltd

Currently, Ennore LNG Terminal, with a capacity of 5 million metric tonnes per annum and set up by the indian Oil LNG Pvt Ltd, a joint venture of indian Oil, is supplying natural gas to various customers. its major customers include Chennai Petroleum Corporation Ltd, Madras Fertilisers Ltd, Tamil Nadu Petroproducts Ltd, and Manali Petrochemicals Ltd. The LNG Terminal has so far received 25 vessels of LNG from various foreign countries and the gas is supplied to over 15 industrial customers in Tamil Nadu, andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Kerala through cryogenic LNG trucks.

Wayanad first district with 100% first-dose vaccination

Kerala’s Wayanad district has become the first district in the country to achieve 100 per cent CoVID-19 vaccination (first dose) of the total eligible population above 18 years. Dr adeela abdulla, District Collector of Wayanad, said that the district has achieved the vaccination of 95 per cent of the total eligible population of 6,51,967. She also said that of the total eligible population, 6,15,729 have received the first dose while 2,13,277 have received the second dose.

‘Over 54.70 lakh street vendors identified in India’

The Rajya Sabha was told that over 54.70 lakh street vendors are operating in the country, with the highest number recorded in uttar Pradesh with 9.87 lakh vendors. Kaushal Kishore, Minister of State for Housing and urban affairs, stated that Delhi has 97,952 vendors. However, the Capital does not provide a certificate of vending (CoV). Under the Street Vendors Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending Act 2014, urban local bodies are responsible for conducting surveys for identification and certification of street vendors. according to Kishore, Uttar Pradesh has issued 5,68,671 CoVs and Maharashtra has issued over 29,162 CoVs.

CMC to mix COVID-19 vaccines for research

Dr V K Paul, Member, nITI aayog, said during a press conference that permission for mixing Covaxin and Covishield for research purposes has been given to Christian Medical College, Vellore. The Drugs Controller General of india has approved this proposal from CMC Vellore for mixed use of Covaxin and Covishield in people. The indian Council of Medical Research conducted a study on individuals from uttar Pradesh who were administered a dose of Covishield, followed by Covaxin as the second dose, with an interval of six weeks.

All information on skill training under one portal

The Government of india launched the Pradhan Mantri Dakshta Aur Kushalta Sampann Hitgrahi Yojana (PMDAKSH), aimed at making skill development training programmes more readily available to the youths of sanitation workers, scheduled castes, and backward classes. it will provide the mentioned youths with skill-development training programmes on entrepreneurial development, long-term training programmes, short-term training programmes, and upskilling or reskilling. The PM-DAKSH portal will bring all the information on skill development training under one roof. People can find out training programmes taking place near them and register themselves for any skill training as well.

Assam irrigation project to be finished by March 2022

DiSPuR: The assam Legislative assembly was informed that the Dhansiri irrigation Project, the most expensive project in Assam, will be finished by the end of this fiscal year. officials have decided to not resume the interlinked 20 MW Dhansiri Hydroelectric Power Project which was suspended in 1996. Ashok Singhal, Minister of irrigation and urban Development, Government of assam, said that the initial expenditure on the construction work had been `15.83 crore, which has now escalated to `567.05 crore. He added that so far, over `444.18 crores has been spent on the project. Singhal said that due to various factors, the project has not been completed yet but all necessary steps will be taken to complete it by March 2022. The project has an irrigation potential of 77,230 hectares annually. Singhal, while talking about the Dhansiri Hydroelectric Power Project, said that it is not in a state of revival.

Singhal said that the state government has decided to bring a reputed consultant from outside assam to discuss the hydel project and start a new one, if possible. Moreover, the National bank for agriculture and Rural Development had sanctioned a loan of `116.01 crore for completion of the project in July 2020 and released `109.10 crore to the assam government in March 2021.

Himachal, Goa processing highest amount of MSW

nEW DELHI: Kaushal Kishore, Minister of State for Housing and urban affairs, told the Parliament that Himachal Pradesh and Goa are the two states in the country which process almost 98 per cent of their municipal solid waste (MSW) through scientific methods. Punjab processes 76 per cent and Haryana 53 per cent, which is lower than the national average of 68 per cent.

Himachal Pradesh generates 377 metric tonnes per day (MTD) of municipal solid waste, whereas Goa produces 250 MTD, and Haryana produces 5463 MTD. Chandigarh processes 92 per cent of the total 499 MTD of municipal solid waste, the minister added. Kishore also said that out of the total 1,40,980 tonnes per day (TPD) of municipal solid waste, the country processes 68 per cent scientifically. Kishore, in his address, said that 4372 urban local bodies (uLbs) in the country are already practicing scientific disposal of municipal solid waste in line with Municipal Solid Waste Rules 2016. He added that out of the total 8883 municipal wards, 97 per cent practice door-to-door collection of waste and 81 per cent of them indulge in 100 per cent source segregation of waste. Kishore also said that as part of Swacch bharat Mission-urban, the Government of india has released 35 per cent of the total approved cost of solid waste management projects. Talking about the abolition of manual scavenging, the minister said that the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has identified manual scavengers and they and their dependents are provided various benefits for rehabilitation. One-time cash assistance of `40,000 is also provided to one identified scavenger in the family. Skill development is also provided to the identified beneficiaries and their dependents along with a stipend of `3000 per month.

India, US renew agreement for development cooperation in African, Asian countries

NEW DELHi: india and the united States of america (uSa), on Friday, July 30, renewed a global development partnership agreement for five years. The partnership entails the nations to work together in african and asian countries on key issues such as regional connectivity, clean energy and disaster risk reduction. india and uS signed the second amendment to the Statement of Guiding Principles (SGP) on Triangular Cooperation for Global Development. The triangular cooperation aims to promote sustainable global development, which includes a global partnership. When three countries come into such an equation, the traditional donors provide financial and technical support to promote developmental activities between two developing countries. Such cooperation allows the developing countries to grow and learn from the pioneers of the development cooperation process. This ensures that the recipient country grows in a cost-effective and efficient manner. The SGP agreement was originally inked in November 2014. it provides a framework for development cooperation in various countries, especially in asia and africa.

The second amendment to the SGP agreement extends its validity till September 2026. The revised framework expands the scope of capacity building activities that are jointly undertaken by india and the uS. additionally, it provides a consultative mechanism for joint biannual monitoring and review of activities undertaken under the SGP. This process leverages the combined capacities of india and the uS to address development challenges facing countries in the wider region and the world. Ms Karen Klimowski, Acting Mission Director, united States agency of international Development (uSaiD), said while speaking at the signing ceremony that the organization recognises india’s enhanced role as a leader in innovation with a growth trajectory and dynamic economy. Hence, the uSaiD is increasing its involvement in the joint development programmes with india’s Development Partnership administration. This would include increasing the scale and testing out innovative development solutions worldwide.

Ministry of External affairs (MEa), Government of India, in an official statement, said that india and the uS will continue to offer capacitybuilding aid to partner countries in multiple sectors, focusing primarily on agriculture, regional connectivity, trade and investment, nutrition, health, clean and renewable energy, women’s empowerment, disaster preparedness, water, sanitation, education and institution building. it expects this triangular cooperation with the uS to complement india’s other ongoing and future development partnerships, capacity-building and technical assistance with countries globally. Abhilasha Joshi, Joint Secretary of the Development Partnership administration-ii division of the MEa, commented that the signing of this amendment signifies reinforcement of india-uS cooperation and their joint commitment to work together and leverage their combined capacities to provide demand-driven solutions for global development. Key areas of focus in the development programmes this time are to include disaster risk response, clean and renewable energy, and climate-smart agriculture. an official statement released by the US embassy said that the developmental partnership between the uS and india is of more than 70 years. both nations have been working together in increasing the use of clean energy, tackling climate change crisis, promoting economic growth, and ending the CoVID-19 induced pandemic.

RMC launches automated land conversion system

RoURKELA: Suresh Chandra Mahapatra, Chief Secretary of the Government of Odisha, launched an automated system for land conversion from lease-hold to freehold on pilot basis for the city of Rourkela. He said that the system would be customized and updated in the near future on the basis of feedback from users and stakeholders.

The automated system was launched digitally in the presence of bishnupada Sethi, Principal Secretary, Revenue and Disaster Management Department; nikhil Pavan Kalyan, District Magistrate, Sundargarh; and other dignitaries from the Government of Odisha. Mahapatra congratulated Rourkela Municipal Corporation (RMC) and the district administration for applying a progressive technological intervention, and asked them to work on making the system more citizen-centric by reducing the burden of document compliances at the time of submission of the application. additionally, he directed municipal officials to examine if affidavits, indemnity, etc., can be replaced with self-declaration in the city’s administration process. During the launch ceremony, Mahapatra suggested linking the system with Jana Seva Kendras and common service centres so that citizens could submit applications from those points. For greater ease of city residents, he also advised officials to make the provision for online submission of applications and fees from individual computers so that people could do it from their home. With the new digitized system, the whole work will be done through automated software, thereby increasing efficiency of the administration along with ease for people.

West Bengal bags five awards in smart governance

KoLKATA: The Government of West Bengal won a total of five Skoch Awards 2021 in four categories of governance. Skoch Foundation india organizes Smart Governance awards every year to recognize top performing governments and organisations working with governments across the nation, which are operating at local, state, and national levels in the areas of health, education, rural and urban development, finance, agriculture, and transport.

The Departments of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), and Textile of the Government of West bengal won four out of the total five awards. The state’s single window system called ‘Silpa Sathi’, that provides single window service under the various applicable acts, Rules, Policies and Schemes, won the platinum award, which is the highest category. an MSME project of the state involving auto-renewal of certificate of enlistment through online system for urban areas bagged the gold award. MSME and textile department won two silver awards for online deliverance of trade license in rural areas and e-nathikaran, e-preparation, and e-submission of deeds. West bengal State Electricity Distribution Company Limited also bagged a silver award for sustainable performance as the second largest power utility with substantial transformation in iT. Mamata banerjee, Chief Minister, West bengal, congratulated everyone who was involved in this tireless efforts and said that she hopes that the Government of West bengal will continue to bag such laurels.

BMC switches to new construction technology

The brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (bMC) has planned a switch from multiplepile foundation to monopile foundation technology to construct pillars for bridges and interchanges for the coastal road project. This will help reduce the cost of construction by `12 crore and will also save time. The civic body will implement the new technology for construction of 10.58 km coastal road project from Princess Street to Worli. The same technology will also be used to construct the piles from Priydarshani Park to baroda Palace and baroda Palace to bandra-Worli Sea Link, bMC officials said.

Amrith schemes launched by Karnataka CM

basavaraj bommai, Chief Minister, Karnataka, in his independence Day address, announced over 10 amrith Schemes. The welfare programs would revolve around urban development, sports, farming, etc. The schemes will also help in the development of tier-two cities across the state, along with bengaluru. The Government of Karnataka will now be focusing on micro development projects in the state. The amrith Nirmala Nagara program will provide 75 urban municipal bodies with `1 crore each for bettering the aesthetics of their area. Moreover, the Government of Karnataka will provide infrastructural facilities like labs, toilets, and buildings to 750 schools of Karnataka.