Ban old diesel vehicles in Bengaluru, say nature lovers
With the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) revealing a 57 per cent increase in the particulate matter in the city in just four years, they feel it may be time to ban light and heavy diesel vehicles older than 10 years from its roads as diesel vehicles emit the highest nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter into the environment. Full Story
Bengaluru fast losing its green wealth
The Garden City that was once home to a great variety of natural ecosystem has lost nearly 80-90 percent of its biodiversity since the 1960’s. From the world’s most expensive red sanders to the makali roots that make a tasty pickle, the city has lost almost every natural product that was naturally found here. The rapid and unscientific growth of the city might put an end to even the last remaining species. Full Story
Karnataka: Urbanisation nibbling away at water bodies
A study conducted by the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) reveals that the garden city has witnessed a sharp decline in the number of water bodies mainly due to extensive urbanisation. It points out that out of 105 lakes nearly 100 have been encroached to construct illegal buildings such as high-rise apartments, commercial buildings, slums etc. Full Story
Bengaluru’s new normal: 40 degree Celsius?!
The average temperature in Bengaluru was 19.03 degree Celsius in 1992 and has risen rapidly since to the mid-30s level now. Before the skies opened up on Monday, the mercury hit the highest ever at 39.2 degree Celsius on Sunday, April 24, 2016. The reasons are not far to seek. Indiscriminate building activity since the 1990s, thanks to lax enforcement of norms by city authorities, has shorn Bengaluru of both its vegetative cover and its water bodies, creating heat islands all across the city. Full Story
Toxic Nation
The simple mercury thermometer may be an essential part of our lives, but it can have a lethal effect on you, unless dealt with care. Shravan Regret Iyer takes a look at how mercury is handled in India and overseas, to reveal how indiscriminate use and careless handling of mercury is poisoning our environment and bodies. Full story
Soliga folk songs to protect mother Earth
Bengaluru: They came in handy for the forest department while it was hunting down the ‘maneater’ of Bheemghad in Khanapur taluk of the Belagavi reserve forest recently. Many wildlife activists now feel their intimacy with nature which the forest officers banked on in their hunt, makes the Soliga tribes of the Biligiri Rangaswamy hills, ideal candidates to help with the state’s conservation efforts. Full Story
Do you know where this water came from?
Come summer, as the borewells dry up, the private water tanker industry is out to make a killing. Doubtless, the tankers serve some three lakh apartments and an even higher number of individual homes in the newly added areas of the city, where Cauvery water hasn’t reached yet. What’s at issue, however, is the quality of the water supplied and its price. It’s an unregulated business run by a powerful lobby of tanker owners. Needless to say, the risk is all the consumer’s. Full Story
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SHRAVAN REGRET IYER 