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Subject: Environment

  • Inter-state Tiger Relocation Project

    Sundari — a tigress shifted as part of India’s first inter-state translocation project in 2018 from Madhya Pradesh to Odisha has returned home.

    What is the news?

    • The five-year-old tigress Sundari spent 28 months in captivity in Satkosia Tiger Reserve, Odisha.
    • The two states lingered on the process for her relocation despite the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) shelving off the much-vaunted inter-state tiger translocation drive.

    What was the Tiger Relocation Project?

    • The tiger relocation project was initiated in 2018 wherein two big cats, a male (Mahavir) from Kanha Tiger Reserve and a female (Sundari) from Bandhavgarh from MP were relocated to Satkosia Tiger Reserve in Odisha.
    • The relocation was meant to serve two purposes
    1. to reduce the tiger population in areas with excess tigers to majorly reduce territorial disputes and
    2. to reintroduce tigers in areas where the population has considerably reduced due to various reasons

    How were Mahavir and Sundari chosen for the project?

    • Both the big cats were selected for the translocation project as per the NTCA guidelines and in collaboration with the Wildlife Institute of India and the GoI.
    • Two key factors were considered for choosing the animal — first, a dispersing young animal which is to find a new and second, an adult transient which was yet to establish any territory.

    What is the Satkosia Tiger Reserve and why was it chosen?

    • Encompassing an area of 963.87 sq km, the Satkosia Tiger Reserve spreads across four districts and has as its core area 523 sq km.
    • According to NTCA, Satkosia falls under reserves where “there is a potential for increasing tiger populations”.
    • Declared as a Tiger Reserve in 2007, Satkosia had a population of 12 tigers then. The numbers reduced to two in 2018.
    • The purpose of the relocation was to repopulate tigers in the reserve areas.

    Try this PYQ from CSP 2020:

    Q.With reference to India’s Desert National Park, which of the following statements is correct?

    1. It is spread over two districts.
    2. There is no human habitation inside the Park.
    3. It is one of the natural habitats of Great Indian Bustard.

    Select the correct answer using the code given below:

    (a) 1 and 2 only

    (b) 2 and 3 only

    (c) 1 and 3 only

    (d) 1,2 and 3

    Unexpected outcomes of the project

    The project ran into trouble within weeks of initiation.

    • The arrival of the tigers was followed by severe protests by villagers living on the fringes of the reserve and the matter eventually snowballing into a poll issue.
    • Forest department officials were attacked and their offices burnt down by irate villagers most of whom were tribals.
    • The villagers feared the big cats would endanger their livelihoods, lives and livestocks. They also alleged that they were not consulted or informed prior to the translocation.
    • The major reason which contributed to the failure of the project was the lack of confidence and trust-building between the forest department and the villagers.
    • Within months of the translocation, Mahavir was found dead and was killed in poaching.

  • Places in news: Zabarwan Mountains

    Prime Minister has asked tourists to visit the tulip garden, located at the foothills of the Zabarwan range in Jammu and Kashmir.

    Try this PYQ from CSP 2020:

    Q.Siachen Glacier is situated to the

    (a) East of Aksai Chin

    (b) East of Leh

    (c)North of Gilgit

    (d) North of Nubra Valley

    Zabarwan Mountains

    • The Zabarwan Range is a short sub-mountain range between Pir Panjal and the Great Himalayan Range in the central part of the Kashmir Valley.
    • Specifically, the range is known to be what overlooks the Dal Lake and holds the Mughal gardens of Srinagar.
    • The Shankaracharya Temple is built on the edge of the central part of the Zabarwan Range.
    • The highest peak of this range is Mahadev Peak at 13,013 feet (3,966 m), which forms the distant background of the eastern mountain wall.
    • On the northern slopes of the central part of the range, there are three Mughal gardens built by Emperor Shah Jahan.
    • These include Chashma Shahi, Nishat Bagh and Shalimar Garden alongside the Pari Mahal (the fairy palace).
    • The Dachigam National Park is the main feature of the range which holds the last viable population of Kashmir stag (Hangul) and the largest population of black bear in Asia.

  • Vehicles scrappage policy: A step forward but a missed opportunity

    The much-awaited draft policy on vehicle scrappage is finally out. But the draft policy also misses an opportunity: Of designing the policy as an effective stimulus programme for green recovery in the sector to achieve deeper and quicker air quality benefits.

    Background

    • The policy outlines the criteria for defining end-of-life vehicles and scrapping them.
    • It also makes provision for scrapping facilities for safe disposal of waste and material recovery.
    • This is an important step forward towards building infrastructure for organised and scientific scrapping of old vehicles.

    The proposal

    • This proposed policy seeks to phase out unfit vehicles to reduce vehicular pollution, meet the climate commitments, improve road safety and fuel efficiency, formalize informal vehicle scrapping industry and recover low-cost material for the automotive, steel and electronics industry.
    • The policy expects to spin jobs and attract investment as well.
    • It is a big positive for supporting a network of well-equipped scrappage facilities with adequate environmental safeguards to stop unsafe dismantling that contaminates the environment.

    Must read:

    New Vehicle Scrappage Policy

    Issues with the policy

    (1) Advisory nature

    • This policy has only ‘advised’ the state governments and the automobile industry to provide voluntary incentives to the owners of old vehicles.
    • The central government has not committed to make it a fiscal stimulus strategy for quicker renewal of ageing, heavy-duty vehicle fleet with BS-VI vehicles — or to link other segments with targeted electrification.

    (2) Achieving fleet renewal

    • The focus on targeted fleet renewal for maximum emissions gains is still weak.
    • The proposed policy puts the entire onus of incentivizing fleet renewal on the state governments.
    • They have been advised to waive off a big chunk of road tax and registration fees on replacement vehicles.
    • These are important sources of state revenue, and the reaction of the state governments is still not known.

    (3) No stimulus

    • The more compelling question is whether the central government would consider a centrally supported stimulus programme for post-pandemic green recovery.
    • This is the global trend wherein governments have been giving conditional bailouts or tax support linked to emissions targets.

    What can be an effective strategy?

    (1) Transportation vehicles

    • For heavy-duty vehicles, the policy can take a more nuanced approach.
    • Consider that some truck owners may want to only dispose of the very old trucks without replacing them. But others may want to scrap and replace the older trucks.
    • In that case, a rebate can be given to the owners of end-of-life vehicles who are interested in ‘only scrapping’ the vehicle without immediately replacing them.
    • And this rebate can be given based on a scrappage certificate from authorized scrappage centres.
    • Old trucks with more economic life left can get a comparatively higher incentive as that will give higher emissions benefits.

    (2) Personal vehicles

    • For these vehicles, the central incentive can be linked with replacement with electric vehicles.
    • This can be added to the normal scrapping of end-of-life vehicles as already proposed in the draft policy. This can maximise air quality gains.
    • Personal vehicles are numerous and general public support for their fleet renewal can divert a lion’s share of the allocated budget from the priority heavy-duty segment.
    • Therefore, the public support for the personal vehicle segment can be linked only with voluntary electrification.

    Build-in manufacturers’ responsibility

    • The new policy also needs to align with the mandate for the manufacturers to meet targets for recyclability of material.
    • Make this mandatory as part of the scrappage policy.

    We have AIS 129

    • It is encouraging that the Automotive Industrial Standard-129 (AIS 129) on reuse, recycling and material recovery from vehicles were framed in 2015.
    • This requires 80-85 per cent of the material used in vehicle manufacturing by mass to be recoverable/recyclable/reusable at the end of life.
    • AIS-129 also restricts the use of heavy metals including lead, mercury, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, etc, and asks for the coding of plastics to inform dismantlers.
    • The requirement of recyclability should be extended to 85-95 per cent to maximise material recovery as well as energy recovery from residual waste like used oil, non-recyclable rubber etc.

    Way forward

    • This first-ever formal scrappage policy in India is urgently needed to help build infrastructure for safe disposal and material recovery to minimise environmental hazards.
    • But India would be adopting scrappage policy during these unprecedented pandemic times, so it is necessary to leverage this targeted fleet renewal with well-designed central support for a post-pandemic green deal.

  • Ken-Betwa Link Project (KBLP)

    In the presence of PM and Jal Shakti Minister, the CMs of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh have signed an agreement to implement the Ken Betwa Link Project (KBLP).

    Must read:

    Interlinking of rivers: Significance & Challenges

    What is the Ken Betwa Link Project?

    • The Ken-Betwa Link Project is the first project under the National Perspective Plan for the interlinking of rivers.
    • Under this project, water from the Ken River will be transferred to the Betwa river. Both these rivers are tributaries of the river Yamuna.
    • The project is expected to provide annual irrigation of 10.62 lakh hectares, drinking water supply to about 62 lakh people and also generate 103 MW of hydropower.

    The Project has two phases:

    • Under Phase-I, one of the components — Daudhan dam complex and its appurtenances like Low Level Tunnel, High Level Tunnel, Ken-Betwa link canal and Power houses — will be completed.
    • While in the Phase-II, three components — Lower Orr dam, Bina complex project and Kotha barrage — will be constructed.

    Regions benefitting from KBLP

    • The project lies in Bundelkhand, a drought-prone region, which spreads across 13 districts of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.
    • It will be of immense benefit to the water-starved region of Bundelkhand, especially in the districts of Panna, Tikamgarh, Chhatarpur, Sagar, Damoh, Datia, Vidisha, Shivpuri and Raisen of Madhya Pradesh and Banda, Mahoba, Jhansi and Lalitpur of Uttar Pradesh.
    • It will pave the way for more interlinking of river projects to ensure that scarcity of water does not become an inhibitor to development in the country.

    What about the Panna tiger reserve?

    • Out of the 6,017 ha of forest area coming under submergence of Daudhan dam of Ken Betwa Link Project, 4,206 ha of the area lies within the core tiger habitat of Panna Tiger Reserve.

    Previous examples of river-linking

    • In the past, several river linking projects have been taken up. For instance, under the Periyar Project, the transfer of water from the Periyar basin to the Vaigai basin was envisaged.
    • It was commissioned in 1895.
    • Similarly, other projects such as Parambikulam Aliyar, Kurnool Cudappah Canal, Telugu Ganga Project, and Ravi-Beas-Sutlej were undertaken.

    Recent developments on the interlinking of rivers in India

    • In the 1970s, the idea of transferring surplus water from a river to a water-deficit area was mooted by the then Union Irrigation Minister Dr K L Rao.
    • Rao, who himself was an engineer, suggested the construction of a National Water Grid for transferring water from water-rich areas to water-deficit areas.
    • Similarly, Captain Dinshaw J Dastur proposed the Garland Canal to redistribute water from one area to another.
    • However, the government did not pursue these two ideas further.

    The National Perspective Plan

    • It was in August, 1980 that the Ministry of Irrigation prepared a National Perspective Plan (NNP) for water resources development envisaging inter-basin water transfer in the country.
    • The NPP comprised two components: (i) Himalayan Rivers Development; and (ii) Peninsular Rivers Development.
    • Based on the NPP, the National Water Development Agency (NWDA) identified 30 river links—16 under the Peninsular component and 14 under the Himalayan Component.
    • Later, the river linking idea was revived under the then Vajpayee Government.

    Ken Betwa Link Project is one of the 16 river linking projects under the Peninsular component.

    Clearances required for a river-linking project

    • Generally, 4-5 types of clearances are required for the interlinking of river projects.
    • These are Techno-economic (given by the Central Water Commission); Forest Clearance and Environmental clearance (Ministry of Environment & Forests); Resettlement and Rehabilitation (R&R) Plan of Tribal Population (Ministry of Tribal Affairs) and Wildlife clearance (Central Empowered Committee).

  • Indian monsoon 25 million years ago resembled present day Australia’s

    Using leaf fossils, researchers have found that the Indian monsoon 25 million years ago resembled present-day Australia’s.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.Which one of the following is the appropriate reason for considering the Gondwana rocks as the most important rock systems of India?

    (a) More than 90% of limestone reserves of India are found in them

    (b) More than 90% of India’s coal reserves are found in them

    (c) More than 90% of fertile black cotton soils are spread over them

    (d) None of the reasons given above is appropriate in this context

    India’s drift

    • About 180 million years ago, India separated from the ancient supercontinent Gondwana and took a long northward journey of about 9,000 km to join Eurasia.
    • During this journey, the subcontinent moved from the southern hemisphere, crossed the Equator to reach its current position in the northern hemisphere.
    • Due to these changing latitudes, it experienced different climatic conditions, and a new study has now tried to map these climatic variations using leaf fossils.

    Clueless over the evolution of monsoon

    • The evolution of the monsoonal climate in India is still debatable and not fully understood.
    • Though recent data indicates that the monsoon system we experience now dates back to about 25 million years, it is still unclear how the climate was during its long voyage.

    Indian research

    • The researchers analysed the morphological characters of fossil leaves collected from Deccan Volcanic Province, East Garo Hills of Meghalaya, Gurha mine in Rajasthan and Makum Coalfield in Assam.
    • The four fossil assemblages were found to be from four different geological ages.
    • It has been observed from across the globe that plant leaf morphological characters such as apex, base and shape are ecologically tuned with the prevailing climatic conditions.
    • The research applied this model to characterize the past monsoon from fossil leaves.

    It’s finding

    • The results indicated that the fossil leaves from India were adapted to an Australian type of monsoon and not the current Indian monsoon system during its voyage.
    • The reconstructed temperature data show that the climate was warm (tropical to subtropical) at all the studied fossil sites with temperatures varying from 16.3–21.3 degrees C.
    • All the fossil sites experienced high rainfall, which varied from 191.6 cm to 232 cm.

  • What are the Diatoms?

    The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad has relied on a forensic test known as diatom tests for leads in an alleged murder case of a person inviting high stage political drama.

    What are Diatoms?

    • Diatoms are photosynthesizing algae that are found in almost every aquatic environment including fresh and marine waters, soils, in fact, almost anywhere moist.
    • Diatoms have cell walls made of silica, each species has a distinct pattern of tiny holes in the cell wall (frustule) through which they absorb nutrients and get rid of waste.
    • A diatom is a photosynthetic, single-celled organism which means they manufacture their own food in the same way plants do.

    Diatoms are important as they:

    • provide the basis of the food chain for both marine and freshwater micro-organisms and animal larvae
    • are a major source of atmospheric oxygen responsible for 20-30% of all carbon fixation on the planet
    • can act as environmental indicators of climate change
    • form the basis of some household goods such as pest/mite prevention and mild abrasive

    Never underestimate UPSC. Try this PYQ before you reach any conclusion.

    Q.Which one of the following is the correct sequence of a food chain?

    (a) Diatoms-Crustaceans-Herrings

    (b) Crustaceans-Diatoms-Herrings

    (c) Diatoms-Herrings-Crustaceans

    (d) Crustaceans-Herrings-Diatoms

    What is a diatom test?

    • Diagnosis of death by drowning is deemed as a difficult task in forensic pathology.
    • A number of tests have been developed to confirm the cause of such deaths with the diatom test emerging as one of the most important tests.
    • The test entails findings if there are diatoms in the body being tested.

    The science behind

    • A body recovered from a water body does not necessarily imply that the death was due to drowning.
    • If the person is alive when he enters the water, the diatoms will enter the lungs when the person inhales water while drowning.
    • These diatoms then get carried to various parts of the body, including the brain, kidneys, lungs and bone marrow by blood circulation.
    • If a person is dead when is thrown in the water, then there is no circulation and there is no transport of diatom cells to various organs.

  • [pib] Coalition for Disaster resilient Infrastructure (CDRI)

    The Prime Minister has recently addressed the third edition of the annual conference of the Coalition for Disaster resilient Infrastructure (CDRI).

    What is CDRI?

    • The CDRI is an international coalition of countries, UN agencies, multilateral development banks, the private sector, and academic institutions that aim to promote disaster-resilient infrastructure.
    • Its objective is to promote research and knowledge sharing in the fields of infrastructure risk management, standards, financing, and recovery mechanisms.
    • It was launched by the Indian PM Narendra Modi at the 2019 UN Climate Action Summit in September 2019.
    • CDRI’s initial focus is on developing disaster-resilience in ecological, social, and economic infrastructure.
    • It aims to achieve substantial changes in member countries’ policy frameworks and future infrastructure investments, along with a major decrease in the economic losses suffered due to disasters.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.Consider the following statements:

    1. Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) to Reduce Short Lived Climate Pollutants is a unique initiative of G20 group of countries
    2. The CCAC focuses on methane, black carbon and hydrofluorocarbons.

    Which of the above statements is/are correct?

    (a) 1 only

    (b) 2 only

    (c) Both 1 and 2

    (d) Neither 1 nor 2

    Its inception

    • PM Modi’s experience in dealing with the aftermath of the 2001 Gujarat earthquake” as the chief minister led him to the idea.
    • The CDRI was later conceptualized in the first and second edition of the International Workshop on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (IWDRI) in 2018-19.
    • It was organized by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), in partnership with the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), the UN Development Programme, the World Bank, and the Global Commission on Adaptation.

    Its diplomatic significance

    • The CDRI is the second major coalition launched by India outside of the UN, the first being the International Solar Alliance.
    • Both of them are seen as India’s attempts to obtain a global leadership role in climate change matters and were termed as part of India’s stronger branding.
    • India can use the CDRI to provide a safer alternative to China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) as well.

  • What is Rule Curve of a river?

    The Supreme Court has warned the Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary against the failure to give information on the rule curve for Mullaperiyar dam.

    Do you know?

    The Mullaperiyar dam is located in Kerala on the river Periyar but is operated and maintained by the neighbouring state of Tamil Nadu.

    What is the Rule Curve?

    • A rule curve or rule level specifies the storage or empty space to be maintained in a reservoir during different times of the year.
    • Here the implicit assumption is that a reservoir can best satisfy its purposes if the storage levels specified by the rule curve are maintained in the reservoir at different times.
    • It decides the fluctuating storage levels in a reservoir.
    • The gate opening schedule of a dam is based on the rule curve.
    • It is part of the “core safety” mechanism in a dam.

    Why such a move?

    • During the high-voltage hearing, the Tamil Nadu government blamed Kerala for delaying the finalization of the rule curve for the 123-year-old dam.
    • Kerala government has accused Tamil Nadu of adopting an “obsolete” gate operation schedule dating back to 1939.

    About Mullaperiyar Dam

    • Mullaperiyar Dam is a masonry gravity dam on the Periyar River in the Indian state of Kerala.
    • It is located on the Cardamom Hills of the Western Ghats in Thekkady, Idukki District of Kerala.
    • It was constructed between 1887 and 1895 by John Pennycuick and also reached an agreement to divert water eastwards to the Madras Presidency area (present-day Tamil Nadu).
    • It has a height of 53.6 m from the foundation, and a length of 365.7 m.
    • The Periyar National Park in Thekkady is located around the dam’s reservoir.
    • The dam is built at the confluence of Mullayar and Periyar rivers.

  • Project RE-HAB

    The forest authorities intend to mitigate human-elephant conflict by installing bee boxes along the periphery of the forest and the villages under the Project RE-HAB.

    On similar lines, try this PYQ:

    Q.The term ‘M-STrIPES’ is sometimes seen in the news in the context of:

    (a) Captive breeding of Wild Fauna

    (b) Maintenance of Tiger Reserves

    (c) Indigenous Satellite Navigation System

    (d) Security of National Highways

    Project RE-HAB

    • Project RE-HAB stands for Reducing Elephant-Human Attacks using Bees. It is an initiative of the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC).
    • It intends to create “bee fences” to thwart elephant attacks in human habitations using honeybees.
    • Bee boxes have been placed on the ground as well as hung from the trees.
    • The boxes are connected with a string so that when elephants attempt to pass through, a tug causes the bees to swarm the elephant herds and dissuade them from progressing further.
    • This idea stems from the elephants’ proven fear of the bees.

    Areas covered by the project

    • The pilot project was launched at four locations around Chelur village in the Kodagu district of Karnataka.
    • These spots are located on the periphery of Nagarahole National Park and Tiger Reserve, known conflict zones.

    Benefits offered

    • The biggest advantage of Project RE-HAB is that it dissuades elephants without causing any harm to them.
    • It is extremely cost-effective as compared to various other measures such as digging trenches or erecting fences.

  • World Air Quality Report, 2020

    Delhi remained the most polluted capital city in the world but India, on the whole, had improved its average annual PM 2.5 (particulate matter) levels higher in 2020 than in 2019, according to a report from World Air Quality Report Air.

    Try this question from CS Mains 2015:

    Q.Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata are the three megacities of the country but air pollution is a much more serious problem in Delhi as compared to the other two. Why is this so?

    World Air Quality Report

    • It is released by a Swiss air quality technology company IQAir.
    • IQAir is an air quality technology company that since 1963 seeks to empower individuals, organizations and communities to breathe cleaner air through information, collaboration and technology solutions.
    • The 2020 Report is based on PM2.5 data from 106 countries that have been measured by ground-based monitoring stations.

    Highlights of the report

    • Of the 14 most polluted cities, 13 were in India.
    • When ranked by cities, Hotan in China was the most polluted, with an average concentration of 110.2 µg/m³, followed by Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh at 106.
    • Delhi’s concentration level, based primarily on data from the Central Pollution Control Board, was 84.1 µg/m³ in 2020, a 15% improvement from the 98.6 µg/m³ recorded in 2019 — a consequence of the lockdown.
    • Bangladesh and Pakistan were the countries in 2020 with worse average PM 2.5 levels than India, says the report.
    • China ranked 11th in the latest report, a deterioration from the 14th in the previous edition of the report. In the 2020 report, 106 countries were evaluated.