Delhi – and many other cities across India – need to plan differently to be able to beat the menace of air pollution. They cannot depend on a single solution, and need a basket of measures – this is what came out from the deliberations on the first day of the international conclave and public meeting on air pollution, organised here by Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). The public meeting was addressed by Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and CSE director general Sunita Narain.

CSE has analysed air quality data from real-time monitoring of Delhi Pollution Control Board for the entire winter – November 2015 to January 2016 – to assess the benefits of the odd and even scheme and the loss of air quality gains after the completion of the scheme. It has found that the odd and even scheme, although limited in scope and ambit, could still slow down the peaking of pollution even when weather was hostile – no wind, lower temperature and western disturbance in the northern region.

A number of public health catastrophes – arising largely out of environmental reasons -- are staring the people of India in the face. While the debate over polluted air and how to control it rages on in the national capital, people have also had to contend with a host of other health challenges this year, ranging from strange pathogens to heightened risk from lifestyle ailments. Centre for Science and Environment’s latest publication -- Body Burden 2015: State of India’s Health – examines and dissects this linkage between environment and health quite comprehensively.

Even as the world discusses climate change in Paris, Chennai is perhaps experiencing its impact – the unprecedented deluge that the city has been subjected to is a reminder of increasing frequency of such freak weather events across the Indian sub-continent. However, point out experts in Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), Chennai could have fared better if it had protected and preserved its natural water bodies and drainage channels

CSE’s first Health Annual explores the connect between health and environment, in a way everybody can understand. It will be on the lines of our highly popular SOE (State of Environment) series. The annual publication examines a specific theme related to health every year. The theme for Body Burden 2015 is environment and health. At the core of the book is the critical link between health and environment. For example, how lack of sanitation contributes to malnutrition.

On the final day of the National Consultation on Crop Loss Estimation, Relief and Compensation,Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) called for global action to develop safety nets to shield farmers from the consequences of extreme weather events.

CSE’s report Lived Anomaly is about what is happening to farmers in India because of extreme weather events, largely as told by farmers themselves. Its basis is the winter–spring of 2015 and the aftermath.

Indian farmers are reeling under extreme weather events and need protective measures to ensure that India’s largest occupational sector – agriculture – does not decline further. “We are seeing an increased severity and frequency of extreme weather events. Farmers in India are facing the double blow of agrarian distress and extreme weather events as a result of climate change. A series of measures including better protection mechanisms are needed to support them,” said CSE’s Director General SunitaNarain.

The first Car Free Day in Delhi on Oct 22, 2015 led to a 60 percent drop in the air pollution on the car-free stretch from Red Fort to India Gate in comparison to the levels observed on a normal day, a report released by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) said. Read more...

CSE’s exposure monitoring indicates dramatic drop of 60 per cent in PM2.5 levels compared to levels observed the previous day. This is supported by official ambient air quality monitoring that shows 45 per cent drop in overall PM2.5 levels across the city due to low traffic on the national holiday of Dusshera.

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