It began as an idea that had more to do with filling up the coffers of state governments than tackling the actual concerns of climate change. Coal-rich states, which are witnessing private power producers line up for a piece of action, began flexing their muscles by demanding an environmental cess on power exported outside the state.

Water being an emotive issue, only a mandated institution can provide a platform to build consensus among States On the occasion of World Water Day, 2002, Kofi Annan, the then U.N. Secretary General, had warned that "water issues contain the seeds of violent conflict.' Similar sentiments were echoed recently by Ban Ki-moon in his message on World Water Day, 2008, that the problems growing from the scarcity of a vital resource (like water) would spill over state borders creating a high risk of violent conflict.

The proposed industrial coastal growth corridor as well as series of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) on the Andhra coast must be stopped immediately to protect the rights of common people, according to the Industrial Coastal Corridor Nirmana Vyat-hireka Porata Samiti. Speakers at the dharna organised by the committee near the district collectorate protesting against the corridor said here on Thursday that the corridor and the SEZs undermined the livelihood of the already marginalised communities.

About 100 people of Durganagar and Sathya Sai Nagar areas in Dharmavaram town were hospitalised after suffering from vomiting and diarrhoea due to consumption of contaminated water on Thursday. According to people, municipal officials supplied drinking water to the two areas at 4 pm on Wednesday. People who drank the water, developed vomiting and diarrhoea.

Efforts are on to establish windmills for power generation in areas where the velocity of wind is high in Anantapur district. Winds blow at a velocity of 45 km per hour from April to September in the district and are convenient to generate power. The Non-Conventional Energy Development Corporation of Andhra Pradesh (Nedcap) officials have identified in a survey, that Ramagiri, Kadavakallu, Vajrakarur, Talarichervu, Nallakonda, Mustikovela and Penakacherla Dam are convenient for setting up windmills in the district.

The Andhra Pradesh High Court on Thursday directed the state government and the AP Pollution Control Board to file a report on the implementation of Supreme Court directions with regard to pollution control measures in Patancheru industrial area. While dealing with a batch of writ petitions, a division bench comprising Justice B. Prakash Rao and C.Y. Somayajulu expressed dissatisfaction over the delay in the implementation of the Apex court orders.

In a major move, the state government has shelved the proposed Krishna Phase-III project and replaced it with the Godavari project to bring 10 tmc of water in phase-I from the Sripada Sagar reservoir in Yellampalli in Karimnagar district. The Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board has invited tenders for the execution of the Rs 3,300 crore project to bring Godavari water to the city.

The National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme (NREGP) failed to stop the migration of farm labourers in search of livelihood in East Godavari district. A large number of labourers, especially from Narendrapuram of Rajanagaram mandal, are leaving their village in search of work to Nidadavole, Tadepalligudem and other areas in West Godavari district. More than 100 families, along with their children, are travelling on bullock carts with their belongings like cots, utensils, and clothes to other places to eke out their livelihood.

A large number of localities were deprived of drinking water on Tuesday without prior intimation. Water was not released to about 70,000 connections in Vijaynagar Colony, Humayunnagar, Red Hills, Banjara Hills and Jubilee Hills, Old Mallepally, Allabanda, Asifnagar, Rajendernagar municipal circle areas and surrounding localities. These areas had gone without water for four days last week after Krishna water pipeline burst at Lenin Nagar.