Environment

New Delhi, Nov 13 (PTI) The noxious smog resulting from raging farm fires and unfavourable weather pushed pollution in Delhi-NCR towards the "emergency" zone on Wednesday, prompting authorities to order closure of schools till November 15 -- a second time in two weeks.

With the Central Pollution Control Board fearing a similar situation will prevail over the next two days, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the odd-even road rationing scheme can be extended if needed.

Basirhat (WB), Nov 13 (PTI) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, after conducting an aerial survey of cyclone 'Bulbul'-hit areas in North 24 Parganas, said on Wednesday that the loss incurred by the state due to the natural calamity might go up to Rs 50,000 crore.

Banerjee handed over a cheque of Rs 2.4 lakh each to the family members of five people from the district who lost their lives in the calamity.

Panaji, Nov 13 (PTI) Goa is soon likely to get an 'Organic Agriculture University', which would primarily focus on studying organic crops that could be grown in the state, Deputy Chief Minister Chandrakant Kavlekar said on Wednesday.

Chief Minister Pramod Sawant gave an in-principle nod to the proposal during a meeting held on Tuesday, Kavlekar, who is also the state's agriculture minister, told PTI.

"The government has set a target of one year to set up the university, the first-of-its-kind in the state," he said.

12 Nov 2019; MEMO: Turkey planted over 13 million saplings on Monday as part of a massive tree-planting campaign in hope for a breath for the future in a greener country.

The forestation campaign for a greener Turkey began with the declaration of November 11 by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as the National Forestation Day to be marked annually.

New Delhi, Nov 12 (PTI) Delhi's air quality worsened again and slipped into the 'severe' category on Tuesday morning.

At 9:36 am, the air quality index (AQI) was 414. The AQI at Bawana, Wazirpur, Anand Vihar and Rohini was 445, 442, 442 and 440 respectively.

According to the government air quality monitoring service SAFAR, the city's air quality was in very poor category on Monday which turned to severe by the evening. The average AQI stood at 360 on Sunday.

11 Nov 2019; MEMO: In the presence of the head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation Ali Akbar Salehi Russian officials and contractors, Iran laid down the cornerstone of the second Bushehr Nuclear Plant, the New Khaleej reported yesterday.

Salehi had previously announced that construction of the second Bushehr Nuclear Plant would start yesterday and work on the third facility would begin soon.

Kolkata, Nov 10; GANASHAKTI: Cyclone 'Bulbul', which made landfall between Bengal and Bangladesh coasts, brought in its wake heavy rain coupled with strong winds till early Sunday, affecting normal life in several parts of the city and the coastal districts of the state.

At least four people were killed in rain-related incidents in Kolkata and North 24 Parganas since Saturday, according to official reports.

An employee of a renowned club in the city was killed when a branch of a cedar tree fell on him, police said. 

BEIJING, Nov 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — French President Emmanuel Macron and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday issued a joint statement reaffirming their strong support for the “irreversible” Paris Agreement on climate change, from which the U.S. announced its exit this week.

The two countries “reaffirm their strong support for the Paris Agreement, which they consider an irreversible process and a compass for strong action on the climate,” the statement said.

New Delhi, Nov 6 (PTI) Uttar Pradesh Chief Secretary Rajendra Kumar Tiwari faced flak from the Supreme Court on Wednesday for failing to come up with an appropriate road map to prevent stubble burning, which is a major source of air pollution in Delhi-NCR.

Tiwari, who was summoned by the apex court, started his submissions before a bench of justices Arun Mishra and Deepak Gupta by telling his name to the court.

Kolkata, Nov 6 (PTI) The air quality in Kolkata turned 'very poor' on Wednesday night with the pollution levels in the city breaching the 300 mark for the first time in recent months, a WBPCB official said.

Measures are being taken to bring down the pollution levels, he said.

The Air Quality Index (AQI) in Kolkata was recorded at 343, which falls in the 'very poor' category, at the green zone Fort William automated air monitoring station at 11 pm, according to the West Bengal Pollution Control Board (WBPCB) official.