Think India Foundation

'India Sitting on e-waste explosion'

ThinkIndia — Thu, 23 May 2013 04:57:42 PDT

BHUBANESWAR : India today sits on a huge mound of e-waste as annually an estimated 8,00,000 tonnes are generated giving a new dimension to the already difficult scenario of solid waste management in the country. According to senior scientist of the Ministry of Environment and Forest Dr NLNS Prasad, as many as 65 cities, headed by Mumbai, contribute more than 60 per cent of the total e-waste generated in the country. Read more Source : newindianexpress.com

Watermarking data

ThinkIndia — Thu, 23 May 2013 04:53:55 PDT

The government has decided to put all water data about river flows and ground water in public domain Towards transaprency: Water data can help empower stakeholders. Photo: Ritu Raj Konwar In a bid to bring transparency in the water sector, the Centre has decided to put in the public domain all water data maintained by the Central Water Commission (CWC) and the Central Ground Water Board. The data, including river water levels, river discharge, siltation, reservoir levels, ground water levels and water quality, will be uploaded on the India-Water Resources Information System website. Earlier such data used to be made...

Panel begins talks on norms for heritage precincts

ThinkIndia — Thu, 23 May 2013 04:50:28 PDT

AFTER reiterating the 2007 guidelines for Marine Drive precinct, Mumbai Heritage Conservation Committee (MHCC) has initiated dialogue on the guidelines of other proposed heritage precincts in the city. The committee has scheduled a line of discussion on the guidelines prepared for Kotachiwadi, Bandra village, Matherpakhadi, Banganga and Fort precincts. Some of these guidelines have been awaiting scrutiny for over 10 years either from MHCC or the state Urban Development Department (UDD). There are over 60 precincts between the island city and Borivali in western suburbs and Chembur in the eastern suburbs as listed in the proposed new heritage list. "As...

Sachin Tendulkar horns in on urban noise pollution

ThinkIndia — Thu, 23 May 2013 04:24:32 PDT

Mumbai : Cricketer wants a cap of 10,000 honks to a car to keep decibels down. Sachin Tendulkar has a cure-all for our ‘Horn OK Please’ conundrum: allot every car in Mumbai just 10,000 honks. Once this cap is reached, the driver will have to buy a new horn from the government, thus, making him/her think twice before honking repeatedly. This regulation would instantly tackle the problem of noise pollution on the streets. Read more Source : www.dnaindia.com

Majority of Urban Indians are open to trying out food from different regions or cultures: Ipsos Study

ThinkIndia — Thu, 23 May 2013 03:50:49 PDT

MUMBAI - Global tastes are diverse and nowhere are that more prevalent than in the kitchens and dining rooms of urban Indian families. Indians are increasingly becoming global citizen and trotting the globe, they have good exposure to global cuisine, and it is no surprise that 57 per cent people are open to trying out food from different regions or cultures, according to the latest findings of a study conducted by Ipsos InnoQuest, a division of global research firm Ipsos. Indian consumers indicated a wide array of interests, reflective of increased accessibility to food options from all over the world...

‘Gender disparity in access to ICT a global phenomenon’

ThinkIndia — Thu, 23 May 2013 03:42:14 PDT

BANGALORE : Women are less likely to use the Internet than men in low income countries: U.S. official Gender disparity in access to Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and the opportunities they create are not common to the United States or India. These problems are shared by women in technology all over the world, said U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary Alyssa Ayres on Wednesday. Read more Source : www.thehindu.com

India Plans Special Technology Zone in Bangalore

ThinkIndia — Thu, 23 May 2013 03:26:16 PDT

NEW DELHI—India's cabinet will examine a proposal Thursday for a special investment region in the southern state of Karnataka for information technology, two senior officials said. The proposed hub in Bangalore is expected to attract investments of 1.06 trillion rupees ($19 billion) from high-tech companies, IT services firms and electronic hardware manufacturers by 2032, the officials, who didn't want to be identified, told The Wall Street Journal. Read more Source : online.wsj.com

TN fast emerging a solar power destination

ThinkIndia — Thu, 23 May 2013 03:02:03 PDT

CHENNAI : With 7,162 MW of installed wind capacity, Tamil Nadu is the leader in wind power in the country. But in ‘solar’ the State ceded the leadership position to Gujarat, which has over a 1,000 MW. However, the growing solar project pipeline in Tamil Nadu suggests that the State is fast emerging as a solar destination too. CLOSE SECOND With a project pipeline of over 700 MW, most of which could come within one year, the State is gearing up to becoming a close second to Gujarat. Read more Source : www.thehindubusinessline.com

India's Wind-Power Target Is up in the Air

ThinkIndia — Thu, 23 May 2013 02:54:03 PDT

India Is Targeting a Fifth of Its Energy to Be Generated From Renewables By 2017, but It May Fall Short on a Lack of Incentives India's ambitious push to increase the share of renewable energy in its total power generation portfolio to nearly one-fifth by 2017 largely on the back of wind power could falter due to slow progress in implementing policies to attract investment to the sector, according to industry officials. Wind energy accounts for around 70% of India's renewable-energy generation, excluding large hydroelectric power projects. A government target of doubling renewable energy output to 55 gigawatts in the...

Textile park to come up at Kadechur

ThinkIndia — Thu, 23 May 2013 02:47:12 PDT

BANGALORE : Minister for Textiles, Ports and Inland Water Transports Baburao Chinchansur on Tuesday said that a textile park would be set up on a 1,000-acre plot at Kadechur in Yadgir district with an investment of Rs. 1,000 crore for which the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB) had been asked to release land. Speaking to presspersons here, Mr. Chinchansur said that the park would be developed on an international model. Read more Source : www.thehindu.com

Mini-hydro projects still a major threat to Western Ghats

ThinkIndia — Thu, 23 May 2013 02:40:39 PDT

BANGALORE : Project planned in Puttur taluk could submerge over 1,800 hectares The Kunthur/Panaja range reserve forests where rare medicinal plants, endemic evergreen trees and endangered ﬁsh ﬁnd habitat, could be submerged if the project is implemented, according to a study. The blanket ban on all new mini-hydro power projects in the Western Ghats, ordered three months ago by the Karnataka High Court and celebrated by environmentalists, may not, after all, be as all-encompassing as was intended. A 24-MW hydro power project proposed for the Kumaradhara in Dakshina Kannada’s Puttur taluk could well become a reality as it was sanctioned...

Meet to discuss open market policy for sugar

ThinkIndia — Thu, 23 May 2013 02:33:06 PDT

BANGALORE : A two-day national-level conference of sugarcane growers will be organised on May 24 by the Farmers’ Association of Karnataka and Sugarcane Growers’ Association. “The meet has been convened to discuss the open market policy for sugar decided by the government,” said Kuruburu Shanthakumar, president of the sugarcane growers’ association. Read more Source : www.thehindu.com

No clear reason in the Kudankulam judgment

ThinkIndia — Thu, 23 May 2013 00:08:49 PDT

The European peace movement of the 1980s, one of the greatest popular mobilisations in history, coined many innovative slogans. One of them was, “Nuclear war can spoil your entire afternoon!” This severe, deliberate understating of the danger of mass destruction looming over the world was calculated to shake citizens of their complacency to become “active today” (in the anti-nuclear movement), not “radioactive tomorrow”. - Sudhir Shetty/DNA Now, in a judgment giving the green light to the Kudankulam nuclear project, our Supreme Court tells citizens, without a hint of irony, that they must put up with “minor inconveniences” such as exposure...

Huda, other depts to get new offices

ThinkIndia — Thu, 23 May 2013 00:01:32 PDT

Gurgaon : The Haryana Urban Development Authority (Huda) has decided to make a fresh move in its five-year-old plan of constructing a new office building at Sector 29. “We are planning to invite renowned architects/designers to prepare a fresh design of the building,” said Huda administrator Praveen Kumar. Read more Source : www.hindustantimes.com

Panjim wastes food enough to feed a lakh

ThinkIndia — Wed, 22 May 2013 23:53:50 PDT

PANJIM: As India debates whether the Food Security Bill is the most effective way to feed its starving millions, it has come to light that around 12 tonnes of leftover food is collected as waste daily from nearly 250 hotels and restaurants located in the capital city, nearly half of which is fit for consumption. Considering that an average person consumes about 300 grams of food per day, the leftover food from Panjim’s favoured joints can feed about 100,000 hungry and or underfed Goans each day. Read more Source : oheraldo.in