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		<title>Mongabay India</title>
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		<description>India&#039;s environmental science and conservation news</description>
		<lastBuildDate>Tue, 28 Jul 2026 11:02:04 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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					<title>India’s ethanol push moves from the pump to the field, raising water and food questions</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/indias-ethanol-push-moves-from-the-pump-to-the-field-raising-water-and-food-questions/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/indias-ethanol-push-moves-from-the-pump-to-the-field-raising-water-and-food-questions/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>28 Jul 2026 16:31:30 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Manish Chandra Mishra]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shailesh Shrivastava]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ethanol]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ethanol blending]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/28144133/signal-2026-07-28-12-24-18-195_003-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
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											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Just Transitions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global and India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Biofuels, Environment, Food, Fossil Fuels, Green Energy, Human Rights, Industry, and Water]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[This is the third part in a series comparing India and Brazil’s ethanol transitions. This part examines how India&#8217;s ethanol model increasingly moving beyond sugarcane and molasses-based production to grains, raising questions about pressures on livestock feed and the food processing industry. The second part examined the challenges of procurement, storage, transport and quality control. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[This is the third part in a series comparing India and Brazil’s ethanol transitions. This part examines how India&#8217;s ethanol model increasingly moving beyond sugarcane and molasses-based production to grains, raising questions about pressures on livestock feed and the food processing industry. The second part examined the challenges of procurement, storage, transport and quality control. In December 2025, tractors and crowds of farmers gathered near an under-construction grain-based ethanol plant in Rathi Khera village in Rajasthan’s Hanumangarh district. They feared the project would strain local water resources, pollute groundwater and damage farmland. The company said the plant would use zero-liquid-discharge technology and pollution-control systems. The protest later escalated into clashes with police, and construction was halted. The Hanumangarh agitation was one of several protests against ethanol and distillery projects reported across India, including in Madhya Pradesh, Punjab and Telangana, where communities have raised concerns about water use, pollution and impacts on farmland. These disputes are emerging as India’s ethanol industry undergoes a major shift from sugarcane-based to grain-based production. In the latest tender by state oil companies, grain-based distilleries supplied more than 70% of the ethanol procured, according to Athar Shahab, managing director of Zuari Industries Limited, an Indian conglomerate with businesses spanning agribusiness, sugar and biofuels, real-estate and engineering services. A decade ago, sugarcane molasses dominated India’s ethanol supply. That balance has now shifted. India now derives roughly 65-70% of its ethanol from grains, mainly maize and rice from Food Corporation of India warehouses, while sugarcane-based feedstocks contribute around&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/indias-ethanol-push-moves-from-the-pump-to-the-field-raising-water-and-food-questions/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Supporting infrastructure is the missing link in India&#8217;s ethanol push</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/supporting-infrastructure-is-the-missing-link-in-indias-ethanol-push/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/supporting-infrastructure-is-the-missing-link-in-indias-ethanol-push/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>24 Jul 2026 12:39:02 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Manish Chandra Mishra]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ethanol]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ethanol blending]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[gas]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[petrol]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[petroleum]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[vehicles]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/24105649/AP23242459662267-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39570</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Just Transitions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biofuels, Clean Energy, Climate Change, Energy, Environment, Fossil Fuels, Green Energy, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Industry, Sustainability, and Technology]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[This is the second part in a series comparing India and Brazil’s ethanol transitions. Brazil’s decades-long experience shows that producing ethanol is only half the challenge. This story examines the real test which lies in procurement, storage, transport and quality control, the systems that decide whether ethanol actually reaches the pump reliably. The first part [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[This is the second part in a series comparing India and Brazil’s ethanol transitions. Brazil’s decades-long experience shows that producing ethanol is only half the challenge. This story examines the real test which lies in procurement, storage, transport and quality control, the systems that decide whether ethanol actually reaches the pump reliably. The first part looked at what that difference means for vehicle owners in both countries. At a petrol pump in Bhopal’s Katara Hills, a 40-year-old pump attendant smiles when asked whether customers talk about ethanol-blended petrol. “People come and joke, ‘ganne ka juice bhardo’ (Fill sugarcane juice),” he says, referring to E20 petrol, a blend of 20% ethanol and 80% petrol. In India, sugarcane is one of the main feedstocks used to produce ethanol. The sarcasm reflects the public conversation that has followed the rapid expansion of E20. Videos and posts circulating online have raised questions about the colour and quality of the fuel, its compatibility with older vehicles, and possible changes in mileage or performance. Government agencies and automobile manufacturers have disputed several of these claims. The debate has nevertheless brought attention to how ethanol is transported, stored, blended and tested before fuel reaches a petrol pump. Brazil’s ethanol mission seems to have inspired India to a great extent as the South American country often comes up in India’s ethanol debate, usually as a success story of higher blends. Interactions with people who run Brazil’s ethanol system bring out some crucial lessons for India. For Brazil, where&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/supporting-infrastructure-is-the-missing-link-in-indias-ethanol-push/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Rising sugarcane yields coexist with climate, water risks in semi-arid India</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/rising-sugarcane-yields-coexist-with-climate-water-risks-in-semi-arid-india/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/rising-sugarcane-yields-coexist-with-climate-water-risks-in-semi-arid-india/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>23 Jul 2026 13:24:28 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sneha Mahale]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/23122529/AP20014192009835-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39553</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Just Transitions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Drought, and Food]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Sugarcane cultivation across parts of India’s Deccan Plateau is becoming more productive. But, it is also becoming more vulnerable to climate variability, a new long-term study finds. Sugarcane has long shaped India’s rural economy. It powers sugar mills, supports ethanol and bioenergy production, and sustains millions of farmers. But the crop is also at the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Sugarcane cultivation across parts of India’s Deccan Plateau is becoming more productive. But, it is also becoming more vulnerable to climate variability, a new long-term study finds. Sugarcane has long shaped India’s rural economy. It powers sugar mills, supports ethanol and bioenergy production, and sustains millions of farmers. But the crop is also at the centre of mounting concerns over water use, particularly in semi-arid regions facing recurrent droughts and groundwater stress. The study analysed 22 years of sugarcane production trends across five districts in Maharashtra and Karnataka to understand how cultivation, yields and production patterns have changed under varying climatic conditions. “We noticed that sugarcane cultivation in Maharashtra and Karnataka was increasingly being affected by climatic variability, even though it remains one of the most important economic activities across the Deccan Plateau,” says Krishna Kumar from the Department of Applied Science and Humanities at MIT-ADT University, Pune, and one of the study’s researchers. Tracking sugarcane trends across climate zones Sugarcane production trends in India have been studied extensively at national and state levels, but long-term district-level analyses incorporating weather variability remain limited. “The main concern was to pin down how climate variability impacts agricultural production in water-limited sugarcane systems,” adds Kumar. “This kind of insight matters a lot for creating climate resilient agricultural policies and planning better infrastructure.” For the study, researchers analysed sugarcane production trends between 1999 and 2021 in Ahmednagar, Solapur and Nashik in Maharashtra, and Bellary and Dharwad in Karnataka. The five districts span distinct agro-climatic&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/rising-sugarcane-yields-coexist-with-climate-water-risks-in-semi-arid-india/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Heat plans must account for age and gender, says UN Women paper</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/heat-plans-must-account-for-age-and-gender-says-un-women-paper/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/heat-plans-must-account-for-age-and-gender-says-un-women-paper/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>21 Jul 2026 12:25:57 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sharmila Vaidyanathan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Arathimenon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[extreme heat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Heat impacts]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heat stroke]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Heat wave]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heatwave]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/21102915/pexels-votso-sothu-53802751-35635150-scaled-e1784610000177-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39480</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections and Environment and Her]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Climate Change, Climate Change Adaptation, Extreme Weather Events, Fossil Fuels, Global Warming, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Health impacts, Human Rights, Impacts of Climate Change, People, and United Nations]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[India witnessed yet another record-breaking summer this year. As scorching temperatures become the new norm, a new technical paper calls for a more granular understanding of gender and age-specific risks of heat stress. The paper, Gender-differentiated and age-specific risks of heat stress in a warming world: Implications for equality and resilience, by Venge Nyirongo, Deputy [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[India witnessed yet another record-breaking summer this year. As scorching temperatures become the new norm, a new technical paper calls for a more granular understanding of gender and age-specific risks of heat stress. The paper, Gender-differentiated and age-specific risks of heat stress in a warming world: Implications for equality and resilience, by Venge Nyirongo, Deputy Chief of Economic Empowerment and Policy Advisor for Sustainable Development at United Nations (UN) Women, highlights that heat stress affects men, women, children, adults and older people differently. Nyirongo explains that biological responses vary between men and women. While men have higher sweat rates than women, mortality from heat stroke and heat-related cardiac events is significantly higher among men. Heat impacts also emerge from the interaction of biological differences and gendered social roles, notes the paper. Strenuous physical work performed outdoors, primarily by men, raises internal body temperatures, placing them at greater risk of heat-related illnesses. For women, the paper notes, the impacts of passive heat exposure experienced indoors during heatwaves are a significant concern. It also points out that much of the agricultural work undertaken by women, such as transporting water or watering seedlings, is carried out during the hottest parts of the day, often without sufficient knowledge about heat impacts or access to cooling measures. “These patterns likely reflect both biology and social behaviour,” writes Nyirongo. He stresses the need for more data collection, monitoring and research to develop targeted heat adaptation measures across different demographic groups. “The paper underscores that a significant&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/heat-plans-must-account-for-age-and-gender-says-un-women-paper/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Why is Conocarpus being banned across states? [Explainer]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/why-is-conocarpus-being-banned-across-states-explainer/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/why-is-conocarpus-being-banned-across-states-explainer/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>20 Jul 2026 17:06:07 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Nikhil Sreekandan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Renuka Kulkarni]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Infrastructure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[invasive plants]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[soil]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urban trees]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/18120118/51866377640_3033476cd1_o-e1784357092548-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39442</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Biodiversity, Cities and Towns, Ecology, Environment, Health impacts, Plants, and Trees]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In March, the Karnataka High Court directed the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) to consider the issues highlighted in a public interest litigation (PIL) petition seeking the removal of all Conocarpus trees planted across the city. The high court advisory on Conocarpus, a genus of trees introduced to India from the Gulf, where it has been [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In March, the Karnataka High Court directed the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) to consider the issues highlighted in a public interest litigation (PIL) petition seeking the removal of all Conocarpus trees planted across the city. The high court advisory on Conocarpus, a genus of trees introduced to India from the Gulf, where it has been extensively used in urban landscaping, comes on the heels of prohibitory orders enforced by the state governments of Gujarat, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu. In August, 2025, based on a report by the Central Empowered Committee (CEC), the Government of India issued a national advisory to all states and union territories to stop the plantation of Conocarpus erectus (buttonwood) and Conocarpus lancifolius (damask) with immediate effect, flagging ecological and public health concerns. The report compared the Conocarpus species with invasive plants such as Lantana camara and Parthenium hysteroporus. How did Conocarpus take over urban India? There are two species of Conocarpus trees found in India, Conocarpus erectus and Conocarpus lancifolius. Of these, Plants of the World Online (POWO), a global digital database of the world’s flora, only recognises the introduction of Conocarpus erectus to the country. However,  Achyut Banerjee, a plant invasion biologist and assistant professor at Azim Premji University, Bhopal, says both species, including Conocarpus lancifolius, followed a similar route into the country. “They were brought from their native range to Gulf countries for urban landscaping, and then introduced to India from there,” he said. Over the past decade, Conocarpus has mushroomed in&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/why-is-conocarpus-being-banned-across-states-explainer/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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					<title>Measuring development through wellbeing, sustainability and more [Commentary]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/measuring-development-through-wellbeing-sustainability-and-more-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/measuring-development-through-wellbeing-sustainability-and-more-commentary/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>20 Jul 2026 15:05:13 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Oliver King EDISoumya Swaminathan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[S. Gopikrishna Warrier]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[GDP]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Green Accounting]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[resilience]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sustainability]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/20143843/pexels-equalstock-20527529-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
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											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Finance]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global and India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Carbon Finance, Climate Change Adaptation, and Conservation finance]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[India&#8217;s development story, like much of the world, continues to be told through a single number: Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Every quarter, GDP growth dominates headlines, shaping perceptions of economic success and influencing policy priorities. Yet GDP measures only the value of goods and services produced within an economy. It does not reveal whether soils [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[India&#8217;s development story, like much of the world, continues to be told through a single number: Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Every quarter, GDP growth dominates headlines, shaping perceptions of economic success and influencing policy priorities. Yet GDP measures only the value of goods and services produced within an economy. It does not reveal whether soils are becoming more fertile, biodiversity is recovering, water resources are being replenished, diets are becoming healthier, or communities are becoming more resilient. While GDP remains indispensable for measuring economic activity, it was never designed to capture the quality, equity or sustainability of development. Recognising these limitations, the recently released report of the United Nations High-Level Expert Group on Beyond GDP, Counting What Counts: A Compass of Progress for People and Planet, urges countries to complement GDP with a broader framework that measures well-being, equity, sustainability and resilience. Rather than replacing GDP, the report recommends integrating these measures into planning, budgeting and accountability systems so that governments assess what truly matters for long-term human progress. For India, this call is particularly timely. Over the past three decades, the country has achieved remarkable economic growth, lifting millions out of poverty and becoming one of the world&#8217;s largest economies. Yet this progress has coincided with ecological degradation, groundwater depletion, biodiversity loss, climate vulnerability, nutritional insecurity and growing pressure on rural livelihoods. Economic output can continue to rise even as the natural and social systems that sustain it are steadily weakened. Relying solely on GDP therefore risks encouraging policies&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/measuring-development-through-wellbeing-sustainability-and-more-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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					<title>Important shark, ray habitats in India are still unprotected</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/important-shark-ray-habitats-in-india-are-still-unprotected/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/important-shark-ray-habitats-in-india-are-still-unprotected/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>20 Jul 2026 09:30:20 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rupsy Khurana]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Priyanka Shankar]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[conservation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Marine ecosystem]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/17171255/Scalloped_Hammerhead_Shark_Sphyrna_Lewini_226845659-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
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											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas and Hewing The Regulatory Tree]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Environmental Law, and Fishing]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[For more than 400 million years, sharks have survived on Earth, outlasting dramatic climatic shifts and multiple mass extinctions. But since 1970, the global abundance of sharks and rays has reduced by 71%. During the same period, fishing pressure doubled, and shark and ray catches tripled. Unabated extraction and the destruction of key nursery and [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[For more than 400 million years, sharks have survived on Earth, outlasting dramatic climatic shifts and multiple mass extinctions. But since 1970, the global abundance of sharks and rays has reduced by 71%. During the same period, fishing pressure doubled, and shark and ray catches tripled. Unabated extraction and the destruction of key nursery and feeding grounds have pushed many populations of sharks and their relatives, rays and chimaeras, into steep decline. Today, more than three-quarters of these species are threatened with extinction. According to a 2021 study, India is the world&#8217;s second-largest shark-fishing nation, occupying a critical position in the future of shark and ray conservation. Yet many of the country&#8217;s existing marine protected areas exclude key habitats of these species, which can limit the effectiveness of current conservation efforts, finds a new study, published in Biodiversity and Conservation. “This study highlights that new efforts are needed to ensure that sharks and rays also receive adequate protection, just like sea turtles, dolphins, and so on,” says Divya Karnad, a senior lecturer at the University of Exeter and an author of the study. Scalloped hammerhead sharks at Sasson Dock, Mumbai. Image by Raju Kasambe via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0). Mismatched conservation targets and reality The study maps Important Shark and Ray Areas (ISRA), a framework by the IUCN Species Survival Commission Shark Specialist Group, to identify habitats essential for the survival of sharks, rays, and chimaeras. ISRAs are discrete areas where these species occur regularly or predictably and which&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/important-shark-ray-habitats-in-india-are-still-unprotected/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>What India’s ethanol push can learn from Brazil’s long ethanol journey</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/what-indias-ethanol-push-can-learn-from-brazils-long-ethanol-journey/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/what-indias-ethanol-push-can-learn-from-brazils-long-ethanol-journey/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>16 Jul 2026 14:30:51 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Manish Chandra Mishra]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shailesh Shrivastava]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[agriculture]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[bioenergy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[biofuel]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Environment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ethanol]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[petrol]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[petroleum]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/16123533/F5CB3E5C-80A5-409A-AE91-835210F8FA3C_1_105_c-e1784192843453-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39353</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Clean Energy]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Alternative energy, Biofuels, Clean Energy, Energy, Fossil Fuels, and Green Energy]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[This is the first part in a series comparing India and Brazil’s ethanol transitions. Brazil has run on ethanol for decades, with drivers choosing from different blends of ethanol in petrol at fuel stations. India is moving through E20 as the default fuel blend, with far less consumer choice. This story looks at what that [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[This is the first part in a series comparing India and Brazil’s ethanol transitions. Brazil has run on ethanol for decades, with drivers choosing from different blends of ethanol in petrol at fuel stations. India is moving through E20 as the default fuel blend, with far less consumer choice. This story looks at what that difference means for vehicle owners in both countries. At Posto Dallas, a fuel station in northern Brazil’s Belém city, a car pulls in. The driver checks the price board, then picks a fuel. The 27-year-old station attendant, John, sees this happen all day. “Mostly flex-fuel vehicles come here,” he said. “People see the price and ask us to fill the fuel in their tanks accordingly.” Posto Dallas fuel stations are supplied by the state-owned energy company Petrobras and operate under the brand. In Brazil, customers can choose between different percentages of ethanol blends or pure petrol depending on the price and usage. Most cars sold here are flex-fuel vehicles, built to run on different petrol-ethanol blends. Brazil has offered this choice for decades. In another part of the world, nearly 15,000 km away, at a petrol pump in Bhopal’s Katara Hills, the scene looks similar. Vehicles come and go, attendants fill tanks, customers decide fast. But one thing is different: the choice on offer. In India, the government made 20% ethanol blended petrol, called E20, the default fuel across all fuel stations under its ethanol blending programme. For Nicola Pamplona, a vehicle owner and a&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/what-indias-ethanol-push-can-learn-from-brazils-long-ethanol-journey/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Government proposes increasing clearance validity for ports and harbours</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/government-proposes-increasing-clearance-validity-for-ports-and-harbours/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/government-proposes-increasing-clearance-validity-for-ports-and-harbours/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>15 Jul 2026 15:44:48 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Simrin Sirur]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Kundan Pandey]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[development]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[environment clearance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Environmental Clearance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[port]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ship]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/15125227/AP25160345655791-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39305</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Just Transitions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Coast, Environment, Environmental Politics, Industry, and Oceans]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The Union Environment Ministry has proposed “rationalising” the validity of environmental clearances for port and harbour projects in India, increasing it from the current 10 year period to a 15 year period. In addition to increasing the validity of the environmental clearance, the draft notification also proposes increasing the renewal period upon the completion of [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The Union Environment Ministry has proposed “rationalising” the validity of environmental clearances for port and harbour projects in India, increasing it from the current 10 year period to a 15 year period. In addition to increasing the validity of the environmental clearance, the draft notification also proposes increasing the renewal period upon the completion of the clearance’s tenure, from one year to five years. The proposal was made in a draft notification issued on May 20. According to the draft notification, the reason for increasing the clearance validity is because of the “high gestation period due to various issues, which are often beyond the control of the project proponent.” Ports and harbours can take over a decade from construction to commercial or full-scale operation. India has 12 major ports and 217 non-major ports. In the 2025-2026 financial year, India’s ports collectively handled 915 million tonnes of cargo, according to the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways. “Often long gestation is symptomatic of unaddressed local grievances. Instead of addressing the problem by letting the locals air their grievances, and letting the project owners offer satisfactory solutions, the ministry of proposing a blanket extension,” said Meenakshi Kapoor, an independent researcher who tracks changes to India’s environmental clearance process. A 2010 report on major and non major ports along India’s coastline found that out of 181 notified non major ports at the time, at least 41 (23%) had reported environmental concerns and 32 (18%) reported protests on social grounds. “A reapplication for EC&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/government-proposes-increasing-clearance-validity-for-ports-and-harbours/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>The neem patent case and India&#8217;s next battle over traditional knowledge [Commentary]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/the-neem-patent-case-and-indias-next-battle-over-traditional-knowledge-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/the-neem-patent-case-and-indias-next-battle-over-traditional-knowledge-commentary/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>14 Jul 2026 14:36:47 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Deepanjana SahaG. RavikanthSarvesh J.P.]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Kundan Pandey]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[traditional farming]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[traditional grains]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Traditional Knowledge]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/14101205/AP26003660066972-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39258</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Biodiversity, Community based conservation, Ecology, Technology, and Trees]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In 1994, a U.S. company and the United States Department of Agriculture secured a European patent for a method of using neem extracts to control fungi. The neem tree, however, was not a discovery. Across the Indian subcontinent, it had long been used in traditional medicine, agriculture, and furniture making, with its pesticidal properties documented [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In 1994, a U.S. company and the United States Department of Agriculture secured a European patent for a method of using neem extracts to control fungi. The neem tree, however, was not a discovery. Across the Indian subcontinent, it had long been used in traditional medicine, agriculture, and furniture making, with its pesticidal properties documented in Sanskrit texts and embedded in everyday agricultural practice. After a six-year legal challenge led by an Indian organisation named the Research Foundation for Science, Technology, and Ecology, supported by international allies, the patent was revoked in 2000. Five years after that, the decision was upheld on appeal, with the board ruling that the method lacked novelty and an inventive step, given its long-documented use in India. Now, three decades later, the neem case looks less like an aberration than a template. The frontier has moved from isolated plant compounds to the systems-level ecological knowledge that smallholder and Adivasi communities have developed over generations. The next dispute may involve a soil microbiome product, an agroecological decision-support tool, or a machine-learning model trained on data from traditional preparations. India&#8217;s current legal architecture is not designed to respond to it. Why is this knowledge different? Most public discussion of biopiracy still focuses on the misappropriation of specific biological resources: a plant compound, a seed variety, or a fermentation culture. The legal response has focused correspondingly on access and benefit-sharing rules, prior art databases, and geographical indication protections. These instruments work, imperfectly, for that kind of theft. The&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/the-neem-patent-case-and-indias-next-battle-over-traditional-knowledge-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Fishers, naturalists worry about the impacts of turning a coastal wetland into a reservoir</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/a-coastal-wetland-could-soon-become-a-reservoir-to-meet-a-citys-water-demand/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/a-coastal-wetland-could-soon-become-a-reservoir-to-meet-a-citys-water-demand/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Jul 2026 17:18:48 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Smitha T.K.]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Priyanka Shankar]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cities]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urban wetlands]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wetlands]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/13161843/4-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39239</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Just Transitions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India and Tamil Nadu]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Birds, Coast, Ecology, Ecosystem services, Environment, Fishing, Floods, Habitat Loss, Lakes, and Wetlands]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Narayanan R. stood on the muddy bund of the Great Salt Lake, watching a group of flamingoes pick their way across the shallows. He remembered standing in the same spot as a 10-year-old, knee-deep in water — the day his father showed him how to fish. &#8220;The flamingoes may not come next season,” he said. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Narayanan R. stood on the muddy bund of the Great Salt Lake, watching a group of flamingoes pick their way across the shallows. He remembered standing in the same spot as a 10-year-old, knee-deep in water — the day his father showed him how to fish. &#8220;The flamingoes may not come next season,” he said. “These pools will dry soon. A few hundred metres away, Gowriamma waded through the shallow waters of the lake, her fingers sifting through the mud for shrimp. “Everything depends on these small pools. We know this water through the mud and the thorns.&#8221; Located between Nemmeli and Kovalam in Chennai, the Great Salt Lake also known as Kovalam-Nemmeli backwaters, is a coastal wetland that spans 5,000 acres. The Tamil Nadu government plans to convert this coastal wetland into Chennai’s sixth drinking water reservoir: the Mamallan reservoir. Chennai currently supplies between 700 and 800 million litres per day (MLD) of water. The demand already exceeds 1,100 MLD and is projected to cross 2,500 MLD by 2035, according to the project&#8217;s environmental impact assessment (EIA). The Mamallan reservoir aims to supply 170 MLD for the city’s needs. The reservoir is designed to store 1.65 thousand million cubic feet (TMC) in a single filling and an annual storage of 2.25 TMC. However, for Narayanan, Gowriamma and many fishing families in the area, losing the Great Salt Lake means losing the only world they have ever known. “Who are we to change the contours drawn by nature?” Narayanan asks.&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/a-coastal-wetland-could-soon-become-a-reservoir-to-meet-a-citys-water-demand/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>India’s heat response is missing public health logic [Commentary]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/indias-heat-response-is-missing-public-health-logic-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/indias-heat-response-is-missing-public-health-logic-commentary/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Jul 2026 14:10:47 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Purvi Patel]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[extreme heat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[human health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[public health]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/13120321/AP24185569844799-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39219</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Environment, Extreme Weather Events, Health impacts, and Human Rights]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Every summer, as temperatures rise, Heat Action Plans are invoked, labour woes are highlighted, and mortality counts are contested. Yet, nothing changes in the long run. The central question: Are we adequately protecting people’s health? remains conspicuously unaddressed. It is not for lack of evidence. The failure, repeated every year, lies in failure to translate [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Every summer, as temperatures rise, Heat Action Plans are invoked, labour woes are highlighted, and mortality counts are contested. Yet, nothing changes in the long run. The central question: Are we adequately protecting people’s health? remains conspicuously unaddressed. It is not for lack of evidence. The failure, repeated every year, lies in failure to translate health science into coherent strategy and actions. Across surveillance, research, intervention design, implementation, and governance, health science and public-health principles are often overlooked, distorted, or lost in translation. The quantification trap Expecting public health surveillance to fully account for every heat-related illness (HRI) before mounting a response is a fundamental misunderstanding. First, surveillance systems, by continuously gathering data of selected serious, preventable, and reliably reportable health conditions, are meant to detect signals in time to trigger action. The goal is situational awareness, not a census. As such, the National Heat-Related Illness and Death Surveillance (NHRIDS) focuses on capturing heatstroke, the most severe heat-related illness, in near-real time. Secondly, India&#8217;s heat surveillance carries structural limitations. Reporting still depends on manual data entry, which is inherently prone to underreporting. Additionally, unlike malaria or tuberculosis, there are no confirmatory tests for heat-related illnesses to add diagnostic certainty. High-income countries bypass this technologically by extracting syndromic data from electronic health records, and still suffer from undercounting. India&#8217;s digital health mission is years behind reaching that level of modernisation. As such, extending surveillance reporting to all heat-related illnesses in our current system adds noise and burden rather than actionable insights. Epidemiologically,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/indias-heat-response-is-missing-public-health-logic-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>Why looking at trees is a type of rebellion [Book Review]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/why-looking-at-trees-is-a-type-of-rebellion-book-review/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/why-looking-at-trees-is-a-type-of-rebellion-book-review/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Jul 2026 12:16:36 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Aarushi Agrawal]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Renuka Kulkarni]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[book]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[book review]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[trees outside forests]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urban trees]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/13102344/2560px-hill-mynah-28gracula-religiosa29-leaving-its-nest-28806409492329-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39207</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Birds, Ecology, Ecosystem services, Environment, Forests, Plants, and Trees]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[According to an analysis by Down to Earth of the environment ministry&#8217;s advisory committee records, more than 2.8 million trees, on forest land, were approved for felling or recorded as felled across India between July 2023 and May 2026. About 90% of this felling has happened because of mining, hydropower and rehabilitation projects. Where efforts [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[According to an analysis by Down to Earth of the environment ministry&#8217;s advisory committee records, more than 2.8 million trees, on forest land, were approved for felling or recorded as felled across India between July 2023 and May 2026. About 90% of this felling has happened because of mining, hydropower and rehabilitation projects. Where efforts are being made to increase green cover in the country, we are starkly falling short. A recent study published in the journal Environmental Research Communications, which examines eight major government policies and programmes and their impact on tree cover, finds that only one showed positive associations with tree cover. Essentially, most government efforts are ill-informed and falling short. The more we consume news about this war against trees, the harder we fight. Until we can’t anymore. Until we’re exhausted and depleted. Writer and wildlife scientist T.R. Shankar Raman’s book The Trees of My Country: A Natural History of India in 50 Trees, with illustrations by Manali Patil, is a balm for those tired times. The book doesn’t try to advocate for trees or talk about their functionality and importance to human life. It doesn’t talk about why trees are needed and all the bad that will happen if trees are gone. It doesn’t make excuses on their behalf. The tactics tree lovers normally use to try to get the unaffected to care about trees are all thrown out the window. Here, trees deserve to exist because they are living beings. That’s reason enough. In not&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/why-looking-at-trees-is-a-type-of-rebellion-book-review/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>Petition accuses Wildlife Board Committee of rubber-stamping diversions with &#8216;no application of mind’</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/petition-accuses-wildlife-board-committee-of-rubber-stamping-diversions-with-no-application-of-mind/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/petition-accuses-wildlife-board-committee-of-rubber-stamping-diversions-with-no-application-of-mind/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 Jul 2026 17:01:19 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Simrin Sirur]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Kundan Pandey]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/10134024/AP22207426672059-scaled-e1783671210988-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39179</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[The Indian Forest Story]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Deforestation, Environment, Environmental Politics, Forests, Habitat Loss, Industry, Logging, Natural Resources, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A group of former forest officials, conservationists, and researchers have censured the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) and a statutory body under it for approving development projects within protected areas with “scant ecological and scientific evidence” and “no application of mind.” A public interest litigation filed by the group in the Delhi High Court says [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A group of former forest officials, conservationists, and researchers have censured the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) and a statutory body under it for approving development projects within protected areas with “scant ecological and scientific evidence” and “no application of mind.” A public interest litigation filed by the group in the Delhi High Court says the Standing Committee under the NBWL approved 97% of projects between 2014 and 2026, indicating a lack of “processual rigour” which led to the diversion of at least 95,724 hectares of forest land. The allegation comes amid a spate of changes made to national environmental norms to favour the “ease of doing business” — a stated goal of the incumbent BJP government. The petitioners include four retired Indian Forest Service officers, led by Prakriti Srivastava as well as eminent conservationists like M.K. Ranjitsinh, who played an instrumental role in drafting the Wildlife Protection Act, India’s primary wildlife protection law. The petition alleges the National Board for Wildlife — chaired by the Prime Minister — and its Standing Committee — chaired by the Union Environment Minister — acted with “total disregard of its (sic) constitutional duties and in violation of the very intent and purpose for which they were statutorily created.” A representative of Bhupender Yadav, Union Environment Minister and chairperson of the NBWL Standing Committee, declined to comment. The National Board for Wildlife was created in 2003 under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 to advise central and state governments on issues pertaining to wildlife. These&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/petition-accuses-wildlife-board-committee-of-rubber-stamping-diversions-with-no-application-of-mind/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/petition-accuses-wildlife-board-committee-of-rubber-stamping-diversions-with-no-application-of-mind/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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					<title>Cooling cities needs climate-smart design, not just more trees</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/cooling-cities-needs-climate-smart-design-not-just-more-trees/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/cooling-cities-needs-climate-smart-design-not-just-more-trees/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>09 Jul 2026 13:23:11 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Deepa Padmanabhan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Arathimenon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[extreme heat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Heat wave]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heatwave]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[tree plantation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urban areas]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urban climate]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Urban forest]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Urban Heat Island]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urban trees]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/09130111/AP24170444747328-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39112</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Nature-based Solutions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Climate Change, Ecosystem services, Environment, Extreme Weather Events, Impacts of Climate Change, Nature-based Climate Solutions, and Trees]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Urban greening is widely promoted as a solution to rising temperatures. But can planting more trees actually make people feel hotter in some cities? A new study published in Nature Communications by researchers from IIT Gandhinagar and Northeastern University, USA examines this paradox. Instead of looking only at air temperature or land surface temperature, the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Urban greening is widely promoted as a solution to rising temperatures. But can planting more trees actually make people feel hotter in some cities? A new study published in Nature Communications by researchers from IIT Gandhinagar and Northeastern University, USA examines this paradox. Instead of looking only at air temperature or land surface temperature, the study focused on the Heat Index (HI) which is the “feels like” temperature that combines heat and humidity because humans respond to both temperature and moisture in the air. The study finds that while urban trees generally help cool cities by providing shade, reducing incoming solar radiation, and lowering surface temperatures, these benefits vary in different cities. In humid cities, dense tree canopies can inadvertently increase heat stress by boosting evapotranspiration, which releases more moisture into the air. Where buildings are closely packed and airflow is restricted, this extra humidity can raise the Heat Index even if the air itself becomes cooler. On the other hand, semi-arid cities experience more consistent cooling because the drier atmosphere can absorb additional moisture without becoming uncomfortably humid. The study&#8217;s first author, Angana Borah, says the same tree can produce very different thermal comfort outcomes depending on where it is planted, the surrounding urban density and the local climate. As cities warm faster than their rural surroundings, climate-responsive greening is important, the study notes. Canopy structure plays a role The study analysed three different aspects of vegetation — EVI (Enhanced Vegetation Index), LAI (Leaf Area Index) and fPAR (Fraction&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/cooling-cities-needs-climate-smart-design-not-just-more-trees/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>Why feasibility matters for land use projects in India [Commentary]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/why-feasibility-matters-for-land-use-projects-in-india-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/why-feasibility-matters-for-land-use-projects-in-india-commentary/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>07 Jul 2026 15:37:29 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[J.V. SharmaSayanta Ghosh]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Kundan Pandey]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[land management]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[livelihoods]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/07142040/AP274368273581-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39054</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Finance]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Biodiversity, Carbon emissions, Carbon Finance, Carbon Offset, Carbon Trading, Climate Change Mitigation, Deforestation, Ecology, Ecosystem services, Forestry, Forests, Grasslands, Green Business, and Reforestation]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[India’s carbon market conversation is widening beyond energy and industry. Forests, farms, grasslands, wetlands, mangroves and rice fields are increasingly being viewed as spaces where climate action, ecological restoration and rural livelihoods can converge. Carbon credits are expected to help bring private finance into these landscapes. But the global experience of the voluntary carbon market [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[India’s carbon market conversation is widening beyond energy and industry. Forests, farms, grasslands, wetlands, mangroves and rice fields are increasingly being viewed as spaces where climate action, ecological restoration and rural livelihoods can converge. Carbon credits are expected to help bring private finance into these landscapes. But the global experience of the voluntary carbon market shows that a project can be registered, verified and even generate credits without necessarily delivering the climate or community outcomes that buyers assume. After evaluating 2,346 carbon-crediting projects and nearly one billion tonnes of issued credits, a 2024 study in Nature Communications estimated that less than 16% of the credits examined, represented real emission reductions. The study does not mean that every carbon project has failed, but it shows how badly results can diverge from claims when baselines, additionality or monitoring are weak. Specific cases make the warning harder to ignore. In 2025, the carbon certifier Verra reviewed Zimbabwe’s Kariba REDD+ project and found that actual deforestation in the reference area was far lower than originally projected. Verra identified 15.22 million excess credits among 26.82 million credits already issued and said these could no longer be corrected through future monitoring periods because the project had withdrawn from its registry. Similarly, in 2024, Verra rejected 37 rice-cultivation projects in China. It sanctioned project proponents and validation bodies and required compensation for overissued credits after concerns were raised about project areas, additionality and emission-reduction calculations. Community governance can be equally decisive. The Northern Kenya Grassland Carbon Project&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/why-feasibility-matters-for-land-use-projects-in-india-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Indigenous communities missing in India’s report on access and benefit sharing [Commentary]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/indigenous-communities-missing-in-indias-report-on-access-and-benefit-sharing-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/indigenous-communities-missing-in-indias-report-on-access-and-benefit-sharing-commentary/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>06 Jul 2026 12:46:20 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Alphonsa JojanShyama Kuriakose]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Priyanka Shankar]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[access benefit sharing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Convention on Biological Diversity]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[indigenous]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Indigenous Peoples]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/06093427/AP25134623115158-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=38994</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Conservation, Human Rights, Indigenous Peoples, and Indigenous Rights]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[India as a biodiversity-rich nation has been lauded for its legislative efforts in championing the domestic implementation of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) through its Biological Diversity Act, 2002. Additionally, as a party to the CBD, a global agreement on biodiversity protection, India also sought to implement the Nagoya Protocol on access to [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[India as a biodiversity-rich nation has been lauded for its legislative efforts in championing the domestic implementation of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) through its Biological Diversity Act, 2002. Additionally, as a party to the CBD, a global agreement on biodiversity protection, India also sought to implement the Nagoya Protocol on access to genetic resources and fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from their utilisation (Nagoya Protocol) through the existing Biological Diversity (BD) Act framework and the specific Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) Regulations under it. The BD Act and its rules along with the ABS Regulations together aim at regulating access to genetic resources and traditional knowledge, and sharing benefits equitably and fairly from the use of such resources and knowledge. In preparation for the 17th Conference of the Parties to the CBD in 2026, India has submitted its first national report on implementation of Nagoya Protocol on February 27, 2026. This commentary examines the submissions of the Indian government in the report with respect to Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs). Negation of Indigenous Peoples and local communities The Nagoya Protocol places special obligations on member countries to recognise the rights of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) under the access and benefit-sharing (ABS) mechanism. To elaborate, IPLCs have the right to give prior informed consent (PIC) to the use of their bioresources and their traditional knowledge. This is what is generally known as ‘community PIC’ and it includes the right of the communities to&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/indigenous-communities-missing-in-indias-report-on-access-and-benefit-sharing-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>When trees replace grasslands, specialist birds lose their habitat</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/when-trees-replace-grasslands-specialist-birds-lose-their-habitat/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/when-trees-replace-grasslands-specialist-birds-lose-their-habitat/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>02 Jul 2026 17:45:19 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Simrin Sirur]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Priyanka Shankar]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[afforestation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[extreme rainfall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heavy rainfall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[rainfall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[savanna]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[savannahs]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/02170908/PaddyfieldPipit_SiddhantMhetre_Anthus_Rufulus-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=38913</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India and Maharashtra]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Birds, Climate Change, Extreme Weather Events, Grasslands, Impacts of Climate Change, Plantations, and Plants]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[India’s fast disappearing grasslands have long been targeted for afforestation — a practice that encourages tree planting on “degraded” parcels of land. With their vast and open landscapes, savannahs and grasslands are often considered barren land in need of more dense tree cover. But how does converting grassy, arid land to something woody and canopied [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[India’s fast disappearing grasslands have long been targeted for afforestation — a practice that encourages tree planting on “degraded” parcels of land. With their vast and open landscapes, savannahs and grasslands are often considered barren land in need of more dense tree cover. But how does converting grassy, arid land to something woody and canopied transform an ecosystem, and the life within it? New research from Maharashtra studies how old-growth savannahs, when planted with trees, changes bird populations and distributions. Grasslands and savannahs are estimated to cover 15-20% of India’s land mass, and yet remain under-researched. The lack of recognition of grassland ecosystems has meant their role in regulating microclimates and hosting endemic biodiversity has largely gone unnoticed. “There are very few studies on dry savannahs in general, and even fewer on the impacts of afforestation on them,” said Abi T. Vanak, Director of the Centre for Policy Design at ATREE and a scholar of India&#8217;s grasslands. The study from Maharashtra compared bird species and abundance across undisturbed savannahs and well-established plantations, creating new evidence for how the impacts of afforestation go beyond just changes to tree cover. It found that afforestation rendered the area uninhabitable for grassland specialist species like the Indian courser — a long-legged bird which scans the grass to forage — and the tawny pipit, which nests on the ground — among a host of others. Instead, bird populations were maintained by an influx of other species better adapted to woody and forested habitats. The shift&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/when-trees-replace-grasslands-specialist-birds-lose-their-habitat/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>Burning waste is a waste of money</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/burning-waste-is-a-waste-of-money/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/burning-waste-is-a-waste-of-money/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>02 Jul 2026 16:16:50 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ravleen Kaur]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Kundan Pandey]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/02130433/AP22119833098845-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=38896</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Finance and Just Transitions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Delhi and India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Environment, Environmental Crime, Human Rights, Pollution, and Waste management]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[When Rajpal Saini retired from the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, he didn’t really plan to spend his golden years battling his former employer. But a waste incineration plant commissioned near his village, by the corporation, has made his life arduous. “We have the entire waste processing mall of Delhi here — a khatta (dumping ground), [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[When Rajpal Saini retired from the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, he didn’t really plan to spend his golden years battling his former employer. But a waste incineration plant commissioned near his village, by the corporation, has made his life arduous. “We have the entire waste processing mall of Delhi here — a khatta (dumping ground), a hazardous waste disposal site, a composting plant, and a 28 megawatt (MW) waste-to-energy (WTE) plant. And as if all this were not enough, now they have imposed another one (WTE plant) on us,” said Saini, a resident of Sannoth, a village near Bawana at the northwestern edge of Delhi. “The world recognises the value of yoga and breathing in fresh air. But forget about the outdoors; we even have to seal the holes in our doors to avoid the stench. My uncle, who regularly did pranayam (breathing exercises), has been paralysed and bedridden for six years now,” Saini said, whose car is full of posters advocating for the &#8220;right to breathe&#8221;. The construction of the new 3,000 tonnes-per-day (TPD), 30-megawatt WTE plant began in May despite a case before the National Green Tribunal and residents’ protests since December 2024. Situated right next to Munak canal, a significant source of drinking water for Delhi, this new plant will be the capital’s fifth WTE, a city that produces close to 12,000 TPD of waste. The protest site against a new waste incineration plant commissioned in Sannoth, a village at the northwestern edge of Delhi. Construction began&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/burning-waste-is-a-waste-of-money/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Delhi witnesses a travesty of ecological restoration [Commentary]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/delhi-witnesses-a-travesty-of-ecological-restoration-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/delhi-witnesses-a-travesty-of-ecological-restoration-commentary/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>01 Jul 2026 16:10:38 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ankila HiremathVikram Iyer]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Arathimenon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[restoration]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/01141654/2_EarthMovers-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=38879</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Delhi and India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Ecology, Environment, Forestry, Forests, Plantations, Plants, and Reforestation]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Delhi’s Central Ridge, a mosaic of forest and open savannah with patches dominated by species such as dhok (Terminalia pendula), is a landscape that would be a rare gem anywhere. The location of this remnant of the ancient Aravallis — spanning a little over 850 hectares in the heart of a sprawling urban metropolis — [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Delhi’s Central Ridge, a mosaic of forest and open savannah with patches dominated by species such as dhok (Terminalia pendula), is a landscape that would be a rare gem anywhere. The location of this remnant of the ancient Aravallis — spanning a little over 850 hectares in the heart of a sprawling urban metropolis — makes it even more special. Yet, for over a century, it has remained misunderstood and misconstrued. In the early 20th century, the planners of New Delhi sought to create a forested backdrop for the Government House (now Rashtrapati Bhavan). Successive waves of tree planting were carried out, but very few of the introduced trees survived because they were poorly suited to local conditions. The exception was the South American tree Neltuma juliflora (formerly Prosopis juliflora). Better known as vilayati keekar, it is now a widespread invasive alien tree across arid and semi-arid regions of India. Since its introduction to the Central Ridge, it has come to dominate the landscape, along with other invasive species such as gaajar ghaas (Parthenium hysterophorus), lantana (Lantana camara), and subabool (Leucaena leucocephala), which arrived more recently. Delhi&#8217;s Central Ridge in the dry season. Invasive plant species dominate the 850 hectares in the heart of the capital city. Image by Pradip Krishen. What are invasive alien species? Invasive alien species must meet two criteria. First, they must be non-native to a region. Typically, these are species intentionally introduced by people, though some introductions occur inadvertently. In India, many non-native plants originated&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/delhi-witnesses-a-travesty-of-ecological-restoration-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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