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		<title>Mongabay India</title>
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		<link>https://india.mongabay.com/list/cities-and-towns/</link>
		<description>India&#039;s environmental science and conservation news</description>
		<lastBuildDate>Fri, 11 Sep 2026 09:34:00 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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				<item>
					<title>Bengaluru’s Hebbal tunnel raises concerns about groundwater and flooding</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/bengalurus-hebbal-tunnel-raises-concerns-about-groundwater-and-flooding/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/bengalurus-hebbal-tunnel-raises-concerns-about-groundwater-and-flooding/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Sep 2026 15:04:00 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sohel Sarkar]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Arathimenon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[bengaluru]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/11125937/Construction-underway-for-Hebbal-short-tunnel-Oppostite-Veterinary-College-Campus-1_Photo-hy-author-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40874</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Just Transitions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Karnataka]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Environment, Floods, Lakes, Roads, and Wetlands]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The proposed three-lane, bidirectional tunnel road in north Bengaluru, intended to ease congestion at Hebbal Junction — a major interchange connecting the airport with the rest of the city — has run into rough weather. At an estimated ₹1,385 crores (₹13.85 billion), the tunnel will cost about ₹622 crore (₹6.22 billion) per kilometre. The tunnel’s [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The proposed three-lane, bidirectional tunnel road in north Bengaluru, intended to ease congestion at Hebbal Junction — a major interchange connecting the airport with the rest of the city — has run into rough weather. At an estimated ₹1,385 crores (₹13.85 billion), the tunnel will cost about ₹622 crore (₹6.22 billion) per kilometre. The tunnel’s long-term benefits in terms of easing traffic congestion are, however, unclear. A recent analysis by the Sustainable Transportation Lab of the Indian Institute of Science (IISc ) points out that the tunnel is a “highly localised improvement” that “merely shifts the congestion point”, leaving bottlenecks at its entry and exit. The detailed project report or DPR shows that by 2047, the tunnel will operate at or beyond capacity in all scenarios modelled. According to urban mobility expert Satya Arikutharam, apart from creating more chaos at these bottlenecks, the tunnel “will also worsen the local traffic, the very problem it intends to solve. Faster arrival rate at these local road intersections due to the new short  tunnel capacity means quicker accumulation of traffic, queuing pile-ups and traffic jams,” he says. Groundwater and flooding concerns A bigger concern the citizens and environmental experts are raising is about the risks it could pose to groundwater and flooding. The little over two-kilometre tunnel will run from the Hebbal flyover junction in north Bengaluru — about 30 km by road from Kempegowda International Airport — through the Gandhi Krishi Vigyana Kendra (GKVK) campus of the University of Agricultural Sciences and&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/bengalurus-hebbal-tunnel-raises-concerns-about-groundwater-and-flooding/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/bengalurus-hebbal-tunnel-raises-concerns-about-groundwater-and-flooding/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Nepal’s flood disaster puts its hydropower-first strategy, exports to the test</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/nepals-flood-disaster-puts-its-hydropower-first-strategy-exports-to-the-test/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/nepals-flood-disaster-puts-its-hydropower-first-strategy-exports-to-the-test/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 Sep 2026 15:00:58 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rudra Pangeni]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Flash flood]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Nepal]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/10141820/nepal-flood-2026-3-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40837</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global, Himalayas, and India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Climate Change, Climate Change Adaptation, Dams, Environment, Extreme Weather Events, Floods, Glacial Lake Outburst Flood, Glaciers, Global Warming, Himalayas, Hydroelectric power, Impacts of Climate Change, Mountains, Natural Resources, Renewable Energy, and Sustainability]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Nepal’s long-held policy of harnessing hydroelectricity and using it for economic growth has met new challenges: potential catastrophic floods in the snow-fed rivers amid rising global temperatures. The August 26 floods that originated on the Nepal-China border, and that knocked out around 10% of installed power from the national grid, has prompted a debate on [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Nepal’s long-held policy of harnessing hydroelectricity and using it for economic growth has met new challenges: potential catastrophic floods in the snow-fed rivers amid rising global temperatures. The August 26 floods that originated on the Nepal-China border, and that knocked out around 10% of installed power from the national grid, has prompted a debate on whether Nepal should rethink its overall hydropower strategy or just adopt better-engineered plants. Amid this, the flood could jeopardise the country’s clean energy targets and push it to adopt more solar power. Immediate impacts The recent flash flood crippled a combined installed generation capacity of 281 megawatts, including a solar power plant, and damaged four other under-construction projects, totaling a capacity of 700 MW. One of the oldest hydroelectric plants, the 14.1-MW Devighat Hydroelectric Plant, commissioned 42 years ago, was wiped out. Further downstream, the flood badly damaged a 25-MW solar power plant, according to data compiled by Mongabay from official sources. Similarly, with a hub of a transmission line washed away on the Trishuli river’s banks, another 150 MW of power from different power plants is cut off from the national grid system. Transmission lines, including a substation on the Trishuli riverbank, were also destroyed. While officials are assessing the damage, estimates put losses at hundreds of billions of Nepali rupees, according to media reports. They say they can’t yet provide timelines for when the affected projects will resume generation. Around 983 engineers and workers are feared trapped inside the tunnels or power houses&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/nepals-flood-disaster-puts-its-hydropower-first-strategy-exports-to-the-test/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/nepals-flood-disaster-puts-its-hydropower-first-strategy-exports-to-the-test/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Red-naped ibises carry antibiotic-resistant bacteria, study finds</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/red-naped-ibises-carry-antibiotic-resistant-bacteria-study-finds/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/red-naped-ibises-carry-antibiotic-resistant-bacteria-study-finds/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>09 Sep 2026 15:47:16 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sneha Mahale]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Priyanka Shankar]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birding]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urban biodiversity]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urban birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urban lakes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[waterbirds]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/09132118/The-red-naped-ibis-Vijay-Kumar-Koli-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40801</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Almost Famous Species]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Rajasthan]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Birds, Cities and Towns, Conservation, Ecology, Environment, Marshlands, Research, Waste management, Water Pollution, Wetlands, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Antibiotic resistance is not confined to people alone. Wildlife can also encounter and carry resistant bacteria, with birds picking them up from contaminated water, food, waste and other human-associated environments. As they move between habitats, they may spread these bacteria through their faeces, making them useful candidates in tracking the movement of antibiotic resistance in [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Antibiotic resistance is not confined to people alone. Wildlife can also encounter and carry resistant bacteria, with birds picking them up from contaminated water, food, waste and other human-associated environments. As they move between habitats, they may spread these bacteria through their faeces, making them useful candidates in tracking the movement of antibiotic resistance in the environment. A new study of red-naped ibises in Udaipur, Rajasthan, has now found diverse bacteria in their faeces, including multidrug-resistant strains. The red-naped ibis is a common, resident, non-migratory wading bird that occurs across a range of habitats in and around Udaipur. It is also an opportunistic omnivore, consuming insects, amphibians, reptiles, small fish, livestock carcasses and occasionally plant material. The ibises have also been observed foraging at garbage disposal sites and on carrion. “It was not simply a matter of choosing a common and easily observable bird,” elaborates Vijay Kumar Koli, an assistant professor and in-charge head of the Wildlife Research Laboratory at Mohanlal Sukhadia University, Udaipur, and a co-author of the study. “Its year-round presence, broad habitat use, feeding behaviour and frequent contact with human-influenced environments make it a useful species for investigating how environmental bacteria and antibiotic resistance may circulate at the wildlife-human-environment interface.” Nesting trees of the red-naped ibis in Udaipur, Rajasthan. The bird is a common non-migratory wader that is found across the city. Image by Kanishka Mehta. Sampling the ibises The researchers collected 45 faecal samples between July 2022 and June 2023, with 15 samples collected during each&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/red-naped-ibises-carry-antibiotic-resistant-bacteria-study-finds/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/red-naped-ibises-carry-antibiotic-resistant-bacteria-study-finds/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Why is disaster risk increasing in the Himalayas? [Explainer]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/why-is-disaster-risk-increasing-in-the-himalayas-explainer/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/why-is-disaster-risk-increasing-in-the-himalayas-explainer/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>08 Sep 2026 13:49:41 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Max Martin]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Kundan Pandey]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Climate disaster]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[disaster]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Hindu Kush Himalaya]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural disaster]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/08111108/AP26250291785391-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40769</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Himalayas]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Climate Change, Climate Science, Environment, Extreme Weather Events, Floods, Glacial Lake Outburst Flood, Glaciers, Himalayas, Human Rights, Impacts of Climate Change, and Mountains]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In a warming world, rising temperatures in high mountain regions are driving glacier retreat and melting, contributing to an increase in the number and area of glacial lakes. As glaciers retreat, they can create new lakes or expand old ones, sometimes contained by natural dams made of ice or moraines — ridges of rock, sediment [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In a warming world, rising temperatures in high mountain regions are driving glacier retreat and melting, contributing to an increase in the number and area of glacial lakes. As glaciers retreat, they can create new lakes or expand old ones, sometimes contained by natural dams made of ice or moraines — ridges of rock, sediment and debris left behind by glaciers. If these dams fail, glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs) can release huge volumes of water and debris, severely flooding downstream communities and infrastructure. In some cases, GLOFs involve rockfalls or the collapse of entire mountain slopes with cascading impacts. Or there can be avalanches — massive, rapid downhill flows of rocks, ice and snow. Scientists have improved glacier and lake monitoring in the Himalayan region, but large gaps remain in data collection, sharing and processing. This affects real-time early warning for river systems that run across international borders. In the aftermath of the recent Nepal flood disaster, this explainer looks at the relevance of these issues. What caused the August 2026 disaster in Nepal? Initial reports suggested that a massive mountain slope failure involving glacier ice in Nepal’s Langtang National Park, close to the Chinese border. The mass of debris and flood waters travelled nearly 100 kilometres, gathering more water and rock as it gushed downhill, swelling and overflowing streams and rivers. In Nepal, scientists at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) and their partners investigated whether the event was a high-altitude ice-rock avalanche. Rock-snow-ice avalanches —&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/why-is-disaster-risk-increasing-in-the-himalayas-explainer/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/why-is-disaster-risk-increasing-in-the-himalayas-explainer/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Community-based warning saves lives during Nepal floods</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/community-based-warning-saves-lives-during-nepal-floods/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/community-based-warning-saves-lives-during-nepal-floods/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>07 Sep 2026 11:25:54 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Abhaya Raj Joshi]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Flash flood]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[flood]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[flooding]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[glacier]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Nepal]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[warning]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/06225929/AP26242077468157-4-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40708</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections and Flood and drought]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Climate Change, Environment, Extreme Weather Events, Floods, Glaciers, Global Warming, Himalayas, Impacts of Climate Change, and Mountains]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[At 9:10 a.m. on August 26, head teacher Rajendra Dawadi received frantic phone calls about a flood heading downstream toward Tribhuvan Trishuli Secondary School. He ordered his roughly 900 students to run for higher ground. Ten minutes later, the flood hit the evacuated school. When flood waters receded, the whole compound was buried under debris, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[At 9:10 a.m. on August 26, head teacher Rajendra Dawadi received frantic phone calls about a flood heading downstream toward Tribhuvan Trishuli Secondary School. He ordered his roughly 900 students to run for higher ground. Ten minutes later, the flood hit the evacuated school. When flood waters receded, the whole compound was buried under debris, with only a fragment of the school’s roofline left showing. There were two “systems” that warned people about the impending danger that day: one built by the state relying on sensors and SMS messages, the other relying on community-based ties. Only the second worked reliably, and in the case of Dawadi and many other survivors, it even arrived first. But not everyone was as lucky. According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA), as of September 3, a total of 1,252 people have died, with 4,216 more missing and roughly 1.6 million people affected across five districts in Nepal. Headteacher Rajendra Dawadi of Tribhuvan Trishuli Secondary School, talks to relatives on his mobile phone in Trishuli Valley in Nepal. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh) Communication researcher Bhuwan K.C. observed that while one-half of the corridor (upstream) had no information at all, the other had information, but that information couldn’t convey urgency and scale. In areas nearest to the border, on both the Nepal and China sides, everything happened in just seven minutes. The sensors were knocked out immediately. But farther down, in Trishuli Bazaar, Betrawati and toward Muglin and Devghat, people received an&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/community-based-warning-saves-lives-during-nepal-floods/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/community-based-warning-saves-lives-during-nepal-floods/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Crop-residue burning, a major contributor to black carbon pollution: Study</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/crop-residue-burning-a-major-contributor-to-black-carbon-pollution-study/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/crop-residue-burning-a-major-contributor-to-black-carbon-pollution-study/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>03 Sep 2026 17:11:55 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Nikhil Sreekandan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Arathimenon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[crop]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Crop residue]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[farm]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[farming]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Stubble burning]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Sustainable agriculture]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/03162644/AP21322310236130-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40673</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Just Transitions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Air Pollution, Carbon emissions, Cities and Towns, Clean Energy, Coal, Energy, Environment, Fossil Fuels, Green Energy, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Health impacts, Industry, and Pollution]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Stubble burning, or crop-residue burning, has been known to contribute to the seasonal smog across northern India, especially in the Indo-Gangetic Plain region. Despite directions issued by the National Green Tribunal in 2015 to prevent agricultural residue burning, biomass burning remains a seasonal activity in states such as Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, and Rajasthan, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Stubble burning, or crop-residue burning, has been known to contribute to the seasonal smog across northern India, especially in the Indo-Gangetic Plain region. Despite directions issued by the National Green Tribunal in 2015 to prevent agricultural residue burning, biomass burning remains a seasonal activity in states such as Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, and Rajasthan, contributing to the region’s air pollution. A new study by researchers from IIT, New Delhi, has quantified the impact of crop-residue burning on particulate air pollution, particularly black carbon, commonly known as soot, that is produced when carbon-containing fuels are not burned completely. The study found that emissions from crop-residue burning in rural Punjab deteriorate air quality across the Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP) and in downwind metropolitan cities such as Delhi, due to the transport of pollutants by prevailing winds. Results from real-time measurements at an agricultural-field site in Kheral village in rural Punjab showed that crop-residue burning contributed, on average, 48% to the total black carbon during the post-monsoon period, and periodically exceeded 90% during active burning hours. The study was conducted during October and November, the peak season for crop-residue burning in North India after rice harvest. A dominant source of black carbon “For the study, we mainly focused on black carbon levels and their dependence on stubble burning,” said Ajit Kumar, a Ph.D. researcher at IIT Delhi and one of the paper’s authors. Black carbon is a short-lived, carbon-rich component of PM2.5 (particulate matter smaller than 2.5 micrometres), Kumar said. A mobile monitoring&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/crop-residue-burning-a-major-contributor-to-black-carbon-pollution-study/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Reduced exposure to nature is linked to immune system diseases [Commentary]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/reduced-exposure-to-nature-is-linked-to-immune-system-diseases-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/reduced-exposure-to-nature-is-linked-to-immune-system-diseases-commentary/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>03 Sep 2026 15:13:59 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ayisha FarseenaIrfan Shakeer]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Priyanka Shankar]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[disease]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[human health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[public health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urban areas]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urbanisation]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/03143959/Golpata_Forest_Taki_3-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40655</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Cities and Towns, Ecosystem services, Environment, Forests, Health impacts, Human Rights, and People]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Homo sapiens appeared roughly 300,000 years ago. As outlined in naturalist Charles Darwin’s book On the Origin of Species, this long transition occurred through continuous evolutionary pressures, shaped by interactions with surrounding microbial communities and natural environments. As species struggled and evolved within their ecosystems over time, natural selection shaped not only their physical traits [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Homo sapiens appeared roughly 300,000 years ago. As outlined in naturalist Charles Darwin’s book On the Origin of Species, this long transition occurred through continuous evolutionary pressures, shaped by interactions with surrounding microbial communities and natural environments. As species struggled and evolved within their ecosystems over time, natural selection shaped not only their physical traits but also their internal immune system. This evolutionary process equipped organisms with a sensitive and a complex system to combat pathogens and foreign agents encountered in their natural environments. Ultimately, it is fair to say that human existence is the direct product of nature shaping our biology. The long-standing relationship among humans, microbes, and their shared environment was double-edged, yet they complemented each other. However, driven by rapid urbanisation and shifting lifestyles, human populations are slowly becoming disconnected with nature. Extensive scientific research and data collection have demonstrated the adverse effects of this ecological disconnect on the human immune system, particularly among recent generations of children, in the form of immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs). Multiple factors impact inflammatory diseases Over the past two decades, the rising incidence (new patients) of immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs) has drawn increasing attention from global researchers and policymakers. These are heterogeneous groups of inflammatory pathologies of multifactorial etiology (conditions caused by multiple factors) and involve either simultaneously or sequentially more organs. Some of the common examples are Crohn&#8217;s disease, ulcerative colitis, psoriatic arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, axial spondyloarthritis, psoriasis, multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes, and asthma. Unlike diseases caused by infectious&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/reduced-exposure-to-nature-is-linked-to-immune-system-diseases-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/reduced-exposure-to-nature-is-linked-to-immune-system-diseases-commentary/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Groundwater study flags localised heavy metal concerns in a coastal district</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/groundwater-study-flags-localised-heavy-metal-concerns-in-a-coastal-district/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/groundwater-study-flags-localised-heavy-metal-concerns-in-a-coastal-district/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>31 Aug 2026 16:37:12 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Anjana V.]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Priyanka Shankar]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heavy metals]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[saline water]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[water]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[water consumption]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[water crisis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[water scarcity]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/08/31142205/bad-water-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40567</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Just Transitions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Coast, Groundwater, Health impacts, Human Rights, Pollution, Water, and Water Pollution]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[On the seafront, roughly 50 metres from Thottappally Harbour at Purakkad in Kerala’s Alappuzha district, 58-year-old Sainabha Zakkir relies on the shallow well beside her kitchen for her water needs. A recurring plumbing issue has recently cut the piped water supply to six panchayats including her household, forcing her family back to the 32-year-old household [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[On the seafront, roughly 50 metres from Thottappally Harbour at Purakkad in Kerala’s Alappuzha district, 58-year-old Sainabha Zakkir relies on the shallow well beside her kitchen for her water needs. A recurring plumbing issue has recently cut the piped water supply to six panchayats including her household, forcing her family back to the 32-year-old household well. While there is substantial tap-water coverage in her village, many households remain outside the network and still rely on groundwater sources like wells. Although Zakkir’s well is close to the Arabian Sea, its water has fortunately not become saline like many others in the neighbourhood, making it a community lifeline. &#8220;This well supports all my neighbours too,&#8221; Zakkir explains as she fills vessels. &#8220;Many old wells in this area have become unusable. During water shortages, people come here.&#8221; But salinity is not the only issue with the groundwater in the area. A new study published in Scientific Reports examined groundwater quality in Alappuzha&#8217;s coastal aquifers, focusing on heavy metal concentrations before and after the monsoon. It found that 32% of pre-monsoon and 34% of post-monsoon samples exhibited medium to high pollution levels with the critical hotspots at Ambalapuzha, Anandheswaram, and Thottapally for arsenic; Alappuzha, Kanjikuzhi and Paravoor for aluminium; and Paravoor, Alappuzha, Chennakari, and Ambalapuzha for iron. Sainabha Zakkir, a resident near Thottapally Harbour, Alappuzha, operates a 35-year-old well that provides salinity-free water despite the proximity to the sea. However, groundwater samples in the region may be containing heavy metal pollutants, finds a new&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/groundwater-study-flags-localised-heavy-metal-concerns-in-a-coastal-district/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/groundwater-study-flags-localised-heavy-metal-concerns-in-a-coastal-district/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Nepal disaster reinforces the need for regional preparedness</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/nepal-disaster-reinforces-the-need-for-regional-preparedness/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/nepal-disaster-reinforces-the-need-for-regional-preparedness/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>28 Aug 2026 12:49:23 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Joydeep Gupta]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[S. Gopikrishna Warrier]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Climate disaster]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[disaster]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Disaster management]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural disaster]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/08/28115415/AP26239217635788-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40534</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Climate Change, Environment, Extreme Weather Events, Floods, Glaciers, and Impacts of Climate Change]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[An entire mountainside of ice and rock fell into the Lhende Khola river on the Tibet-Nepal border, on the morning of August 26, triggering an earthquake and a flood that rose nine metres, killing hundreds, sweeping away at least six dams and hydropower stations, over a dozen crucial bridges, homes, roads and even a herd [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[An entire mountainside of ice and rock fell into the Lhende Khola river on the Tibet-Nepal border, on the morning of August 26, triggering an earthquake and a flood that rose nine metres, killing hundreds, sweeping away at least six dams and hydropower stations, over a dozen crucial bridges, homes, roads and even a herd of elephants all the way downriver to India. There was no rain, just the excessive heat caused by climate change that loosened the ice from the side of the 7,245-metre-high Langtang Lirung peak, till the entire mountainside, including a glacier clinging to it, collapsed into the river flowing below. There was no time for any “early” warning as the resultant wall of water, boulders and mud swept away within a minute the large three-storeyed Chinese government building that used to house the border land port at Jilong, facing Rasuwagadhi on the Nepal side. A similar hillside collapse had triggered a devastating flood in the Chamoli region of Uttarakhand in February 2021. And the danger is not over. A day later, debris was still blocking a part of the Lhende Khola, and water was accumulating behind the impromptu dam. More water, and that blockage is likely to give way, leading to a second flood. Authorities have already warned of fresh risk of flooding. Regional strategy Glaciologists have known for decades that a warming world is leading to faster glacier melting, formation of ever-larger lakes at their snouts, then the lakes bursting out of their unstable moraine&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/nepal-disaster-reinforces-the-need-for-regional-preparedness/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/nepal-disaster-reinforces-the-need-for-regional-preparedness/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Going beyond the annual flood response with district level plans [Commentary]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/district-level-planning-for-assams-flood-crisis-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/district-level-planning-for-assams-flood-crisis-commentary/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>27 Aug 2026 14:37:15 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Promit Mookherjee]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Climate disaster]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[disaster]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Disaster management]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[disaster risk]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural disaster]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/08/27130726/AP25153469734760-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40491</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Assam]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Climate Change, Climate Change Adaptation, Environment, Extreme Weather Events, Floods, Governance, and Human Rights]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[More than 2.5 million hectares of cropland affected, over ₹400 billion in damages, and 1,215 lives lost. This is the cost of floods in Assam over a decade, between 2012-2022, and these are simply the quantifiable impacts from available official data. These numbers indicate a crisis that should be a national priority. Yet, every year, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[More than 2.5 million hectares of cropland affected, over ₹400 billion in damages, and 1,215 lives lost. This is the cost of floods in Assam over a decade, between 2012-2022, and these are simply the quantifiable impacts from available official data. These numbers indicate a crisis that should be a national priority. Yet, every year, the response to the Assam floods follows a predictable pattern — brief outcry on social media, civil society-led relief efforts, hasty explanations on the causes of the flood, and promises of improved embankment repairs. There is little discussion about the systemic governance gaps that perpetuates this cycle of devastation. As per the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the risk of damage from floods for a particular region can be seen as a function of three factors. First is the hazard or the potential for occurrence of a flood determined by climatic factors like rainfall intensity and physical factors such as drainage density. Second is exposure or the number of people and assets that lie directly in the path of the flood. Finally, there is vulnerability which represents how badly a region’s population is likely to be impacted when a flood does occur. This depends on socio-economic conditions that determine how easily people are harmed (sensitivity) and how well they can recover (adaptive capacity). In Assam, the primary flood management strategy has been to build embankments and other river control structures. The state has built around 423 embankments covering more than 4,800 kilometres. The focus, therefore,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/district-level-planning-for-assams-flood-crisis-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/district-level-planning-for-assams-flood-crisis-commentary/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Free-ranging dogs, changing livelihoods reshape an agro-pastoral landscape</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/free-ranging-dogs-changing-livelihoods-reshape-an-agro-pastoral-landscape/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/free-ranging-dogs-changing-livelihoods-reshape-an-agro-pastoral-landscape/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Aug 2026 12:17:09 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Phalguni Ranjan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[development]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[feral dogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Free ranging dogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[livelihoods]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[stray dogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urbanisation]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/08/13102613/Image-3-garbage-dump-in-Kaza-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40090</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Himachal Pradesh]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Biodiversity, Cities and Towns, Conservation, Ecology, Encroachment, Environment, Grazing, Human Wildlife Conflict, Villages, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Free-ranging dogs are a growing threat to livestock in Himachal Pradesh’s Upper Spiti, with many herders now considering them a greater risk than traditional predators such as snow leopards and wolves, a new study finds. Communities in this region have long depended on a closely linked agro-pastoral system, where sheep, goats, cattle, yaks, and horses [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Free-ranging dogs are a growing threat to livestock in Himachal Pradesh’s Upper Spiti, with many herders now considering them a greater risk than traditional predators such as snow leopards and wolves, a new study finds. Communities in this region have long depended on a closely linked agro-pastoral system, where sheep, goats, cattle, yaks, and horses support livelihoods, while their manure nourishes farming in the cold desert landscape. However, over the past few decades, rapid socio-economic changes including tourism, market integration, government development schemes, and changing agricultural practices have transformed this traditional system, and subsequently, the landscape itself. More recently, the unexpected and growing rise of free-ranging domestic dogs is increasingly disrupting this delicate balance. The study examines how these interconnected changes have altered livestock populations, exploring what these shifts mean for agriculture, livelihoods, and the future of Spiti. It builds on an existing body of work that has documented socio-economic transitions in the region, notably, the role of changing human activities and the emerging influence exerted by dogs. Declining livestock numbers As part of the study, researchers conducted semi-structured interviews across 27 villages in eight panchayats in Upper Spiti in 2014-15, examining changes in livestock ownership, manure use, herding challenges, livestock losses, and future preferences. Around 72% of respondents reported a decline in livestock between 2003 and 2013, while only 10% reported an increase. Several villages had stopped rearing sheep and goats altogether, and in others, the number of households keeping them had fallen by 50-75%. Spiti’s traditional agro-pastoral system&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/free-ranging-dogs-changing-livelihoods-reshape-an-agro-pastoral-landscape/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/free-ranging-dogs-changing-livelihoods-reshape-an-agro-pastoral-landscape/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Why Western Ghats states can’t agree on Eco-Sensitive Areas</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/why-western-ghats-states-cant-agree-on-eco-sensitive-areas/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/why-western-ghats-states-cant-agree-on-eco-sensitive-areas/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 Aug 2026 19:06:47 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Simrin Sirur]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Simrinsirur]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Karnataka]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Tamil Nadu]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Western Ghats]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/08/10180504/View_of_Western_ghats_from_Rajmachi_point_Khandala_on_the_Mumbai-Pune_expressway-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40014</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas and Hewing The Regulatory Tree]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Western Ghats]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Cities and Towns, Conservation, Deforestation, Endemic species, Environment, Forests, Habitat Fragmentation, Shola-grasslands, and Western Ghats]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[On July 27, the Union Environment Ministry issued the seventh draft notification delineating the Ecologically Sensitive Areas (ESA) falling within the Western Ghats. The ESA restricts activity within the Western Ghats to preserve its biodiversity and geological integrity in the face of rising human activity. But even as experts argue the urgent need to finally [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[On July 27, the Union Environment Ministry issued the seventh draft notification delineating the Ecologically Sensitive Areas (ESA) falling within the Western Ghats. The ESA restricts activity within the Western Ghats to preserve its biodiversity and geological integrity in the face of rising human activity. But even as experts argue the urgent need to finally notify the ESA, states have been unable to reach a consensus about which areas the notification should cover. The Western Ghats stretch from the Tapti river valley in the Gujarat-Maharashtra border down across 1,500 kilometres south to Kanyakumari, crossing Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu along the way. This region is considered one of the world&#8217;s eight &#8220;hottest&#8221; biodiversity hotspots, hosting more than 7,000 species of flora and fauna. It is also extremely landslide prone, necessitating “special measures of protection and mitigation,” the draft notification says. But since it was released, representatives from Kerala, Karnataka, and Goa have reportedly expressed apprehensions over the economic consequences of restricting economic activity within the ESA zones. The tenure of the expert committee formed to guide the ESA notification process has been extended to 2027, to help settle these issues and finalise the area. Why some states are unhappy The latest ESA draft notification covers 56,825 square kilometres, largely retaining the area of its predecessor. Apart from banning mining, sand mining, quarrying, thermal power plants, and red category industries, the notification restricts the construction of built up areas to 20,000 square metres, and townships to an area of 50&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/why-western-ghats-states-cant-agree-on-eco-sensitive-areas/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Supreme court upholds centre&#8217;s power to notify post-facto clearance</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/supreme-court-upholds-centres-power-to-notify-post-facto-clearance/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/supreme-court-upholds-centres-power-to-notify-post-facto-clearance/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>07 Aug 2026 16:28:40 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Kundan Pandey]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[construction]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[development]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[environment clearance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Environmental Clearance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[forest clearance]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/08/07135307/AP22207426732440-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39949</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Environomy]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Conservation, Deforestation, Environment, Environmental Crime, Environmental Law, Environmental Politics, Forests, Industry, Land Rights, Law Enforcement, National Parks, Natural Resources, Protected Areas, Sustainability, and Wildlife Protection Act]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The Supreme Court has struck down the centre&#8217;s 2021 Office Memorandum (OM) that created a mechanism for granting post facto environmental clearances to projects that violated prior environmental clearance norms. At the same time, it stated that the central government has the power to frame statutory amnesty schemes for specified categories of such violations under [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The Supreme Court has struck down the centre&#8217;s 2021 Office Memorandum (OM) that created a mechanism for granting post facto environmental clearances to projects that violated prior environmental clearance norms. At the same time, it stated that the central government has the power to frame statutory amnesty schemes for specified categories of such violations under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. On July 29, the Supreme Court decided three connected writ petitions questioning the centre&#8217;s two amnesty schemes introduced in 2017 and 2021 to regularise projects that had started construction or operations without obtaining prior environmental clearance. The first scheme came through a notification issued in 2017, which gave projects that had violated prior environmental clearance requirements a one-time six-month window to seek clearance. In 2021, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change issued an OM prescribing a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for granting post facto environmental clearances to such projects. Delivering the judgment, the three-judge Bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M. Pancholi said, “…the OM does not satisfy the test of proportionality and reasonableness and is violative of Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution”. The Court quashed the OM, although the ruling will operate only prospectively, the judgement said. However, the bench also stated that the central government could exercise its powers under Section 3 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, to issue statutory notifications framing amnesty schemes for specified categories of non-compliant projects. Environmental experts said this leaves open&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/supreme-court-upholds-centres-power-to-notify-post-facto-clearance/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Mumbai&#8217;s informal settlements struggle to power their homes</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/mumbais-informal-settlements-struggle-to-power-their-homes/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/mumbais-informal-settlements-struggle-to-power-their-homes/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>05 Aug 2026 15:52:50 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rhea Arora]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Divya Kilikar]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[extreme heat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heat stroke]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Heat wave]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heatwave]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Urban Heat Island]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/08/05001731/AP24180699138683-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39871</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Maharashtra]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Climate Change, Climate Change Adaptation, Energy, Environment, Global Warming, Governance, Health impacts, and Human Rights]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[“We pay ₹600 every month whether we get electricity or not. We used to pay more but there are now two electricity mafias competing in this area,” says Ajuma Sheikh, a 63-year-old social worker who stays in Patra chawl in Mumbai’s Mankhurd suburb. For the past 25 years, she has been caught between the powerful [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[“We pay ₹600 every month whether we get electricity or not. We used to pay more but there are now two electricity mafias competing in this area,” says Ajuma Sheikh, a 63-year-old social worker who stays in Patra chawl in Mumbai’s Mankhurd suburb. For the past 25 years, she has been caught between the powerful stakeholders of Mumbai’s electricity sector: the government, Adani Electricity and local unauthorised operators. In and around the Mumbai Port Trust, reserve forest areas and on land owned by the Railways and Defence departments, thousands of people live like the residents of Patra chawl — in densely-packed, make-shift homes made of tin sheets and plastic tarp with poor ventilation and no reliable electricity. “We sit outside all day because it’s too hot to go in,” Sheikh says, pointing to clusters of plastic chairs, cardboard sheets, cement bags, wooden planks, and ripped mattresses arranged haphazardly along the Mankhurd railway track. “We go indoors at 2 a.m. but get bit by mosquitoes all night. We can’t put up a net or light a coil because there’s no ventilation. We’ll suffocate.” Homes in Patra chawl, built with tin sheets that trap heat, can reach indoor temperatures of around 40°C, posing serious health risks. Image by Prachi Adesara/Mongabay. A survey from several South Asian cities including Yavatmal and Jalna in Maharashtra found that temperatures inside tin-roofed homes often exceeded those inside concrete-roofed homes and even outdoor temperatures. Sheikh lists the myriad heat-related conditions her community faces daily: suffocation, dehydration, fainting&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/mumbais-informal-settlements-struggle-to-power-their-homes/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Bihar&#8217;s green budget expands, but environmental indicators show little progress</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/bihars-green-budget-expands-but-environmental-indicators-show-little-progress/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/bihars-green-budget-expands-but-environmental-indicators-show-little-progress/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>31 Jul 2026 14:22:25 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Umesh Kumar Ray]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Kundan Pandey]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Climate Finance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[finance]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/31125413/NTPC_Kantin_Muzaffarpur-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39756</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Finance]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Bihar]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Cities and Towns, Climate Change Adaptation, Climate Change Mitigation, Environmental Politics, Green Business, Green Energy, and Greenhouse Gas Emissions]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[It has been seven years since Bihar introduced a green budget. However, even now, data from various sources suggests little to no improvement in key environmental indicators such as renewable energy, air pollution, biodiversity and waste management, among others. The Bihar government presented its first green budget in 2020-21; this year, 2026, it presented its [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[It has been seven years since Bihar introduced a green budget. However, even now, data from various sources suggests little to no improvement in key environmental indicators such as renewable energy, air pollution, biodiversity and waste management, among others. The Bihar government presented its first green budget in 2020-21; this year, 2026, it presented its seventh, amounting to approximately ₹158 billion which is roughly three times the amount of the initial ₹56 billion budget. However, on key environmental indicators, the state&#8217;s performance remains poor. For example, the energy sector accounts for roughly 65% of Bihar&#8217;s total greenhouse gas emissions, driven by coal-based power plants. The shift to renewable energy has been low, with renewable energy capacity for 2025-26 standing at 651 MW, up from 376 MW in 2020. The amount is significantly behind the Bihar State Pollution Control Board (BSPCB) call for increasing renewable capacity to 10,000 MW (10 GW) by 2030 and 28,000 MW (28 GW) by 2050 to achieve a &#8216;net zero&#8217; pathway, as stated in its 2024 report. At the current pace, Bihar will reach around 900 MW, just about a tenth of that 2030 target. Biodiversity data shows a similar trend. In 2019, Bihar had 4,550 wetlands spread across 389,713 hectares. By 2025, the number of wetlands reduced by 24 to 4,526 wetlands. As per the latest green budget data, in this period, the total area of natural water bodies has shrunk by 16,843 hectares, that&#8217;s about 70% the size of Patna, Bihar&#8217;s capital. In waste&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/bihars-green-budget-expands-but-environmental-indicators-show-little-progress/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>India has a railway noise problem but its health impacts are poorly understood</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/india-has-a-railway-noise-problem-but-its-health-impacts-are-poorly-understood/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/india-has-a-railway-noise-problem-but-its-health-impacts-are-poorly-understood/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>29 Jul 2026 14:45:20 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rohan Singh]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Indian Railway]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[railways]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/29114606/Outer_area_of_Howrah_Junction_railway_station_India-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39704</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Just Transitions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Environment, Health impacts, Human Rights, Pollution, and Villages]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Every day, thousands of trains pass through India&#8217;s cities, towns, and densely populated settlements. For millions of Indians living alongside railway corridors, the sound of passing trains — often accompanied by ground vibrations — is part of daily life. Most days, it continues late into the night. Yet, railway noise remains a poorly understood environmental [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Every day, thousands of trains pass through India&#8217;s cities, towns, and densely populated settlements. For millions of Indians living alongside railway corridors, the sound of passing trains — often accompanied by ground vibrations — is part of daily life. Most days, it continues late into the night. Yet, railway noise remains a poorly understood environmental health risk. Recent studies have begun documenting elevated noise levels around railway tracks, with some communities experiencing exposures that exceed recommended residential limits. Yet, while researchers can increasingly measure railway noise, far less is known about what years of repeated exposure may mean for sleep, cardiovascular health, stress physiology, or quality of life. As evidence slowly emerges, researchers say India lacks a clear understanding of the cumulative human burden of railway-noise exposure, leaving important questions about health impacts unanswered. Measuring decibels, missing health evidence Studies in recent years are beginning to reveal what life near railway corridors may mean for communities around. A 2024 study led by Rajeev Kumar Mishra, an associate professor at the Department of Environmental Science and Engineering at Delhi Technological University (DTU), found that residents living near railway corridors reported physiological and psychological effects associated with repeated exposure to railway noise and vibration. The research team measured noise at 10 sites near railway stations in Delhi and found that the noise exceeded Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) limits. Sleep disturbance was one of the most frequently reported concerns among surveyed residents. However, Mishra emphasises that these findings primarily document exposure to&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/india-has-a-railway-noise-problem-but-its-health-impacts-are-poorly-understood/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<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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						<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 and Environment Explained]]>
						</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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						<item>
					<title>Cities need tailored restoration, not mass tree planting</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/cities-need-tailored-restoration-not-mass-tree-planting/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/cities-need-tailored-restoration-not-mass-tree-planting/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>17 Jul 2026 15:07:46 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Arathi Menon]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/17093622/DJI_0476-Restored-grazing-commons-of-Bagepalli-scaled-e1784263951510-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39376</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond the Hype and Nature-based Solutions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Karnataka]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Cities and Towns, Ecology, Forests, Plantations, Plants, Reforestation, and Trees]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Thousands of Bengaluru residents came together late last month in an attempt to set a Guinness World Record for planting the largest number of tree saplings in a single day. Nearly 1.5 million saplings were planted across 240 acres in the drive organised by the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA), with funding from multiple corporate social [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Thousands of Bengaluru residents came together late last month in an attempt to set a Guinness World Record for planting the largest number of tree saplings in a single day. Nearly 1.5 million saplings were planted across 240 acres in the drive organised by the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA), with funding from multiple corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives and support from environmental organisations. A growing number of ecologists, however, say the enthusiasm for mass tree planting in cities has outpaced the science behind it. This tree plantation drive, billed as one of the country&#8217;s largest urban greening exercises, was designed using the Japanese Miyawaki method of dense native tree planting, a method that is popular but also has been criticised for overstating its effectiveness. “The idea is to make Bengaluru greener. There is global warming, so we want to start this movement with the city,” BDA chairman N.A. Haris told Mongabay-India before the event. He said the plantations, spread across lakes, nala buffer zones and public spaces, are intended to reduce the urban heat island effect and build the city&#8217;s climate resilience. Authorities say every sapling will be geo-tagged and monitored for survival. But mass tree plantation is hardly a quick fix to urban green loss. “What exactly are we trying to achieve? Is it setting a record or greening the city? If it&#8217;s ecology, then what environmental problem are we trying to solve?” asks Rajkamal Goswami, a scientist at ATREE who studies forests and biodiversity dynamics. For Goswami, the&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/cities-need-tailored-restoration-not-mass-tree-planting/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Tunnel landslide raises fresh questions over mountain development</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/tunnel-landslide-raises-fresh-questions-over-mountain-development/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/tunnel-landslide-raises-fresh-questions-over-mountain-development/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>14 Jul 2026 16:09:56 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[K.A. Shaji]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Arathimenon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/14124059/the-incidentsite-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39279</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Climate Change, Environment, Extreme Weather Events, and Western Ghats]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Less than a month before the second anniversary of the 2024 Wayanad landslides which fundamentally altered public understanding of landslide risks in the country and killed 298 people while leaving many more injured and homeless, another mountain slope collapsed in Wayanad district of Kerala. This time, the slip occurred at the exit section of the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Less than a month before the second anniversary of the 2024 Wayanad landslides which fundamentally altered public understanding of landslide risks in the country and killed 298 people while leaving many more injured and homeless, another mountain slope collapsed in Wayanad district of Kerala. This time, the slip occurred at the exit section of the under-construction Anakkampoyil-Kalladi-Meppadi twin tunnel project. On July 7, 2026, following intense monsoon rain, a massive slope failure hit the tunnel project near Meenakshi Bridge at Kalladi, near Meppadi. The incident was initially described as a mudslide because a large mass of waterlogged excavated earth swept through the construction site. It was later identified by experts and officials as a landslide that originated higher up the slope, with the accumulated tunnel spoil adding to its destructive force. The collapse buried workers, vehicles and equipment, killing seven people. Two others remained missing after days of search operations. Investigations in progress Investigators are also examining whether the failure was aggravated by the contractor&#8217;s alleged non-compliance with directions to remove the excavated soil accumulated near the site before the monsoon. As per the reading on the hyper-local rain gauge at the research institute, Hume Centre for Ecology and Wildlife Biology near the Kalladi-Meppadi tunnel corridor, the area received about 260 mm of rainfall over the preceding three days, saturating the already unstable hillside before the collapse. According to the district administration, the tragedy unfolded when earth, boulders and debris crashed onto the construction site, trapping workers engaged in the&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/tunnel-landslide-raises-fresh-questions-over-mountain-development/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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