[Commentary] What students and citizens can do about forest fires in Kodaikanal
The Palani Hills, located in the east of the Western Ghats, is about 80 km wide and 25 km long. Approximately 71 percent of the Palani Hills is covered by…
Landfill fire foregrounds improper waste management in Chandigarh
The capital city Delhi’s giant garbage mountains often come into the limelight, reflecting India’s poor waste management situation. But a similar scene, not too far away from the capital, in Chandigarh,…
Chhattisgarh forest fires continue while forest staff remain on strike
On March 27, the news of a forest fire at Sariska Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan in north-west came to light. By the time the news reached the concerned officials at…
With more forest fires and an ongoing pandemic, forest dwellers feel the heat this year
“I have never seen this kind of a forest fire before. This year, the fire entered our village, and I could see that it was just 100 meters away from…
Communities or forest department? Similipal fires rake up debate on ownership of National Park
As Similipal National Park and Tiger Reserve in Odisha burned over the past month, the debate over whether ownership of the park should be in the hands of the forest…
The rolling ashes from Dzukou hills write back
The recent Dzukou valley fire, which was doused after two weeks, has raised an alert for several groups of people – local inhabitants, tourists, stakeholders, environmentalists and more. The 80-90…
[Commentary] Alternate perspectives on forest fires in India
A recent article in Mongabay-India about how to deal with forest fires in India argues that fire suppression should be replaced by fire prevention with the help of local communities.…
Most forest fires in India on account of human activity
The fires raging across Australia from September 2019 and the ones in California in 2018 have brought global attention to wildfires in the recent years. Around 6.3 million hectares of…
Why Punjab failed to douse farm fires
Last month, on December 11, farmers in Punjab held three officials of the state agriculture department hostage at Kabar Bachha village in Ferozepur district. They alleged that an insect, the…
When forests are not forests at all, can fire be used to better manage them?
In the last week of February, Bandipur Tiger Reserve lost over 60 square kilometres of forest to a massive fire, despite the best efforts of hundreds of people who tried…
[Commentary] Fires, leopards, boars and migration: the complex story of a simple people
It was when I first read an article in Down To Earth some years ago that I got interested in the people who lived in the hills of the Western…
[Commentary] Hot and dry: What plants do when pushed to their very limits
About 10 percent of the world’s land surface experienced drought in 2005. The number is set to skyrocket over the twenty-first century to about 40 percent, as the globe warms…
When drought and extreme heat strike forests at the same time
The frequency of extreme weather events is going up around the world, and droughts and heatwaves are no exception. When the globe warms by 3-4 degrees - a possibility during…
Special series
Wetland Champions
- [Commentary] India establishes the largest network of Ramsar Sites in South Asia
- [Commentary] Wetland champions: Promise from the grassroots
- The story of Jakkur lake sets an example for inclusive rejuvenation projects
- Welcome to Tsomgo lake: Please don’t litter
Environment And Health
- Stubble burning is back, smothering north India with concerns for the upcoming winter
- Humans are contaminating Earth’s waterways with medicines, pharmaceutical ingredients
- Inhaling particulate matter is increasing the prevalence of anaemia among women of reproductive age
- Health effects of heat stress will intensify disproportionately without ambitious efforts
Almost Famous Species
- [Video] Hangul, the shy Kashmiri deer, is facing the threat of extinction as its habitat shrinks
- Identifying individual mugger crocodiles using drone technology to minimise conflicts
- How preserving forests could save the Indian giant squirrel
- Climate change threatens the habitat of the endangered white-winged wood duck, finds study
Eco Hope
- Urban farms offer a fresh perspective on managing kitchen waste and nurturing a community
- [Book Review] ‘First Steps’ tracks the beginnings of citizen science in India
- Clouds, droughts and other elements of nature recur in Rajasthan’s folk songs
- Longwood Shola forest is a water source for villages in the Nilgiris, maintains biodiversity
India's Iconic Landscapes
- [Video] Hangul, the shy Kashmiri deer, is facing the threat of extinction as its habitat shrinks
- Rajasthan is getting wetter and it’s not good news for the desert ecology
- [Commentary] Traditional water harvesting structures in the Thar desert are vanishing
- [Maps] Environmental path cleared for Great Nicobar mega project
Beyond Protected Areas
- Adivasi honey harvesters demand forest control and criticise ‘unfriendly’ conservation measures
- A newly described cave bat in Sri Lanka indicates presence of more species
- Concern over translocation of tigers in Maharashtra, as conditions in new areas ‘unfavourable’
- Top invasive species are blooming in India despite climate change
Conserving Agro-biodiversity
- Making sense of rainfall changes in Karnataka’s coffee estates through old records
- Adivasi honey harvesters demand forest control and criticise ‘unfriendly’ conservation measures
- [Commentary] Is agroecological farming a solution for rainfed degraded land?
- Farmers fear low fruit production as Kashmir records decline in precipitation
Just Transitions
- India needs to weigh options before partnership with G7 countries to accelerate a just energy transition
- Oil refinery sparks protests over livelihood concerns in Ratnagiri
- After little success in past, India revisits plan to repower its ageing wind turbines
- Land banks in Jharkhand may become a recipe for conflicts
