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☆ Opinion: India is on the climate crisis frontline. So why isn’t that an election issue?
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-19 | by ( Opinion Aditya Valiathan Pillai | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

This is because climate politics looks different in the developing world; it will shape Indian elections in definitive but under-the-radar ways. Similarly, stump speeches throughout this campaign season have not featured climate change as a central issue. The headwinds of climate change are absorbed by the electoral machine and emerge as end-of-tailpipe policies rather than grand climate strategy. This pattern of climate politics is reinforced by seemingly low recognition in India of climate change as a problem. The climate impacts buffeting the most populous nation on earth aren’t just a domestic issue — they’re an international one.

Persons: Aditya Valiathan Pillai Nadeem Z, Aditya Valiathan Pillai, Read, New Delhi CNN —, Amarjeet Kumar Singh, Kabir Jhangiani, Narendra Modi, Stump, Pawan Sharma, Tamanna Dalal Organizations: New, New Delhi CNN, Anadolu Agency, Getty, Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP Locations: New Delhi, India, Bangalore, Silicon, Karnataka, Mumbai, Delhi, sunburnt, Uttar Pradesh, China, Australia, Agra, Maharashtra, North Bengal, Bengal

☆ While many flock to see the eclipse, these cultures are doing something different
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-05 | by ( Harmeet Kaur | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —For many people, the upcoming total solar eclipse is a joyous and celebratory occasion. But in other cultures and faith traditions, an eclipse is less spectacle and more spiritual. Having drunk the nectar, Rahu becomes immortal while Ketu dies. Some Christians believe it signals the second coming of ChristPeople visit the Bald Knob Cross near Alto Pass, Illinois, on August 19, 2017 ahead of a total solar eclipse. The New Testament of the Bible contains several mentions of the sky darkening while Jesus was hung on the cross, which some believers associate with a solar eclipse.

Persons: Sanjay Kanojia, Sangeetha Kowsik, Kowsik, Vishnu, Mohini, Ketu, Rahu, Hanuman, ” Kowsik, Ganesha, Lord Hanuman, Fachrul Reza, NurPhoto, Akif Aydin, Muhammad’s, Ibrahim, Aydin, —, Prophet Muhammad, ”, Scott Olson, Jesus Christ, Jesus, Matthew, “, “ Eli, Eli, lema, Joel, Andrea L, Robinson, Brian van der, Evelyn Bahe, ” Bahe, Bahe, Institute’s Nancy C, Maryboy, David Begay, Kristin Fisher Organizations: CNN, Getty, New York University, Atlantic Institute SC, Christ People, Christianity, “, Los Angeles Times, Department of Diné, Sun, Institute’s Locations: Mexico, Canada, Prayagraj, Yamuna, AFP, South India, Lhokseumawe, Indonesia, South Carolina, Alto Pass , Illinois, American, America, it’s, Navajo, Rock , Arizona

☆ Indian capital resumes some activities despite hazardous air, river foam
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Kanjyik Ghosh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis Acquire Licensing RightsNEW DELHI, Nov 20 (Reuters) - India's capital Delhi re-opened schools and some building sites on Monday amid signs of receding air pollution, although it remained classified as hazardous, while a toxic foam besmirched stretches of the Yamuna river flowing through the city. The world's most polluted capital resumed its annual battle on pollution this month, despite government pledges to improve. Monday's air quality index (AQI) of 336 was down from Thursday's level of 509, but still "hazardous", Swiss group IQAir said. Delhi's air pollution gets worse in winter, when wind speeds drop and cooling air traps pollutants spewed by vehicles, industry and farmers burning agricultural waste in surrounding states to prepare for new planting. PM2.5 levels remained above 128 micrograms per cubic meter of air since Sunday in the National Capital Region, according to the federal pollution control board.

Persons: Anushree, IQAir, Ankit Srivastava, Gopal Rai, Kanjyik Ghosh, Shivam Patel, Clarence Fernandez, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: REUTERS, Delhi's, Vehicles, National Capital, World Health Organization, Thomson Locations: New Delhi, India, DELHI, Delhi, Mumbai

☆ Delhi construction workers idled by toxic smog
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

[3/12]Read moreA man works outside his house on the fields on the Yamuna floodplains on a smoggy morning in New Delhi, India, November 9. Delhi, a city of 20 million people, is the world's most polluted capital. It has been gripped by poor air quality since early this month, as happens every year despite government pledges to fix the problem. Bans on construction, in the hope of keeping down the dust and...NEW DELHI, India

Organizations: NEW Locations: New Delhi, India, Delhi, NEW DELHI

☆ Explainer: Why is South Asia the global hotspot of pollution?
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( Sakshi Dayal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The worsening air pollution is an annual problem for South Asian nations as winter approaches and cold, heavy air traps pollution in a thick layer of smog. South Asia has become the global hotspot for air pollution, with studies finding four of the world's most polluted countries and nine of the 10 most polluted cities in the region. WHY IS POLLUTION IN SOUTH ASIA WORSE THAN OTHER PLACES? An increase in the number of vehicles on roads as the region has developed has also exacerbated the pollution problem. Countries across South Asia will have to coordinate efforts if the region's pollution problem is to be solved, collaborating to enhance monitoring and make policy decisions.

Persons: stubble, Anushree, Sakshi Dayal, Michael Perry Organizations: Swiss Group, REUTERS, ., Thomson Locations: DELHI, South Asia, Asia, New Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh's

☆ Diwali, the Festival of Lights, explained
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-11 | by ( Manav Tanneeru | Harmeet Kaur | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —More than a billion Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists around the world are celebrating Diwali, the festival of lights. Narinder Nanu/AFP/Getty Images• Choti Diwali, or Naraka Chaturdashi: The second day of Diwali marks Lord Krishna’s defeat of the demon king Narakasura. • Diwali, or Lakshmi Puja: The third day of the festival is what people typically think of as Diwali. For some Hindus, Diwali marks Rama and Sita’s triumphant return to their kingdom after 14 years of exile. For Jains, Diwali signifies the day Lord Mahavira, their last spiritual leader, attained physical death and achieved enlightenment.

Persons: It’s, Rafiq Maqbool, Lakshmi, Dhanvantari, Ayurveda, Narinder Nanu, Krishna’s, Narakasura, •, Krishna, Lord Indra’s, • Bhai Dooj, Lord Yama, tilak, Prince Rama, Vishnu, Sita, Ravana, Rama, Sita’s, Xavier Galiana, Lord Krishna’s, Bali, Bandi, Hargobind, Emperor Jahangir, Jahangir, Guru Hargobind, Mahavira, Emperor Ashoka, Manjunath Kiran, patti, Shiva, Parvati Organizations: CNN, Getty, Lord Locations: India, Nepal, Malaysia, Fiji, Homes, Mumbai, AFP, Vrindavan, Bangalore

☆ Toxic foam coats sacred river near New Delhi as Indian capital battles hazardous pollution
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( Rhea Mogul | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —A thick layer of toxic foam has once again coated parts of a sacred river near New Delhi as the Indian capital battles an acrid and noxious smog that has settled across the city. The pungent foam contains high levels of ammonia and phosphates, which can cause respiratory and skin problems, according to experts. Yamuna river covered with a thick layer of toxic foam due near Kalindi Kunj, on September 10, 2023 in New Delhi, India. The river is most polluted in areas surrounding Delhi, owing to the area’s dense population and high levels of waste. Pictures from September also showed toxic foam forming on the Yamuna.

Persons: Salman Ali, Surya Organizations: CNN, Press Trust of India, Hindustan Times Locations: New Delhi, India’s, Tamil Nadu, Kalindi, India, Delhi, Oslo, Beijing, Kolkata, Mumbai

☆ An Epic Pilgrimage Across Three Great Religions
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( Aatish Taseer | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +111 min

Before there was tourism, there was pilgrimage: a trip of endurance, hardship and ecstasy in celebration of one’s faith. On an epic pilgrimage of his own, one writer ventures into the heart of three great religions in Bolivia, Mongolia and Iraq. The Imam Hussein shrine in Karbala the day after Ashura. “They’re poor, but they come thousands of kilometers for the love of Imam Hussein.” PILGRIMAGE WAS A great equalizer. “Labaik ya Hussein,” came the solemn chorus of surrounding voices.

Persons: Eduardo Quintela Gonzáles, ” Quintela, JAN, “, ”, Quintela, Victor, Edith Turner, Chaucer, ferne, sondry londes, Vaishno Devi, Lyra Skinner, Lyra, Victoria Preston’s, —, Prophet Muhammad, Virgin Mary, Bath, Naipaul, Augustus, Ryan, garret, Virgin, Monica Machicao, Nicholas Casey, ” Monica, Casey, Evo Morales, sloughing, Columbus, Cortés, Francisco Pizarro, Monica, glitzy cholets, Peru —, Viracocha, it’s, Pablo Quisbert, Leandro Chitarroni, Eichmann, Father Chitarroni, Father Chitarroni’s, Conquistadores ”, Fernando Cervantes, Bernabé Cobo, Quisbert, Edgar Quispe, Tatiana Huayhua, Francisco Tito Yupanqui, Mary, Yupanqui’s, su, Yupanqui, Chitarroni, she’s, Friar Abelino Yeguaori, Friar Yeguaori, Friar Yeguaori’s, Irene, Juana, hajji, Waka, Aracely Alcón, Santiago, Alcón, ‘, don’t, ” Alcón, Tito Yupanqui, Uma Marka, Pachamama, haggard, Amaru Fiorilo Barrios, he’d, ” Fiorilo, Fiorilo, who’d, Valeria Alcón, Laureano Jose Quisbert, Elena Ticona Flores, Eduardo Quintela’s, Ensamble, pang, padre, consolations, Sincrético, El, Rodrigo Paz Pereira, Axel, amauta, strode, La, Aatish Taseer, Saint Helena —, Constantine I, La Paz, Orgilbaatar Tsolmon, Orgil, Genghis Khan, Edward Gibbon, ” Orgil, Araniko’s, Kublai Khan, Genghis Khan’s, Kubla Khan, Coleridge, Kublai, Stalin, sybarite, Khamar, Dalai Lama, Lama, Christopher Kaplonski, ger, I’d, banshtai tsai, Prim, Egi, Munkhdul, Gandantegchinlen, Haidav, herder, “ Um sain, boltugai, Danzanravjaa, Zanabazar’s, Erdene, Mandakhtsog Monkhbaatar, Monkhbaatar’s, Dalai Lamas, prostrated, He’d, Zuu, she’d, Santiago de, L.K, Advani, Emperor Babur, Ram, kar sevaks, Ayodhya, Narendra Modi, Munkhbaatar Batchuluun, Henry Wallace, Franklin D, Potemkin, Munkhbaatar, Gerelmaa, Giimaa, She’d, Eduardo Quintela, Aracely, Santiago’s, Joseph Brodsky’s, Muhammad’s, Hussein, William Keo, ” Khuder, pillion, Labaik, Hussein ”, O Hussein, hearkened, Prophet, Ali —, Ali, Yazid, Imam, crackling, chickpeas, Imam Ali, Imam Hussein, Saddam Hussein, Tusi, Qasim, Imam Hussein’s, Khuder, “ Will, Najaf, prestes, — I, Yasir Yaseen, Ashura, Ali Akbar, Abbas, Ali Asghar, “ We’re, Francisco Goya’s, Hussein’s, Groom, Joseph, ” Wissam, Turfi, Saddam —, Arbaeen, Saddam, “ Imam Hussein, WE, Muhammad, Barnaby Rogerson, Prophet Muhammad ”, ” Ali, Muhammad — Muhammad, formlessness, Muqtada al, Abrams, chiding, Abu Musab Al, Zarqawi, Al Qaeda, William, “ They’re, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, flagellants, ruddy, stylishly, Hussein — shahid —, Farman Ahsan, Syed Salman Raza —, Saddam’s, ” Raza, William “, Ali Zayn al, Abidin, Labaik ya Hussein, thrall —, Lloyd, Susanne Rudolph — Organizations: CITY LA, LA, LA PAZ, Virgin, Crusaders, Dolorosa, Sun, The New York Times, Bolivian, Spain, La, Cordillera, Universidad Mayor de, Catholic, Good, La Paz, Dominican, Pakistan, Caesars, Nissan, Coke, Communists, Communism, ardor, Communist, Hyundai, flails, sacra, Apache, Mahdi Army, Al, ISIS, Karachi —, Princeton Locations: Bolivia, Mongolia, Iraq, Aatish Taseer Bolivia Mongolia Iraq, CITY LA PAZ, BOLIVIA, NAJAF, IRAQ, ULAANBAATAR, MONGOLIA, LA PAZ, La Paz, Bolivian, Copacabana, Lake Titicaca, New York, Christian, British, sondry, India, Delhi, Varanasi, Europe, American, Mecca, Arabia, Long, Vino Tinto, Chile, Peru, Monica, Plurinational State, Bolivia —, Americas, Spain, Columbian, Aztec Mexico, Inca Peru, Calvary Hill, Virgen del Cerro, South America, Puerto Rico, Huatajata, ”, Argentine, Universidad Mayor de San Andrés, Mexican, revelry, Spanish, “, morena, La, “ India, multilayered, Potosí, Argentina, Warisata, Scotch, Santiago de Compostela, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Nepal, Nations, El Alto, Buenos Aires, Bombay, Tibet, Bolivia’s, Yamuna Rivers, United States, Buddhist Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolian, Istanbul, Asia, Islam, China, Beijing, Dadu, Erdene Zuu, Soviet, Gobi, Los Angeles, gers, Qing China, Karnataka, Töv Province, Karakorum, Khamar, Erdene, Ukraine, Korea, Golden, Bayankhongor, Lhasa, Dalai, Inner Mongolia, Mongol, Nalaikh, Santiago, Santiago de Compostela and Canterbury, Bulgan Province, Somnath, Gujarat, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, ger, East German, Uvs Province, Pakistani, Indian, Tennessee, Najaf, Baghdad, Khuder, —, abayas, KARBALA, Kufa, Medina, Saudi Arabia, Karbala, Imam Ali, Bab, Kuwaiti, Bohras, South Asia, Tajikistan, Zaydis, Yemen, Alawites, Anatolia, Syria, Iran, Bahrain, Azerbaijan, Sadr, U.S, Jordanian, Al Qaeda, Mesopotamia, Al, Multan, Pakistan, Punjab, Pakistan’s, Islamabad, Lahore, Kuwait, Karachi, Doha, Qatar

Storms, floods, fires and other extreme weather events led to more than 43 million displacements involving children between 2016 and 2021, according to a United Nations report. But while catastrophes intensify, the world has yet to recognize climate migrants and find formal ways of protecting them. Nearly a third, or 43 million of the 134 million times that people were uprooted from their homes due to extreme weather from 2016-21 included children. Floods displaced children more than 19 million times in places like India and China. Many are enduring “overlapping crises” — where risks from climate extremes are compounded by conflict, fragile institutions and poverty, Healy said.

Persons: Shukri Mohamed Ibrahim, Ibrahim, That’s, ” Ibrahim, ”, Laura Healy, Healy, Kumar, ” Kumar, Meera Devi, Shiv Kumar, hasn’t, Mimi Vu, “, we’re, ” Healy, ___ Ghosal, Fassett, Omar Faruk, Piyush, Teresa de Miguel Organizations: United, UNICEF, Monitoring, AP Locations: United Nations, Somalia, Mogadishu, Philippines, India, China, U.S, Canada, Geneva, Horn, Africa, Caribbean, New Delhi, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Hanoi, Seattle, New York

☆ India's monsoon rains hit five-year low due to El Nino
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-30 | by ( Rajendra Jadhav | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nearly half of the farmland in the world's most populous nation lacks irrigation, making the monsoon rains even more vital for agricultural production. The summer rainfall deficit could make staples such as sugar, pulses, rice and vegetables more expensive and lift overall food inflation. The IMD had anticipated a rainfall deficit of 4% for the season, assuming limited impact from El Nino. El Nino is a warming of Pacific waters that is typically accompanied by drier conditions over the Indian subcontinent. The monsoon was uneven, with June rains 9% below average because of the delay in the arrival of rains, but July rains rebounding to 13% above average.

Persons: Adnan Abidi, El Nino, Rajendra, Helen Popper Our Organizations: REUTERS, El, India Meteorological Department, IMD, El Nino, Thomson Locations: New Delhi, India, MUMBAI

☆ India's monsoon starts delayed retreat
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The monsoon, the lifeblood of India's $3 trillion economy, delivers nearly 70% of the rain needed to water its farms and recharge reservoirs and aquifers. The monsoon generally begins in June and starts to retreat by Sept. 17 but rains continued this year, helping to reduce a precipitation deficit after the driest August in more than a century hit some summer crops. Monsoon rains were 9% below average in June before rebounding to 13% above average in July. The weather office then registered 36% below average rains last month. Monsoon rains so far in September are 17% above average, according to IMD.

Persons: Adnan Abidi, Rajendra Jadhav, Kirsten Donovan Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, India Meteorological Department, IMD, Thomson Locations: New Delhi, India, Rights MUMBAI, Rajasthan

☆ Air pollution now a major risk to life expectancy in South Asia - study
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The region, which includes the world's most polluted countries of Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan, accounts for more than half of the total life years lost globally to pollution, the University of Chicago's Energy Policy Institute (EPIC) said in its latest Air Quality Life Index. Rapid industrialization and population growth have contributed to declining air quality in South Asia, where particulate pollution levels are currently more than 50% higher than at the start of the century and now overshadow dangers posed by larger health threats. In the densely populated New Delhi, the world's most polluted mega-city, the average life span is down by more than 10 years. Reducing global levels of lung-damaging airborne particles, known as PM 2.5, to levels recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) could raise average life expectancy by 2.3 years, or a combined 17.8 billion life years, the report said. China, meanwhile, has worked to reduce pollution by 42.3% between 2013 and 2021, the report said, highlighting the need for governments to generate accessible air quality data to help bridge global inequalities in accessing tools to combat pollution.

Persons: Blassy Boben, Mike Harrison Organizations: DELHI, University of Chicago's Energy Policy Institute, EPIC, World Health Organization, WHO, Thomson Locations: New Delhi, India, South Asia, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, United States, Delhi, China

☆ Heavy rain in India's capital raises new fears of flooding
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NEW DELHI, July 26 (Reuters) - Heavy rain brought flooding to an area near New Delhi on Wednesday forcing some evacuations and schools closures as the region braced for more downpours two weeks after the Yamuna river burst its banks inundating parts of the capital. Hundreds of vehicles were submerged in a commercial neighbourhood in Noida city, which adjoins southeast Delhi, after the Hindon river overflowed. People living near its banks had to move to higher ground, television footage showed, and some neighbourhood schools were closed. Moderate to heavy rain was expected in Delhi later on Wednesday, it said. The Yamuna river, which runs through the city, rose to a 45-year high following heavy rain in northern areas this month, flooding parts of the city and forcing the evacuation of thousands of people.

Persons: Mahatma Gandhi, Shivam Patel Organizations: Central Water Commission, Thomson Locations: DELHI, New Delhi, Noida, Delhi, Red Fort, Independence

IRSHALWADI, India, July 20 (Reuters) - The death toll from a massive landslide in western India rose to 16 late on Thursday, as rescue operations were suspended with around 100 people still feared trapped, officials said. Rescue workers recovered 16 bodies before night fell and local authorities advised they suspend the search, Director General of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Atul Karwal, told Reuters. Rescuers searched for over 12 hours in heavy rains and fog, dodging large boulders that tumbled down the mountain slope, a Reuters witness and local media reported. [1/3]Members of rescue teams prepare graves to bury the victims after a landslide following heavy rains in Raigad district in the western state of Maharashtra, India, July 20, 2023. MORE RAIN COMINGA landslide in a nearby village killed more than 80 people two years ago.

Persons: Atul Karwal, Devendra Fadnavis, Francis Mascarenhas, Singh, Mahal, Mahatma Gandhi, Francis Mascerenhas, Shilpa Jamkhandikar, Rajendra Jadhav, Sumit Khanna, Robert Birsel Organizations: Response Force, Reuters, REUTERS, Indian Express, India Meteorological Department, Thomson Locations: IRSHALWADI, India, Irshalwadi, Maharashtra, Mumbai, Raigad district, Gujarat, New Delhi, Red, Rajghat

☆ Thousands rally for 'Day of Disruption' as vote on Israeli judicial bill looms
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Dave Lucas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

The Yamuna River's levels were at their highest in 45 years this week following unusually heavy rainfall in New Delhi, India, and hilly northern states, forcing the evacuation of hundreds of people as the Yamuna, which runs through the city, breached its banks.