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#Paris climate summit a "fraud."!Scame!
Climate Enginering!
It is Climate Engineering to legalize governance of fascism,Hindutva agenda, pollution,climate change,global warming,oil war,carbon emission, FDI, foreign investment,reforms and ethnic cleansing to justify big dams, deforestation, displacement, Salwa Judum, AFSPA, Arms race,war and civil war,privatization,builder promoter raj and Bhopal Gas Tragedy.The face of Indian Climate is launched by RSS,mind you!
#Learn from Chennai,how to create Man Made Floods!
Paris climate so much so hyped might not make this universe better and two degree celsius reduction in temperature would not make any difference to our destiny as we have already pushed the buttons of cluster atom bombs!
How do you believe the political leadership of racist apartheid which launched the recent Arab Spring in India,the Cow Ban tsunami,which defended Union Carbide,Anderson and Dow Chemicals,which put on Sale the idea of India,Indian constitution and Indian nation dividing Indian people all on the name of development,democracy,religion and growth,which imports calamities and disasters and which imports nuclear holocaust and Monsanto?
After Parliament truce, here are the bills Modi govt is hopeful of passing by Wednesday After disruptions in both Houses, particularly the Rajya Sabha, over the last three weeks, the government and opposition arrived at an agreement at an all-party meeting called by Rajya Sabha chairman Hamid Ansari.
Noam Chomsky - How Climate Change Became a Liberal ...
▶ 5:42Apr 18, 2014 - Uploaded by rodrigo nomada
linguist, philosopher and political activist Noam Chomsky talks about the Chamber of Commerce, the American ..
Climate Engineering Weather Warfare, and the Collapse of Civilization
BBC One Night In Bhopal 2004 TVRip d0x
Nepal Earthquake 2015 Full Documentary.| National Geographic | Discovery Channel Episode.
NDIA: NEW DELHI: PROTESTERS STAGE ANTI NUCLEAR MARCH
Anti Kudankulam protest -- A Musical revolt -- Red Pix
Tehri Garhwal dam flood gates opened Uttarakhand floods
Sinking Sundarbans - Climate voices from India
Palash Biswas
I have been dealing the issue for long.Paris climate so much so hyped might not make this universe better and two degree celsius reduction in temperature would not make any difference to our destiny as we have already pushed the buttons of cluster atom bombs!
Paris Summit and its resolution on climate change so much so hyped by FDI fed ,official version carrying media is not only a fraud,it is the latest scam as green revolution remains the original sin!
How do you believe the political leadership of racist apartheid which launched the recent Arab Spring in India,the Cow Ban tsunami,which defended Union Carbide,Anderson and Dow Chemicals,which put on Sale the idea of India,Indian constitution and Indian nation dividing Indian people all on the name of development,democracy,religion and growth,which imports calamities and disasters and which imports nuclear holocaust and Monsanto?
After Parliament truce, here are the bills Modi govt is hopeful of passing by Wednesday After disruptions in both Houses, particularly the Rajya Sabha, over the last three weeks, the government and opposition arrived at an agreement at an all-party meeting called by Rajya Sabha chairman Hamid Ansari.
I belong to the Himalayas and I have been flowing across the Nation from Gomukh to Gangotri and thus ,I have been watching the merger of waterbodies along with the peasantry into free flow of foreign capital to make in the Doom`s day.
Chennai is the latest example! We have been watching the seacoast line encroached all the way violating the sea coast line act,we have been watching the forests translated into luxury resorts,we have been watching all the green valleys and altitudes being attacked by monopolistic multinational capital to make it electrocuted.
Latest reports confirm that Chennai is a victim of man-made disaster. Its soil and rock types suggest that the city is historically a flood plain, says Chennai-based research Institute, Care Earth. The city is dotted with wetlands and natural channels where excess water from the city that is essentially a very flat area can be drained off.
Currently, the city in Tamil Nadu is experiencing rains that have broken a record of about hundred years. With more rainfall in store, the city needs to relearn its water management system.
No one cares for the melting glaciers!
Nobody cares for Bhopal Gas Tragedy victims!
We have displaced entire aborigin and indiginous geography as well as demography to kill the humanity and Nature all on the name of development and growth!
We have opted for indiscriminate urbanization all on the name of false industrialization burning the slums wherein displaced humanity from its homeland green resettled!
We have opted for big dams Narmada,Tehri, Polavaram without any hearing!
We have been weaving cemented hubs all over the embroidered quilt of environment killing the biocycle and saving the Tiger burning the Mangrove!
I am happy the Sunday Economic Times has focused on Chennai floods.I would be sharing the key points raised in these issue in my video talk today!
Media reports claim,amidst demonstrations and campaigns at the CoP21 venue by activists, the multilateral issue that has gone to the wire is differentiation — the part of the agreement that will make obligations heavier for the developed world to both cut emissions and fund the developing countries, and give lighter responsibilities to developing nations.
The hope that the voluntary pledges made by 186 countries would make the Paris deal a simple and straight affair has been belied, as oil producing countries and their allies are opposing the 1.5°C tighter temperature target over the 2°C favoured originally by many emerging economies. In UNFCCC parlance, this number is the ambition to be included in the deal.
The Hindu raised the question already how much money would be raised by the developed world by 2020 with $100 billion as the floor and how that is to be earmarked is also hanging fire, as is the question of addressing loss and damage caused by the historical emissions accumulated in the atmosphere, mostly due to "dirty fuel" past of the rich nations. The West has ruled out a regime of damage and compensation in the agreement.
News report breaking!
After the truce in Parliament, the Modi government is hopeful about a substantial portion of pending legislative business being completed in the remaining three days of the Winter Session beginning Monday.
After disruptions in both Houses, particularly the Rajya Sabha, over the last three weeks, the government and opposition arrived at an agreement on Saturday at an all-party meeting called by Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari to pass those bills on which there is a general consensus, skipping the contentious GST bill.
In the Upper House, where the Winter Session has been a near washout so far, 18 bills are pending. No new bill could be introduced in Rajya Sabha during the session, while the only one that was passed was the The Negotiable Instruments (Amendment) Bill, which deals with cheque bounce cases.
Legislative and financial items entailing 43-and-a-half-hours of business are pending before the House, including key bills like The Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Bill, The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Bill and The Whistle Blowers Protection (Amendment) Bill are to be taken up.
There is a broad political consensus to pass the the SC/ST bill, which is a politically-sensitive issue.
Apart from it there is also a general consensus to pass the Appropriation Bills, the Anti-Hijacking Bill, the Atomic Energy (Amendment) Bill, the Commercial Courts Ordinance Bill and the Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Bill.
The SC/ST Amendment Bill, which was moved in the House on December 14, has already been listed for discussion on Monday. The government has also listed two appropriation bills the same day.
Two other bills — The Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Bill and The Commercial Courts, Commercial Division and Commercial Appellate Division of High Courts Bill have also been listed for Monday.
The major bills like The Whistle Blowers Bill, The Atomic Energy (Amendment) Bill and the The Anti-Hijacking Bill have been listed for Tuesday.
At the all-party meeting, it was decided that three bills – the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Bill, the Whistle Blowers Protection (Amendment) Bill and the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Bill – will be discussed during the remaining period but the course of action will be decided later.
The opposition is insisting on sending the Whistle Blowers Bill to a Select Committee.
Rajya Sabha is also likely to take up discussion on the issue prices of essential commodities and foodgrains in the country and "growing intolerance endangering the unity and diversity of the country". Ever since the Winter Session got underway on November 26, proceedings in the Upper House were disrupted over a variety of issues, with Congress accusing the Modi government of "political vendetta" in the wake of the National Herald case. The Arunachal Pradesh imbroglio and Union Minister V K Singh's 'dog' remarks also triggered uproar in the House.
In Lok Sabha, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will on Monday introduce The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2015 that seeks to consolidate and amend the laws relating to reorganisation and insolvency resolution of corporate persons, partnership firms and individuals in a time-bound manner for maximisation of value of assets.
Union Minister Nitin Gadkari will move the National Waterways Bill, which seeks to make provisions for existing national waterways and to provide for the declaration of certain inland waterways as national waterways and also to provide for regulation and development of waterways.
On Tuesday, Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya will move The Payment of Bonus (Amendment) Bill that seeks to amend the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965.
Lok Sabha is likely to take up discussions on the situation in Nepal and Indo-Nepal relations, besides Sustainable Development Goals.
Lok Sabha has allotted three hours and two hours each to discuss and pass The National Waterways (Amendment) Bill and The Payment of Bonus (Amendment) Bill respectively.
Please read this report:
James Hansen, one of the first scientists to warn about global warming, calls the just-completed Paris climate summit a "fraud."
And, of course, he is right.
Strictly speaking, the summit was fraudulent. It committed none of the 195 nations attending to do anything substantive to combat global warming.
It recycled goals of past United Nations climate-change summits without providing a mechanism for attaining them.
It was welcomed by countries that emit large quantities of greenhouse gases because, ultimately, it required nothing of them.
Still, the Paris agreement could end up being a useful fraud.
Certainly, it is easy to see why the summit's results have come under attack from both right and left.
The agreement itself is largely empty. It requires signatories to "communicate and maintain" plans to combat climate change. It doesn't say these plans must be sufficiently robust to meet the summit's minimum goal of keeping average global temperature increases since the late 19th century to less than 2 degrees Celsius.
This is important since, according to the UN, the 188 national plans submitted to date (including Canada's) are far too weak to meet either this target or the summit's more ambitious goal of 1.5 degrees Celsius.
Similarly, the agreement calls on member nations to reduce carbon emissions to a level where the amount produced is offset by the amount absorbed — all by the end of the century.
But it does not require signatories to achieve this goal.
Indeed, the only legally binding element of the agreement is a requirement that nations update their unenforceable carbon reduction plans every five years.
If they don't, there are no penalties.
A companion document repeats a pledge, first made in 2009, to have rich nations transfer at least $100 billion annually to developing countries to help them combat climate change.
Here, too, reality does not live up to the rhetoric. The UN's Green Climate Fund (to which Canada's new Liberal government has just promised an extra $2.65 billion) is supposed to be the key vehicle for these transfers. But so far, it has received pledges totalling only $13 billion.
Moreover, reports Scientific American, only $1 billion of the promised $13 billion has materialized. Of this, just $363 million has been allocated.
The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development is more optimistic. It calculates that when other public and private monies are added in, the developing world received about $62 billion in climate mitigation payments last year.
But critics say this figure is vastly exaggerated — that it includes aid that has little to do with climate change, as well as repayable loans.
In short, if greenhouse gases are the problem, Paris is not the solution. In spite of Paris, India plans to double coal output by 2020. In spite of Paris, Alberta's New Democratic Party government still plans to expand production in the province's tarsands.
Climate change may be a global scourge. But the onus remains on national governments to address it.
Which is why, in a roundabout way, the Paris summit may have been a useful fraud. It put global warming back in the public spotlight. At Paris, leaders were forced to talk about the idea of fighting climate change. That, in turn, created expectations in their home countries.
In Canada, successive federal governments have done little on this file. While provincial governments have done more, they have not done enough.
What will the new Liberal government do? The Paris agreement requires it to do no more than it has done — which is submit the insubstantial plan produced by the former Conservative government.
Environment Minister Catherine McKenna has indicated that the new government might produce a more ambitious carbon-emission target after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confers with premiers. Foreign Affairs Minister Stéphane Dion has hinted that it might not — that the Liberals might stick with the Conservative target (which, incidentally, Canada is not on track to meet).
Ironically, the hoopla surrounding the climate summit puts more pressure on Trudeau to deliver real results. A lot of Canadians are under the impression — however mistaken — that something of substance happened in Paris. They will expect more.
Thomas Walkom's column appears Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday.
Here you are!
The Hindu reports:
Terming three days in politics a long time, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Saturday said that during the current Parliament session, the government planned to introduce some reform Bills. These include the insolvency and bankruptcy law for India and the Commercial Courts, Commercial Division and Commercial Appellate Division of High Courts Bill and Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Bill
The Minister also indicated that the Constitutional 122nd Amendment Bill, meant for the Goods and Services Tax (GST), is unlikely to clear Parliament in the ongoing session which ends on Wednesday. A delayed GST is better than a flawed GST, he said.
Addressing the annual general body meeting of the FICCI, Mr. Jaitley said that while two of the three demands raised by the Congress on the GST could be worked out, the third wasn't acceptable. Constitutionally-prescribed rates don't work for the GST, he said.
The Congress was delaying the GST for "collateral reasons", the Minister said adding the forces opposing the GST were are doing so because they feel that if they couldn't bring it, why should someone else. "Some people do get sadistic pleasure in seeing India slow down… But then, it's a sadistic pleasure at a very severe national cost…We cannot allow that."
Mr. Jaitley also said that "there is no point saying that GST is good and we brought in the GST proposal, but, I think this 'but' is a terrible phrase as far as Indian politics is concerned".
In the midst of the global slowdown, the biggest challenge for the government is to get the Indian politics to support its economic reforms agenda. "Is the Indian politics going to be a support in this adverse global situation, to add the extra per cent or two to our current level of GDP or is it going to be an obstacle?"
No GST for now: Cong.
Later, Congress leader Anand Sharma in his address to the gathering said: "It [GST] is not going to happen in this session… We will engage with them, but this is not the right time. April 1, 2016, is not sacrosanct and not achievable at all."
He said the Opposition's cooperation is not rubber stamping of what the government wants.
"We are authors of GST and this country will have GST," he said.
List of pending bills in the lower and upper house that are waiting to be cleared by this winter session, the most crucial being the GST bill.
CONSTITUTION AMENDMENT BILL
The Constitution (122nd Amendment) (GST) Bill, 2014 - Introduces the Goods and Services Tax to give concurrent taxing powers to both the centre and states, and creates a Goods and Services Tax Council. Introduced on 19 Dec 2014 in Lok Sabha the bill is with Rajya Sabha Select Committee Report on 22 Jul 2015. Passed by Lok Sabha, Pending in Rajya Sabha
URBAN DEVELOPMENT
The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) BilI, 2013 - It Regulates transactions between buyers and promoters of real estate projects and sets up state level Regulatory Authorities to regulate the sector. Introduced in 14 Aug 2013 in Rajya Sabha Standing Committee Report on 13 Feb 2014, Rajya Sabha Select Committee Report on 30 Jul 2015.
HEALTH
The Human Immunodeficiency Virus and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (Prevention and Control) Bill, 2014 - It Seeks to prevent the spread of HIV and AIDS, prohibit discrimination against persons with HIV and AIDS and safeguard their rights. Introduced on 11 Feb 2014 in Rajya Sabha the RS Standing Committee Report on 29 Apr 2015.
The Mental Health Care Bill, 2013 Replaces the Mental Health Act, 1987 to protect the rights of persons with mental illness and promote their access to mental health care. Introduced on 19 Aug 2013 in Rajya Sabha - RS Standing Committee Report on 20 Nov 2013.
ENERGY
The Electricity (Amendment) Bill, 2014 - It Seeks to segregate the distribution network from the electricity supply business and introduce multiple supply licensees. Introduced - 19 Dec 2014 Lok Sabha - Standing Committee Report on 7 May 2015.
LABOUR
The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2012 Prohibits the employment of children below 14 years and of adolescents between 14 -18 years in certain hazardous occupations. Introduced - 4 Dec 2012 in Rajya Sabha - Standing Committee Report on 13 Dec 2013
SECURITY / LAW / STRATEGIC AFFAIRS
The High Court and the Supreme Court Judges (Salaries and Conditions of Service) Amendment Bill, 2015 - It Seeks to ensure uniformity in pensions and other conditions of service of supreme court and high court judges. Introduced - 13 Aug 2015 Lok Sabha - Not referred to Standing Committee.
The Commercial Courts, Commercial Division and Commercial Appellate Division of High Courts Bill, 2015 - It Enables the creation of commercial divisions and commercial appellate divisions in high courts, and commercial courts at the district level. Introduced - 29 Apr 2015 in Rajya Sabha - Standing Committee granted time upto 30 Nov 2015.
The Anti-Hijacking Bill, 2014 Repeals the Anti-Hijacking Act, 1982, defines hijacking and awards death penalty for hijacking in certain cases. Introduced - 17 Dec 2014 Rajya Sabha - Standing Committee Report on 11 Mar 2015.
The Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Bill, 2013 - It makes the giving of a bribe an offence for individuals and commercial organisations, and enlarges the definition of taking a bribe. Introduced - 19 Aug 2013 - Rajya Sabha Standing Committee Report on 6 Feb 2014.
The Repealing and Amending (Third) Bill, 2015. It repeals 295 Acts which have ceased to be in force and amends two Acts. Introduced - 27 Jul 2015 Lok Sabha - Passed by Lok Sabha, Pending in Rajya Sabha.
The Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Bill, 2014 Amends certain existing categories of offences and adds new offences against SCs and STs, and establishes exclusive special courts to try offences under the Act. Introduced - 16 Jul 2014 Lok Sabha Standing Committee Report on 19 Dec 2014, Passed by Lok Sabha, Pending in Rajya Sabha.
The Whistle Blowers Protection (Amendment) Bill, 2015 Specifies grounds under which public interest disclosures may not be made. Introduced - 11 May 2015 in Lok Sabha - Passed by Lok Sabha, Pending in Rajya Sabha.
The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Bill, 2014 Permits juveniles between the ages of 16-18 years to be tried as adults for heinous offences and provides for institutional care for children in need of protection and care. Introduced - 12 Aug 2014 in Lok Sabha - Status - Standing Committee Report on 25 Feb 2015, Passed by Lok Sabha, Pending in Rajya Sabha.
The Appropriation Acts (Repeal) Bill, 2015 - It seeks to repeal 758 Appropriation Acts. Introduced - 24 Apr 2015 in Lok Sabha - Status - Passed by Lok Sabha, Pending in Rajya Sabha.
CONSUMER AFFAIRS
The Bureau of Indian Standards Bill, 2015. It Replaces the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 1986 and seeks to establish BIS as the national standards body and addresses mandatory standardisation of products. Introduced - 7 Aug 2015 in Lok Sabha. Status - Not referred to Standing Committee.
TRANSPORT/ TOURISM
The Carriage by Air (Amendment)Bill, 2015. It Empowers the central government to revise liability limits of air carriers on compensation for death, injury, and loss of baggage/cargo. Introduced - 7 Aug 2015 in Lok Sabha. Status - Not referred to Standing Committee.
FINANCE
The Negotiable Instruments (Amendment) Bill, 2015. It Specifies the territorial jurisdiction of courts for filing cases of cheque bouncing. Introduced July 27 2015 in Lok Sabha. Status - Passed by Lok Sabha, Pending in Rajya Sabha.
Bill listed for Introduction, Consideration and Passing
The Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Bill, 2015 - Replaces an Ordinance. Objective is to make the process of arbitration simpler and ensure timely disposal of cases.
Why Chennai floods are a man-made disaster
An analysis shows that in just four decades, urbanisation in the city increased by almost 20 times
Chennai is a victim of man-made disaster. Its soil and rock types suggest that the city is historically a flood plain, says Chennai-based research Institute, Care Earth. The city is dotted with wetlands and natural channels where excess water from the city that is essentially a very flat area can be drained off.
Currently, the city in Tamil Nadu is experiencing rains that have broken a record of about hundred years. With more rainfall in store, the city needs to relearn its water management system.
Heaps of problems
The city that is bordered by the sea in the east and the state of Andhra Pradesh in the north could grow only in the west and south. In 2000, southern Chennai became an information technology hub. In the process of expansion, the city engulfed several fishing and agricultural villages and hamlets, thus paving way for several ecological and environmental challenges that the administration could not tackle. By 2011, the city corporation area increased four times its original size, says a 2014 report by Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. The Chennai Metropolitan Area (CMS) has a size of 1,189 sq km and comprises of eight districts, including the Chennai city district. The population has increased from 5.8 million in 2001 to 8.9 million in 2011 in CMA. Industrial developments and establishments at Sholinganallur and Perugudi, Special Economic Zone (SEZ) at Ennore and Nadambakkam attracted many investors to Chennai. The city almost changed to a concrete jungle. The open areas decreased drastically and the built up and paved areas, according to an analyses by IISC, increased from 29.53 per cent in 1991 to 64.4 per cent in 2013.
The problem area
There has been total disconnect between hydrology and urban planning in the city that has been experiencing a drop in water table, with saline intrusion due to unplanned extraction of groundwater. Moreover, the groundwater is highly polluted due to unplanned solid waste dumping; the effluents leached from these solid heaps and contaminated the groundwater. The recharge structures like lakes, tanks, ponds and other wetlands in the city have been disregarded and the natural course of water has been tampered. This is one reason for urban flooding in the urban and peri-urban areas.
Fractured flood sink
The city has large marsh in the south (about 20 km south of the city centre), smaller satellite wetlands around it and large tract of pasture land. The southern marshland called Pallikarni marshland is known as the flood sink area of the city as it drained about 250 sq km of the city in the eighties. The marshland is housed in CMA. There were smaller wetlands around the marshland that served as a source of irrigation in the area that cultivated only paddy. The marshland that was around 5,000 hectares (ha) during independence got reduced to almost 600 ha around 2010-11. The only reason for all this was rapid urbanisation.
During this time, along with the marshland, all other wetlands of Chennai became sites of waste disposal, housing, commercial and industrial purposes. As the city expanded in the south, Pallikarni marsh became fragmented. As any other city, the state of Tamil Nadu only valued the land and not the water body which came to be treated as wasteland. The city found this marsh most suitable place for urban development. The area was allotted to the Mass Rapid Transport System of the Ministry of Railways, the National Institute of Ocean Technology, the Chennai Corporation, and the Centre for Wind Energy Technology. In 2002, a survey by the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board showed that that the marsh lost around 90 per cent of its original extent. This is also the year when the city observed a big flood event. The most affected areas were the adjoining areas around the marsh. Citizens started movement to save the marsh land.
Change in the area of the Pallikarni marsh between 2003 and 2005 | ||
Segment | 2003 | 2005 |
Garbage dump | 50.25 ha | 57.24 ha |
Area impacted by garbage dumping/sewage | 58.75 ha | 132.25 ha |
Northern segment | 227 ha | 150.56 ha |
Southern segment | 284 ha | 279.65 ha |
Source: Vencatesan, J, 2007, Protecting wetlands, Current Science | ||
According to Sakthivel of Department of Geography, University of Madras, this marshland is also helpful in recharging the natural aquifer in the region. Sakthivel also explains that the groundwater in the marshland is highly polluted due to garbage dumping in the marshland area. For example, the most prominent Perungudi dump yard that spans over 75.22 ha is located on the north-eastern part of the marsh. The area of the dump yard has doubled over the last decade with an increase from 32 ha in 2002-03 to about 75 ha in 2013, according to Tamil Nadu State Land Use Research Board. The Board also shows that in addition to the sheer location of the dump yard within the wetland, the edge effect of the dump yard has been increasing from 2.34 ha in 2002, leading to a loss of 51 per cent of the wetland. The research by Sakthivel shows that around 273.50 ha was allotted to different institutions by 2010. Over and above this, there are other allotments that made the total allotment area of 474 ha area already allotted or occupied.
Legal buildings on the marshland | |
Building | Area occupied (ha) |
Metropolitan Rapid Transport System (MRTS) | 92.405 |
Film Employees Federation of South India (FEFSI) | 34.410 |
Ashram Latha Rajnikanth Trust | 5 |
Tamil Nadu Agricultural Marketing Board | 12.150 |
Dr. Ambedkar Law University | 8.100 |
Judicial Academy | 6.070 |
MMRD Road 200' width | 13.600 |
IIT, Chennai | 17.810 |
National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) | 20.250 |
Government Free Pattas | 2 |
Land allotted for Ex-servicemen | 61.675 |
Total | 273.60 |
Source: Department of Geography, University of Madras | |
Can we stop this devastation?
The conversion of wetlands into lands for other purposes was very easy in the state until it amended the Tamil Nadu Town and Country Planning Act to prevent the conversion of wetlands for other purposes. Under this act, the permission of conversion of wetlands to other residential purposes is to be done by district collector and not the tehsildars, as before. But this did not stop the encroachment of the wetlands, say the citizens.
Too late to learn
The 2014 analyses of IISC showed that in just past four decades the urbanisation increased almost 20 times at the cost of open and green areas. The areas got converted to urban impervious surfaces that increase the runoff and create water logging in absence of proper drainage. The research suggested use of analytical studies of urban sprawl in the city of Chennai with the help of remote sensing data. D M Mahajan of University of Pune who had studied the effects of changed land use pattern of wetlands of Pune, Maharashtra, in 2014, said that a better understanding of aquatic ecosystem is needed to enable development of best management practices, thus transforming the way the land and water are being used. He also explained that rapid changes in habitat and land use are major threats to wetlands. This needs proper management plan for restoration of wetlands at landscape level. The unplanned urbanisation not only makes a city prone to urban flooding but also decreases its groundwater recharge. The researchers of Indian Institute of Roorkee in 2014 studied the effect of change of land use on groundwater recharge. They commented that proper planning and management is required for aquifer recharge. It further says that there is a need to understand the land use pattern in the past and present to understand the potential changes.
Professor Saswat Bandyopadhyay, Head of Department of Environmental Planning, Centre for Environmental Planning and Technology University, Ahmedabad, says that the devastation occurred due to complete disrespect of basic urban planning and hydrological cycle. The city needs to rework its urban planning and the planners need to go back to their board and think of resilient planning along low lying areas. The water channels that can be made encroachment-free should be restored at war footing. Around Rs 400 crore has already been pumped in for stormwater drainage network in the city under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission. But the high intensity rainfall indicates that the design exercise of the drains has been messed up. The rain intensity was very high as compared to peak intense rainfall of last 30 years, based on which the diameter of the stormwater drains is calculated, says Bandyopadhyay. Hence, the drains are incapable to carry the runoff and the only saviour to such problems can be good urban planning along with hydrological understanding opines the planner.
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Eight lessons from the Paris climate change conference
With so many parties involved in highly technical and political discussions about how to limit emissions from fuels that drive their economies, it's remarkable anything is ever agreed.
The last time envoys attempted such a sweeping deal, the meeting in Copenhagen in 2009 dissolved in finger pointing over who should do what to combat global warming.
Here are the eight lessons the UN and key delegates involved in brokering the Paris deal learned from Copenhagen that led to the success this year:
1. MAKE IT VOLUNTARY
The 1997 Kyoto Protocol was a legally binding treaty setting limits for emissions of greenhouse gases but only for industrial nations. After signing the deal, the US backed out because developing nations had no obligations, leaving Kyoto covering just 37 mostly European nations and 12 per cent of global emissions.
The Paris deal reaped pledges from 186 nations by making the system essentially voluntary. That meant more were willing to sign up, even the U.S.
The new approach has proved a "game-changer," Indian Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said.
2. PREPARE THE GROUND
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius and his team made more than 100 official visits and held more than 400 bilateral meetings with 140 different countries over the past two years. Half of those meetings were at the level of presidents and prime ministers.
"I'm impressed with Fabius's leadership," said International Emissions Trading Association chief executive Dirk Forrister, a climate adviser in US president Bill Clinton's administration.
"His sheer presence and seriousness and experience helped to provide some discipline."
3. THE BIG PLAYERS NEED TO AGREE
It's a deal uniting 195 countries, but the US and China are the most important since they account for 35 per cent of emissions. The two countries didn't coordinate positions in Copenhagen, where China stood with Brazil, India and South Africa in wanting to preserve distinctions in the way the talks deal with rich and poor nations.
In 2009, President Barack Obama had to force his way into a meeting of that bloc to have his voice heard. This time, he and Chinese President Xi Jinping came to an agreement in November 2014, spurring other developing nations to join in on taking action.
"The United States has invested enormously in a better dialog with China and the other major economies," said Global Green Growth Institute director-general Yvo de Boer, who as UN climate chief in 2009 oversaw the failed talks.
4. CHOREOGRAPHY COUNTS
Almost 150 heads of state and government attended the December 1 opening of the summit in the biggest single-day gathering of world leaders in history. Their job? To provide the political momentum and then get out of the way. In Copenhagen, more than 100 leaders came at the end of the conference, paralysing the work of lower-level envoys who are experts in the forensics of treaty negotiation.
"All the negotiators had to babysit the ministers and at the same time their heads of state, so they didn't have any time to spare for the actual negotiations," Japanese envoy Kuni Shimada said of the 2009 meeting.
5. ATMOSPHERICS MATTER
Logistical snafus in Copenhagen helped poison the atmosphere of the talks. There were long lines to accredit and pass through security, leaving many negotiators standing in the cold while it snowed. The French ensured the little things worked. The food was a notch above previous meetings, with pastries and bottles of Mouton Cadet reserve wine. Water stations were ubiquitous, and the toilets were clean. Shuttle buses ran like clockwork and public transport was free. During the final days, daybeds came in handy for tired delegates shuffling between round-the-clock sessions.
6. LEARN FROM PAST APPROACHES
France used the tactics that worked at previous climate conferences. They copied a formula from the meeting in Cancun, Mexico, in 2010 by using pairs of ministers from developed and developing countries to help work through the thorniest topics. They held open informal meetings open to all negotiators called "indabas," named for a traditional gathering of village elders that South Africa first used with great success in Durban in 2011. And they brought on board Claudia Salerno, one of the envoys who helped sink the Copenhagen deal, to work on a part of the text.
"Engaging former critics is what good diplomacy is all about," said Paul Bledsoe, a former Clinton adviser.
7. TRANSPARENCY IS ESSENTIAL
In Copenhagen, the Danish presidency that ran the meeting picked a group of countries to work on an accord. The countries left out lost trust in the process, accusing the hosts of drawing up a "secret text." France was careful to include everyone at each stage; logistically difficult but politically necessary.
"When we've seen the presidency straying from the right path, we've immediately told them, and they've listened and corrected," said Salerno from Venezuela. In Copenhagen, she called the Danish efforts "a coup d'etat" on the UN charter.
8. INVOLVE BUSINESS
Companies were given a portal to register their own efforts to slash emissions, making them far more supportive than in Copenhagen. More than 2400 companies and investors have posted pledges so far. Ultimately, it's business that will have to deliver many of the emissions cuts and technological solutions to climate change, so involving industry made reaching a deal seem possible or even desirable.
"In Copenhagen business was more bad cop than good cop," said Ikea Group chief sustainability officer Steve Howard. "Now it's more good cop than bad cop."
Bloomberg
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