Category: Nature / Environment

** ‘Green Triangle’ named after Mahatma Gandhi inaugurated in Madagascar’s capital as part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav

Indian Ambassador Abhay Kumar said Gandhi was the “greatest Pravasi” who returned to India from South Africa, led India’s freedom struggle and changed the lives of Indians.

As part of the ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’ to commemorate India’s 75th year of independence, a “Green Triangle” named after Mahatma Gandhi was jointly inaugurated in Madagascar’s capital Antananarivo.

Mayor of Antananarivo Naina Andriantsitohaina and India’s Ambassador to Madagascar Abhay Kumar inaugurated the green space on Wednesday at a special ceremony in Madagascar’s capital Antananarivo.

** Wayanad Seed Fest begins today

The Wayanad Seed Fest, a community event to assess the seed diversity in Wayanad district, will be held at Puthurvayal here on Friday and Saturday.

The festival, being organised by the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) in association with Seed Care, an organisation of traditional rice farmers in the district, will take place at the Community Agro-Biodiversity Centre of the foundation.

Kerala

** India’s solar capacity: Milestones and challenges

How far has India progressed on its goal to achieve 500 GW of renewable energy by 2030? What are some of the obstacles that the domestic solar industry faces?

The story so far: India added a record 10 Gigawatt (GW) of solar energy to its cumulative installed capacity in 2021. This has been the highest 12-month capacity addition, recording nearly a 200% year-on-year growth.

India has now surpassed 50 GW of cumulative installed solar capacity, as on 28 February 2022. This is a milestone in India’s journey towards generating 500 GW from renewable energy by 2030, of which 300 GW is expected to come from solar power.

India’s capacity additions rank the country fifth in solar power deployment, contributing nearly 6.5% to the global cumulative capacity of 709.68 GW.

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** IIT Kanpur-incubated start-up’s composting machine converts waste to manure in 10 days

Taking a step towards sustainable and efficient waste management, Agnys Waste Management Private Limited, a start-up incubated at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur, has developed an automatic composting machine that can convert waste to manure in just 10-20 days.

The start-up has named the machine BHOOMI which is an acronym for Bio-composting of horticulture & organic waste into manure indigenously.

** Warren Hastings’ garden house near Kolkata blooms again

The very fine specimen of colonial architecture has been undergoing a painstaking restoration over the past year

A few majestic mango trees still remain in the compound of the garden house of Warren Hastings, the first Governor General of Bengal Presidency from 1772 to 1785. It’s located in the heart of Barasat, about 30 km from Kolkata. With an imposing arched portico in the front and dozens of columns on the first floor, the impressive double storey house represents a fine specimen of colonial architecture prevalent in the 18th and 19th centuries. The front wall of the building has a stone tablet with the words: “In this house lived Lord Warren Hastings”.

** Indian scientists discover strategy to synthesise novel solid adsorbents for CO2 capture

Amidst the growing attempts to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, the Indian scientists have discovered a strategy to synthesise novel solid adsorbents for CO2 capture and utilisation.

Although several industrial advancements have already been demonstrated, none of the technologies can provide an economically viable and complete CO2 capture and utilization solution. Therefore, fundamental research on novel solid adsorbents might offer a critical material for CO2 capture and CO2 utilisation.

Professor Rahul Banerjee’s group at IISER-Kolkata, with support from Department of Science & Technology, Government of India under Mission Innovation programme, has demonstrated a strategy to synthesise novel solid adsorbents, especially for CO2 capture and CO2 utilisation.

** International Women’s Day: Odia scientist Dr Mamoni Dash invents polymer for pest control

This new invention in the field of agriculture has made her one of the 75 achievers under 50 in the field of Science and Technology in India.

A native of Baripada, Dash has done her post graduate from NIT, Rourkela and PhD from University of Pisa, Italy. After her post-doctoral degree from Belgium, she had joined ILS as a Ramalingaswami Fellow in 2018 and as a faculty in 2021.