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India Gazette
15-07-2025
- Science
- India Gazette
From AI to Ganga: New NCERT hindi book blends space, spirituality, storytelling
By Vishu Adhana New Delhi [India], July 15 (ANI): The new Class 5 NCERT Hindi textbook is taking students on a journey like never before from the world of Artificial Intelligence and space missions to the flowing story of the Ganga, its sacred journey across India, and the cultural life along its banks. Recently released by the NCERT for the 2025-26 academic year, the textbook titled 'Veena' has been developed in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, aiming to connect students with both India's scientific future and its civilisational roots. One of the standout chapters, 'Ganga ki Kahani,' captures the river's journey from Gomukh to Gangasagar, taking readers through places like Haridwar, Varanasi, Prayagraj, and Kolkata. It offers more than just geography, narrating tales of ashrams, sadhus, and the grandeur of the Kumbh Mela, while also introducing cities like Patna and Kanpur, blending cultural, spiritual, and economic perspectives. In sharp contrast, but equally engaging, the chapter titled 'AI' introduces students to the basics of Artificial Intelligence, how machines are trained to think, learn, and problem-solve like humans. It's designed to spark curiosity and scientific thinking among middle schoolers. The 'Gaganyaan' chapter, written in a conversational style, brings India's human spaceflight mission to life. It explains ISRO's ambitions, introduces students to the humanoid robot Vyommitra, and discusses the future of Indian space exploration. Moral reasoning and civic learning also find space. 'Nyay Ki Kursi' uses historical figures like Raja Bhoj and Vikramaditya to explain justice and fairness. 'Haathi aur Cheenti' teaches children about road safety and helmet use through a clever animal story. Other chapters spotlight Kaziranga National Park, Ajanta and Ellora, natural colour making, and Paralympic champion Murlikant Petkar, encouraging empathy, creativity, and national pride. NCERT has begun rolling out newly updated textbooks for several classes as part of its curriculum revision. While some books have already been released, the remaining ones are expected to be launched by the end of the year. (ANI)
India Gazette
04-07-2025
- Politics
- India Gazette
Delhi University's move to allow online credits sparks faculty uproar
By Vishu Adhana New Delhi (India), July 4 (ANI): Delhi University is set to allow undergraduate and postgraduate students to earn academic credits through online platforms like SWAYAM starting from the 2025-26 academic session, a move that has triggered sharp backlash from faculty. An agenda in this regard will be presented in the academic council meeting on Saturday. According to the supplementary agenda, 'In the case of UG programmes, students be provided flexibility to earn up to 5 per cent of the total credits through SWAYAM and MOOCs Platform... not exceeding 8 credits in the entire duration of the Four Year Undergraduate Programme.' For PG students, the limit is 'a maximum of 4 credits' over the full course duration. The credits can be earned across a wide range of categories -- 'DSC, GE, SEC, VAC, AEC' -- as per the agenda. While the proposal cites UGC's 2021 regulations (which allow institutions to offer up to 40% of a programme online per semester), teachers' bodies say this is the beginning of a deeper structural shift that could sideline faculty entirely. The Academic for Action and Development Teachers' Association (AADTA) has called the move a 'backstab' and a 'blueprint for teacherless universities.' 'This is not digitalisation. This is dehumanisation,' AADTA said. 'Courses taught in classrooms for decades will now be shifted online. Teachers will be pushed out--silenced by screens, replaced by portals.' AADTA also criticised the administration for ignoring recruitment on EWS-reserved faculty posts and for instructing colleges not to appoint guest lecturers. 'No workload = No teachers,' AADTA said. 'This is not policy. It is digital displacement.' The association has demanded an immediate freeze on SWAYAM/MOOCs-based credit transfers, urgent recruitment to vacant posts, and a clear stand that online education remains supplementary, not primary. (ANI)
India Gazette
30-06-2025
- Politics
- India Gazette
JNU admin, students spar over meeting invites as hunger strike completes day 4
By Vishu Adhana New Delhi [India], June 30 (ANI): The JNU administration and Students' Union (JNUSU) are at loggerheads over the stakeholders' meeting invite list, even as the students' indefinite hunger strike completes its fourth day on Monday. The protest is set to enter its fifth day on Tuesday. The student body has requested that all stakeholders meet over the demand to reinstate the JNU Entrance Examination (JNUEE) for PhD admissions, as well as a rollback of the university's decision to bar June 2025 UGC-NET aspirants. Vice Chancellor Santishree D. Pandit, in a letter to the students, said the meeting-- originally scheduled for July 1-- stands postponed as several stakeholders would only be available after July 2. While agreeing to an all-stakeholders meeting, she insisted that if JNUTA (JNU Teachers' Association) is invited, then equal representation must be given to JNUTF (JNU Teachers' Federation) as well, since there are 'two teachers' bodies.' 'It is your organisation, JNUSU, and your responsibility to be inclusive. If you want JNUTA, then I will have to invite JNUTF too,' she wrote. This triggered sharp opposition from JNUSU, which accused the administration of selectively legitimising JNUTF--a teachers' group the union describes as aligned with the RSS--while sidelining recognised academic bodies. 'JNUTA is the recognised teachers' union and a permanent invitee to the Academic Council. JNUTF is just an organisation,' the union said in a letter sent Monday evening. Reacting to the development, JNUSU President Nitish Kumar told ANI, 'The administration wants to involve JNUTF, which is an RSS-linked teachers' body. We have asked for an all-stakeholders meeting, and from the teachers' end, JNUTA already represents them. Why especially include JNUTF?' He added that the strike will continue until all demands are met. The union further claimed that the administration's insistence on inviting the Joint Secretary of JNUSU, who has not participated in the JNUEE movement, appears to be an attempt to delay dialogue and cater to 'certain political interests.' 'This deadlock is being deliberately prolonged to avoid addressing the legitimate concerns of the students,' the JNUSU office bearers--Nitish Kumar (President), Manisha (Vice-President), and Munteha Fatima (General Secretary)--wrote. They reiterated their four key demands: reinstatement of the JNU Entrance Examination (JNUEE), rollback of CUET/NET-based admissions, university-led conduct of JNUEE with logistical and financial support, and filling of vacant seats along with resolution of academic delays. The union also reminded the administration that three weeks ago, it had shared the results of a student referendum that overwhelmingly supported the return of JNUEE, but received no response. 'The student community is deeply concerned that these tactics are part of a larger effort to delegitimise JNUSU and weaken the students' movement. However, students remain resolute in their demand for justice and transparency,' the union said. (ANI)
India Gazette
30-06-2025
- Business
- India Gazette
Govt drafts emission targets for over 460 industries under carbon market plan
By Vishu Adhana New Delhi [India], June 30 (ANI): The Ministry of Environment has issued a draft notification proposing legally binding greenhouse gas (GHG) emission targets for over 460 industrial units as part of India's first compliance-based carbon market. The move, aimed at curbing industrial emissions and accelerating decarbonisation, will apply to sectors such as aluminium, iron and steel, petroleum refining, petrochemicals, and textiles. Titled the Greenhouse Gas Emission Intensity Target Rules, 2025, the draft, dated June 23, forms part of the Carbon Credit Trading Scheme (CCTS), 2023. The scheme requires designated industries--referred to as 'obligated entities'--to reduce their GHG emissions per unit of output over time, or compensate by purchasing carbon credit certificates from the Indian Carbon Market. According to the draft, 'the obligated entity shall achieve the GEI targets in the respective compliance year... or meet its GEI target by purchasing carbon credit certificates from the Indian carbon market.' If implemented, the targets will become legally enforceable from the date of final notification. As per the draft, failure to comply will attract financial penalties and legal consequences under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. The targets will be assigned for two compliance years--2025-26 and 2026-27--based on baseline emission intensity data from 2023-24. The draft includes a list of 264 industrial units along with their baseline emission levels and reduction targets for the compliance years 2025-26 and 2026-27 The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) will determine these targets using sectoral benchmarks and past performance. Greenhouse gas emission intensity (GEI) is defined as tonnes of CO2 equivalent emitted per unit of output or product. For example, Hindalco Industries' Taloja aluminium plant in Maharashtra, which had a baseline GEI of 1.3386 tCO2 per tonne in 2023-24, must reduce that figure to 1.2563 by 2026-27. In the steel sector, Arcelor Mittal Nippon Steel India's Hazira facility--India's largest obligated entity by production volume--must cut its emission intensity from 2.2701 to 2.1696 tCO2 per tonne during the same period. The rules also cover the petroleum refining sector. BPCL's Bina Refinery in Madhya Pradesh, with a crude throughput of over 51 million barrels, has been assigned a GEI reduction trajectory from 5.2312 tCO2/MBBLS in 2023-24 to 4.8553 by 2026-27. BPCL's Kochi Refinery, one of the largest in the country, must bring down its GEI from 4.5745 to 4.4230 tCO2/MBBLS in the same time frame. Entities that emit less than their targets will receive carbon credit certificates, calculated as the difference between the GEI target and actual GEI, multiplied by the total production volume. Conversely, those exceeding their targets must buy the difference in credits from the Indian Carbon Market. 'The number of carbon credit certificates to be issued... shall be determined as per the following formula: (GEI Target - GEI Achieved) x Unit of equivalent product produced,' the draft states. Unused credits can be banked for future use, allowing companies some flexibility across compliance years. However, if an entity fails to meet its target and does not purchase the required credits, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) will impose an Environmental Compensation This amount will be 'equal to twice the average price at which a carbon credit certificate is traded during the trading cycle,' as per the notification. The penalty must be paid within 90 days. Funds collected will be used to support carbon market operations, upon recommendation of the National Steering Committee and approval of the Centre. The ministry has invited comments, objections, or suggestions from the public and industry stakeholders. Submissions must be made within 60 days of the draft's publication and can be emailed to [email protected]. (ANI)
India Gazette
23-06-2025
- Climate
- India Gazette
Asia warming nearly twice as fast as global average, warns WMO
By Vishu Adhana New Delhi [India], Jun 23 (ANI): Asia is currently warming at nearly twice the global average, driving extreme weather events and inflicting serious impacts on the region's economies, ecosystems, and societies, according to the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO). In its 'State of the Climate in Asia 2024' report released on Monday, the WMO said that the year 2024 was either the warmest or second warmest year on record--depending on the dataset used--with widespread and prolonged heatwaves affecting the region. The warming trend between 1991 and 2024 was almost double that observed during the 1961-1990 period. The report highlights that in 2024, heatwaves gripped a record area of the ocean, with sea surface temperatures hitting all-time highs. The decadal warming rate of Asia's sea surface was nearly twice the global average. Sea level rise on both the Pacific and Indian Ocean sides of the continent exceeded the global average, increasing the vulnerability of low-lying coastal areas. Meanwhile, glaciers across the High-Mountain Asia region--including parts of the Himalayas and Tian Shan--continued to shrink. Of the 24 glaciers monitored, 23 suffered mass loss during 2023-2024, intensifying hazards such as glacial lake outburst floods and landslides and posing long-term threats to regional water security. The report paints a troubling picture of climate-related disasters across Asia. Extreme rainfall events caused widespread destruction and loss of life in many countries, while tropical cyclones left a trail of devastation. In parallel, prolonged droughts triggered severe economic and agricultural losses, further compounding the humanitarian toll of climate change. 'The State of the Climate in Asia report highlights the changes in key climate indicators such as surface temperature, glacier mass and sea level, which will have major repercussions for societies, economies and ecosystems in the region. Extreme weather is already exacting an unacceptably high toll,' said WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo. 'The work of National Meteorological and Hydrological Services and their partners is more important than ever to save lives and livelihoods,' she added. The report includes a case study from Nepal, demonstrating how improved early warning systems and anticipatory actions can help communities better prepare for and respond to climate variability and change. This, according to WMO, plays a key role in protecting lives and livelihoods in one of the world's most climate-vulnerable regions. The report also states that the entire oceanic area of Asia under WMO Region II has experienced consistent surface ocean warming over the past decades, with particularly rapid increases in the northern Arabian Sea and western Pacific Ocean. Average sea surface temperatures have risen by 0.24C per decade--double the global mean rate of 0.13C. In 2024, most of Asia's ocean area was affected by marine heatwaves of strong, severe, or extreme intensity--the most extensive since records began in 1993. During August and September, nearly 15 million square kilometers of Asia's ocean, or roughly one-tenth of Earth's total ocean surface, experienced marine heatwaves. This is an area about the size of the Russian Federation and more than 1.5 times the size of China. The northern Indian Ocean and waters surrounding Japan, the Yellow Sea, and the East China Sea were especially impacted. Sea-level rise in the Indian and Pacific Oceans bordering Asia outpaced global averages during the period from January 1993 to November 2024. In the Arctic, large parts of the ocean experienced significant sea ice melt, with the ice edge shifting far northward by the end of the season. The High-Mountain Asia region, centred on the Tibetan Plateau and home to the largest volume of ice outside the polar regions, has continued to suffer. Glaciers across this region, covering an area of nearly 100,000 square kilometres, have been retreating steadily for several decades. During 2023-2024, reduced winter snowfall and extreme summer heat led to accelerated glacier mass loss, particularly in the central Himalayas and the Tian Shan range. Urumqi Glacier No.1, located in the eastern Tian Shan, recorded its most negative mass balance since observations began in 1959. (ANI)
