Environment

On June 10, 2025, the Union Government announced plans to regulate air conditioner (AC) temperature settings to a range of 20–28°C. The initiative aims to cut electricity use and promote energy conservation. It's a crucial move, considering cooling systems account for 10% of India's energy demand. While critics argue the move restricts individual thermal comfort, experts believe such regulations are long overdue. Currently, AC manufacturers offer temperatures ranging from 16 to 30 °C. The science behind temperature regulation So, why is it imperative to regulate AC temperatures and minimise AC use? “The lower you set your AC temperature, the more…

On June 28th, Puttenahalli Neighbourhood Lake Improvement Trust (PNLIT), the first citizens' collective in Bengaluru to formally maintain a lake, celebrated its 15th anniversary. Puttenahalli lake, also called Puttakere because of its relatively small size, was waste-ridden and nearly dry in the 2000s. In 2008, Usha Rajagopalan, writer and resident of an apartment near the lake, launched a campaign to revive it. Other interested residents in the area soon joined in, and they formally registered themselves as PNLIT. Their first major success came in 2010 when BBMP started reviving the lake in response to their campaign. The next year, PNLIT…

Nestled within the sprawling 350-acre built-up township of Hiranandani Estate lies a 2.46-hectare (approximately six acres) gem. The Kavesar Lake, the last remaining “natural” wetland in Thane, is an ancient freshwater body formed naturally due to surface undulations and lies near a saltwater creek.   A single visit to Kavesar Lake is enough to leave one mesmerised by its natural beauty, biodiversity and inexplicable positive energy which soothes the body, calms the mind and uplifts the soul. The villagers who have lived in its vicinity for generations have revered the Kavesar Lake habitat as a ‘Devrai’ (sacred grove). The lake is…

In the informal settlement of Seemapuri in Delhi, Rihanna sees her mother leave for work early every morning, come back around noon to make and serve food for the family, and then go back to work till 4 pm. “My mother is a waste segregator,” explains Rihanna, and this is her daily routine, come rain, hail or the gruelling sun of a Delhi summer. Many women in Seemapuri are engaged in waste work and have a similar routine.  Settlements such as Seemapuri often lack essentials such as water, electricity, and proper sewerage systems. Inside homes, the kitchen is typically the…

The Indian government has churned out multiple codes and schemes for making buildings climate-friendly in the past two decades, but with little success. Though several states have adopted codes such as the Energy Conservation and Building Code (ECBC), this has hardly translated into practice. But some cities like Hyderabad and Ahmedabad have made better progress. These measures are urgent now, as more people are falling prey to heat-related deaths and diseases, including inside poorly ventilated buildings. In the summer of 2024 alone, the Indian government reported 360 heatstroke deaths. Cities like Ahmedabad have seen devastating heat wave impacts much earlier,…

Beyond Bengaluru's municipal boundaries lies a troubling pattern of neglect. Many lakes that are under the control of gram panchayats are slowly being lost to unchecked encroachments and poorly executed rejuvenation efforts. In a recent series, we discussed their deterioration and mismanagement, a trend experts point out, is widespread among lakes outside Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) limits. In this interview, environmental activist and Friends of Lakes member Nagesh Aras dives into the root causes of this mismanagement. He highlights the urgent need for governance reforms and scientific guidelines to restore these lakes. Governance and mismanagement Why do lakes under…

Anthony Ammal, a 43-year-old fisher from the coastal hamlet of Pulicat in Chennai, begins her day long before the sun scorches the concrete beneath her feet. Her mornings are occupied with preparing her two daughters for school and ensuring they are fed before she steps out. She then makes her way to the Pazhaverkadu fish market, where she labours for approximately 15 hours each day. As she settles into her allocated spot to clean the day's fresh catch, the sun begins to blaze overhead, and the humid breeze offers little relief. Her sunburnt skin stings each time the salty sweat…

Legal action by concerned citizens has frequently played a crucial role in safeguarding India's natural ecosystems. One such initiative finally stopped Pallavaram Municipality from dumping waste illegally inside the Pallavaram Periya Eri, a once-thriving lake in Chennai’s southern suburbs. Advocate Surendranath Karthik took up a pro bono case in 2012 to restore Pallavaram Periya Eri. The case was initially filed with the NGT's Principal Bench and later moved to the Southern Bench. After over a decade, the case resulted in court orders for the lake’s restoration. "Though I am not a resident of Pallavaram, I have seen my father advocating…

Dr Girish Salgaonkar, a fisher from Charkop, remembers a time when people used to grow vegetables in Kandivali. He rues the loss of their traditional way of life, catalysed by land reclamation and the destruction of mangroves. Now, with the construction of the coastal road, the threat of losing more mangroves has returned. In March, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) issued a public notice to change the land use of Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) areas from Goregaon to Dahisar for Phase 2 of the Mumbai Coastal Road Project. They invited public feedback and held a meeting on May 23 to…

Karnataka has long worn its forests as a crown, steeped in folklore, sanctified in song, and stitched into its cultural identity. None captured this reverence better than cultural icon and cinema legend Dr Rajkumar, whose evergreen lines, "Naaviruva Thaanave Gandhada Gudi. Andada Gudi Gandhada Gudi. Chandada Gudi Srigandhada Gudi," remain etched in the Kannada psyche. These words weren’t just poetic tributes—they were declarations of love for the sacred groves of this land. At the heart of this green devotion lies Bengaluru. Now known for its traffic and tech parks, the city once breathed through its 35 forest blocks, spread across…