Environmental Groups Say Defer Climate Talks

 

FILE PHOTO: A father and his child hold a sign as climate activists protest outside the Shell building in London, Britain on September 8, 2020

A coalition of environmental groups has called for this year's climate summit to be postponed, arguing that too little has been done to ensure the safety of participants amid the continuing threat from COVID-19.

The Climate Action Network, which includes more than 1,500 organizations in 130 countries, said there is a risk that many government delegates, civil society campaigners and journalists from developing countries may be unable to attend because of travel restrictions. The U.N. climate conference, known as COP26, is scheduled for early November in Glasgow, Scotland.

"Our concern is that those countries most deeply affected by the climate crisis and those countries suffering from the lack of support by rich nations in providing vaccines will be left out of the talks and conspicuous in their absence at COP26,'' said Tasneem Essop, the network's executive director. "There has always been an inherent power imbalance within the U.N. climate talks and this is now compounded by the health crisis.''

The British government, which is hosting the event, quickly rejected calls for postponement, saying a recent scientific report shows the urgency for leaders to tackle the issue without further delay.

COP26 President-Designate Alok Sharma said the conference had already been delayed a year because of the pandemic, but climate change has not taken time off. "We are working tirelessly with all our partners, including the Scottish government and the U.N., to ensure an inclusive, accessible and safe summit in Glasgow with a comprehensive set of COVID mitigation measures,'' he said in a statement.

The European Union's climate monitoring service said on Tuesday that average temperatures across the continent this summer were the warmest on record.

Measurements by the EU's Copernicus satellite monitoring program showed that June to August temperatures across Europe were about 1 degree Celsius (1.8 degrees Fahrenheit) higher than the 1991-2020 average, and 0.1 degree Celsius warmer than the previous record, evidenced during the summers of 2010 and 2018.

Mediterranean countries, in particular, saw record-breaking temperatures this summer, along with devastating wildfires that prompted Greece this week to appoint a new minister of climate crisis and civil protection.

‘Everyone Is Scared’ Echoes In India Inc After Infosys Attack

The RSS called Infosys "anti-national" for letting down the tax system, sending a chill through the industry wary of falling on the wrong side of the PM Modi government

A public diatribe against two business giants by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s officials and his ideological allies has unnerved the business community, several industry executives told news agency Reuters.

Over the weekend, a magazine run by members of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) launched an attack on tech giant Infosys for failing to resolve glitches in the income tax website it manages.

The RSS called Infosys “anti-national” for letting down the tax system, sending a chill through the industry wary of falling on the wrong side of the PM Modi government.

Just last month, the finance ministry “summoned” Infosys’ CEO over the tech issues and in an unusual step, took to Twitter to announce the summoning, heightening a media frenzy around a company that has been the face of India’s IT’s prowess.

In August, the commerce minister publicly lashed out at the $106 billion Tata Group for criticising proposed stringent rules for e-commerce and said local companies should not only think about profits.

In India, safeguarding domestic businesses has been PM Modi’s priority. While government or RSS criticism of foreign businesses like Amazon and Monsanto is common, local businesses are rarely caught in the crossfire.

But the latest events have raised concerns among business leaders about whether PM Modi is now taking a hardline approach towards domestic giants as well, five industry sources said.

One venture-capital executive said the criticism was akin to “harassment” of businesses and risks souring investor sentiment. Another executive working at a global consultancy said “everyone is scared” as businesses don’t want to run foul of the government.

“The frontal attack on iconic elements of Indian businesses have only buttressed the need for companies to ensure they are conforming, not just with tax issues, but with other government initiatives,” said Dilip Cherian, an image guru and co-founder of leading Indian PR firm Perfect Relations.

RC Bhargava, chairman of Maruti Suzuki, defended Infosys, saying it had played a key role in building India’s software reputation globally.

“It needs to explain the glitches, but it doesn’t mean there is a conspiracy to damage the country,” he said.

A senior member of RSS, however, said there’s nothing wrong in the way the companies have been criticised, saying they must be thick skinned and held accountable.

“Why should questions not be raised, have corporates become a holy cow?” said the RSS official who declined to be identified.

Infosys and Tata didn’t respond to a request for comment.

India Inc Largely Silent

So far, PM Modi’s government has not commented on the backlash on social media and from politicians. None of the sources who spoke to Reuters wanted to be identified as they fear a reprisal from the government and no industry lobby groups has come out and spoken against the government or RSS.

The Indian Express said in an editorial it was “time for India Inc to stand up”, saying business leaders had maintained “a studied – and perhaps strategic – silence about the vitriol that has been seeping into the public discourse.”

The Infosys controversy is related to the government’s new income tax filing website launched on June 7. There were many glitches which Infosys could not fix, despite assurances.

When the Infosys CEO was summoned in August, the finance minister conveyed “deep disappointment and concerns,” giving the company until September 15 to fix things.

The RSS magazine Panchjanya said the company was making the same mistakes over and over again, creating doubts about its motives. “There are allegations that the management of Infosys is deliberately trying to destabilize the Indian economy,” it said.

After the furore over the article, Sunil Ambekar, the joint head of the RSS publicity wing, sought to distance the organisation from the contents and said Infosys had made a seminal contribution to the country.

But concerns remain others may be targeted, too.

A mutual fund manager with Infosys and Tata Investments said he was worried as it indicated “the government was not pro-business”, and there were fears other companies can face such backlash for lapses. (Reuters)

Climate Action Cannot Wait For Covid Pandemic To End

 

One of the co-authors of the editorial noted that going above the mean temperature of 1.5 degrees Celsius and allowing the continued destruction of nature, including melting of ice-caps in Antarctica (above), will bring far deadlier crisis than COVID-19

World leaders need to take immediate action to limit climate change, restore biodiversity, and protect health, according to an editorial published in over 220 leading journals, including The Lancet and the National Medical Journal of India.

The editorial is being published ahead of the UN General Assembly, one of the last international meetings taking place before the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow, UK in November.

It warns that the greatest threat to global public health into the future is the continued failure of world leaders to take adequate action to keep the global temperature rise below 1.5 degrees Celsius and to restore nature.

“The recent examples of extreme weather all over the globe have brought into focus the reality that climate change is,” said Peush Sahni, Editor-in-Chief of the National Medical Journal of India, and one of the co-authors of the editorial.

“We must act now lest it is too late. We owe it to the future generations,” Sahni said.

The authors warn that while recent targets to reduce emissions and conserve nature are welcome, they are not enough and are yet to be matched with credible short and longer term plans.

They urge governments to intervene to transform societies and economies, for example, by supporting the redesign of transport systems, cities, production and distribution of food, markets for financial investments, and health systems.

Richard Horton, Editor-in-Chief of The Lancet, said urgently addressing the climate crisis is one of the greatest opportunities for advancing the well-being of people worldwide.

“The health community must do more to raise its critical voice in holding political leaders accountable for their actions to keep global temperature rises below 1.5 degrees Celsius,” Horton explained.

The editorial argues that sufficient global action can only be achieved if high-income countries do far more to support the rest of the world and to reduce their own consumption.

Developed countries must commit to increasing climate finance: fulfilling their outstanding commitment to provide USD 100 billion a year, have a dual focus on mitigation and adaptation, including improving the resilience of health systems, it said.

The editorial argues that this money should be provided in the form of grants, rather than loans, and should come alongside forgiving large debts, which constrain the agency of so many low-income countries.

Additional funding must be marshalled to compensate for inevitable loss and damage caused by the consequences of the environmental crisis, the authors noted.

“While low and middle income countries have historically contributed less to climate change, they bear an inordinate burden of the adverse effects, including on health,” said Professor Lukoye Atwoli, Editor-in-Chief of the East Africa Medical Journal, and one of the co-authors of the editorial.

“We therefore call for equitable contributions whereby the world’s wealthier countries do more to offset the impact of their actions on the climate, beginning now, and continuing into the future,” Atwoli said.

Fiona Godlee, Editor-in-Chief of The BMJ, and one of the co-authors of the editorial, noted that going above the mean temperature of 1.5 degrees Celsius and allowing the continued destruction of nature will bring far deadlier crisis than COVID-19.

“Wealthier nations must act faster and do more to support those countries already suffering under higher temperatures. 2021 has to be the year the world changes course — our health depends on it,” said Godlee.

According to Eric J. Rubin, Editor-in-Chief of The New England Journal of Medicine, and one of the co-authors of the editorial, the environment and health are inextricably intertwined.

“The changing climate is endangering us in many ways, including its critical impacts on health and health care delivery,” said Rubin.

“As medical and public health practitioners, we have an obligation not only to anticipate new health care needs but also to be active participants in limiting the causes of the climate crisis,” the added. (PTI)

Warmest Ever Winter Recorded In New Zealand

 

The underlying warming trend can be tracked through carbon dioxide concentration, which has increased in New Zealand from 320 parts per million 50 years ago to about 412 parts per million today (Representative image; Reuters, Pixabay)

The southern winter that just ended in New Zealand was the warmest ever recorded, and scientists say that climate change is driving temperatures ever higher.

For the three months through August, the average temperature was 9.8 Celsius (50 Fahrenheit), according to New Zealand’s National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research.

That’s 1.3 deg. C above the long-term average and 0.2 deg. C higher than the previous record posted last year. Scientists have been keeping records since 1909, but most of the warmest winters have been recent.

Nava Fedaeff, a meteorologist at the institute, said that on top of a background of global warming, this year there were more warm winds than usual from the north and warmer sea temperatures.

She said the underlying warming trend can be tracked through carbon dioxide concentration, which has increased in New Zealand from 320 parts per million 50 years ago to about 412 parts per million today.

Fedaeff said snowfall at lower elevations was well below average this winter as it was often replaced with rain, which could make for lower river levels later in the year because there will be less snowmelt. That could impact irrigation for farms, she said.

There were also more extreme weather events, Fedaeff said, including severe flooding in some places and dry spells in others.

Professor James Renwick, a climate scientist at the Victoria University of Wellington, said that in the short term at least, some New Zealand farmers with cow or sheep herds might benefit from a longer grass-growing season.

But he said the changes were also putting pressure on natural ecosystems and over time, more species would face extinction. He said it was imperative for humans to slow the rate of greenhouse gas emissions.

“If we don’t get on top of warming soon, there is going to be grief for large sections of the world,” Renwick said.

Renwick said that New Zealand had talked a lot about climate change but had so far done little to curb its emissions. But he said there were now good government policies in place, including a pledge to become carbon-neutral by 2050.

He said there were plenty of natural resources like wind, sun and water that could provide renewable power for the nation’s energy needs.

New Zealand could become world-leading in green energy and a green economy, he said.

Spring Revival Project Offers Hope Amid Climate Change In The Himalayas

 

A woman fetches water from a spring at Tula Kote village in the Kumaon hills, Uttarakhand
(Image: Fernando Quevedo de Oliveira/Alamy)

Spring 2020 had just begun in the Himalayas but for Kamla Devi, 36, a resident of Nathuakhan village, in the north Indian state of Uttarakhand, the changing of the seasons was different. The water level of the local spring had remained unusually low compared with previous years. Devi said, “Summers are the hardest, our spring dries up and we are required to fetch water from far-off places.” But as the winter snow melts water is usually plentiful. This was not the case last year, she said.

Springs, rivulets and ponds are the veins of the Himalayas’ water system and are fundamental for sustaining livelihoods, and supporting the cultural heritage and collective well-being of mountain communities. Like Kamla Devi, many people in the Himalayan region are experiencing climate change impacts such as an increase in extreme precipitation events and longer drought periods.

Climate change continues to impact the availability, quality and accessibility of potable water resources in the Himalayas, as confirmed by the Hindu Kush Himalayan Monitoring and Assessment Programme (HIMAP) report by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD). Studies quoted in ICIMOD’s assessment found that almost 50% of perennial springs in the Indian Himalayas, including in Uttarakhand, have dried up or become seasonal because of climate change and unplanned urbanisation in the region.

According to a 2018 report by the Indian government, less than 50% of Uttarakhand’s population has access to adequate quantities of safe drinking water. As a result, the call to revive springs in the mountains is becoming louder and more urgent. In Uttarakhand, the Central Himalayan Rural Action Group (CHIRAG) and other prominent civil society organisations are working to empower local communities to take up sustainable land management and rejuvenate their springs.

Reviving Uttarakhand springs to avert a water crisis

To achieve measurable and replicable results, CHIRAG has deployed a practical method, originally inspired by a more technical process designed by the Pune-based Advanced Centre for Water Resources Development and Management (ACWADAM).

Researchers teach local communities about mountain geology and explain how water flows beneath the rocks, to help them understand how rivulets form and travel underground before reaching the surface. They involve residents in creating recharge structures such as contour trenches, deep pits and percolation pits, which in turn help revive the springs. Rainwater collects in these pits during the monsoon, and between late June and early September soaks into the aquifer, rather than running off the land. This process also helps protect the local vegetation, preserving soil integrity.

The Centre for Ecology Development and Research (CEDAR, a research-based NGO in Uttarakhand) is studying the health of springs in Nainital, the district where Devi’s village Nathuakhan is located. CEDAR is also gauging the participation of local residents as citizen scientists through field visits. The ongoing project, led by CEDAR in partnership with CHIRAG, started in late 2019. By 2021, it was showing results.

During a visit by the CEDAR research team, we encountered Vimla Bisht, a resident of Nathuakhan, as she pruned small pine trees with other women in one of the critical ‘recharge zones’ where rainwater naturally collects and percolates into the aquifer. The 38-year-old told us that pruning trees and removing invasive weeds helps preserve the vegetation growing in recharge areas, as well as creating space to plant more trees. The branches cut by the women can be used at home for various purposes, she added.

After testing their method on more than 400 springs in the lower Himalayan Kumaon region (one of the two divisions of Uttarakhand state, a region of rich biodiversity), CHIRAG researchers found that the method is both effective and replicable in a wide range of natural settings. Surendra Negi, a team leader at CHIRAG, said, “This springwater-revival method resonated with locals.” One doesn’t need to be a scientist to understand the science behind the rejuvenation process, Negi explained. An intermediate level of education is enough to engage with the scheme, something that is crucial to its success. “Community engagement,” he added, “is the backbone [of the project’s] replicability in Uttarakhand.”

The method

Vimla Bisht’s community has emerged as an agent of change through their efforts to rejuvenate the Mandir Naula, or Temple Spring, in Nathuakhan which was becoming water-scarce.

Villagers are working with CHIRAG to collect data on geology, water quality, quantity and resource use. Using Google Earth and the open source geographic information system QGIS, the community creates a treatment area map which is used for various spring-recharge activities such as building recharge structures, plantation drives and removal of invasive species.

CHIRAG team members Bishan Raikwal and Hema Bisht say that this method largely relies on community engagement. This takes the form of shramdaan (voluntary contribution of time and labour), offering private lands for constructing recharge systems and contributions to the Operation and Maintenance Funds (about 20 Indian rupees per year per beneficiary household) to pay for maintaining the structures, planting vegetation and caretaking activities.

Community participation in CHIRAG-CEDAR project

The work is implemented through a water user committee, a democratic body locally referred to as ‘Jal Upbhokta Samiti’ that is tasked with the management of local springsheds. Its members develop scientific skills that they then apply to spring data management and recharge operations, also liaising with a village-level government body (gram panchayat) for land clearance to conduct recharge activities.

The members are trained as para-hydrogeologists who help identify a geological recharge area map followed by a geological survey. CHIRAG weaved these steps into a training module that can be applied to spring areas across Uttarakhand. “We function on a rotational basis in which two-three members from a household join for shramdaan, volunteer help and contribution,” resident Dikar Singh explained.

Another member of CHIRAG, Vikram Raikwal, demonstrated his flair with a spade. On a heavily inclined slope, he dug a cubical percolation pit. “The water running off from the hilltop will be trapped in this pit,” he said. “In turn, a network of interconnected trenches feeds a number of deep recharge pits.” These, he explained, will hold water and recharge the groundwater aquifer through infiltration.

One major challenge to the successful implementation of this method is acquiring land identified by the treatment area map from private owners, van panchayats (village-level forest institutions) and the forest department. Other than this, maintaining the body of scientific knowledge among the community which produces timely data from the ground is a challenge in itself.

Empowering women

Water insecurity is felt differently by men and women. Since water management is traditionally a woman’s duty, women face unique physical challenges due to the long hours they invest in fetching water, often from distant locations. Involving rural women in livelihood initiatives has been the core strength of CHIRAG, which has created a space for better gender representation.

Still, despite being involved in the spring-rejuvenation programme, women tend to take up fewer decision-making roles. Only a few villages have shown unexpectedly high female participation, and traditional patriarchal rules remain a challenge to this shift.

Spring rejuvenation is already showing its potential to mitigate, and in some cases reverse, the growing issue of water scarcity affecting the region. Between last spring and this summer, Kamla Devi went from walking two-three hours a day to collect water, to just 10 minutes. After the springshed treatment, the Mandir Naula brims with water again. Devi, an active member of the water user committee, is hopeful that after the rejuvenation process her local spring will stay healthy for years to come.

TheThirdPole

Lekhara Becomes First Indian Woman To Win Two Paralympic Medals

 

Gold medallist Avani Lekhara celebrates after winning in the R-2 women's 10m Air Rifle Standing SH1 event at the Tokyo Paralympic Games (Reuters)

Trailblazing shooter Avani Lekhara on Friday became the first Indian woman to win two Paralympic medals by claiming the 50m Rifle 3 Position SH1 bronze to add to an unprecedented gold she had secured earlier in the ongoing Games in Tokyo.

The 19-year-old Lekhara, competing in her debut Games, qualified second for the event with a score of 1176, including 51 inner 10s.

In the fiercely contested finals, Lekhara totalled 445.9 to finish ahead of Ukraine's Iryna Shchetnik, who let slip her grip on the medal spot with a poor third shot of 9.9 in the elimination.

"It was a tough final but I'm happy to have made it into bronze. I could have done better than this. It's just what finals do to you," Lekhara said on her performance.

Lekhara had become the first Indian woman to win a Paralympic gold by claiming the top honours in the 10m air rifle standing SH1 event. That was also the first-ever shooting medal that India had won in the Games.

"There are a lot of things on which I have to work, and I will definitely do better than this next time. There were a lot of distractions but I gave my 100 per cent to this," she said, referring to the celebrations that followed her gold medal.

The Jaipur-based shooter, who sustained spinal cord injuries in a car accident in 2012 rendering her immobile, had fired a world record equalling total of 249.6, which was also a new Paralympic record.

Prior to her, Joginder Singh Sodhi was the lone Indian to win multiple medals in the same edition of the Games, when he fetched one silver and two bronze medals in the 1984 Paralympics.

His silver came in shot put, while the two bronze medals were won in discus and javelin throw.

Javelin thrower Devendra Jhajharia is the other multiple Paralympic medallist but all his three medals (two gold and a silver) have come in different editions of the Games.

The gold in Friday's event was claimed by China's Zhang Cuiping with a new Games record of 457.9, while German Natascha Hiltrop took the silver with a 457.1 in the final.

Athletes in SH1 Rifle have an impairment in their legs, for example amputations or paraplegia. Some athletes compete in a seated position, while others compete in a standing position.

Lekhara is not done yet and will next be seen in the mixed 50m rifle prone SH1 event also featuring Deepak and Siddhartha Babu.

She started shooting on the insistence of her father in 2015 at a Jaipur shooting range.

"She was angry at her condition and hardly had a desire to talk to anyone. For a change, I used to take her to JDA shooting range in Jagatpura, Jaipur, where she developed interest in shooting," her father Praveen Lekhara had said after the gold medal win in 10m air rifle competition.

The youngster was also inspired by Olympic gold-medallist rifle shooter Abhinav Bindra after reading his autobiography, which was a gift from her father.

A student of law, Lekhara made her debut for India in 2017 World Cup in Al Ain, UAE.

In the men's 50m Rifle 3P event, Deepak failed to qualify for the finals after finishing 18th with a score of 1114.

With Lekhara's bronze, India's medal tally has risen to 12.

The country has won two gold, six silver and four bronze medals so far, an unprecedented and truly remarkable performance given that its combined haul for all previous Games stood at 12 before this.

As Afghanistan Adjusts To Taliban Rule, Music Goes Silent

 

FILE PHOTO: Afghan music students participate in a music training session at a cultural and educational centre in Kabul, Afghanistan in 2014 (Reuters)

Even before the last US flight left Kabul at midnight on Monday, many of the bright and garish sights and sounds of city life in Afghanistan were changing, as those left behind tried to fit in with the austere tone of their new Taliban rulers.

The Taliban have so far been at pains to show a more conciliatory face to the world, with none of the harsh public punishments and outright bans on public entertainments that characterized their previous time in power before 2001.

Cultural activities are allowed, they say, so long as they do not go against Sharia law and Afghanistan’s Islamic culture.

Taliban authorities in Kandahar, the birthplace of the movement, issued a formal order against radio stations playing music and female announcers last week but for many, no formal order was necessary.

Already, colourful signs outside beauty parlours have been painted over, jeans have been replaced by traditional dress and radio stations have replaced their normal menu of Hindi and Persian pop and call-in shows with sombre patriotic music.

“It’s not that the Taliban ordered us to change anything, we have altered the programming for now as we don’t want Taliban to force us to close down,” said Khalid Sediqqi, a producer at a private radio station in the central city of Ghazni.

“Also, no one in this country is in the mood for entertainment, we are all in a state of shock,” he said. “I am not even sure if anyone is tuning to radio anymore.”

During the 20 years of Western-backed government, a lively popular culture thrived in Kabul and other cities, with a mashup of body building, energy drinks, extravagant sculpted hairstyles and jangly pop songs. Turkish soap operas, call-in programmes and television talent shows like ‘Afghan Star’ became major hits.

‘TOXIC’

For senior Taliban, many raised in religious madrassas and with the experience of years of fighting and hardship, the change is overdue.

“Our culture has become toxic, we see Russian and American influence everywhere, even in the food we eat, that is something people should realise and make necessary changes,” a Taliban commander said. “This will take time but it will happen.”

Across the country, the change has been noticeable.

While senior Taliban officials have said repeatedly their forces should treat the population respectfully and not hand out arbitrary punishments, many mistrust them or don’t believe they can control the footsoldiers on the streets.

“There is no music in all Jalalalad city, people are scared and afraid because Taliban are beating people,” said Naseem, a former official in the eastern province of Nangarhar.

Zarifullah Sahel, a local journalist in Laghman province near Kabul said the head of the Taliban’s local cultural commission told the state-run public radio and six other private stations to adjust their programming to ensure it was in line with Sharia law.

Since then, music programmes and political, cultural and news programming not related to religious issues had dried up.

But even where formal orders have not been issued, the message that the freewheeling era has come to an end and that it is safer not to stand out has been clear.

“I fear the Taliban may target me if was seen wearing jeans or western shirts or a suit,” said Mustafa Ali Rahman, a former tax official in Laghman province. “One just doesn’t know what they can do to punish us.”

A former civil activist in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif said shops and restaurants appeared to have decided for themselves and turned off their radios.

“There is no warning about music, but people themselves have stopped,” he said. (Reuters)

Congress Seeks Judicial Probe Into Lathicharge On Farmers

 

Farmers listen to a speaker during a protest against the farm laws at Singhu border near New Delhi

A delegation of Congress MLAs on Tuesday met Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya, seeking a judicial probe into the lathicharge on farmers and requesting him not to give his nod to the Land Acquisition Bill passed by the state assembly recently.

Meanwhile, another party delegation submitted a memorandum to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in Delhi against the lathicharge on farmers.

In another development, Haryana chief secretary on Tuesday sought a detailed report from the Karnal deputy commissioner after protesters blocked a national highway and police used force to disperse them.

The state police had lathicharged a group of farmers disrupting traffic movement on a highway while heading towards Karnal in Haryana to protest against a BJP meeting on August 28.

The Congress delegation, led by the Leader of Opposition in the state assembly, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, also submitted to the Governor a video of an official, in which he is seen telling police to “break farmers' heads”, according to a statement.

Submitting a memorandum, Hooda reiterated his demand for a judicial inquiry by a sitting judge of the High Court or a retired judge into the lathicharge incident, in which around 10 farmers were injured.

On the issue of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill, 2021, the Congress delegation urged the Governor not to give his approval to it and send it back to the Haryana Assembly for reconsideration.

Hooda had earlier said the Haryana government has delivered another blow to the rights of farmers through the Bill, with the Congress demanding that it be either withdrawn or referred to a select committee.

“This Bill is anti-farmer, anti-poor and undemocratic. The Bill was passed hurriedly without a detailed discussion in the House,” Hooda told the Governor.

Hooda said the new Bill will hurt interests of farmers who are already agitating against the Centre's agriculture laws for the past nine months.

He claimed that provisions safeguarding interests of farmers have been taken away.

“All provisions of the old Land Acquisition Act, such as the consent of farmers, the procedure for prior notice and giving residential plots with compensation in lieu of land, have been done away (with) in the new Bill,” Hooda said.

Earlier, talking to reporters before meeting the Governor, the former chief minister commented on the completion of 2,500 days of the BJP-led government, alleging, “Both terms of the BJP government have been full of failures. Then what is the government celebrating?”

“Is the government celebrating the fact that it has made Haryana number one in unemployment, crime, drugs, scams, farmer protests and pollution,” he asked.

“Is the government celebrating the fact that it got the farmers beaten up with sticks? Is it being celebrated that the farmer is sitting on the streets today? Is it celebrating the fact that today the state has got a debt of Rs 2.5 lakh crore?” he asked.

Meanwhile, another delegation of Haryana Congress leaders, led by party general secretary Vivek Bansal, who is incharge of Haryana affairs at the AICC, submitted a memorandum to the NHRC in Delhi regarding the lathicharge.

Bansal told mediapersons that they demanded that the officer who directed such a “barbaric lathicharge on the farmers” be suspended.

The government should publicly apologise for this act and find a way to fulfil demands of the farmers, he said.

“Prime Minister Narendra Modi is giving the slogan of ''atmanirbhar'' but on the other hand, the government is ordering lathicharge on farmers'' who have actually made the country self-reliant,” said Bansal. (PTI)

 

As US Military Leaves Kabul, Many Americans, Afghans Remain

 

Evacuees assemble before boarding a C-17 Globemaster during an evacuation at the Hamid Karzai International Airport, Afghanistan (Reuters)

As the final five US military transport aircraft lifted off out of Afghanistan, they left behind up to 200 Americans and thousands of desperate Afghans who couldn’t get out and now must rely on the Taliban to allow their departure.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US will continue to try to get Americans and Afghans out of the country, and will work with Afghanistan’s neighbors to secure their departure either over land or by charter flight once the Kabul airport reopens.

We have no illusion that any of this will be easy, or rapid, said Blinken, adding that the total number of Americans who are in Afghanistan and still want to leave may be closer to 100.

Speaking shortly after the Pentagon announced the completion of the US military pullout on Monday, Blinken said the US Embassy in Kabul will remain shuttered and vacant for the foreseeable future. American diplomats, he said, will be based in Doha, Qatar.

“We will continue our relentless efforts to help Americans, foreign nationals and Afghans leave Afghanistan if they choose,” Blinken said in an address from the State Department. “Our commitment to them holds no deadline.”

Marine Gen. Frank McKenzie, head of US Central Command, told reporters the US military was able to get as many as 1,500 Afghans out in the final hours of the American evacuation mission. But now it will be up to the State Department working with the Taliban to get any more people out.

McKenzie said there were no citizens left stranded at the airport and none were on the final few military flights out. He said the US military maintained the ability to get Americans out right up until just before the end, but none of them made it to the airport.

“There’s a lot of heartbreak associated with this departure,” said McKenzie. “We did not get everybody out that we wanted to get out. But I think if we’d stayed another 10 days we wouldn’t have gotten everybody out that we wanted to get out.”

McKenzie and other officials painted a vivid picture of the final hours US troops were on the ground, and the preparations they made to ensure that the Taliban and Islamic State group militants did not get functioning US military weapons systems and other equipment.

The terror threat remains a major problem in Afghanistan, with at least 2,000 hard core members of the Islamic State group who remain in the country, including many released from prisons as the Taliban swept to control.

Underscoring the ongoing security threats, the weapon systems used just hours earlier to counter IS rockets launched toward the airport were kept operational until the very last minute as the final US military aircraft flew out, officials said. One of the last things US troops did was to make the so-called C-RAMS (Counter Rocket, Artillery and Mortar System) inoperable.

McKenzie said they demilitarized the system so it can never be used again. Officials said troops did not blow up equipment in order to ensure they left the airport workable for future flights, once those begin again. In addition, McKenzie said the US also disabled 27 Humvees and 73 aircraft so they can never be used again.

Throughout the day, as the final C-17 transport planes prepared to take off, McKenzie said the US kept overwhelming US airpower overhead to deal with potential IS threats.

Back at the Pentagon, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, watched the final 90 minutes of the military departure in real time from an operations center in the basement.

According to a US official, they sat in hushed silence as they watched troops make last-minute runway checks, make the key defense systems inoperable and climb aboard the C-17s. The official said you could hear a pin drop as the last aircraft lifted off, and leaders around the room breathed sighs of relief.

Later, Austin phoned Maj. Gen. Christopher Donahue, commander of the 82nd Airborne Division, who was coordinating the evacuation. Donahue and acting US ambassador to Afghanistan Ross Wilson were the last to board the final plane that left Kabul.

Officials spoke on condition of anonymity to provide details of military operations.

“Simply because we have left, that doesn’t mean the opportunities for both Americans that are in Afghanistan that want to leave and Afghans who want to leave, they will not be denied that opportunity,” said McKenzie.

The military left some equipment for the Taliban in order to run the airport, including two firetrucks, some front-end loaders and aircraft staircases.

Blinken said the US will work with Turkey and Qatar to help them get the Kabul airport up and running again.

“This would enable a small number of daily charter flights, which is a key for anyone who wants to depart from Afghanistan moving forward,” he said.

‘Police Action On Haryana Farmers Akin To 2nd Jallianwala Bagh’

 

A policeman interacts with farmers protesting outside the Circuit House, where Punjab BJP President Ashwani Sharma and others held a party meeting, in Jalandhar, on August 26 (PTI)

The Shiv Sena on Monday termed as the "second Jallianwala Bagh" the lathicharge on farmers by the police in Haryana and said the ML Khattar government has no right to remain in power anymore.

An editorial in the Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana' said that when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was inaugurating the renovated Jallianwala Bagh complex in Amritsar, a second Jallianwala Bagh was happening in Haryana.

At least 10 people were injured on Saturday as police lathicharged a group of farmers disrupting traffic movement on a highway in Haryana while heading towards Karnal, to protest against a Bharatiya Janata Party meeting attended by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, state BJP president Om Prakash Dhankar and other leaders.

"The seeds of cruelty being sown by the government will bear sour fruits. This is for sure. The Manohar Lal Khattar government has no right to remain in power," the Sena said.

It said the lathicharge incident might make farmers in India revolt and take revenge for each drop of blood that was shed by them.

"The farmers in Haryana were lathicharged on their heads because they raised slogans against CM Khattar. A Union Minister speaks of attacking the Chief Minister of Maharashtra and when action is taken against him legally, the state government is called intolerant. Why are the critics silent on the Khattar government's action on farmers?" the Sena asked.

Union Minister and BJP MP Narayan Rane was arrested on August 24 after his "would have slapped CM Thackeray for the latter's ignorance of the year of India's independence" remarks kicked up a huge row.

He was released on bail the same night.

"Farmers have been protesting at the Ghazipur border near Delhi for the last one year demanding repealing of the three Central farm laws, stopping privatisation of agriculture and preventing APMCs from being taken over by select corporates, MSP law. But PM Modi hasn't met them yet. The government is so stone-hearted. The government wants 'Jan Ashirwad'. Will they get the 'Ashirvad' (blessings) of people by breaking the heads of farmers," the editorial asked.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday virtually inaugurated the renovated complex of the Jallianwala Bagh memorial.

On April 13, 1919 the British forces fired indiscriminately on a large and peaceful gathering of protesters at the Jallianwala Bagh, in Amritsar (Punjab), killing over 1,000 people and wounding hundreds of them.

 

Kovind Hopes India Would Be Discrimination-Free By 2047

 

President Ram Nath Kovind awards ceretificates to the students during the convocation of Dr Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University (BBAU), in Lucknow (PTI)

President Ram Nath Kovind on Thursday said he hoped that India would be free of discrimination and become a developed nation by 2047, when it celebrates the centenary of its independence.

While speaking at the ninth convocation of the Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University (BBAU) in Lucknow, the President asked youth to become job creators and not job seekers.

"Today half of the country's population is below 25 years of age. When in 2047, we celebrate the centenary of independence, you youths will be leading the country," he said.

"I hope by 2047, India is discrimination free and a developed country by efforts of your (present) generation. In future India, we must have imbibed justice, equality and brotherhood in our personal and social life," he added.

He asked youths to start working with "full determination" towards making India "samtamulak" (egalitarian) and strong.

Quoting Babasaheb Ambedkar, Kovind said if an educated person does not come forward for the welfare of the society, then education has no meaning.

Now "our daughters are giving more fame to the country than our sons", he said.

The President praised the BBAU for making a special contribution towards the inclusive development of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes through education, in accordance with the vision of Ambedkar.

"The special provision of reservation of 50 percent seats in admissions and other facilities for students of SC and ST has given them opportunities of higher education," he said.

The President also said that changes were taking place all over the world in almost all aspects of life at a fast pace.

"In such times, students have to make their place in today's dynamic global scenario remaining alert and aware. They also have to contribute in building a better society and the country," he said.

In Babasaheb's books, articles and speeches, students would find guidance and inspiring references helpful for them in their career and nation building, Kovind said.

Stressing that India has a good start-up ecosystem today and is ranked third in the world on the basis of the total number of unicorns, the President said: Had Babasaheb been alive today, he would have been very happy to see this.

"Babasaheb was in favour of hard work and self-employment. Most unicorns are set up by youngsters and the youth power is the biggest strength of our country. Students here should take inspiration from these young entrepreneurs and instead of being a job-seeker, think about becoming a job-creator," he added.

Governor Anandiben Patel and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath were also present on the occasion, where 1,424 students were given graduation, post graduation, PhD and MPhil degrees and gold medals were awarded to six of them.

Earlier, the President laid the foundation stone of the Savitri Bai Phule hostel at the university.

 

How Dust Can Melt Mountains & Change Seas

 

Dust and sand can be seen blowing across the surface of the Kanchenjunga Glacier in Nepal. Dust from as far as the Arabian Gulf is a driving factor in the melting of Himalayan glaciers (Image: Marc Boettcher/Alamy)

Asia’s largest freshwater reserve is disappearing. In the Hindu Kush Himalayan region, which is warming by 0.3-0.7 degrees Celsius above the global average, global heating is melting the glaciers that blanket the planet’s highest peaks. Scientists now know that this catastrophic melt is being exacerbated by dust blowing from the Middle East. Moreover, they warn that as well as affecting Asia’s largest rivers, which are born from Himalayan glaciers and bring life and livelihoods to a quarter of humanity, the effects of glacial melt will extend well beyond the Himalayas, also impacting the Arabian Gulf region in turn.

Winds that sweep across Asia link the Hindu Kush Himalayas and the Gulf in an interconnected system. Globally, around 5 billion tonnes of desert dust from arid regions is swept into the atmosphere every year. Today, scientists can “understand the origins of this dust, where it lands, and how it interacts with local environments” thanks to satellite data and computer models, according to Chandan Sarangi, an earth system scientist at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras. Dust blows onto the High Mountain Asia (HMA) region from the Arabian Gulf, and as far away as North Africa and the southwest Arabian Peninsula, due to regional air currents and prevailing westerly winds.

These dust particles, Sarangi says, travel long distances at an altitude of 2-5 kilometres and reach the HMA during summer. Dust from arid regions such as the Thar desert in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia “gets lofted above the boundary layer [the lowest part of the planet’s atmosphere] of Earth by convection and gets transported to far places with wind at altitudes and deposited mainly above 3km”. The dust particles are thus deposited in the high Himalayan mountains, blanketing glaciers in a layer of particles that are darker than snow.

How dust in the Himalayas drives glacial melt

Particulate matter, black carbon and dust present a problem for Himalayan glaciers because of their low albedo.

(Albedo means how well a surface reflects the energy of the sun. White surfaces reflect solar energy and have a high albedo, whereas black surfaces absorb energy and have a low albedo. The albedo effect of the Earth’s ice caps has a significant impact on global temperatures.)

Clean glacial snow has a high albedo, which means that it absorbs very little sunlight and reflects most of the incoming rays back into space. Darker dust and soot, however, absorb much more of the incoming solar radiation, which warms and therefore melts the glaciers below. In many areas, aerosols like dust and soot significantly exacerbate the impact that atmospheric greenhouse gases have on glacial melt, producing quicker and more direct warming effects.

Black carbon from vehicle exhausts, waste burning and the combustion of biofuels in South Asia’s big cities was previously thought to be the primary aerosol driving glacial melting in the Himalayas.

However, a more recent study published in November 2020 by a team of international researchers, including Sarangi found that at altitudes above 4,000 metres, dust is a greater driver of melting than black carbon. Sarangi notes that “the majority of black carbon reaching HMA is emitted by anthropogenic activities in the Indus and Gangetic plains, which gets deposited at 0-3 km elevations. Hence, black carbon deposition is higher than dust below 3 km elevation and vice versa.​”

While dust blowing from the Middle East to the high Himalayas is not a new phenomenon, it has only recently been understood to be one of the primary causes of glacial melting. Further research is needed to better understand if the amount of dust being blown across the continent has increased over the years, or if the same amount of dust is now having a larger impact on glaciers due to higher temperatures. Such research would not only help to better determine the role of dust in accelerating melting of glaciers in the Himalayas, but could also help in the design of interventions needed to minimise its impacts.

Sea Changes

The winds that carry dust across the continent to the Himalayas also bring the consequences of glacial melting back to the Gulf region. Warming mountains mean warmer winds, which have begun to fundamentally shift monsoon patterns across Asia and the Middle East.

Monsoons are integral to the ecosystems of the Arabian Gulf. John Burt, a marine biologist and professor at New York University Abu Dhabi explains that “widespread coral bleaching in the Gulf is the result of low shamal winds [strong north-westerly winds that blow across the Middle East] during summer. Those shamal winds are generated by a pressure gradient driven by the monsoon. If the monsoon weakens, so will shamals, leading to more frequent and/or severe coral bleaching in the Gulf region.” Coral reefs in the Gulf are increasingly vulnerable, and every effort should be made to protect this ecosystem from further damage.

A study published in Nature last year linked shrinking glaciers to the decline in fisheries in the Arabian Sea, caused by the same shifting winds. Altered monsoons have created the perfect conditions for a single-celled algal organism called Noctiluca scintillans to multiply by the millions. Harmful algal blooms suck oxygen from the water, creating oxygen deficiencies and suffocating fish populations. Algal blooms exacerbate coral bleaching and replace the indigenous algae that are a source of food for fish. Scientists warn that the spread of Noctiluca driven by changes in the Himalayas poses a significant threat to local fisheries in the Gulf, creating wide-reaching implications for food security.

Burt warns that the same algal blooms that are choking fisheries also threaten the UAE’s fresh water supply. “Noctiluca is a major issue for desalination plants, where blooms will clog reverse osmosis filters and shut down operations. This happened with another algal bloom in early 2009, when a red tide resulted in closure of desalination facilities on the UAE’s east coast. The result was loss of potable water for much of the northern Emirates.”

Through intercontinental winds blowing in both directions, the crisis facing the Himalayas’ glaciers is intimately linked to the Arabian Gulf in both its causes and effects. It is clear that the fate of the two regions is intertwined and that we cannot continue to view climate change in the Himalayas as a solely regional threat. In addition to the direct ecosystem-level link between the Himalayas and the Gulf, socio-economic impacts, particularly through increased stress in South Asia, are just as pressing.

While it may be difficult to limit the dust that ends up in the Himalayas and address the associated ecosystem impacts in the Arabian Gulf, more research is needed to fully explore the links between the regions, and what can be done to mitigate climate impacts at both ends of the system. What is clear is that there needs to be more dialogue with the Gulf countries to support timely interventions, including in research, to come up with solutions before it’s too late.

TheThirdPole

PM Modi Selling India's Crown Jewels: Rahul Gandhi

 

Rahul Gandhi contended that the Congress is not opposing the privatisation process but "the entire NMP is designed to create a monopoly"

A day after Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman unveiled the government's four-year National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP) worth Rs 6 lakh crore, former Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of bringing in the process of selling the "crown jewel" assets built by his party in the last 70 years.

He also contended that the Congress is not opposing the privatisation process but "the entire NMP is designed to create a monopoly".

Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters along with former Finance Minister P. Chidamabaram, Gandhi said: "The Prime Minister and the BJP said that the Congress had done nothing in last 70 years. There is a list here of all the assets that the Congress has helped build using the public money."

"Now the Prime Minister is in the process of selling the crown jewels of this country."

Listing out the sectors which are going to be privatised, Gandhi said that these are being sold and one can guess to whom it is going. "And frankly, these will go to three to four people," he said.

Announcing the measure on Monday, Sitharaman had said it is to unlock value in brownfield projects by engaging the private sector, transferring to them the rights but not the ownership in projects, and using the funds for infrastructure creation across the country.

But assailing the government, Gandhi said: "I want to tell the youths, your employment has been snatched, for farmers, three special farm laws have been made. And today I want to say what Prime Minister plans to give to his industrialist friends."

This, he claimed, comprises 26,700 km of national highways worth Rs 1.6 lakh crore, Rs 1.5 lakh crore in railways with 400 railways stations, 150 private trains, railway tracks and warehouses.

He further said that 42,300 circuit km of transmission network, 6,000 MW power generation, solar wind assets from NHPC, NTPC and NLC, and 8,000 km of national gas pipeline of GAIL are all going to be privatised.

Even the 4,000 km of petroleum pipeline, 2.8 lakh km of telecom assets of Bharat Net Fibre Network, BSNL and MTNL towers, warehouses worth Rs 29,000 crore with a storage space of 210 lakh metric tonne, 107 coal mines, 761 mineral blocks, 25 airports worth Rs 21,000 crore, ports worth Rs 13,000 crore, along with 31 projects, and two national stadium worth Rs 11,000 crore are going to be gifted to a few industrialists, he said.

Reiterating that these are going to be given to "only three to four people", Gandhi said: "This is your future. Your future is being sold to these three-four industrialists. It is reality."

He, however, said that the Congress is not against privatisation.

"We had logic behind privatisation," he said, adding that industries which were chronically loss-making and companies with minimal market share were privatised.

"And the sectors where there were risks of private sector monopoly, we decided not to sell. But this entire scheme is designed to create monopoly," he alleged.

"All the sectors that I have named are there to bring monopoly. We say do privatisation but not at the cost of loss to the country," he said, claiming that when these assets are privatised or sold to private players, then there will very few employment opportunities.

"I had warned about Covid and you all made fun of me. When this starts, your chances of getting employment will be less. The assets of India are being sold and it is an attack on your future," he said, adding that the Prime Minister is not working for India but "for three or four people".

The Congress leader also charged the government of mishandling the country's economy.

"There is an excuse they have come up with that we are leasing these... The government clearly mishandled the economy and doesn't know what to do," he said.

Accusing the government of "basically destroying what the UPA built", he said that now, as a last resort, they are selling everything that the UPA had helped create.

"To me, this is a huge tragedy," he added.

Chidambaram said: "This is a grand closing down sale. Virtually there would not be any public sector undertakings (PSUs) left after the proposed 'roads to railways' monetisation plan of BJP government."

He said that this exercise has been designed without any ex-ante criteria. "The government should have spelt out what its criteria and goals were. You don't embark upon such a big exercise without first setting out the criteria and what your goals are," he said.

"Raising funds cannot be (the) sole goal for selling assets built over 70 years. All stakeholders, including employees, workers' unions, farmers must be consulted before embarking on such large sale of assets," he added.

 

1,500 Farm Union Reps To Come Together At National Convention

FILE PHOTO: Farmers take part in a candlelit vigil, in memory of a person who died during a tractor rally on Republic Day, as protests against farm laws continue, at the Singhu Border near New Delhi

 

Over 1,500 representatives of farm unions from across the country will come together to discuss future strategies for the ongoing farmers' protest during the national convention on August 26 and 27, farmer leaders said.

The two-day convention at the Singhu border is being held to mark the completion of nine months of the farmers’ agitation against the three contentious farm laws.

"Unlike our other events, the national convention is not going to be a mass gathering or a rally. Instead, 1,500 representatives of farmer unions from across the country will come together for two days at the Singhu border to discuss strategies to sharpen and intensify our protests," farmer leader Abhimanyu Kohar told PTI.

He added that the convention was aimed at bringing together farmers from across the country, so that everybody could be part of the decision making on how the protest was to be taken forward.

"We have been protesting for nine months. It is not a short span of time. We want to include everybody, and representatives of farmer organisations from east, west, south and north… everybody will be here," Kohar added.

One of the major issues that will be up for discussion at the convention will be the farmers' upcoming ''mahapanchayat'' in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar on September 5.

"Our next strategy is the Muzaffarnagar ''mahapanchayat'' on September 5, which will also be discussed at the convention. Preparations for the ''mahapanchayat'' are in full swing. I know that at least 5,000 vehicles will be travelling to Muzaffarnagar,” Kohar said.

On August 26, the farmers' protest against the three contentious laws will complete nine months. The farmers have been demanding the repeal of the three laws, which they are afraid will do away with the MSP system, leaving them at the mercy of big corporations.

Over 10 rounds of talks with the government that has been projecting the laws as major agricultural reforms have failed to break the deadlock between the two parties.

While the Singhu border will be the central point of the national convention, gatherings will be organised in different parts of the country simultaneously.

In Chandigarh, farmer leader Paramjit Singh said about 2,000-2,5000 people are expected to come together to discuss the "issues that have been impacting the farmers as well as the common man".

"We will gather on the ground in Sector 25 where a stage will be put up. On one of the days of the national convention, Rakesh Tikait is expected to visit our gathering and address the crowd,” he said.

"Leaders of different farm unions will also participate to discuss how the agitation should be taken forward,” Singh said.

He added that the farmers have ensured that their protests are peaceful, and do not cause any inconvenience to people.

"Farmers have been very straightforward about their demands from the beginning. It is the government that is being stubborn,” Singh said.

"We will continue to be patient because we do not want to cause any inconvenience to anyone. The government will have to give in to our demands because we will continue building pressure,” he said.

According to the farmer leaders, the visiting representatives from different states, including Kerala, Karnataka, Gujarat, and Tamil Nadu, will be provided accommodation at the Singhu border itself.

"We have been protesting constantly over the last nine months. This convention will also be a way to recall our struggle through the last nine months," said Rachpal Singh, another farmer leader.

"The farm union leaders from across the country, who will stay at the Singhu protest site, will address the protesters there, talking about our agitation, the three black laws and the state of farmers in the country," he added. (PTI)

 

Hurriyat Factions Likely To Be Banned Under UAPA

FILE PHOTO: The separatist conglomerate broke into two factions in 2005, with the moderate group being led by the Mirwaiz Umer Farooq (1st from left) and the hardline headed by Syed Ali Shah Geelani (2nd from left)

A ban under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act may be imposed on both factions of the secessionist conglomerate Hurriyat Conference, which has been spearheading the separatist movement in Jammu and Kashmir for over two decades, officials said.

They said a recent probe into the granting of MBBS seats to Kashmiri students by institutions in Pakistan indicates that the money collected from aspirants by some organisations which were part of the Hurriyat Conference conglomerate was being used for funding terror organisations in the union territory.

The officials said both the factions of the Hurriyat are likely to be banned under Section 3 (1) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, or the UAPA, under which “if the Central Government is of opinion that any association is, or has become, an unlawful association, it may, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare such association to be unlawful.”

They said the proposal was mooted in accordance with the Centre’s policy of zero tolerance against terrorism.

The Hurriyat Conference came into existence in 1993 with 26 groups, including some pro-Pakistan and banned outfits such as the Jamaat-e-Islami, JKLF and the Dukhtaran-e-Millat. It also included the People’s Conference and the Awami Action Committee headed by Mirwaiz Umer Farooq.

The separatist conglomerate broke into two factions in 2005, with the moderate group being led by the Mirwaiz and the hardline headed by Syed Ali Shah Geelani.

So far, the Centre has banned the Jamaat-e-Islami and the JKLF under the UAPA. The ban was imposed in 2019.

The officials said a probe into funding of terror groups indicated alleged involvement of secessionist and separatist leaders, including the members and cadres of the Hurriyat Conference, who have been acting in connivance with active militants of proscribed terrorist organisations Hizb-ul-Mujahideen (HM), Dukhtaran-e-Millat (DeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

The cadres raised funds in the country and from abroad through various illegal channels, including hawala, for funding separatist and terrorist activities in Jammu and Kashmir, they said.

The funds collected were used for causing disruption in the Kashmir Valley by way of pelting stones on security forces, systematically burning schools, damaging public property and waging war against India as part of a criminal conspiracy, they claimed.

Supporting the case for banning the two factions of the Hurriyat Conference under the UAPA, the officials cited several cases related to terror funding, including the one being probed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), in which several of the conglomerate’s cadres were arrested and jailed.

Many of the second-rung cadres of both the factions are in jail since 2017, they said.

Among those in jail are Altaf Ahmed Shah, the son-in-law of Geelani; businessman Zahoor Ahmed Watali; Geelani’s close aide Ayaz Akbar, who is also the spokesperson of the hardline separatist organisation Tehreek-e-Hurriyat; Peer Saifullah; Shahid-ul-Islam, spokesperson of the moderate Hurriyat Conference; Mehrajuddin Kalwal; Nayeem Khan; and Farooq Ahmed Dar alias ‘Bitta Karate’.

Later, JKLF chief Yaseen Malik, DeM head Asiya Andrabi and pro-Pakistan separatist Masarat Alam were also named in a supplementary chargesheet in a case of terror financing.

Another case which is likely to be cited for banning the two Hurriyat Conference factions is the one against PDP youth leader Waheed-ur-Rahman Parra, who is alleged to have paid Rs 5 crore to the son-in-law of Geelani for keeping Kashmir in turmoil after the death of Hizbul Mujahideen terror commander Burhan Wani in 2016, the officials said.

The NIA has alleged that after the death of Wani, who was killed in an encounter with the Army in July 2016, Parra got in touch with Altaf Ahmad Shah, alias Altaf Fantoosh, and asked him to ensure that the Valley was kept on the boil with widespread unrest and stone pelting.

Also, the Counter Intelligence (Kashmir), a branch of CID department of Jammu and Kashmir Police, registered a case in July last year following information that several unscrupulous persons, including some Hurriyat leaders, were hand in glove with some educational consultancies and are selling Pakistan-based MBBS seats and admission in other professional courses in various colleges and universities.

At least four persons, including Mohammad Akbar Bhat alias Zaffar Bhat, self-styled chairman of the Salvation Movement, which is part of the moderate Hurriyat Conference, were arrested in this case.

It is alleged that the constituents of Hurriyat Conference were “selling” MBBS seats in Pakistan to Kashmiri students and using the money collected, at least partly, to support and fund terrorism.

During the probe, it had surfaced that individual Hurriyat leaders had their quota of seats, which were sold to people desiring to obtain MBBS and other professional degrees in one way or the other, the officials said.

The officials said evidence showed that the money was “put into channels that ended up in supporting programmes and projects pertaining to terrorism and separatism like payment for organising stone pelting.”

Citing investigation, the officials said that the average cost of an MBBS seat in Pakistan was anything between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 12 lakh. In some cases, the fee was brought down on the intervention of Hurriyat leaders. Depending upon the political heft of the Hurriyat leader who intervened, concessions were extended to aspiring students, the officials said. (PTI)

Explainer: The Disappearing Glaciers Of The Himalayas

Rising temperatures are melting glaciers and other frozen water across the Hindu Kush Himalayas. Urgent action to curb emissions is needed to secure water supplies, protect livelihoods and prevent disasters across the region (Illustration: Arati Kumar-Rao)

As the Earth warms, frozen water in its many forms is affected. In mountainous regions like the Hindu Kush Himalayas, one of the most visible signs of climate change is the impact on glaciers.

In the Hindu Kush Himalayan region – which includes the mountain ranges of the Pamirs, the Tien Shan and the Tibetan Plateau – the cryosphere is a vital source of freshwater. Approximately 2 billion people rely on the rivers that flow from these mountain ranges, with more than 240 million people living in the mountain areas. As well as providing a water supply for humans, livestock and wildlife in the region, freshwater originating in the cryosphere is essential for agriculture, hydropower, inland navigation, and spiritual and cultural uses.

While water flow is determined by a host of factors – including rainfall, groundwater and springs – the presence of the cryosphere has led to stable water flows across the Hindu Kush Himalayan region. But as the frozen water in glaciers, snow and permafrost is now melting at unprecedented rates, these flows are changing.

The Himalayan glaciers are receding

Glacier loss is difficult to project over the whole of the Hindu Kush Himalayas. Rates of glacial melt depend on a number of variables, including elevation and elevation-dependent temperature, precipitation and debris cover, among others.

On the whole, glaciers across the Hindu Kush Himalayas have lost mass since the 1970s. Unfortunately, given political sensitivities in the region, much satellite photography from before 2000 remains classified, and high-altitude field-based surveys are difficult. Nevertheless, the data that has emerged in recent years allows scientists to make general predictions for the region.

In the near term, by 2030, glaciers in the Hindu Kush Himalayan region are expected to lose between 10-30% of their mass. By 2050, this figure is expected to increase to 25-35%. In the long term, by 2080-2100, glacial mass loss is predicted to reach 35% in the Karakoram, 45% in the Pamir mountains, and as high as 60-95% in the eastern Himalayas if world governments fail to implement aggressive emissions-reduction policies. All of these figures are based on a moderate emissions scenario (RCP 4.5). Given different emissions scenarios and modelling methods, there is significant variation between longer-term projections.

There are thousands of glaciers in the Hindu Kush Himalayan region, and there will be anomalies in terms of glacial melt. The glaciers in the eastern part of the region are at a lower elevation on the whole than those in the western part, leaving them relatively more vulnerable to melting. In the Karakoram region, which hosts a number of high-altitude glaciers, there have even been some glacial surges, leading to discussion of a “Karakoram Anomaly”.

The Himalayan region is warming faster than the global average

The Hindu Kush Himalayan region has the largest concentration of frozen water on Earth after the North Pole and South Pole, hence it is referred to as “the third pole”. Like the Arctic and part of Antarctica, the Hindu Kush Himalayan region is warming faster than the global average, and for similar reasons.

As ice cover melts, it exposes larger areas to solar radiation, thus allowing greater absorption of heat. Since ice reflects light, as the ground is increasingly exposed this leads to greater heating. The fact that many glaciers in the HKH region are covered with debris means this effect is less pronounced than in areas like the Arctic. Greater detail on exactly how and why this is happening can be found in the third chapter of the HKH Assessment conducted by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD).

Unfortunately, the glaciers of the Hindu Kush Himalayas are facing another problem: black carbon. This is essentially soot from fires in the surrounding lowlands which rises in the air and settles on glaciers. Because of its dark colour, black carbon absorbs solar radiation faster. Black carbon and other short-lived climate pollutants – such as dust and aerosols – are produced by a range of human activities, including biomass burning, brick factories, and coal-based electricity plants. Not only do they darken the glaciers, these pollutants can also lead to warming of the air mass, leading to higher temperatures around the cryosphere and melting of its ice.

What happens when glaciers melt rapidly?

It is difficult to speculate how exactly the melting of the third pole’s glaciers will impact water flow and availability across the regions that depend on Himalayan rivers. This is because multiple factors influence water flow, including the stability of monsoons that are responsible for precipitation – both rain and snow – in the region.

One effect that can be predicted is an increase in glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs).

While it is very difficult to predict individual GLOFs, it is clear that their frequency will go up as the climate warms. Since the 1990s, glacial lakes across the Hindu Kush Himalayan region have increased in both number and size. Given the regional disparity in elevation, the greatest increase has been in the eastern and central sections of the Hindu Kush Himalayas.

GLOFs can be devastating, as the resulting flash floods can devastate downstream habitations with little warning. Given the number of hydropower projects in the region, GLOFs can also pose a risk to long-term infrastructure such as dams.

The permafrost is melting

Not all frozen water in the Hindu Kush Himalayas is in the form of glaciers. Glaciers are often referred to as rivers of ice, as they are large frozen volumes of water that slowly flow. Where there is less flow, but the temperature remains below freezing, ice accumulates in the ground as permafrost. As a general rule of thumb, humid areas have more glaciers while arid areas have more permafrost. In the Hindu Kush Himalayan region, permafrost is found across around 1,000,000 square kilometres, whereas glaciers occur across around 90,000 square kilometres.

Within the Hindu Kush Himalayan region, study of the permafrost has been largely restricted to the Tibetan Plateau, beginning in the 1990s. Little research has been carried out in the rest of the region. The research on the Tibetan Plateau shows that the active layer of permafrost is thickening as the permafrost melts. This makes the ground less stable, leading to higher risk of landslides.

Policy recommendations

Three main policy recommendations emerge out of the latest, most detailed survey of the cryosphere in the Hindu Kush Himalayan region (the HKH Assessment) as part of the Hindu Kush Himalayan Monitoring and Assessment Programme conducted by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD). First and foremost, the world must focus on lowering carbon emissions. The challenges of managing the cryosphere will only increase if the world warms at a faster rate. Second, the HKH Assessment recommends the expansion of observation networks and data-sharing agreements across the extended HKH region. Third, improvements in research and observation should be used to anticipate disasters such as GLOFs and avalanches, and put processes in place to minimise their impacts.

(TheThirdPole)