By Shilpi Aggarwal
At the recent meeting of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh with Former United States vice President and Nobel Peace Prize Winner Al Gore, India made its stance very clear that it will not compromise on its economic growth for any target for carbon emission reduction.
Al Gore, a climate change crusader, tried its best to pursue Indian leaders to take the leadership in the fight against climate change. According to him, India should come forward for development of renewable technologies and do the same as it would have done in sectors like IT, pharma and steel, to name a few.
On being asked on India’s firm position that developing countries should be forced to make mandatory reductions in their carbon emissions, Al Gore said the developing countries have freedom to choose whatever targets they want to set.
However, India feels that before pressurizing developing nations, the world and UN should pressurize US who is the single largest emitter of carbons in the world and also the one who has done the least in solving the problem of global warming.
Today, all across the world, everybody is blaming each other and waiting for the other to come forward and take the initiative. Today, India is not doing it because US is not ready to do it. Tomorrow, China will not do it because India is not doing. We are sharing excuses. Amidst all these blame games, what is running out is time? And, our planet is heading towards destruction with each passing moment.
Monday, March 17, 2008
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Bura Na Mano Holi Hai!
By Shilpi Aggarwal
Hey guys, its holi again. Although I am not avid holi fan, but I strongly feel it’s a unique festival. There is no such festival like holi where you get up early only to get dirty, soiled and drenched. And there you are, elated with mischievous smile, eyeing for the target to splash the colors of fun and frolic. It is the only festival where you try to be in your worst old clothes. All in all, it’s an amazing festival.
But the only thing I loathe about this festival is the weird ritual of balloon throwing which starts two or three weeks before in advance. No, I don’t have anything against your fun but I don’t understand the fun in hurting anyone. I hope, it is needless to say, balloons can hurt the person very badly, in certain cases, it may lead to serious injuries, even loss of eyesight or hearing power.
Girls are the most preferred targets of water balloons during holi. They think twice before step out their homes. In every nook and corner of the city, there is guys hidden eyeing for their prey. On the streets, kids won’t scare of hitting a woman with water filled balloons but they don’t dare to touch a guy. Even, they know that it is only girls who can be their easy victim. What’s more, its not only kids alone but the big guys too behave rowdily. They pack into cars with all their weapons (water and color filled balloons and sometimes, eggs) in place and roam around the city only to find a girl. Sometimes, they forcefully smudge colors on their face (sometimes, to get touchy with the girls!)
Isn’t it disgusting when you are on your way to your workplace or for some important meeting, you made wet by the water balloons? I really don’t understand how you can have cheap and sadistic pleasure from other person’s discomfort.
The other day I was traveling in a bus and the girl sitting besides the windows was tried to hit by the water balloons. Thankfully, the window was closed and no such untoward incident happened. What’s more appalling is when these balloons are sometimes filled with gravels, dirty colors and even with muddy water.
Holi is the festival of fun, frolic and celebration. What kind of celebration is this, where the pleasure lies in hurting somebody? People don’t even realize how they would feel if the same prank is being played out on them. And hey, if you are forcing your friends and near and dear ones into your idea of fun, it’s still acceptable. But, how can you force a stranger into something when he isn’t interested? And, much to my shock, parents don’t see any wrong in these things and don’t teach these basic things to their kids. If you complaint, they would say,”Bura na mano holi hai!”
“On Monday, Ramesh Dave, a senior news editor with Samkaleen, a sister publication of this newspaper, paid dearly for somebody's idea of revelry. He happened to be sitting near the window of a local train, when a stone flung by a miscreant gouged out one of his eyes. This ugly incident recalled a similar one that occurred some years ago, when a young woman travelling in a Mumbai train and who happened to be standing near the doorway, had a water balloon filled with small stones flung at her. The balloon burst and the gravel inside it damaged her eyes irreparably. This time, Mumbai also reported the case of a 10-year-old boy who was smeared with some toxic substances by two young men on a romp. Not only did he lose a clump of his hair and suffer from a painful rash, he was left badly traumatised.
Over the years, the festival of colours has become synonymous with the most vile and violent forms of sexual harassment. A report by the Gender Study Group of Delhi University, based on a survey of sexual harassment on the campus, reported that such attacks reached their peak during Holi. According to this report, some 60.55 per cent of women hostelites of Delhi University complained of aggravated harassment during this festival. Many of them coped with it either by leaving the university before Holi or not stepping out of the hostel during the day. The attacks, the report noted, ranged from throwing balloons from fast-moving vehicles, and molesting women on the pretext of applying colour on them, to throwing condoms filled with water, hurling stones at them or forcibly dunking them in buckets of water. Only 11 per cent of students interviewed felt that the behaviour displayed during Holi was ``normal'' and a part of the spirit of Holi. Not surprisingly, most of the women interviewed reported experiencing the ``fear of being physically assaulted''. There is very little that individuals can do in the face of such organised and widespread barbarism. In fact, even police surveillance can go only so far and no further. The only way this crime can be tackled is by ordinary men and women condemning it in the strongest possible terms and building a strong public opinion against it. For too long has such behaviour masqueraded as traditional Holi revelry. This is to paint the festival of colour in the blackest hue. ” -Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay)Ltd.
Hey guys, its holi again. Although I am not avid holi fan, but I strongly feel it’s a unique festival. There is no such festival like holi where you get up early only to get dirty, soiled and drenched. And there you are, elated with mischievous smile, eyeing for the target to splash the colors of fun and frolic. It is the only festival where you try to be in your worst old clothes. All in all, it’s an amazing festival.
But the only thing I loathe about this festival is the weird ritual of balloon throwing which starts two or three weeks before in advance. No, I don’t have anything against your fun but I don’t understand the fun in hurting anyone. I hope, it is needless to say, balloons can hurt the person very badly, in certain cases, it may lead to serious injuries, even loss of eyesight or hearing power.
Girls are the most preferred targets of water balloons during holi. They think twice before step out their homes. In every nook and corner of the city, there is guys hidden eyeing for their prey. On the streets, kids won’t scare of hitting a woman with water filled balloons but they don’t dare to touch a guy. Even, they know that it is only girls who can be their easy victim. What’s more, its not only kids alone but the big guys too behave rowdily. They pack into cars with all their weapons (water and color filled balloons and sometimes, eggs) in place and roam around the city only to find a girl. Sometimes, they forcefully smudge colors on their face (sometimes, to get touchy with the girls!)
Isn’t it disgusting when you are on your way to your workplace or for some important meeting, you made wet by the water balloons? I really don’t understand how you can have cheap and sadistic pleasure from other person’s discomfort.
The other day I was traveling in a bus and the girl sitting besides the windows was tried to hit by the water balloons. Thankfully, the window was closed and no such untoward incident happened. What’s more appalling is when these balloons are sometimes filled with gravels, dirty colors and even with muddy water.
Holi is the festival of fun, frolic and celebration. What kind of celebration is this, where the pleasure lies in hurting somebody? People don’t even realize how they would feel if the same prank is being played out on them. And hey, if you are forcing your friends and near and dear ones into your idea of fun, it’s still acceptable. But, how can you force a stranger into something when he isn’t interested? And, much to my shock, parents don’t see any wrong in these things and don’t teach these basic things to their kids. If you complaint, they would say,”Bura na mano holi hai!”
“On Monday, Ramesh Dave, a senior news editor with Samkaleen, a sister publication of this newspaper, paid dearly for somebody's idea of revelry. He happened to be sitting near the window of a local train, when a stone flung by a miscreant gouged out one of his eyes. This ugly incident recalled a similar one that occurred some years ago, when a young woman travelling in a Mumbai train and who happened to be standing near the doorway, had a water balloon filled with small stones flung at her. The balloon burst and the gravel inside it damaged her eyes irreparably. This time, Mumbai also reported the case of a 10-year-old boy who was smeared with some toxic substances by two young men on a romp. Not only did he lose a clump of his hair and suffer from a painful rash, he was left badly traumatised.
Over the years, the festival of colours has become synonymous with the most vile and violent forms of sexual harassment. A report by the Gender Study Group of Delhi University, based on a survey of sexual harassment on the campus, reported that such attacks reached their peak during Holi. According to this report, some 60.55 per cent of women hostelites of Delhi University complained of aggravated harassment during this festival. Many of them coped with it either by leaving the university before Holi or not stepping out of the hostel during the day. The attacks, the report noted, ranged from throwing balloons from fast-moving vehicles, and molesting women on the pretext of applying colour on them, to throwing condoms filled with water, hurling stones at them or forcibly dunking them in buckets of water. Only 11 per cent of students interviewed felt that the behaviour displayed during Holi was ``normal'' and a part of the spirit of Holi. Not surprisingly, most of the women interviewed reported experiencing the ``fear of being physically assaulted''. There is very little that individuals can do in the face of such organised and widespread barbarism. In fact, even police surveillance can go only so far and no further. The only way this crime can be tackled is by ordinary men and women condemning it in the strongest possible terms and building a strong public opinion against it. For too long has such behaviour masqueraded as traditional Holi revelry. This is to paint the festival of colour in the blackest hue. ” -Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay)Ltd.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
ONGC goes greener way!
“WE believe in action,” asserted A.K. Hazarika, Director (onshore) and Director-in-charge, Carbon Management, the ONGC, tersely summing up the company’s approach to the issue of climate change. “The ONGC’s aim is to achieve sustainable development through a holistic approach to carbon management.”
On October 2, 2007, it became the first public sector undertaking to adopt a corporate policy on climate change and sustainability. On December 21, its third project for a clean development mechanism (CDM) was registered with the United Nations’ Framework Convention on Climate Change. This large-scale project is aimed at reducing flaring of gas from the ONGC’s Uran plant. The expected annual accruable certified emission reduction (CER) is 97,740, equal to an annual earning of Rs.93 million of green revenue. The two other registered CDM projects of the ONGC are in the small category.
Hazarika said: “The world today has only two options: either to stop generating GHGs [green house gases] and stop development as a corollary or synergise development with environment. The ONGC, like other oil majors, is striving to position itself as a leading organisation in sustainable management. We have an exclusive group called Carbon Management Group to synergise all our business activities in terms of sustainable development.”
Ashok Baran Chakraborty, General Manager and Head (Carbon Management Group), ONGC, who is a qualified environmental scientist, said: “If you can do carbon management, you can control climate change. We cannot stop exploration and production because it is our bread and butter. But we can curb climate change by cutting down the emission of carbon.” The group was set up in May last. Its mandate includes identifying the ONGC projects that emit GHGs, develop CDM projects, develop climate protection strategy, disclose carbon emission in the company’s balance sheet and develop sustainability reports.
The ONGC is currently developing 14 new, potential CDM projects. “Our aim in developing the CDM projects is to position the ONGC in the global arena as a company committed to sustainable development. We are also developing a comprehensive trading policy for trading the CERs from the CDM projects,” said Hazarika.
He called carbon dioxide CO2 capture and sequestration (CCS) “the mother of all mitigating projects”. It involves capture of CO2 at the source, transporting it and sequestering/storing it in a place where its chances of re-emergence will be minimum.
On February 6, the ONGC signed in New Delhi a memorandum of understanding with the Norwegian oil and gas major, StatoilHydro ASA, to develop carbon management projects. The company already has a CCS project, where the CO2 generated during the processing of sour gas at its Hazira plant in Gujarat is to be captured, transported to the nearby Ankleshwar asset and into the depleted reservoir there for enhanced oil recovery.
It is also engaged in Methane to Market (M2M), an international initiative aimed at recovery of methane, which is “23 times more potent than CO2”, and its usage as fuel.
Source: Frontline
On October 2, 2007, it became the first public sector undertaking to adopt a corporate policy on climate change and sustainability. On December 21, its third project for a clean development mechanism (CDM) was registered with the United Nations’ Framework Convention on Climate Change. This large-scale project is aimed at reducing flaring of gas from the ONGC’s Uran plant. The expected annual accruable certified emission reduction (CER) is 97,740, equal to an annual earning of Rs.93 million of green revenue. The two other registered CDM projects of the ONGC are in the small category.
Hazarika said: “The world today has only two options: either to stop generating GHGs [green house gases] and stop development as a corollary or synergise development with environment. The ONGC, like other oil majors, is striving to position itself as a leading organisation in sustainable management. We have an exclusive group called Carbon Management Group to synergise all our business activities in terms of sustainable development.”
Ashok Baran Chakraborty, General Manager and Head (Carbon Management Group), ONGC, who is a qualified environmental scientist, said: “If you can do carbon management, you can control climate change. We cannot stop exploration and production because it is our bread and butter. But we can curb climate change by cutting down the emission of carbon.” The group was set up in May last. Its mandate includes identifying the ONGC projects that emit GHGs, develop CDM projects, develop climate protection strategy, disclose carbon emission in the company’s balance sheet and develop sustainability reports.
The ONGC is currently developing 14 new, potential CDM projects. “Our aim in developing the CDM projects is to position the ONGC in the global arena as a company committed to sustainable development. We are also developing a comprehensive trading policy for trading the CERs from the CDM projects,” said Hazarika.
He called carbon dioxide CO2 capture and sequestration (CCS) “the mother of all mitigating projects”. It involves capture of CO2 at the source, transporting it and sequestering/storing it in a place where its chances of re-emergence will be minimum.
On February 6, the ONGC signed in New Delhi a memorandum of understanding with the Norwegian oil and gas major, StatoilHydro ASA, to develop carbon management projects. The company already has a CCS project, where the CO2 generated during the processing of sour gas at its Hazira plant in Gujarat is to be captured, transported to the nearby Ankleshwar asset and into the depleted reservoir there for enhanced oil recovery.
It is also engaged in Methane to Market (M2M), an international initiative aimed at recovery of methane, which is “23 times more potent than CO2”, and its usage as fuel.
Source: Frontline
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