Recently, Parliamentary Standing Committee on Water Resources in a report highlighted that despite significant technological advancements and substantial investments, India continues to face severe socio-economic losses due to floods and water scarcity.

Key Themes and recommendations

The President of South Africa announced the launch of the Global Outlook Council on Water Investments (GOCWI).

About GOCWI

• Launched as a G20 Presidential Legacy Initiative, it forms a core pillar of the Global Water Partnership’s (GWP) Global Transformation Agenda on Water Investments.
  • GWP is a multi-stakeholder action network and intergovernmental organisation dedicated to equitable, sustainable, and efficient management of water resources.
  • GWP’s Transformation Agenda aims to mobilise 15 billion for water security by 2030.
• It will serve as a high-level platform to sustain political and financial momentum for water investments worldwide.

SC in Delhi Pollution Control Committee VS Lodhi Property co. ltd. case overturned Delhi High court ruling which held that only courts could impose environmental compensations (EC). It held pollution control boards (PCBs) can impose environmental compensation. 

• Environmental compensation is a policy instrument for the protection of the environment which works on the Polluter Pay Principal.

Key highlights of the rulings

• Statutory mandate: PCBs can impose penalties for environmental compensation in exercise of powers under Section 33A of Water Act, 1974 and Section 31A of the Air Act, 1981.
• Polluter Pays principle: PCBs can’t impose penalties in every contravention under the Acts but only when environmental harm has been caused by the erring entity.
  • In Indian Council for Enviro-Legal Action v. UoI, SC held that according to Polluter Pays principle, responsibility for repairing the damage is that of offending industry.
• Appropriate Course of Action: Boards can decide whether a polluting entity needs to be punished by imposition of penalty or if situation demands immediate restoration of environmental damage by the polluter or both.
  • SC in Vellore Citizens’ Welfare Forum v. Union of India (1996) also held that liability for environmental damage includes both a compensatory and remedial aspect.
• Preventive or ex ante measures can be taken by regulators.

Bibi Fatima Women’s self-help group (SHG) from a small village in Dharwad district was one of the winners of the ‘Equator Initiative Award’.

About UNDP Equator Initiative Award

• Presented biennially under the Equator Initiative of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
• The Equator Initiative provides opportunities for Indigenous Peoples and local communities to address land degradation, biodiversity conservation and livelihood improvement.
• It is also referred to as the Nobel Prize for Biodiversity Conservation.

About Bibi Fatima SHG

• The group introduced millet-based mixed cropping on rainfed farms, promoted climate-resilient farming systems, practised livestock rearing and horticulture and popularised millets.

Third United Nations Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDC3) opened in Awaza, Turkmenistan.

• Conference serves as a crucial platform to implement the newly adopted APoA.

About APoA:

• Adopted by consensus at the UN General Assembly in December 2024.
  • Offers a comprehensive framework to tackle persistent development challenges faced by LLDCs.
• Key deliverables include:
  • Establishment of Regional Agricultural Research Hubs to strengthen food security;
  • Launch of an Infrastructure Investment Finance Facility to mobilize critical funding;
  • Development of a UNFCCC Negotiating Body to advance trade and climate resilience etc.

Sundarbans Tiger Reserve is now India’s second largest after expansion of area. National Board of Wildlife (NBWL), led by the Union minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, approved the West Bengal government’s proposal to increase the area of Sundarbans Tiger Reserve (STR).

• Now STR is just behind Andhra Pradesh’s Nagarjunasagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve in size and elevates it from the seventh to the second-largest tiger reserve within India’s 58 tiger reserves.

Procedure to declare or alter Tiger reserve

• Tiger Reserves are notified by State Governments as per provisions of Section 38V of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 on advice of the National Tiger Conservation Authority.
• The following steps are involved in the notification:
  • Proposal is obtained from the State.
  • In-principle approval is communicated from the National Tiger Conservation Authority, soliciting detailed proposals under section 38V of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
  • The National Tiger Conservation Authority recommends the proposal to the State after due diligence.
  • The State Government notifies the area as a Tiger Reserve.
• Process for alteration: As per section 38 W (1) of Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, no alteration in the boundaries of a tiger reserve shall be made except on a recommendation of the Tiger Conservation Authority and the approval of the National Board for Wild Life.
  • Such proposals are also obtained from the State.

Matri Van Initiative is launched in Gurugram to develop a 750-acre urban forest in the Aravalli hills.

• The initiative is part of the ‘Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam’ programme.
• It aims to enhance ecological preservation and foster community participation, marking a significant step towards urban sustainability.
• Ecological Restoration Components includes removal of invasive species, plantation of native trees and restoring Aravalli-specific biodiversity.

An expert panel of the Union Environment Ministry has recommended environmental clearance for the Etalin hydroelectric project.

About Etalin hydroelectric project

• Location: in Arunachal Pradesh’s Dibang valley, part of the Eastern Himalaya Global Biodiversity Hotspot.
• Rivers: Concrete gravity dams on the Dri and Tangon rivers.
  • The Dri River joins the Tangon near Etalin village to form the Dibang River downstream.

• Mount Lewotobi: Composed of two adjacent stratovolcanoes in Indonesia. 
• Mount Kilauea: Eruptions have been occurring in the Halemaumau Crater which is part of the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park 
  • Hawaii is the only US state completely made up of islands.

Magnitude 7.5 earthquake has struck drake passage near Argentina and Chile.

About Drake Passage

• Location: Between Cape Horn (southernmost point of South America) and the South Shetland Islands ( north of Antarctic Peninsula).
• Name: Named after Sir Francis Drake, the famous English navigator and circumnavigator.
• Ocean Current:  Water majorly flows from west to east and forms part of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (the most voluminous current).
• Historic Trade Route: Key passage for trade before the Panama Canal opened in 1914.
• Sailing Challenge: Known for stormy seas and icy conditions, making Cape Horn rounding a severe test for ships.