World Environment Day is celebrated on every 5th June of the year.
The theme for this year’s Environment Day, organised in partnership with the United Nations Environmental Programme, is “Beat plastic pollution”
India is the global host nation for the 43rd edition of this event..
India leads the charge in battling plastic pollution on World Environment Day.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board, India generates about 15,000 tonnes of plastic waste every day, of which about 40% remains uncollected.
About 70% of the plastic packaging products become “waste” in a short span of time.
While plastics have a wide variety of applications, the global rally is against the so-called “single use” or disposable plastic — used in bottles, cups, wrapping paper and bags.
Together, they account for over half the plastic produced.
Juvenile fishing
According to the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI), Kerala’s fisheries sector is suffering a huge economic loss owing to uncontrolled juvenile fishing.
Apart from loss to the economy, juvenile fishing badly affects the biological factors of fish ecosystem.
Unfavorable climatic conditions following El Nino had badly affected the spawning and growth pattern of oil sardine.
Hatching from egg to larvae and growing from fry (post-hatching stage) to fingerling (when fins get extended and scales developed fully) to reach adulthood, it takes time.
However before they attain adulthood, they are captured.
According to an estimate, one-fourth of small fish in the process gets discarded.
Badshahi Ashurkhana
Telangana government and Aga Khan Trust are working to restore the Ashurkhana monument.
Badshahi Ashurkhana is a Shia Muslim mourning place, near Charminar in Hyderabad, India.
It was constructed in memory of martyrdom of Imam Hussain, and is used during the festival of Moharram.
It was built by Muhammed Quli Qutb Shah in 1611, three years after building the Charminar.
The Ashoorkhana turns into a pilgrimage site when alams (battle standards) are installed to commemorate the battle of Karbala in 680 A.D. Ashoora or 10th day of Muharram is when the battle took place.
The monument was lost for several decades when Emperor Aurangzeb’s forces turned it into a bandikhana to keep wheeled vehicles.
WASP-127b
WASP-127b is a giant gaseous exoplanet with partly clear skies and also shows strong signatures of metals in its atmosphere.
Scientists have identified traces of multiple metals, along with possible signs of water in WASP-127b.
It is one of the least dense exoplanets ever found.
WASP-127b has a radius 1.4 times larger than Jupiter but has only 20 per cent of its mass.
It takes just over four days to orbit its parent star and its surface temperature is around 1127 degree Celsius.
The observations of WASP-127b reveal the presence of a large concentration of alkali metals in its atmosphere, allowing simultaneous detections of sodium, potassium and lithium for the first time in an exoplanet.
E-WASTE
E-waste is that which is discarded in the form of electrical and electronic equipment, whole or in part or rejects during manufacturing or repairing processes.
They also include equipment discarded by consumers.
It includes
Computers, laptops, telephones, printers including cartridges etc.
Consumer electrical items and electronics such as air-conditioners, television sets, refrigerators, washing machines etc
According to a report by the United Nations, over 1 million poor people are involved in manual recycling operations in India.
The unorganized sector consists of an assortment of small and informal businesses that are not governed by any stringent health and environmental regulations.
Factors like the social bondage among recyclers, economics of recycling and the prevailing scales of operations contribute to a flourishing informal sector.
