India's first climate change assessment report warns of heavy rains, more floods and warmers days

According to the report titled 'Climate change assessment over Indian region', the country will experience warmer days and nights along with frequent heavy rainfall spells causing floods till the end of 21st century. The report, which is a first-of-its-kind for the Indian region, has been spearheaded by climate experts at India Meteorological Department (IMD) and Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) and has considered atmospheric and ocean data for the period between 1951 and 2015. The report further informs that the country’s annual all-India rainfall during this period showcased a declining trend, especially along the Indo-Gangetic plains and Western Ghats. (The Indian Express)

Study finds Covid gene in wastewater, paves the way for using wastewater-based epidemiology for real-time surveillance

In a major breakthrough that paves the way for using wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) for real-time surveillance of COVID-19 in the country, a study, led by scientists in IIT-Gandhinagar, found that increased gene copies of the virus in Ahmedabad’s wastewater matched the incidence of the disease in the city. It is believed that WBE is a promising approach to understand the status of disease outbreak in an area as treatment plants collect wastewater across large regions and measuring the level of RNA in untreated wastewater may provide a valuable insight into the percentage of people infected within a region. (The Print)

Nepal hinders embankment repair work on Gandak Barrage

While the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has issued a flood alert in the state, the Bihar government has flagged flood threat as Nepal has put up a barricade on its border with India which has hindered embankment repair work on Gandak Barrage essential for flood control. The state has intimated about the situation in a written letter to different departments of the central government, including the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), for immediate intervention in the matter. The water resources ministry has been doing repair work of embankments on Gandak, Lalbakeya and Kamla rivers for several years on both the sides. (Livemint)

Almost half of Punjab's groundwater is laden with contaminates, informs CAG

In its first-ever audit report on Punjab’s groundwater, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) informs that 40 percent of the groundwater in the state is contaminated with chemicals and heavy metals beyond permissible limits. While 10 percent of this water is unsafe even for irrigation purposes, 30 percent is marginally to moderately saline/alkaline and cannot be used by humans. Moreover, in the absence of any remedial steps by the government, the remaining safe groundwater is depleting at a rapid pace. The report further informs that paddy sowing is the main culprit for extraction of groundwater in the state. (The Tribune)

Mumbai left with 42 days of water stock, BMC asks not to panic as good monsoon is predicted

The water stock in all seven lakes that supply drinking water to Mumbai is left with only 1.54 lakh litres of water, as against the total storage capacity of 14.47 lakh litres. This implies that the city is left with only 42 days of water stock. However, according to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) officials, there is no need to panic yet since a good monsoon has been predicted and water will be available when it rains. BMC's report has revealed that among the seven lakes Modak Sagar, Vihar and Tulsi have useful water stock in the range of 20-30 percent while in Tansa, Middle Vaitarna and Bhatsa, the water stock is below 15 percent and no useful water stock is left in Upper Vaitarna. (Hindustan Times)

 This is a roundup of important news published between June 12 - 23, 2020. Also read policy matters this week.