Cars choke India cities, no place to walk

The Hindu : Life & Style / Homes & Gardens : Cities are for cars only: "India has nearly 60 cities that have a population of over or approaching a million. Mobility for an average citizen in these urban spaces is emerging as a key challenge. Economic liberalisation has expedited the pace of urbanisation. But given the poor infrastructure and pathetic planning, the urban sprawls tend to be totally unwieldy. "

'via Blog this'

Pune's save bus campaign groups demand free bus travel - The Times of India

Pune's save bus campaign groups demand free bus travel - The Times of India: "PUNE: The 'PMP Bus Seva Bachao Abhiyan' - an initiative taken by city based bus commuters groups to save the city bus transport, has cited the example of how China has taken steps to encourage people to choose public transportation."

'via Blog this'

Climate change, carbon economy killing 5 million a year - study - AlertNet

Climate change, carbon economy killing 5 million a year - study - AlertNet: "LONDON (AlertNet) - Climate change and the world's addiction to polluting fuels are costing nearly 5 million lives each year and lowering global output by some $1.2 trillion annually, demonstrating the need for swift action to stem mounting losses, a study said on Wednesday"

'via Blog this'

Public transport cuts obesity: some more evidence

Straphangers United | The voice of the Chennai commuter: " So what we need to do is campaign for walking spaces and good, comfortable and affordable public transit systems."

'via Blog this'

U.S. losing India in the oil wars

Iran drawing India closer with talks on train, road access to Afghanistan - The Washington Post: "India’s closer cooperation with Iran will likely offend the United States, which has been pushing the international community to punish Iran over its nuclear program.

India has come under increasing pressure from Washington over its ties with Iran, but New Delhi needs Iranian crude supplies to power its economic growth. Iran supplies about 12 percent of India’s energy needs.

India’s talks with Iran will explore ways to expand trade to improve the heavily skewed balance of trade between the two countries, Mathai said.

Two-way trade in the last year totaled about $16 billion, of which Indian oil imports from Iran accounted for $13.5 billion.

Mathai said India would accept sanctions imposed by the United Nations, but would not heed those imposed by others, referring to harsher sanctions maintained by the United States and Europe."

'via Blog this'

Massive highway project was a huge mistake

The Demise Of The Car  |  Peak Oil News and Message Boards: "Alas, the irony is rich. India conceived of this highway project as oil prices hit deep lows at the end of the past millennium. Now that the highway network is constructed and oil prices have more than quadrupled, it is massive investment in the powergrid that hundreds of millions of Indians so desperately need instead—not road building."

'via Blog this'

Climate Change, Fossil Fuel dependence -- India is hitting the wall

How An Unholy Alliance of Unusual Weather and Scarce Coal Nuked India’s Power Grid | Smart News: "Indeed, the New York Times points to a dearth in imported coal as one of the possible causes for triggering the massive blackout. Another potential force that is driving energy demand and limiting supply is this year’s monsoon, the annual rainy season that supplies three-quarter’s of the country’s water. Or, rather, that this year’s monsoon never happened. The lack of monsoon rains, says Reuters, has caused energy demand to climb as farmers in northwestern India’s heavily producing  agricultural regions leaned more heavily on irrigation to water their fields. Businessweek adds,

The less-than-normal rainfall has put strains on India’s hydroelectric power supply, which accounts for 19 percent of the country’s 205 gigawatt generation capacity but has dropped nearly 20 percent in the first six months of the financial year because of the delayed monsoon rains."

'via Blog this'