Millions of Indians set Diwali world record as air pollution worries rise

Homes decked with lights as annual Hindu festival celebrated across country

 

 

Devotees light earthen lamps on the banks of the Saryu river in Ayodhya on Saturday. AFP

AP
Nov 12, 2023


Millions of Indians celebrated Diwali on Sunday, setting a Guinness World Record for the number of bright earthen oil lamps, as concerns about air pollution soared in the country.

Across the country, dazzling multi-colored lights decked homes and streets as devotees celebrated the annual Hindu festival of light symbolizing the victory of light over darkness.

But the spectacular and long-awaited lighting of the oil lamps took place as usual on the banks of the Saryu river in Ayodhya, the birthplace of the Hindu deity Rama.
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When is Diwali 2023 and how will the festival of lights be celebrated this year?

At dusk on Saturday, devotees lit more than 2.22 million lamps and kept them burning for 45 minutes as religious hymns filled the air at the banks of the river, setting a new world record. Last year, more than 1.5 million earthen lamps were lit.

After counting the lamps, Guinness World Records representatives presented a certificate to Uttar Pradesh state’s top elected official, Yogi Adityanath.


More than 24,000 volunteers, mostly college students, helped prepare for the new record, said Pratibha Goyal, vice chancellor of Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Avadh University in Ayodhya.

Diwali, a national holiday across India, is celebrated by socialising and exchanging gifts with family and friends. Many light earthen oil lamps or candles as fireworks are set off as part of the celebrations.

A Hindu woman holds a clay lamp during a ceremony to celebrate Diwali at Krishna temple in Lahore, Pakistan, on Sunday. AP

In the evening, a prayer is dedicated to the Hindu deity Lakshmi, who is believed to bring luck and prosperity.

Over the weekend, authorities ran extra trains to accommodate the huge numbers trying to reach their home towns to join in family celebrations.

Air quality concerns

The festival came amid rising worries about air quality in India.

A “hazardous” 400-500 level was recorded on the air quality index last week, more than 10 times the global safety threshold, which can cause acute and chronic bronchitis and asthma attacks.

But on Saturday, unexpected rain and a strong wind improved the levels to 220, according to the government-run Central Pollution Control Board.

Fireworks light up the night sky in Mumbai on Sunday. AFP

Air pollution levels are expected to soar again after the celebrations end on Sunday night because of the fireworks used.

Last week, officials in New Delhi shut down primary schools and banned polluting vehicles and construction work in an attempt to reduce the worst haze and smog of the season, which has posed respiratory problems for people and enveloped monuments and high-rise buildings in and around India’s capital.

Authorities used water sprinklers and anti-smog guns to control the haze and many people used masks to escape the air pollution.

Almost every year, New Delhi is named as India's city with the worst air quality, particularly in the winter, when the burning of crop residues in neighbouring states coincides with cooler temperatures that trap deadly smoke.

Some Indian states have banned the sale of fireworks and imposed other restrictions to stem the pollution. Authorities have also urged residents to light “green crackers” that emit less pollutants than normal fireworks. But similar bans have often been disregarded in the past.

This year's Diwali celebrations took place as authorities prepared for the January opening of a temple to Rama at former the site of the 16th-century Babri mosque in Ayodhya.

The mosque was destroyed by a Hindu mob with pickaxes and crowbars in December 1992, sparking violence between Hindus and Muslims that left about 2,000 people dead, most of them Muslims. The Supreme Court’s verdict in 2019 allowed a temple to be built in place of the demolished mosque.

 

Smoke clouds Indian capital on Diwali as revellers defy firecracker ban

Revellers lighting firecrackers on the night of Deepavali in New Delhi on Nov 12

. PHOTO: AFP

NEW DELHI – A toxic haze began to circulate in New Delhi on Sunday as people in the city of 20 million, which has struggled with heavy pollution recently, defied a ban on firecrackers on the night of Diwali, the annual Hindu festival of light.

Smoke plumes were visible across the sky as revellers let off firecrackers in the evening to mark the country’s biggest festival.

Every year government authorities or India’s Supreme Court impose bans on firecrackers – but only rarely do those bans appear to be enforced.


The Air Quality Index (AQI) across all 40 monitoring stations in the capital averaged 219 on a scale of 500, according to the federal pollution control board data, indicating “poor” conditions that can affect most people on prolonged exposure.

The AQI data also showed that the concentration of PM2.5 poisonous particulate matter was around 100 microgrammes per cubic m of air – 20 times higher than the World Health Organisation’s recommended maximum.

Globally, air pollution was the worst in India’s eastern city of Kolkata, while Delhi was the fifth-most polluted, according to Swiss group IQAir.

Doctors say the air quality is likely to worsen on Monday as smoke from firecrackers lingers in the air, potentially causing itchy eyes and irritation in the throat.

“I can see my patients are getting distressed. As a society, we have not understood the value of clean air,” said senior consultant Desh Deepak at Delhi’s Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital.

Some Hindus resent the Diwali firecracker bans, which they see as an attempt to interfere with their observing their religious festivals.

Earlier in the day, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai had urged citizens to steer clear of firecrackers to prevent citizens from having breathing problems later.

Just before the weekend, a spell of rain had brought some relief to the city, where the AQI dipped below 160 after hovering around the 400-500 level over the past week.

The world’s most polluted capital typically experiences heavy smog in the winter months as particulate matter gets trapped in the cold air, leading to spikes in cases of respiratory distress. 

REUTERS

India’s Yearly Air Haze Carnival is Here!

D Raghunandan | 12 Nov 2023

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The real worry for the country should be the high baseline AQI of around 200-250 in almost all major Indian cities.

A thick smog blankets the capital city of Delhi, Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2023. Air pollution level is Delhi-NCR has started rising owing much to stubble (parali) burning in adjoining states. Image Courtesy: PTI Photo/Arun Sharma

So here we are once again, regular like the seasons, with Delhi and the entire Indo-Gangetic plains right down to West Bengal, shrouded in a grey haze of pollutants as visible in photographs from space.  As many as 13 of the world’s 20 worst polluted cities or towns in the world are in India, including Delhi, satellite towns and other urban centres in northern and eastern India. This has now become such a hardy and recurrent annual feature that it may as well be declared yet another festival of which we already have so many in this country.

As with other Indian festivals, this one too has by now acquired ritual trappings. The press carries daily articles on different aspects, but really only provides snippets of information with little or no meaningful analysis leading to effective policies. The media discourse has utterly confused the issues, and obscured the basic causes behind high levels of air pollution and its major sources, thereby preventing a clear understanding of the problem and a focused policy direction for a long-term and permanent solution.

The same holds true for establishment political parties. The Union government and the ruling dispensation, which daily clamour for control over the administration of Delhi, now only maintains a studious silence, leaving things to a committee and to the different states, while taking pot-shots at Opposition-rules states.

The Delhi government and its ruling party, which used to cry hoarse against the neighbouring states, especially Punjab and Haryana formerly governed by the Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party, respectively, now only speaks against pollutants coming from Haryana, obviously because Punjab is now ruled by the Aam Aadmi Party!

Even the august Supreme Court, which often shies away from important decisions which it says may cross the line separating it from executive or legislative jurisdictions, now questions the basis for different executive decisions, but then proceeds to itself pass orders directing this or that policy or executive action, which too have no basis in science or empirical evidence!

Marx said that history repeats itself, the first time as tragedy, and the next time as farce. But what does one say when a sorry history repeats itself annually?  

THE BASICS OF AIR POLLUTION IN DELHI
(AND OTHER INDIAN CITIES)

Let us first get to a basic understanding of the problem of air pollution in urban centres in India.

There is much talk of seasonal or other variations, weather conditions, wind flows, seasonal or other spurts in one or another pollution source, but not clearly identifying the major sources of pollution. Extensive discussions about farm fires in north-western states, the inversion phenomenon in winter wherein cold air stays close to the ground gets trapped, make it appear as if the problem is more acute in North India than in peninsular and southern India. In major coastal cities such as in Mumbai, Chennai and even to some extent Kolkata, sea-breezes regularly flush out air pollutants over these cities, ensuring lower ambient pollution and beguilingly low air quality indices. 

It needs to be clearly understood that total pollutants released into the air, especially over cities, come from specific sources in quantities that can be determined by scientific studies and models. The major sources of air pollution in any urban centre in India would mostly comprise vehicle exhaust, coal-fired power plants in the vicinity, brick and other kilns in the region, construction and ambient dust, domestic, industrial or commercial burning of solid fuels such as coal and firewood, open burning of garbage or waste, industrial air pollution including and especially from burning of highly polluting fuels such as rubber and poor grades of furnace oil etc in boilers or other equipment, diesel generators and some other sources.

Of all these, as numerous studies have shown, vehicular pollution, construction and ambient dust, and industrial pollution are the major sources which account for most of the baseline or uniform, underlying air pollution in almost all Indian cities.

The main point here, however, is that, besides these variations and seasonal factors, a finite and determinate quantity of pollutants are emitted from these sources in or near any given city. Out of this total quantity of pollutants, some will stay over these urban centres and their surrounding areas, and some will be blown away or otherwise diffuse through the air due to seasonal and daily variations including rainfall, winds, summer and winter etc.

The Air Quality Index (AQI) is a measure of pollutants determined by sensors placed at different points in the city, and often cited and used to categorise conditions as “good,” “poor” or “severe.” AQI is a good indicator of air pollution under current conditions including as influenced by seasonal and weather patterns, and can help guide additional seasonal or other variable responses. But we need to look closer at the main, or baseline, total air pollutants emitted in and around the city in order to determine, plan and implement long-term strategies to curb air pollution on a permanent basis.

So, if one looks at the numbers, Delhi, surrounding National Capital Region or NCR and other Indo-Gangetic belt cities are being driven to panic by AQI numbers of close to 500 due to seasonal spikes in farm fires and winter conditions. While farm fires etc. can be tackled, the real worry should be the high baseline AQI of around 200-250 in almost all major Indian cities.

KNEE-JERK REACTIONS, FALSE SOLUTIONS
This is certainly not what is being done, or even being addressed, in any city in India or in the country as a whole. 

There is a National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) in existence which aims at a 20-30% reduction of PM 2.5 and PM 10 (particulate matter of 2.5 or 10 microns or thousandths of a millimetre size), of which the former is particularly dangerous since it can easily penetrate into the lungs and cause serious respiratory diseases, as compared to 2017 levels. The needle has barely moved on these indicators, and funds have mostly been spent only on providing sensors to different cities. No strategy as such is visible, and no effective inter-departmental coordination mechanism has been set up.

Instead, what the country is witnessing is panic-driven knee-jerk reactions and false solutions offered by all and sundry without any scientific basis or evidence-based reasoning based, among other things, on valuable experiences of other countries which have successfully tackled air pollution in cities over decades resulting in steady and continuing low air pollution today. We shall learn about these in the next section.

In the current tragi-comedy in Delhi, there is first the over-concentration on farm fires in Punjab and Haryana, which have been discussed ad nauseam, including in these columns. Stubble burning is, of course, worrying, but the problem is not amenable to short-being caught between high costs and the urgent need to clear fields of straw to enable planting of winter wheat within an extremely short window of two-three weeks.  Various interventions of providing machines and subsidies to various user industries have indeed shown some results, but not enough.

The Centre's Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has reported a substantial decrease in stubble-burning incidents in Punjab and Haryana between September 15 to October 29, of around 56% and 40%, respectively, compared with the same period last year. Yet, as harvest time neared, this has risen again and spiked.

Clearly, more holistic, end-to-end solutions, which cannot simply be left to market forces, are required by state governments with pro-active support and coordination by the Centre. It is pointless for the Supreme Court to peremptorily order the state governments concerned to ensure that all farm fires should be stopped forthwith, as it did earlier this week.

Besides this, the Delhi government decided to introduce its vehicle-rationing “odd-even” (now deferred) scheme under which vehicles with number plates ending with odd or even numbers would ply only on alternative days. The Supreme Court sneered at this idea, asked for evidence to prove that such a scheme works, and sharply called it “sheer optics''. But surely, in theory, a scheme which reduces vehicles on Delhi’s roads by half would cause a substantial dent in air pollution. This was clearly evidenced during the pandemic lockdown when, due to lack of vehicular movement, air quality in Indian cities was better than it had been in several decades!

International experience in Mexico, China and Brazil has shown that such schemes to reduce numbers of vehicles on the roads do indeed work, but have been thwarted to cunning vehicle-owner dissenting response of buying additional vehicles with different number plates to circumvent the “odd-even” norms. In Delhi, two-wheelers which account for 7 million vehicles, have been exempted!

At the same time, the SC asked the Delhi government to consider banning app-based taxis, with the latter then proposing to stop out-of-state taxis from entering Delhi. This would only curb a tiny fraction of the one million vehicles on Delhi’s roads! What evidence does the august court have that this scheme would work?

The same applies to the infamous “smog towers” which the Supreme Court ordered to be installed in 2020 despite evidence-based reluctance of various agencies and academic institutions. Yet, in the past few days, the SC ordered the by now dysfunctional smog towers in Connaught Place to be restarted, even though studies have shown that the tower is effective only over a few tens of metres.

And now the Delhi government is preparing for cloud seeding to produce rain!

More pipedreams.
 
INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE
In sharp contrast to India, Europe as a whole has substantially improved its air quality over the past two decades by concerted and holistic efforts, including strict enforcement of high standards for industrial, vehicular and domestic air pollution by cooking and heating fuels especially coal. These measures have been backed by EU and national legislation, national commitments with strict timelines, and a comprehensive approach tackling all sources of pollution and all major pollutants. 

As a result, more than half of EU countries, mostly in Western Europe, have brought down average PM 2.5 levels to under the EU standard of 25 micrograms per cubic metre, compared with the India average of well over 100, and aim to achieve the WHO (World Health Organisation) standard of matter, especially PM 2.5.

The EU has also sharply focused on the dangerous nitrogen dioxide emanating mainly from vehicles and thermal power plants, on surface level ozone, a major carcinogen, and on toxic carbon monoxide, which hardly find mention in the discourse in India. Having earlier tackled power generation and polluting industries, most present efforts are aimed at vehicular pollution.

Another outstanding example is Beijing, widely studied and appreciated by UN agencies and other international agencies. About a decade or two ago, Beijing had the dubious distinction of consistently ranked the most polluted city in the world, with PM 2.5 well in excess of 100. Its smog was notorious, driving many multinational companies and diplomatic missions to seriously consider and publicly speak about relocating out of Beijing.

Even though China as a whole ranked quite poorly in international pollution rankings, it put in highly focused and major efforts into tackling air pollution in Beijing. It moved all coal-based power plants and industries out of the city, ensured phasing out of older and more polluting vehicles, and introduced low-emission zones in the city where only the cleanest or electric vehicles were allowed, an idea also enforced in London and other European cities.

Beijing has been transformed from a car-centred city to what agencies have described as an example of sustainable mobility, expanding urban rail, bicycle and pedestrian mobility. A major afforestation effort was also taken in the northern regions from where recurring dust-storms bringing fine dust into Beijing were curbed.

Widespread use of domestic coal-burning stoves was also curbed. As a result of all these measures, Beijing’s air pollution levels have been reduced by almost half its earlier levels, also bringing down pollution in the huge extended tri-city “megapolis” area.

There is no reason at all why India cannot emulate these international examples. But this would call for political will, planning and enforcement… and stop tilting at windmills!

The writer is with the Delhi Science Forum and All India People’s Science Network. The views are personal.

Killer Delhi Air Reminds, Pollution Needs National Solution

Rashme Sehgal | 10 Nov 2023

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Experts say air pollution needs a regional approach, not finger-pointing, and certainly not complete neglect.

Commuters cross railway tracks amid low visibility due to smog, in Gurugram, Thursday, Nov. 9, 2023. Image Courtesy: PTI

Delhi’s air quality worsens every Diwali season, and this year is no exception. The rainfall in parts of the National Capital Region (NCR) brings some relief, but will hardly change things unless the rainfall is widespread and prolonged—which will have other negative consequences for the economy and people. Hence, Delhi and its surroundings, with the air quality index hitting 500, 100 times above what the World Health Organization (WHO) has deemed healthy, needs to be part of a national solution for the pollution crisis.

The 3.3 crore people living in the NCR are only too aware that the cold-weather smog sees the PM2.5 levels register a dangerous 100% increase, piercing the lungs of citizens and precipitating a host of diseases. On November 2 alone, they recorded a 68% increase in 24 hours. Similar statistics emerged from around the country, making people worried about what miseries the expected spike in pollution with Diwali cracker-burning will bring. 

The weary citizens, and especially the elderly and young of this mega city, are asking why the central and state governments, including those of Delhi, Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, have failed to get together and draw up a game-plan that will resolve this annual catastrophe that afflicts all? They know that blaming seasonal factors like crop-residue burning and festival-related pollution is not the answer. 

However, the seriousness of this matter seems lost on our decision-makers. A few years ago, Dr Arvind Kumar, who headed the Lung Care Foundation at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, recreated a pair of large human lungs with the help of HEPA (High-efficiency Particulate Air) filters, which are used to trap dust in operation theatres. These “lungs’ were designed to mimic the workings of a pair of human lungs. Dr Kumar had expected the lungs to become dark (signifying high pollution) over time, but they started to darken in just one day and went utterly dark within six days. Dr Kumar said, speaking not only about the effects of pollution in the capital and the entire country, “There are no non-smokers left in India. We have become a nation of smokers.”

The point Dr Kumar was trying to make was that in Delhi, to cite an example, the PM 2.5 levels are high around the year, with doctors insisting this toxic air is the equivalent of smoking over ten cigarettes a day, even for newborn children. With air pollution levels having risen alarmingly across all the major cities of the Indo-Gangetic plain, the situation has become alarming throughout the country. 

“This is a failure on the part of individuals, officials, organisations to take cognisance of the fact that breathing is killing [us],” he said in a widely-circulated interview. 

Dr Piyush Ranjan from the Department of Medicine AIIMS recently warned, “Air pollution affects various systems of the body apart from causing respiratory diseases. Pollution has direct relations with coronary artery diseases like heart attack, brain stroke and arthritis, and there is scientific evidence to show its relationship with different types of cancer.”

Delhi has set up a Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), a statutory body responsible for strategies to combat pollution. It has prepared a graded response plan, and the Grade 4 response has kicked in under the present circumstances. The CAQM has banned diesel BS-4 and all BS-3 private cars and banned diesel-run medium goods vehicles and heavy goods vehicles in the city. But despite a ban on construction activities and the closure of schools until November 26, the ambient air quality has not improved. This is because the root of the problem is not being addressed. 

The political class does a great deal of name-calling, with each blaming this mess on the rival party. The Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress are pointing fingers at the Aam Aadmi Party government in Delhi, blaming it for the present situation given that farm fires are spiking in Punjab. Indeed, reports of these fires continue to come in despite the Supreme Court ordering the Punjab and Haryana governments to ensure farmers stop burning stubble in their fields.

Can AAP escape blame for the crisis in Delhi? According to the Bharatiya Janata Party, the party has failed to provide alternatives to the farmers, resulting in farm fires. Priyanka Kakkar, a party spokesperson, defended her party and called the criticism baseless as she believes Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has taken steps to clear Delhi’s air. This includes introducing electric buses, stopping waste burning, and ensuring all industries run on CNG.

According to Kakkar, there were 81,000 farm fires in Punjab in 2016 and only 19,000 in 2023. However, this is contradicted by NASA figures, which paint a very different picture. 

She says ensuring 24x7 electricity supply reduced diesel generator use in the capital, unlike Uttar Pradesh and Haryana, where power cuts force industry and housing societies to use diesel generators.

Herein lies the crux of the problem. While there is no doubt that the farm fires helped accelerate the crisis, several neighbouring cities including Ghaziabad, NOIDA, Greater NOIDA and Faridabad report highly hazardous air. According to the Central Pollution Control Board data for the first week of November, Greater NOIDA has the dubious distinction of being the country’s most polluted city. Meanwhile, last year, the World Air Quality Report ranked Delhi the fourth most polluted of 50 cities in the world. This year, Delhi is in an equally bad, if not worse, situation.

How, then, should our planners bring about a turnaround? How should PM 2.5 levels be immediately reduced by 60% to meet the National Ambient Air Quality standards? For one, they must recognise the different sources causing 24/7 pollution around the year. However, the government must also ensure a significant transition from private vehicles to public transport use. In New York and London, exorbitant parking fees have made even the wealthy feel the pinch of driving personal cars and two-wheelers.

By contrast, 1.2 crore vehicles in Delhi were recorded as registered in 2020, though this dipped in the following year. Still, the number of vehicles plying in Delhi on any day exceeds the registered vehicles figure because of cabs from neighbouring cities (which are banned now). Further, trucks and buses using BS 3 diesel supply essential commodities to the city. The government will have to introduce strict laws and restrictions to control private vehicles, but this will only work if there is efficient, reliable and inexpensive last-mile connectivity for public transport, especially the Delhi Metro and bus services.

By and large, industries in Delhi have switched to CNG, but the government needs to take adequate steps to ensure that CNG remains a viable option against the price of coal. If not, people will rely on coal, whatever the environmental consequences.

The other major problem in Delhi is waste management. The CPCB’s annual report for waste management in 2021 revealed that Delhi had the highest per-capita waste generation (450 grams per day), while 263 tonnes of solid waste was generated daily, which is unaccounted for. This is because a lot of trash has been outsourced to private players and is not handled by municipal corporations.

Delhi’s waste-to-energy plants also need to be more efficient. For every tonne of burnt waste, 300 kg of trash is dumped in landfills. 

Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director of the Centre for Science and Environment, says, “The states and Centre need to act on a massive scale and with rapid speed to fill some glaring gaps in policy. They must realise that transportation remains the biggest polluter in Delhi, much more than farmers’ fires. The 1.2 crore vehicles plying in the capital add to the traffic congestion on the streets. The government needs to follow a regional approach to resolve this issue, a Delhi-centric approach alone will not work.”

Medical experts say that all sections of society, including politicians, religious leaders and others, must join hands. As Dr Kumar has said, he tried to engage with spiritual figures so they could tell followers what steps to take to curb pollution. Sadly, he claims, he met with little success.

The government continues to be one of the biggest polluters in the NCR, given the number of building projects being undertaken by the Centre. Dust and smoke remain two of the biggest polluters, which can only be curbed if all non-essential construction stops immediately. 

Pollution is a deadly killer, and it is questionable how ‘slow’ it is in claiming victims, for India has had unacceptably poor air quality for well over a decade. Unfortunately, governments are blind to the consequences and the toll it has been taking on the country’s entire population.

The author is an independent journalist. The views are personal. 

 

Delhi: Air Quality Severe Again; PM 2.5 at 30 to 40 Times Healthy Limit set by WHO

PTI | 08 Nov 2023

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Smoke from post-harvest paddy straw burning in neighbouring states accounts for one-third of the air pollution in the national capital, say officials.

Representational Image. Image Courtesy: Flickr

New Delhi, Nov 8 (PTI) Air quality in Delhi and its suburbs dropped to the severe category again on Wednesday morning, with smoke from post-harvest paddy straw burning in neighbouring states accounting for one-third of the air pollution in the national capital.

The city's Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 421, worsening from 395 at 4 p.m on Tuesday.

Despite a marginal dip, the concentration of PM2.5, fine particulate matter capable of penetrating deep into the respiratory system and triggering health problems, exceeded the government-prescribed safe limit of 60 micrograms per cubic metre by seven to eight times in the capital.

It was 30 to 40 times the healthy limit of 15 micrograms per cubic metre set by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Several cities across the Indo-Gangetic plains reported hazardous air quality. Neighbouring Ghaziabad (382), Gurugram (370), Noida (348), Greater Noida (474), and Faridabad (396) also reported hazardous air quality.

According to data from the Decision Support System, a numerical model-based framework capable of identifying sources of particulate matter pollution in Delhi, stubble burning in neighbouring states, especially Punjab and Haryana, accounted for 37% of the air pollution in Delhi on Tuesday. It is likely to be 33% on Wednesday.

The Delhi government on Monday announced the return of its flagship odd-even scheme after four years anticipating further deterioration of air quality post-Diwali.

The odd-even scheme, under which cars are allowed to operate on alternate days based on their odd or even number plates, will be implemented between November 13 and November 20. The Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago (EPIC) and Evidence for Policy Design had analysed the impact of the odd-even system in 2016 and found that Delhi saw a 14-16 per cent reduction in PM2.5 levels during the hours it remained in force in January that year. However, there was no reduction in pollution when the scheme was brought back in April that year.

To protect the health of school children, the government also decided to suspend in-person classes in all schools, except for students in grades X and XII preparing for board exams, until November 10.

According to the Ministry of Earth Sciences' Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi-NCR, the region is likely to experience severe air quality for another five to six days.

Doctors say breathing in the polluted air of Delhi is equivalent to the harmful effects of smoking approximately 10 cigarettes a day.

Prolonged exposure to high levels of pollution can cause or exacerbate respiratory problems such as asthma, bronchitis, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and can dramatically raise the risk of cardiovascular disease, said Rajesh Chawla, senior consultant in pulmonology and critical care at the Indraprastha Apollo Hospital.

Stringent restrictions mandated under the final stage of the Central government's air pollution control plan for Delhi-NCR, called the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), have also been implemented in Delhi.

The restrictions under stage IV of GRAP, including a ban on all kinds of construction work and the entry of polluting trucks into the capital, took effect on Sunday after air quality in the capital dropped to severe plus (AQI above 450) levels.

GRAP categorises actions into four stages: Stage I - Poor (AQI 201-300); Stage II - Very Poor (AQI 301-400); Stage III - Severe (AQI 401-450); and Stage IV - Severe Plus (AQI above 450).

Unfavourable meteorological conditions, combined with vehicular emissions, paddy straw burning, firecrackers, and other local pollution sources, contribute to hazardous air quality levels in Delhi-NCR during the winter every year.

According to a Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) analysis, the capital experiences peak pollution from November 1 to November 15 when the number of stubble-burning incidents in Punjab and Haryana increases.

Air quality in Delhi-NCR declined over the last two weeks due to a gradual drop in temperatures, calm winds that trap pollution, and a surge in post-harvest paddy straw burning across Punjab and Haryana.

Delhi's air quality ranks among the worst in the world's capital cities.

A report by EPIC in August said that air pollution is shortening lives by almost 12 years in Delhi.

‘We recognise role of Hindu, Jain, Sikh, Buddhist’: Canadian PM Trudeau greets on Diwali

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau extends greetings of Diwali and Bandi Chorr Divas.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Sunday extended greetings of Diwali which symbolises the “triumph of light over darkness”.

Justin Trudeau at an event celebrating Diwali and Bandi Chorr Divas.

(X/@FP_Champagne)


Read Justin Trudeau statement on Diwali:

Canadian PM Trudeau said:
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Today, we join millions of people in Canada and around the world to celebrate Diwali.

Today, we join millions of people in Canada and around the world to celebrate Diwali. On this joyful holiday, families and friends gather to pray, exchange gifts, share meals, and decorate their homes and temples with colour and the glow of diyas to mark the triumph of light over darkness.

Diwali is also a time to reflect on the values of selflessness, optimism, gratitude, and compassion for those less fortunate. As we mark Diwali, we also recognize the many contributions of Canadians from Hindu, Jain, Sikh, and Buddhist communities to our country’s cultural fabric, and we celebrate their role in making Canada the diverse and inclusive place we call home.

On behalf of all Canadians, I wish everyone celebrating a very happy Diwali.

Read Justin Trudeau statement on Bandi Chorr Divas

In another statement, Canadian PM also wished ‘Band Chhor Divas’ to Sikhs. Celebrated annually on Diwali, it marks Guru Hargobind Singh’s release by Mughal King Jahangir.

Canadian PM said:

This important day commemorates the story of the sixth Guru, Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji, who upon his release from prison, refused to leave his captors unless the 52 innocent kings imprisoned alongside him were also freed. Generations later, his story continues to inspire values of selflessness and generosity in Sikhs around the world.

Families and friends will observe Bandi Chhor Divas today by getting together to share festive meals and sweets, watch fireworks, illuminate their homes and Gurdwaras, and read the Sikh holy book – the Guru Granth Sahib.


For those celebrating, this holiday is a reminder that when we come together as a society, we can achieve a world that stands for peace, freedom, and community. Today is also an opportunity to recognize the contributions of Sikh Canadians, past and present, to building a better and more diverse country.

On behalf of the Government of Canada, I wish a happy Bandi Chhor Divas to all those celebrating.

Earlier on Wednesday, Justin Trudeau attended a Diwali and Bandi Chorr Divas event where he lighted lamps to mark the occasion on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.

‘We reflect on strength of our shared light’: US President Joe Biden extends Diwali wishes

ByHT News Desk
Nov 12, 2023 

Diwali message of seeking light of wisdom, love, and unity prevails, said US President Joe Biden.

US President Joe Biden on Sunday extended Diwali greetings to South Asian Americans and all those celebrating the festival of “wisdom, love, and unity over the darkness of ignorance, hate, and division”.

Read Joe Biden’s Diwali wish

“Over the course of generations, South Asian Americans have woven Diwali traditions into the fabric of our nation – symbolizing the message of seeking the light of wisdom, love, and unity over the darkness of ignorance, hate, and division.

It’s a message that has helped our nation emerge stronger from the past few difficult years, and matters now more than ever. On this Diwali, may we reflect on the strength of our shared light and embrace the enduring spirit of this holiday and of our nation.

To the more than one billion Hindus, Jains, Sikhs, and Buddhists celebrating in America and around the world, we wish you a happy Diwali,” Biden said in his Diwali message.
Diwali at White House

Vice President Kamala Harris, who shares her root with India, hosted a Diwali event at the White House on Wednesday, welcoming influential figures from South Asian communities.

In her speech, Harris said: “This year we celebrate Diwali at a time where there's a lot happening in our world,” the vice president said

The event was attended by Ajay Banga, President of the World Bank, Bela Bajaria, CCO of Netflix, US Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, US Rep. Pooja Bavishi, Miss USA Nina Davaluri and others.

US Ambassador to India, Eric Garcetti celebrated Diwali for the first time in India.

Taking to social media platform X, Garcetti said, “Delighted to celebrate #Diwali with dance, food and music with my colleagues for the first time here in India! At this auspicious time, may the festival of light bring you happiness and prosperity in the new year!”

What is Diwali, the Festival of Lights, and how is it celebrated in India and the diaspora?

DEEPA BHARATH
Thu, November 9, 2023






India Festival
People look at lanterns displayed for sale at roadside stalls ahead of Diwali festival in Mumbai, India, Sunday, Nov. 5, 2023. 

(AP Ph

Diwali is the most important festival of the year in India — and for Hindus in particular.

It is celebrated across faiths by more than a billion people in the world’s most populous nation and the diaspora. Over five days, people take part in festive gatherings, fireworks displays, feasts and prayer.

Diwali is derived from the word “Deepavali,” which means “a row of lights.” Celebrants light rows of traditional clay oil lamps outside their homes to symbolize the victory of light over darkness and knowledge over ignorance.


WHEN IS DIWALI?

The dates of the festival are based on the Hindu lunar calendar, typically falling in late October or early November.

This year, Diwali begins Nov. 10 and the festival will be observed on Nov. 12.

WHAT ARE SOME HINDU STORIES OF DIWALI?

While Diwali is a major religious festival for Hindus, it is also observed by Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists. The origin story of Diwali varies depending on the region. All these stories have one underlying theme — the victory of good over evil.

In southern India, Diwali celebrates the victory of Lord Krishna’s destruction of the demon Naraka who is said to have imprisoned women and tormented his subjects. In northern India, Diwali honors the triumphant return of Lord Rama, his wife Sita, and brother Lakshmana, from a 14-year exile in the forest.

HOW IS DIWALI CELEBRATED?

The festival brings with it a number of unique traditions, which also vary by the region. What all celebrations have in common are the lights, fireworks, feasting, new clothes and praying.

—In southern India, many have an early morning warm oil bath to symbolize bathing in the holy River Ganges as a form of physical and spiritual purification.

—In the north, worshipping the Goddess Lakshmi, who symbolizes wealth and prosperity, is the norm.

Gambling is a popular tradition because of the belief whoever gambled on Diwali night would prosper throughout the year. Many people buy gold on the first day of Diwali, known as Dhanteras — an act they believe will bring them good luck.

Setting off firecrackers is a cherished tradition, as is exchanging sweets and gifts among friends and family. Diwali celebrations typically feature rangoli, which are geometric, floral patterns drawn on the floor using colorful powders.

WHAT ARE THE DIWALI STORIES FROM OTHER FAITHS?

Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs have their own Diwali stories:

—Jains observe Diwali as the day the Lord Mahavira, the last of the great teachers, attained nirvana, which is liberation from the cycle of birth, death and rebirth.

—Sikhs celebrate Bandi Chhor Divas — a day that overlaps with Diwali — to commemorate the release of Guru Hargobind, a revered figure in the faith, who had been imprisoned for 12 years by the Mughal emperor Jahangir.

—Buddhists observe the day as one when the Hindu Emperor Ashoka, who ruled in the third century B.C., converted to Buddhism.

___

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.





Diwali is Sunday: Here's what to know about the Hindu holiday (and some tasty recipes)

James Powel, USA TODAY

Updated Fri, November 10, 2023 

Members of the South Asian community will be celebrating one of the important days on their religious calendar on Sunday.

Diwali, the five-day festival of lights, kicks off Friday and will include sweet treats and artistic combinations of flowers, powder, rice or sand called rangolis to bring good luck and fireworks.

The holiday, also called Deepavali which translates to "a row of lamps and lights," centers around clay pots that are placed around homes and places of worship that symbolize the light within man that can overcome the darkness of ignorance, according to the Hindu American Foundation.

The celebration is a public holiday in many parts of India and is recognized on the New York City school holiday calendar.

Here's what to know about Diwali.

Thousands turned out at the Diwali celebration at Papaianni Park in Edison on Nov. 4, 2023.

What does Diwali celebrate?

Many Hindus observe Diwali as a day of celebrating the return of Prince Rama of Ayodhya, his wife Sita, and brother Lakshman after 14 years of exile, according to the Hindu American Foundation. Some Hindus celebrate the holiday as the day Lord Krishna defeated the demon king Narakasura.

Diwali is also celebrated by Jains, Sikhs, and some Buddhists with each honoring different portions of their cultural histories.

The common thread between the cultural interpretations of the holiday is the victory of light over darkness.
When is Diwali?

This year Diwali begins November 10 and runs until November 15.

Report: As turkey prices drop, cost of some Thanksgiving side dishes go up
How is Diwali celebrated?

The festival is celebrated across five days with each day having particular rituals associated with them.

Day 1 Dhanteras: Celebrants clean their homes, make rangolis and kolam, a decorative art drawn with rice flour, and shop for and prepare food


Day 2 Chhoti Diwali, Kalichauda: Referred to as "small Diwali" celebrants decorate their homes and place clay pots


Day 3 Diwali: The height of the holiday, celebrants wear their best clothes, light lamps and have as much light as possible in their homes and watch fireworks


Day 4 Annakut, Padwa, Govardhan Puja: Considered by many celebrants as the first day of the new year, the day is one of thanksgiving and reflection

Day 5 Bhai Duj, Bhai Bheej: A day to celebrate brother-sister relationsips, siblings gather to honor their bond

What is eaten during Diwali?

The festival is known for its sweet snacks that are eaten throughout the five days. Commonly consumed treats include: motichur laddu a sugary concoction that melts in your mouth, jalebiis a spiral-shaped sweet made of all-purpose flour, gram flour and sugar syrup and gulab jamun is a dessert made of small balls (like the size of donut holes) dipped in a pool of rose-flavored sugar syrup.

Here are some recipes to consider if you are partaking in the festival this year:
Date and nut bar (khajoor tukda)

These bars are made from dates, cashews, almonds and pistachios without added sugar. They make great power bars. This recipe is from "Beyond the Curry with Bharti," by Bharti Sanghavi.

Makes: 15 pieces

Ingredients:

¼ cup raw almonds, cut in half widthwise


¼ cup raw cashew pieces


¼ cup raw pistachios


½ pound Medjool dates, fresh, pitted (about 13 dates)


½ teaspoon ghee, plus more for brushing (see note)

Instructions:

Mix all nuts, and dry roast in a medium pan over medium heat on the stovetop for four or five minutes, stirring occasionally so they toast evenly. Set aside.


In a small pan, saute dates for 2 minutes over medium heat. They will melt into a thick pulp.


Remove dates from heat, and add nuts. Mix well.


Brush a cutting board and rolling pan with ½ teaspoon ghee. Make a smooth ball from date and nut mixture and roll into a ½ inch thick square sheet on the cutting board.


Brush ghee on top of mixture. Let it cool for 15 to 20 minutes.


Cut into 1½ by 1½ inch squares.

Store in refrigerator. Serve at room temperature.

Note: Ghee is clarified butter that is sold at Indian markets and at many other grocers. It can be made at home by melting butter until the milk solids separate and come to rest on the bottom of the pan; pour off the clarified liquid butter, leaving the solids behind. Allow to cool and solidify.
Lentil crispies (chorafali)

Chorafali is a traditional Diwali festival snack. Originating from the Indian state of Gujarat, chorafali is highly anticipated on the Diwali table, since it’s usually made once a year. Chorafali are light and fluffy snacks that melt in your mouth. This recipe is a personal recipe from Bharti Sanghavi, who runs Indian Groceries & Spices in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin.

Makes: 10 cups

Ingredients:

½ cup water, plus 2 tablespoons


½ teaspoon salt


½ teaspoon baking soda or papad khar (alkaline salt)


3 teaspoons of any neutral oil, plus more for deep frying and oiling surface


2 cups gram flour (besan or chickpea flour)


1 cup urad (lentil) flour (see note)


1 teaspoon red chile powder


1 teaspoon black salt

Instructions:

In a small pot, bring ½ cup water, salt, baking soda and oil to a boil. Turn off heat.


In a large mixing bowl, combine flours. Little by little, add hot water mixture, mixing with a spoon. Add another 2 tablespoons of room-temperature water to make a firm dough.


Knead dough with a little oil on a flat surface. Let rest for 15 minutes.


Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the chile powder and black salt to garnish the finished chips later.


Halve the rested dough so kneading is easier. Knead one portion for a few minutes until the dough's color lightens.


Roll dough into a rope about 7 inches long and cut into even 7 equal pieces. Roll each piece with a rolling pin until it's 5 inches wide. Cut into ½-inch-wide strips.


Heat 1 to 2 inches of oil in a wok or heavy medium pot to 375 degrees. Place 2 or 3 strips into the oil and fry until golden brown on both sides. It will take a few seconds for them to puff up after adding them to the oil. Remove, using a slotted spoon, and drain on paper towel. Sprinkle a bit of red chile powder and black salt on top.

Repeat with remaining dough.

Serve at room temperature. Store in airtight jars for 3 to 4 weeks.


This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: When is Diwali 2023, what is the holiday and why is it celebrated?

Diwali 2023: The symbolic foods eaten during the Festival of Lights
Olivia Petter
Fri, November 10, 2023 

Diwali 2023: The symbolic foods eaten during the Festival of Lights


Diwali, the festival lights, sees millions of people attend events across the world every autumn to celebrate the triumph of good over evil.

Celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs and Jains, Diwali is one of the most significant festivals in Indian culture and calls for a number of traditional dishes.

From the popular sweet treats to the savoury main meals, here are some of the key foods eaten over the course of the five-day celebration, which this year begins on Sunday 12 November.
Mithai

(Getty Images/iStockphoto)

South Asian sweets and desserts are called mithai and are a staple part of Diwali celebrations.

Many of the treats are fried foods made from sugar, chickpea flour and condensed milk.

They vary between regions but common ones include balushahi, which are a bit like doughnuts, laddoos and barfis.

They can be eaten alongside savoury items or eaten alone as a snack.

It is custom to exchange decorated boxes of mithai among family and friends during Diwali.
Chivda

(Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Snacks are a fundamental part of the Diwali menu and many of them come in the form of chivda, a spiced Bombay mix that consists of a variety of dried ingredients, such as peanuts, chickpeas, fried onion and fried lentils.

Sometimes, it’s eaten as part of a meal but most of the time it’s enjoyed on its own as a snack.

Lapsi Halwa

(Getty Images/iStockphoto)

This sweet dish is often eaten on the very first day of Diwali and is made from large-grain cracked wheat, which is then cooked with ghee and sweetened with sugar and cardamom powder.

It’s incredibly popular and is often served with a yardlong bean curry, as the beans are thought to represent longevity.
Aloo Tikki

(Getty Images/iStockphoto)

These small, fried patties are made from shredded potatoes and are usually served alongside regional sauces, such as mint sauce or tamarind sauce.

They look and taste a bit like potato pancakes and are usually crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, making them an irresistible traditional Indian delicacy.
Samosas

(Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Though they’re eaten all year round, samosas peak in popularity around Diwali.

The fried pockets of pastry usually come in the shape of a triangle and are stuffed with either mince meat, lentils or vegetables.

Because Diwali is all about celebrating the sweetness of life, special sweet versions are often made to mark the festival, containing ingredients such as coconut, cardamom and of course, sugar.


Why Diwali Remains My Most Treasured Holiday of the Year

Manali Jobanputra
Thu, November 9, 2023

From delicious foods to decorations and gift-giving, the annual Hindu festival of lights celebrated in late fall is a full-on family affair.

The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati

As the air turns crisp, and the city comes alive with shimmering lights, my heart fills with bubbling excitement and anticipation because Diwali is just around the corner.

It’s the time when Maa turns us into Monica Geller and we embark on a mission to clean every nook and cranny of the house, which is the prime step in preparing for Diwali. We spend at least three weeks meticulously scrubbing, swabbing, and washing everything until it’s Monica clean.

Besides cleaning, another prerequisite and my favorite pre-Diwali tradition is preparing faral, the snacks and sweets for the holiday. There are umpteen varieties and these treats vary based on region, tradition, and family preferences. Our family favorites are mathri (a flaky biscuit), chakli (a spiky spiral of fried dough), chiwda (a fried snack mix), and coconut ladoo (round sweet treats). Among these, coconut laddoos hold an extremely special place in my heart. They are the essence of my Diwali.
My Love of Coconut Ladoos

As a child, I couldn’t yet partake in preparing faral so I spent my time sitting around the kitchen adoring Maa. I yearned for the day I would be able to join in. To include me, Maa came up with a little ritual.



The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati

When making coconut ladoos; she would prepare the ladoo mix, and include us to help roll and shape them. We sat on the patio, rolling ladoos and sharing laughs. My brother and I couldn't resist gobbling up a couple, which led to Maa's playful scolding since we ate them before offering bhog (food offered to god). What started as a little ritual to make me feel included has now become a cherished tradition in our family. To this day, we make ladoos together.

By the way, my brother and I are still sneaking ladoos, and Maa has finally given up on scolding us! The aroma of coconuts, our family gathered around, sharing laughter and stories while shaping ladoos is a priceless memory that always warms my heart.
Preparing for Diwali as a Family

Now that I am grown up, both Maa and I prepare the faral. Mathri is an essential companion to our evening chai, without which no chai-time is truly complete. Chiwda, a cherished childhood tiffin snack, is yet another perfect chai-time companion. Mohanthal is the melt-in-the-mouth sweet that we savor between meals (or any opportunity we get). And there are so many more dishes.

In addition to our homemade delights, we also buy ready-made sweet boxes–gifting these during Diwali is a customary practice. These sweet boxes feature an array of other tantalizing treats such as kaju katli and badam katli (fudge-like sweets made with cashews and almonds, respectively), soan papdi (a flaky sweet), motichoor laddoo (another kind of sweet ball), and more delights that we don’t usually prepare at home.

Apart from food, decoration such as lanterns, lights, rangolis (temporary floor designs using a mix of materials), diyas (candles), and torans (decorative door hangings), are all an integral part of Diwali. My brother and I take great joy in adorning the house every year, and the glimmer of colorful lights and decor at dusk creates a truly breathtaking sight.



The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati
Diwali Gifts and More Beautiful Traditions

Another enjoyable tradition is shopping, encompassing everything from clothing and crackers to jewelry and even real estate. As Diwali marks the most auspicious time of the year, people often make substantial investments, including purchasing homes, cars, and gold. Our family has a cherished tradition of buying gold, and my dad delights both Maa and me with beautiful gold jewelry. This custom has now extended to my husband, who also surprises me with some exquisite jewelry.

A vital aspect of our celebration involves acts of kindness, especially towards the unsung heroes–our community helpers. Through sweets and gifts, we express our heartfelt gratitude to them. Celebrating with them not only heightens our own joy but also enriches the festive spirit with a profound sense of purpose and significance.



The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati

Diwali is that special time of the year when we willingly wake up at 4 AM, without an alarm or Mom's reverberating wake-up call. Mornings begin with bursting crackers and are followed by pooja (a Hindi word that means prayer and worship). Each of the five days of Diwali marks a different occasion hence a different pooja. We pray and offer gratitude for our family, home, and other precious belongings. Following the pooja, as we seek blessings from our elders, we are graciously gifted with naik, a monetary blessing. My brother loves this tradition as he is the youngest, so we all shower him with cash and he feels like he is the next Bezos.

The evening festivities are adorned with the warm glow of diyas, family reunions, faral, and of course crackers. The day after Diwali marks the beginning of the new year as per the Hindu calendar, and we welcome it surrounded by our loved ones with immense joy, fun, and blessings.

If this has sparked your excitement too and you're eager to partake in Diwali celebrations, I've included recipes for some of these mouthwatering dishes below. Give them a whirl and fully embrace the delightful spirit of our Desi festivities.

Get the Recipes

Mathri

Coconut Laddoo


Chivda

Wishing you a very happy Diwali and prosperous new year!

Read the original article on The Spruce Eats.

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US star Rapinoe departs football with injury and defeat in NWSL final

San Diego (AFP) – US women's football icon Megan Rapinoe limped out of the final game of her storied career Saturday, suffering a suspected torn Achilles tendon less than three minutes into the National Women's Soccer League Final which her OL Reign team lost to NJ/NY Gotham FC.

12/11/2023 -

Megan Rapinoe is helped off the pitch after an injury minutes into her OL Reign's NWSL final clash with Gotham FC, the final game of Rapinoe's storied career 

© Robyn Beck / AFP

No other players were near Rapinoe when she went down on the pitch, a stunned crowd at Snapdragon Stadium holding their breath as medical staff attended her.

After several minutes, the dejected OL Reign star limped off the field, fans giving her a massive ovation as she was replaced by Bethany Balcer.

The 38-year-old American had vowed the match was "really the last one," in a career that included World Cup titles in 2015 and 2019 and gold at the 2012 London Olympics.

Despite her many achievements, Saturday's defeat means Rapinoe retires from the game without an NWSL championship title.

"It was a tough one. Definitely not how I envisioned this last one going," a tearful Rapinoe told CBS Sports after the game. "I am pretty sure I tore my Achilles.

"Just thank you to everyone who's been on the journey for all this time. It's been amazing, maybe besides this, I couldn't have written it any different," she added.

Celebrated for her off-field activism as well as her success on the pitch, Rapinoe announced earlier this year it would be her final season.

The 2019 FIFA Women's Player of the Year ended her epic national team career with 63 goals, earning 203 caps over more than 17 years and played her final international game in September.

Rapinoe's club career did include one title, winning the French league with Lyon in 2013 and with Reign she also won three NWSL Shields, awarded to the team with the best regular season record.

'So thankful'

"I am just super proud of my whole career and really thankful for all that it's given me and for how long I've been able to play," she said.

"So even though it was a tough night, it was still amazing and so thankful to be here and again, so proud of our group."

Gotham had taken the lead in the 24th minute with Lynn Williams slotting home after a superb run down the right and low ball from Midge Purce.

But Seattle-based Reign levelled within five minutes when Balcer sent US international Rose Lavelle through on goal and the midfielder converted with a composed finish.

Gotham then struck the woodwork twice, Purse striking the post and from the resulting scramble Delanie Sheehan hitting the bar.

Canadian Olympic gold medalist Jordyn Huitema then had a goal disallowed for offside, after being put in by a clever pass from Lavelle.

But on the stroke of half-time Gotham restored their lead when Spanish international Esther Gonzalez rose to powerfully head in a Purse corner.

There was late drama when Gotham keeper Mandy Haught was sent off for handling the ball outside the box and with all substitutes used, midfielder Nealy Martin had to go in goal for the final stages of stoppage time.

But from the resulting free-kick Lavelle was unable to test Martin, striking the wall as Gotham held on for the victory - a remarkable feat for a team which finished bottom of NWSL last season.

It was the franchise’s second title, following their Women’s Professional Soccer league win when the team was known as Sky Blue FC.

© 2023 AFP

'Toxic masculinity': Russia targets women behind award-winning play

Moscow (AFP) – Yelena Efros has been sending letters to Russian prisons for years, as the head of a volunteer group writing regular dispatches to the country's swelling ranks of political prisoners.

Issued on: 12/11/2023 - 

Berkovich's supporters have said the state targets 'free women' 

© TATYANA MAKEYEVA / AFP

But six months ago, she found herself staring down at a note she never imagined writing -- a letter to her daughter, jailed over an award-winning play she directed in 2020.

Russian authorities arrested Efros's daughter, director and playwright Yevgenia Berkovich, in May on charges of "justifying terrorism".

The offence is punishable by up to seven years in prison.

"If they were going to lock anyone up, I thought it would be me for those letters," Efros, 64, told AFP.

The case against Berkovich, 38, and fellow playwright Svetlana Petriychuk, 43, stems from their play about Russian women who were recruited into the Islamic State (IS) group and travel to Syria to marry IS fighters before returning to Russia.

Titled, "Finist, the Brave Falcon" after a Russian folk tale, it received two prestigious "Golden Mask" awards in Russia.

But critical acclaim has counted for little since Moscow accelerated its campaign against artists and cultural figures amid its military offensive on Ukraine.

Actors, directors, writers and performers have seen their work censored, been fired, forced into exile, or arrested.

Rights groups say the case against Berkovich and Petriychuk is particularly controversial.

Artists have seen their work censored, been fired, forced into exile, or arrested © TATYANA MAKEYEVA / AFP

The charges stem from a linguistic analysis of the play using a fringe research method into extremism and terrorism called "destructology".

Dismissed as pseudoscience by its critics, an analysis based on its approach found the play promoted Islamic State and advanced "radical feminism".

Lawyers have dismissed the idea as absurd.

A justice ministry agency has also rejected that initial interpretation, and prosecutors are seeking to keep both Berkovich and Petriychuk in jail while a new study is completed.

Far from "justifying terrorism", the play is an obvious criticism of the Islamic State and a cautionary tale about young Russian Muslim women recruited to join its ranks, Berkovich and her supporters argue.
Nightmares

Last week, Efros travelled from her home in Saint Petersburg to Moscow for a court hearing on extending her daughter's pre-trial detention.

Around 20 of Berkovich's supporters also came, some chanting "we love you" as she was taken into the court in handcuffs.

Berkovich urged the judge to let her return home to her two adopted daughters while she awaits trial.

"Two sick children were taken from their mother six months ago... It's torture," she said.

Berkovich adopted the two girls, now in their late teens, four years ago after they had spent most of their lives cycling through Russian orphanages and foster homes.

Her younger daughter has recently started having nightmares where she sees her mother dying in prison, a psychologist told the court.

The prosecutors, who appeared unmoved by the testimony, welcomed the court's ruling to extend pre-trial detention until January 10.

Rights groups say the case against Berkovich and Petriychuk is particularly controversial © TATYANA MAKEYEVA / AFP

"Happy New Year," Berkovich shouted from a glass cage in the court after the judge read the ruling.

Before being whisked back to jail, Efros approached the glass cage where Berkovich was being held and placed her hand against her daughter's on the other side.

The pair exchanged a "Meow" -- the family's codeword for affection, stemming from their shared love of cats.

"The judge has no conscience, no power, they are just acting out a pre-planned program," Efros said outside the chamber.

Berkovich's lawyer Ksenia Karpinskaya said she could not understand "such cruelty".
'Toxic masculinity'

Berkovich comes from a storied family of activists on both sides.

Efros' mother, Nina Katerli was a writer who fought for human rights and against anti-Semitism in the Soviet Union and 1990s.

After the hearing and before boarding an overnight train back to Saint Petersburg, Efros shared some of the letters the pair have been sending to each other with AFP.

Elena Efros, 64, has been sending letters to her jailed daughter playwright Yevgenia Berkovich © TATYANA MAKEYEVA / AFP

In them, Berkovich gently teases her mother over a sitcom she's started watching.

They never say they love each other -- "it's not our way," Efros noted -- instead using pet nicknames, soft-sounding derivatives of "kot", the Russian word for cat.

The case against her daughter is a sign of Russia targeting "free women" -- those who refuse to "know their place is in the kitchen," Efros said.

"Toxic masculinity" has flourished in Russia since February 24, 2022, when Moscow sent its troops into Ukraine, she said.

"Our country is heading towards a traditional archaic society -- a Domostroy -- where feminism is of course evil," Efros said, referring to a sixteenth-century domestic Russian code that encouraged men to hit their wives and children.

Berkovich comes from a storied family of activists on both sides © TATYANA MAKEYEVA / AFP

She sees parallels between this trend and the play Berkovich is being punished for.

"It's a kind of fundamentalism -- it could be Islamic fundamentalism, but it doesn't have to be, it can be Orthodox fundamentalism, or just simple fundamentalism," she said.

"Radical feminism, from the point of view of these people, is evil."

© 2023 AFP

GOING...GOING...GOING....
Australia offers refuge to Tuvaluans as rising sea levels threaten Pacific archipelago

Pauline ROUQUETTE
Sat, November 11, 2023 

© Torsten Blackwood, AFP

As sea levels continue to rise due to global warming, Tuvalu, a small archipelago in the Pacific, is seeing its territory disappear underwater, threatening the survival of its more than 11,000 inhabitants. A new treaty with Australia, however, will soon allow Tuvaluans to move to the largest country in Oceania, whose greenhouse gas emissions are partly responsible for the islanders’ plight.

Canberra announced on Friday that it is offering climate refuge to Tuvaluans, unveiling the terms of a pact that would enable citizens of the 26-square kilometre archipelago – the fourth smallest state in the world – to move to Australia to "live, study and work".

Located near the Equator, the island nation of Tuvalu is comprised of nine reef islands and atolls that rise an average of only two metres above sea level. Due to rising sea levels driven by climate change, the low-lying land is forecast to be submerged by Pacific waters by the end of the century.

The new pact between Australia and Tuvalu, signed by prime ministers Anthony Albanese and Kausea Natano, has been described as "groundbreaking " by University of New South Wales professor and refugee law expert Jane McAdam.

"It's the first agreement to specifically deal with climate-related mobility," McAdam said.

(with AFP)

Yukon wants to electrify to slash emissions but faces a shortage of green power


CBC
Fri, November 10, 2023

The Yukon will need a lot more of these if it hopes to hit its goal of slashing carbon emissions by 45 per cent by the end of the decade. (Robert F. Bukaty/Associated Press - image credit)

Yukon Energy officials say the utility will be hard-pressed to produce enough renewable power to meet the territory's emissions targets.

Under terms of the government's Confidence and Supply Agreement, the territory's climate change plans call for emissions to drop 45 per cent by 2030. But the utility also forecasts that overall non-industrial demand for power will grow by 36 per cent over the same time.

Hitting emissions targets requires widespread electrification, especially for the energy-intensive transportation and home heating sectors. And if that power isn't coming from renewable sources, it won't help bring emissions down nearly as much.

"We are looking at a lot of electric cars, a lot of electric heat pumps, and a lot of electric heating coming online in 2030, and that's so important. We really, really need that," said NDP MLA Lane Tredger. "[But] I am trying to understand how we are going to meet that energy need."

Speaking to a legislative committee this week, Yukon Energy's acting president Chris Milner said all the company's major renewable projects are now on hold.

"We're going to have to be really specific in the projects we look at in the short-term supply plan because the options to us are limited," he said.

One of those, the Moon Lake pump storage project, could provide up to 35 megawatts. But Milner said that project will not be online by 2028 as first planned. The Southern Lakes enhanced storage project is also on hold.

And the Atlin hydro expansion project, while technically ready to go, is still short the money it needs to get started.

"The stage we're at right now, [is] just looking at energy planning in the region and how best to work with First Nations on moving projects of that size and nature," Milner said. "Until we can get some clarity around what that looks like, projects like that are going to be slow to move."

Milner said in the meantime, the territory will need power produced by burning diesel and liquefied natural gas to ensure it has enough.

But some renewable projects are still going ahead. Milner said Yukon Energy is about to plug in to the new four-megawatt wind turbine array on Haeckel Hill in Whitehorse.

And, he said, construction continues on a new grid-scale battery that would allow the utility to save hydro power produced during off-peak times and feed to the grid during times of high demand, reducing the need for electricity from fossil fuels.

There's also a new program to reduce electricity demand the utility hopes will save seven megawatts by 2030.

Energy Minister John Streicker admitted the government has moved faster on vehicle electrification and incentives for small power producers than it has on big-ticket green energy projects.

But he said the government still intends to hit its climate change goal.

"It is a hard target to meet, but it's an important target to meet," he said. "We never said it would be easy."

Oil companies attending climate talks have minimal green energy transition plans, AP analysis finds

Fri, November 10, 2023 


In 2022, Brazilian oil and gas company Petrobras had 68 places staked out for oil exploration off the South American coast, searching for new reserves while spending $6.9 billion in oil development projects. About the same time, Algeria-based Sonatrach proclaimed its ambition to ramp up production to become a top five national oil company by 2030. And Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. opened 68 new gas stations in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, noting in its 2022 annual report that there were now more than 500 across the UAE.

All these companies, along with 33 others focused on oil and gas, sent delegations to Egypt for last year's annual climate summit, known as COP27, aimed at moving the world away from the burning of fossil fuels like oil and gas. Many will likely be at the upcoming conference, COP28, being hosted in the UAE, which appointed Sultan al-Jaber, chairman of the nation’s oil company, as president of the summit.

Faced with criticism about their presence at negotiations, leaders of such companies argue they are part of the transition to renewable energies, an argument that negotiators like U.S. Climate Envoy John Kerry have cautiously endorsed. But an Associated Press review of how much these companies invest in green energies, along with the priorities laid out in their annual reports, cast doubts on genuine commitments to transition.

Most companies only have small, if any, investment in solar or wind power, the most established green technologies. Most of their investments, billions of dollars, are in further exploration, extraction and refining of oil — with plans laid out in some cases over the next decades. That's long beyond when scientists say the world must move away from fossil fuels.

“These are companies with enormous profits at present, enormous engineering capabilities and have been producing oil and gas for a very long time,” said Jason Bordoff, director of the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University. “It is reasonable to expect leadership in how quickly they lead and move and develop new technologies and drive the cost down” of renewables.

The companies at last year's summit don't look to be making such efforts in any big way. Many that publish annual reports have sections entitled “sustainable” or “green” that do include some renewables. However, in such sections they also include biofuels, hydrogen development and carbon capture, all things that at best have long-term potential to reduce emissions. Many also tout natural gas which, while cleaner-burning than fuels like coal, still emits significant amounts of methane, a potent greenhouse gas.

Almost all the companies focus on reducing emissions in their operations, and don't address the emissions that will result when customers use their products to power cars, heat homes, move ships and planes, and so forth.

Those emissions are known as “Scope 3” and they are commonly seen as both the biggest share of a company’s emissions and the most difficult to solve, with many companies arguing they are out of their control. (Scope 1 refers to a company’s direct emissions, and Scope 2 are indirect emissions that come from production of the energy a company acquires to use in its operations.)

Amir Sokolowski, global director of the Climate Change Team at CDP, a nonprofit that asks companies to disclose their climate impact, said fossil fuel companies are reluctant to take on emissions from their products after they’re out the door.

But that reluctance isn't rational "because the point is that oil and gas cause most of the combustion in the world in terms of emissions,” Sokolowski said.

Petrobras, majority-owned by the Brazilian government, specializes in deep water exploration, drilling and extraction. Its 2023-27 strategic plan earmarks $4.4 billion in investments “to strengthen our low carbon position." Petrobras’ planned investments in crude oil exploration and production for the period are more than 10 times higher than its low-carbon investments, according to the World Benchmarking Alliance, which tracks companies on sustainability goals.

Meanwhile, the company's commitment toward those core products is clear. The scores of exploratory leases and billions invested in searching for new oil deposits fit a strategy that expects oil and gas production “will still be necessary to guarantee the energy security of Brazil and the world in the coming decades,” the company says on its website.

Sixteen of the oil companies that went to last year’s climate summit have publicly responded in recent years to questionnaires prepared by CDP, which invites companies and countries to be transparent about what they’re doing on carbon and the climate. One question was how much of their spending was aimed at helping with the global goal to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius since pre-industrial times, which scientists warn is necessary to stave off the worst impacts of climate change, like increasing extreme weather events.

Equinor, a Norway-based oil and gas company, answered in 2022 that 11% of its capital spending could be classified this way, with a goal of 30% by 2025. Notably, Equinor was also one of a minority of companies with a plan to tackle Scope 3 emissions -- those caused by consumers’ use of its products — to get to net zero emissions by 2050.

Equinor's plan includes a big focus on renewables. The company is building out the world's largest offshore wind farm, aimed at powering 6 million British homes one day. But the plan also depends on carbon capture and carbon offsets, or the equalizing of emissions by paying to capture them somewhere else. Equinor also says it will be necessary to continue to produce oil and gas “for the foreseeable future,” in part to avoid global shocks.

Al-Jaber’s company, ADNOC, earlier this year began using drones to scatter mangrove seeds across Abu Dhabi, part of what it touted as a sustainability effort to plant some 2.5 million of the carbon-storing plants. Yet the company's investment in low-carbon projects amounts to just 10% of its reported plans for $150 billion in capital spending through 2027.

ADNOC, Petrobras, Equinor and Sonatrach declined or did not respond to interview requests to talk about their energy transition plans.

Some companies in developing nations underscored the tension between the importance of oil and gas to their national economies and the industry's contribution to climate change, which can hit their countries harder than the developed world.

Uganda National Oil Co. in August announced formation of the Alliance for Climate Resilience to Combat Climate Change, an effort it said would include things like planting millions of trees, decarbonizing industry and shifting to cleaner cooking methods, with hopes to attract other East African nations to join.

But Uganda National was among companies whose plans for renewable energy were aimed primarily at using the clean power to decarbonize its fossil fuel projects, not replace them with cleaner pursuits.

Proscovia Nabbanja, the company's chief executive, referenced the difficult transition in an essay titled “Advancing Equitable Clean Energy in Developing Nations.” Nabbanja noted pressure on nations like hers “that have not benefited from significant industrial and economic growth but are now expected to reduce emissions at the expense of their own development.” She said wealthier nations have to lend money and technology to help developing nations with an “equitable energy transition.”

Peter Muliisa, the company's general counsel, said that as a developing country, Uganda has low emissions relative to other nations. He also argued that it should be up to countries, not companies, to control Scope 3 emissions.

“It is very hard for companies to plan for Scope 3 emissions, to put them in their plans,” Muliisa told the AP.

Regardless of who is responsible for the greenhouse gas emissions from oil and gas, in notes to investors some of the companies strike a reassuring tone about fossil fuels' durability. In its 2022 annual report, Chevron noted that while the future was uncertain, many outlooks conclude that fossil fuels will remain a significant energy source while lower-carbon alternatives are incorporated.

“The company will continue to develop oil and gas resources to meet customers' and consumers' demand,” said the report.

___

Associated Press climate and environmental coverage receives support from several private foundations. See more about AP’s climate initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Mary Katherine Wildeman, Peter Prengaman And Doug Glass, The Associated Press

US and EU Lead Push for COP28 to Back Tripling of Renewables

Ewa Krukowska and Jennifer A. Dlouhy
Fri, November 10, 2023 



(Bloomberg) -- The US and the European Union are leading a global push for the United Nations’ climate talks to endorse the tripling of renewables and doubling of energy savings by the end of the decade.

More than 60 countries are backing the targets to be included in the outcome of the UN’s forthcoming COP28 talks in Dubai, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Leaders from those nations are planning to join a call for action at a Dec. 2 meeting during the conference, they said.

The pledge is also promoted by the United Arab Emirates, the host of the climate talks running from Nov. 30 to Dec 12. Its objective would help keep global warming from rising by 1.5C, a critical threshold, according to the International Energy Agency and the International Renewable Energy Agency.

COP28 is due to set the direction for how to fight climate change over the rest of the decade, but there’s still a deep divide between developing and developed countries over how to cut greenhouse gas emissions and, more importantly, who should pay for the transition to greener energy.

Money, Oil and Fights Over Emissions: What to Watch at COP28

The push to triple renewable sources like wind and solar is supported by countries including Australia, Zambia, South Africa, Japan and Singapore. However, its fate will largely depend on China and India, which so far haven’t signaled endorsement. Decisions at the UN talks need unanimous backing from more than 190 countries.

“We invite all countries to join COP28’s pledge endorsing the tripling of global renewables capacity (reaching 11 TW by 2030) and doubling of the annual average global rate of energy efficiency improvements between now and 2030 (reaching 4%), and to come to COP with tangible commitments to realize this goal,” COP28 President Sultan Al Jaber wrote in a letter to parties of the climate conference earlier this week.

The planned pledge would outline steps needed to achieve clean energy goals such as ensuring greater financing — particularly in developing countries — bolstering power grids, improving permitting processes and designing market rules that encourage investment.

The coalition also argues that the targets would need to be accompanied by a shift away from “unabated“ fossil fuels that aren’t accompanied by emissions-removal technologies.

The definition of “unabated” is set to be one of the most contentious issues in Dubai. The UAE — a major oil producer — is among the biggest supporters of carbon capture and storage and sees a role for it to enable continued burning of dirty fuels in the future.

The 27-nation EU, which has a binding goal to become climate-neutral by 2050, believes such technologies should be used mainly for “hard-to-abate sectors” and shouldn’t be used to delay a phase-out of fossil fuels.

--With assistance from John Deane.

 Bloomberg Businessweek