Bengaluru among 14 global cities to clean toxic air
Bengaluru, July 31: India's tech hub Bengaluru on Tuesday joined 13 other cities, including London, to clean up toxic air and check pollution in urban areas the world over.
Hosting the first meeting of the C40 Air Quality Network, Bengaluru brought experts and policymakers from 13 other cities from the world over to find solutions to the threat of toxic air pollution.
"Formed when London Mayor Sadiq Khan visited India in December last year, the Network enabled leaders to share information and work together to develop plans for how each city will clean up its toxic air," an official statement said.
The C40 Cities is an organisation of 96 global cities to fight climate change and work towards a sustainable future, while the C40 Air Quality Network, a body of upto 20 global cities formed in December last year, aims to develop solutions for air pollution, and is co-chaired by Khan and Bengaluru Mayor Sampath Raj.
The 13 cities that were part of the meeting were Berlin, Chennai, Dar-es-Salaam, Delhi, Johannesburg, Kolkata, London, Los Angeles, Portland, Quito, Salvador, Tel Aviv and Warsaw.
"The discussions and knowledge sharing on how other cities have dealt with air quality challenges is beneficial," Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy said on the occasion.
As part of the Network, the global cities sign the 'clean bus' and 'fossil fuel-free streets' declarations, thereby relying on low-emission vehicles that run on electric power instead of traditional fuels like petrol and diesel, that contribute to high emissions.
Even as Bengaluru is implementing projects promoting the use of electric vehicles and plans to have an all-electric bus fleet in the city by 2030, Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara said the government is committed to implement an air quality management plan for the capital.
"Based on the best practices we can learn from the forum, I commit my support in implementing a robust air quality management plan for Bengaluru by providing both financial and governance resources," said Parameshwara, who also holds the portfolio of Bengaluru Development Minister.
An estimated seven million people die prematurely each year due to air pollution, according to the World Health Organisation.
In 2016, there were over 1.1 million early deaths in India and over 40,000 in Britain due to air pollution, statement from the Network said.
London Deputy Mayor for Environment and Energy Shirley Rodrigues, Bengaluru civic body commissioner N. Manjunatha Prasad and air quality researchers and experts from the state were also present.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Huge fire at Prayagraj tent supplier warehouse, brought under control after six hours
Prayagraj (PTI): A huge fire broke out in the warehouse of a company, which supplied tenting materials for the recently-concluded Maha Kumbh, at the Parade Ground early on Saturday, officials said and added the blaze was brought under control after six hours.
While there was no loss of life, two officers and five employees of the fire department suffered minor burn injuries while dousing the flames at the Lallu Ji and Tent Company warehouse in the Daraganj area, they said.
Rajiv Kumar Pandey, Prayagraj's chief fire officer, said the blaze was completely controlled.
He said 18 water tenders, including four from the army, were pressed into service to extinguish the blaze that erupted early on Saturday. These also included 10 water tenders called in from Handia, Meja and Soraon.
He added that he himself, another officer and five employees suffered minor burn injuries while extinguishing the fire.
Pandey said the efforts of the firefighting personnel led to tent material and bamboo sticks worth crores of rupees in many nearby warehouses being saved.
Four municipal corporation vehicles were deployed for sprinkling water to protect the nearby godowns. At the same time, 20 employees were evacuated from the burning warehouse.
Pandey said the surrounding settlements, including a slum, were also saved from the fire.
The fire caused four LPG cylinders to explode while two scooters parked on the warehouse premises were burnt to ashes.
District Magistrate Ravindra Kumar Mandar, Deputy Commissioner of Police (City) Abhishek Bharti and other senior officers present on the spot coordinated the firefighting efforts.
Several companies supplying tenting materials built their warehouses at Kali Marg of Parade Ground for the Maha Kumbh. After the congregation ended, tenting materials were removed from the fair area and stored in these warehouses.
