Badri Chatterjee

Cyclone Nivar helps improve Mumbai’s air

The air quality index (AQI) was recorded at 123 (moderate) on Saturday from Friday’s 218 (poor)

Pregnant star tortoise rescued in Mumbai; diagnosed with bone disease

The reptile’s shell has turned rubber-soft due to the bone disease as its body starts absorbing calcium required for normal metabolic and hormonal functions from its shell, said experts

NTCA approves release of tigress Avni’s cub into the wild: Maharashtra forest department

Mumbai’s air quality improves on Friday but continues to remain in ‘poor’ category

Meanwhile, the maximum temperature in the suburbs was 34.2 degrees Celsius and in south Mumbai was 33.8 degrees Celsius, both a degree Celsius above normal. The minimum temperature was close to the normal mark

In a first-of-its-kind experiment, Maharashtra to release tigress captured for killing human, livestock back in the wild

The principal chief conservator of forests (PCCF-Wildlife) approved the decision to rewild T2C1 on Saturday, and said this was the first time in Maharashtra where a sub-adult tiger would be part of such an exercise.

Maharashtra: Uran fishermen allege indiscriminate destruction of mangroves, oppose JNPT’s park proposal

JNPT last week announced that it had planned to build a 200-hectare mangrove (eco) park to protect dense mangrove patches and house visiting galleries, mangrove walkthroughs (boardwalks), a nature interpretation centre, and a nursery with rare mangrove species, at Belpada in Uran

Maharashtra:131 bird nests removed before tree transplantation for Metro Line 4, 4A

During the first survey during January and February, 160 bird nests were safely removed from 128 trees over three days along the Metro 4 route

Maharashtra: Panje tidal water blockade lifted, strengthens demand for bird sanctuary

The barrier was built in 1994-95 with help from Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay as a flood control mechanism. The gates can also be manually operated, allowing more water to be released if needed. It shuts automatically during high tide and opens up during low tide, remaining closed throughout the months of monsoon

Mumbai’s SGNP gets 6th tiger; pregnant tigress, four unborn cubs found dead at Maharashtra’s Umred sanctuary

The cub was brought to SGNP after a failed reunion attempt with her mother at Chichpalli range of Chandrapur forest division in June

Maharashtra saw highest leopard deaths in 5 years in 2020

The state saw 159 leopard deaths between January and November 2020, the highest in at least five years, and the decade’s highest human kills in leopard attacks (23), according to the forest department data.

Mumbai slums are 6 degrees Celsius warmer than neighbouring housing societies in October: Study

WRI India published three satellite maps –October Heat series – highlighting location-specific risk exposure to citizens

Mumbai’s SGNP to get cub after reunion bid with tigress fails

The cub left from Chandrapur on Friday and is expected to reach Mumbai by Sunday

Game on: Meet the woman game developer now in a global Hall of Fame

Poornima Seetharaman, also lead designer on FarmVille 2, is the first Asian and one of only 24 women designers, entrepreneurs and researchers in the Women in Games Hall of Fame.

Biomedical waste incineration plant to shift out of Mumbai by Feb 2022

The plant operators said they were devastated by the decision as they now have to bear a cost of ₹50 crore for resetting the entire facility at Khalapur.

Marginal dip in noise levels witnessed in Mumbai this Diwali: Maharashtra Pollution Control Board

Meanwhile, an air quality analysis on the second day of Diwali (November 15) has revealed that the city’s overall air quality index (AQI) was in the ‘moderate’ category

MoEFCC okays Maharashtra’s proposal to study distribution, population of Arabian Sea humpback whales

After Karnataka and Goa, it is the third state along the country’s west coast which will join the study

Maharashtra: Uran to get its first mangrove park by June 2021

JNPT said the plan of action for the proposed park is awaiting submission from FDCM, after which all details will be finalised

Mumbai’s pollution levels spiked in October; highest so far in 2020, according to MPCB

On its website, MPCB released a month-wise datasheet of air quality index (AQI) for 20 locations in Maharashtra on Monday.

Maharashtra forest dept probes poaching angle as decomposed tiger carcass found in Gondia

Forest officials said the findings were unusual and they had started an investigation

Covid-19: Religious places in Maharashtra reopen after seven months

Touching of idols, statues and holy books is not allowed and those over the age of 65 and below 10, those with comorbidities or pregnant women have been advised to stay at home

Mumbai’s air post Diwali second-best in six years: SAFAR report

SAFAR had on Thursday predicted that Mumbai may witness its worst post-Diwali air quality since 2015 with a 50% firecracker emissions scenario on Diwali day.

Pregnant leopard killed road accident on Mumbai’s Western Express Highway

Mumbai coastal road: More corals to be tagged, shifted than originally identified, permitted

The marine species were falling in the project’s way and needed to be shifted for further reclamation, according to BMC

Pregnant leopard killed in road accident on Mumbai’s Western Express Highway

The leopard was rescued by a team of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) and brought to the facility’s leopard rescue centre but could not be saved.

Coastal road: Mumbai civic body pays ₹150.33 crore for marine biodiversity conservation

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), which is building the coastal road in south Mumbai, has deposited ₹150.33 crore funds required for the conservation of coastal and marine biodiversity as per specific conditions under the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) clearance.

Change in weather factors may keep air pollution lower than expected in Mumbai post-Diwali: SAFAR

The city is expected to witness marginally lower air pollution after Diwali owing to change in weather factors such as hotter conditions and rise in wind speed, said an official at the System of Air Quality Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR)

Higher temperature may keep Mumbai’s post-Diwali air pollution lower: SAFAR

Pollution levels in Mumbai were in the ‘moderate’ air quality category on Saturday (Diwali) against a prediction of ‘poor’ air quality.

Coastal road: BMC pays Rs 150.33 crore for marine biodiversity conservation

According to CRZ clearance granted in May 2017, the civic body had to pay 2% (Rs 254 crore) of the total cost of the project (Rs 12,721 crore) to the Mangrove Foundation — an autonomous society that assists the state government in marine conservation — on or before commencement of work in December 2018.

Lonar Lake in Buldhana district declared Ramsar site, second for Maharashtra within a year

The 77.69-hectare (ha) Lonar lake is part of the 365.16-ha Lonar wildlife sanctuary. Located 500 km from Mumbai and over 90 km from Buldhana city

Maharashtra: Activists flag 10-acre patch devoid of foliage, Mangrove Cell orders probe

From September onwards, several mangrove patches in the MMR wore a dry, skeletal look due to defoliating pests that feed mainly on leaves and sometimes mangrove tree barks. New leaves and greener foliage have grown on most of the mangroves except in the Mahul-Wadala area