Opinion
Population and sustainable development
16 Jun 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| TERI Newswire VII(12)
The World Population Day is celebrated annually on July 11. The genesis of this date goes back to 11 July 1987 when the world's population crossed 5 billion people. It was then decided by the UN that July 11 would be World Population Day, when the UN system and the global community would focus on population issues and related developments. Over this period of time, thinking on matters of population has changed substantially, and in contrast with the earlier concern on growing numbers of the human race, there is now much greater understanding of development issues, the problem of gender balance, women's empowerment, and the widespread problem of poverty, all of which have a direct link with and bearing on population and demographics.
US isolation on climate change
15 Jun 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| The Newspaper Today
Two major events have taken place in the field of global climate change during the last one week. The first is the submission of a report by the US National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to the US President, dealing the assessment of the extent and nature of climate change that is taking place globally. The NAS had been requested by President George W. Bush to investigate the science of climate change and provide an assessment of what needs to be done. The major focus of the NAS assessment was to look at the work of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), particularly as it relates to the Third Assessment Report of that body covering all the significant aspects of climate change.
Poverty in the developing world
10 Jun 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| Centennial News 86(4), Fall-Winter 2000/01
I have two concerns on which I am trying to carry out research and study during my stay at Yale, both of which do have an identifiable connection. The first relates to understanding the nature of rural poverty in developing countries and its nexus with natural resources and the environment. The second deals with policies and institutional frameworks that would promote innovation and rapid technological change to alleviate poverty.
Scrap the PPA with Dabhol?
06 Jun 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| The Economic Times
It is unfortunate that the Dabhol project is in such a terrible mess. This is clearly the result of serious lapses and mistakes on the part of all the stakeholders.
Regulating relationships
02 Jun 2001 |
Mr S Sundar
| The Times of India
Independent regulation involves the transfer of powers once exercised by governments to autonomous statutory agencies whose status in government is not clearly defined. This has naturally caused friction between ministries and regulatory authorities, and has resulted in a debate on the relationship between the government and the regulator.
Natural resources and their role in poverty alleviation
02 Jun 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| TERI Newswire VII(11)
The Planning Commission is in the process of formulating the Tenth Five-Year Plan, which, based on press reports, will target a much faster reduction of poverty in India. Several approaches can be conceptualized for the elimination of poverty, but perhaps the most effective and certainly the most sustainable approach would be the building of natural assets on which the lives of the poor depend overwhelmingly. Impoverishment of natural resources only accentuates the disparity between the rich and the poor.
The Power of None
30 May 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| The Times of India
The Dabhol drama took an unexpected twist recently after renegotiating committee chairman Madhav Godbole first stepped down and then resumed his responsibilities on the same day. TERI's Director-General R K Pachauri, a member of the Godbole Committee, added fuel to the fire by publicly stating that Mr Godbole should not participate in the negotiations with Enron. In an interview with Vikas Singh, Dr Pachauri explains his stance on the Enron controversy and the problems with India's power sector as a whole.
Trust the worm to clean up the house
19 May 2001 |
Dr Seema Bora
| The Pioneer
The astronomical growth in population, coupled with increased industrial and agricultural activities, have made waste disposal a global problem. Garbage burnt without separating non-degradable items like plastic, tin cans and glass bottles, is unhygienic and emits foul smoke.
Privatise yes, but the state must regulate
19 May 2001 |
Mr S Sundar
| The Times of India
The decade of 1990s saw the liberalization and privatization of infrastructure services in a big way. For many years, there was a strong belief that infrastructure services can only be provided by natural monopolies as they alone enjoyed economies of scale. And whether the monopolies were in the private sector as in the US or in the public sector as in Europe and India, the service providers had the opportunity to set prices without providing commensurate value for money.
Democracy & Environmental Policy
18 May 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| The Newspaper Today
A few weeks ago, President George W. Bush of the United States caused widespread dismay by his communication addressed to four different members of the Senate literally burying the Kyoto Protocol. The US President obviously did not anticipate the massive criticism and protest this action would provoke. The result of his abandonment of the Kyoto Protocol, questioning of the science of climate change and refusing to do anything about reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from US power plants have been rightly seen by many as a backward step. Not only have leaders in Europe openly criticised President Bush's stand, but a delegation from the European Union led by the Swedish Environment Minister flew to Washington, DC to meet important officials in the Administration in an effort to convince them of the unreasonableness of this change in posture on the part of President Bush.