A Tragic Predicament
Excerpt from Wild Fictions By Amitav Ghosh ‘Trees were my teachers,’ wrote the German poet Friedrich Hölderlin, and if there is any place on Earth that could say the same of itself, it is...
Loan Write-offs and Reduction in Rural Bank Branches Are Undermining Financial Inclusion in India
As the DFS gears up for its stock-taking meet, it must recall that true financial inclusion needs more public sector bank branches and staff. It appears that a major stock-taking and brainstorming is being organised by...
The World Bank’s Nuclear U-Turn Will Endanger Developing Nations
The World Bank must reconsider this dangerous path and ensure that its energy financing truly supports climate resilience and equitable development, rather than exposing vulnerable populations to unnecessary risks. The World Bank’s recent decision to end...
Whither Make in India? Unemployment surges despite India’s economic ranking boost claim
India’s rising unemployment continues to cast a shadow over its much-touted economic ascent, with official data revealing that the jobless rate climbed to 5.6% in May 2025 from 5.1% the previous month. The worrying...
Burning Waste, Warming Cities: New Report Links Waste-to-Energy (WTE) Plants to Urban Heat Crisis in Delhi
A new report titled “Waste-to-Energy (WTE) Incineration and Urban Heat in Delhi: Burning Waste, Warming Cities?” released today by The People’s Alliance for Waste Accountability (PAWA) exposes a disturbing and overlooked consequence of Delhi’s...
World Environment Day: Indian Financial System Funding Infrastructure Projects In The Hills Faces A Himalayan Challenge
Increased frequency of climate-related extreme events in the Himalayan region is leading to project delays and losses as well as cost overruns. The challenge confronting India’s massive financial sector is whether it will be...
Why technicalising India’s waste crisis is not the solution
Pushing technological solutions like waste-to-energy plants overlook the social, political and economic aspects of waste. “Trash is treasure when you recycle.” “Don’t waste waste—manage it well!” “Technology can transform waste from a problem into...
Is RBI’s New Plan for Bad Loans Just Another Quick Fix?
In a country like India, where millions hover between poverty and fragile middle-class dreams, every bad loan is more than a financial misstep – it’s a broken promise. The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s)...
Dear govt, you can’t burn your way out of a plastic crisis
As part of the 2025-26 budget, the state govt announced two waste-to-energy incineration plants
The Public Hindu Pilgrimage
More Than Faith Pilgrimages are now more than mere religious acts: they are vast moving spectacles where scale becomes proof of sanctity. The call to become part of a moment eternal yet fleeting draws...
Whose PET Is It Anyway?
By narrowing the conversation to waste management, the industry avoids addressing the root cause of plastic pollution: overproduction. As the world faces the growing crisis of plastic overconsumption and waste, extended producer responsibility (EPR)...
NGT takes suo-motu action against Manali waste incinerator, slams TNPCB, GCC
The 10-tonne waste incinerator in Manali, Chennai, has been operating since 2019 without permission from the TNPCB and has also been dumping ash containing harmful heavy metals. The Southern Bench of the National Green...
IFC ends investment in waste-to-energy incineration projects in Gujarat, India, following civil society campaign
While IFC’s withdrawal is welcome, civil society urges the Bank to stop funding WTE projects and move towards zero-waste solutions instead. On 17 February, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the World Bank’s private sector...
Blue washing: New categorisation by CPCB promotes highly polluting incineration industry
Until recently, waste-to-energy incineration industries were classified by the CPCB as a ‘red category’ — a highly polluting industry. Recently, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has carved a new category of industries called...
‘Lie-cycling’: Only 9% of plastic ever produced has been recycled so far — is this recycling getting undue attention?
While governments and corporations focus on ‘techno-fixes’ and individual-centric sustainability practices
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