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Harmful use of alcohol kills 2.5 million people annually and is the eighth leading factor for deaths globally, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said. Of the 2.5 million people, 320,000 people are between 15 and 29 years of age, it said. For the first time, representatives from 193 member states of the WHO have reached a consensus at the World Health Assembly May 17-21 on a resolution to confront the harmful use of alcohol. The resolution urges countries to support initiatives to tackle the... Read Full Story

India's annual food inflation edged up for the second straight week, rising to 16.49 percent for the week ended on May 8, official data released today showed. The food inflation stood at 16.44 percent the previous week, up from 16.04 percent for the week ended April 24. Data on the wholesale price index (WPI) released by the commerce and industry ministry showed that food inflation rose though the index for this group dropped marginally during the week under review. The primary articles index... Read Full Story

There is no immediate tsunami threat to the Indian mainland and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands due to the earthquake which hit Indonesia today morning, the Indian government said. "However, there is a possibility of a mild rise in the sea water level," the government said in a statement. The union home ministry has advised the coastal states and union territories to take appropriate precautionary measures, it added. Indonesia issued a tsunami warning after the 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck... Read Full Story

A cyclone intensified over the Bay of Bengal on Wednesday, forcing a southern Indian oilfield to shut and cut its gas output, and the evacuation of some 50,000 people in the region, officials said. Officials also voiced concerns the cyclone, with wind gusts of up to 155 kph (100 mph), could slow the progress of the monsoon rains, vital for India's trillion-dollar economy. Tropical Cyclone Laila was set to hammer the coast of the southern state Andhra Pradesh on Thursday, prompting Reliance... Read Full Story

Proper environmental safeguards must be taken before any new project is started in the mountains and river valleys of Sikkim, Governor B P Singh said in Gangtok Sunday. "This was particularly relevant in the case of roads and hydel projects as the mountains of Sikkim are geologically fragile and that the state government and locals alike should be extra vigilant in such cases because developments must go on but their negative impacts must be minimized to the extent possible," Singh said... Read Full Story

Contrary to the belief that plants could help cool earth, scientists have found that they will directly warm the land surface when there is excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. A recent global scale model study points to an emerging consensus that the physiological effects of increasing atmospheric CO2 on plants on land will contribute to global warming beyond what is caused by the ‘radiative’ effects of CO2, Prof. Govindasamy Bala of Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, one of... Read Full Story

This project—first proposed in 1983— continues to be marred by rehabilitation issues, with the MOEF issuing work-suspension orders and eminent activists demanding compliance with the missive The controversies surrounding the much-delayed Maheshwar hydro-electric power project refuse to die out. In a recent development, the ministry of environment and forests (MOEF) has sent a construction work suspension order to Shree Maheshwar Hydel Power Corporation Ltd. While meetings are being held to... Read Full Story

In a bid to prevent rising kitchen fires, a group of young innovators, technologists and engineers has developed a cooking gas alarm and SMS system to prevent accidents due to leak either from stove or rubber pipe. Even when no one is at home, the resident gets an SMS on his or her mobile phone about the impending danger in case of a gas leak with the help of the innovative gadget put together by a Bhubaneswar-based company 'RoboticWares'. ''We are working to make common man's life more... Read Full Story

Green on top, or face $100,000 fine, city propose Toronto is poised to become the first city in North America to make green roofs mandatory on most new buildings and set standards for their construction. A city committee yesterday considered a proposed bylaw that would require roofs on new buildings with an area of 5,000 square metres or greater to be 30% to 60% covered by vegetation. The bigger the building, the more planted space it would have to have--otherwise fines of up to $100,000... Read Full Story

Volcanic plume has far reaching effects on the weather, Earth Blocks sunlight Joseph Brean, National Post Published: Saturday, April 17, 2010 Related Topics Lech Kaczynski Stephen Harper Climatology Earth Science World Health Organization Story Tools Change font size Print this story E-Mail this story Share This Story Facebook Digg LinkedIn More The explosive eruption of a volcano in Iceland has had various local and distant effects. In Iceland, volcanic ash is settling on the land... Read Full Story