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The coal conundrum

As India explores a gradual phase-down of coal and transition to renewable energy, there are potential gains in the form of improved health, ecology, and environment but the challenges around the life...

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How extreme heat determines diets in rural India

While the link between extreme heat and crop loss is well documented, less is known about how this translates to undernutrition – an outcome with long-term consequences for health and productivity. ...

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Clearing the air: Do India’s crop burning bans really work?

In December 2015, the National Green Tribunal instituted a ban on crop residue burning across five states. Utilising satellite data on crop fires and administrative data on fines levied, this article ...

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Demand for environmental quality information and household response to information: Evidence from Bihar

Groundwater contaminated with arsenic is a serious public health threat in rural India. This column presents results from a field experiment conducted in Bihar to assess the demand for fee-based testi...

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Happy Seeder: A solution to agricultural fires in north India

It is believed that much of the pollution in Delhi in November every year originates in the neighbouring states of Punjab and Haryana where farmers burn their fields to dispose of crop residue. This ...

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Solar micro-grids in India: A reality check

Much of India’s strategy to reduce the use of fossil fuels relies on a transition to solar energy. Based on a survey of potential solar micro-grid customers in Bihar, this column highlights the chal...

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The hidden productivity benefits of energy-saving technology: Evidence from LEDs in Indian factories

Energy-efficient technologies are an increasingly relevant policy priority, given growing consensus on the need to tackle climate change. This column examines the productivity benefits of adopting one...

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How much will people pay for clean air? Evidence from China

Policymakers in emerging economies such as India and China are ramping up efforts to confront pollution. A new study of the air purifiers market in China finds that people are willing to pay a lot to ...

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Improved cooking stoves in India: Evaluating long-run impacts

Improved cooking stoves are increasingly seen as an important technology to address indoor air pollution. While laboratory experiments have shown that they could have big effects on smoke exposure and...

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Building Environmental Regulation that Enables Growth

This project is linked to a broader research-policy collaboration with India’s Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), and State Pollution Control Boards ...

  • IGC Research on India

The Impact of short-term driving restrictions on mobility and traffic congestion in Delhi

Large cities in developing countries throughout the world grapple with traffic congestion. Driving restrictions are one of the most common regulations to directly lower congestion.

  • IGC Research on India

Case for electric vehicles through cleaner grid supply

The Indian government recently announced its plan to make India a 100% electric vehicle nation by 2030. In this article, Mudit Chordia, a Consultant at the University of Chicago Urban Labs, discusses ...

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Cheaper, cleaner, more reliable: Why invest in cross-border power-trading

Despite improvements to energy supply over the years, many Indian states still face frequent power shortages. Meanwhile, neighbouring countries such as Nepal and Bhutan have large reserves of untapped...

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Ganga pollution cases: Impact on infant mortality

In response to a writ petition against pollution of the river Ganga due to industrial waste, the Supreme Court of India in 1987 mandated the tanneries in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh to either clean up or sh...

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What is causing Delhi's air pollution?

Several policies aimed at reducing Delhi’s air pollution have been implemented this winter, but what remains unclear is where the pollution comes from. This column takes stock of what we know about ...

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Recent Contributors

Digvijay S.

Digvijay S. Negi

Ashoka University

Vaibhav

Vaibhav Chowdhary

Ashoka Center for People Centric Energy Transition

Anandjit

Anandjit Goswami

Ashoka Centre for a People-centric Energy Transiti

Manisha

Manisha Shah

University of California, Los Angeles

Paul

Paul Stainier

University of Pennsylvania

Alan

Alan Barreca

UC Los Angeles

Allan

Allan Hsiao

Stanford University

View all Contributors

Most Popular Environment Posts

Happy Seeder: A solution to agricultural fires in north India

It is believed that much of the pollution in Delhi in November every year originates in the neighbouring states of Punjab and Haryana where farmers burn their fields to dispose of crop residue. This ...

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Carbon dioxide emissions from India’s industries: Data sources and discrepancies

Industries are one of the most significant contributors to energy-related carbon-dioxide (energy-CO2) emissions in India – the share of industries in the total emissions was 25%, second only to powe...

  • Perspectives

Has environmental regulation been successful in India?

India has an impressive number of environmental regulations – but have they been a success? This column presents evidence that while initiatives such as catalytic converters for cars have reduced ai...

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