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Environmental Determinants of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS): Pathways, Mechanisms, and Emerging Challenges

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A myotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive and fatal neurodegenerative disorder characterized by the degeneration of upper and lower motor neurons. Clinically, it leads to muscle weakness, paralysis, and eventual respiratory failure. Traditionally, ALS has been framed largely as a neurological or genetic disease. However, this perspective fails to fully explain the epidemiology of the disorder. Approximately 90–95% of ALS cases are sporadic, occurring without a clear familial or inherited genetic background. The predominance of sporadic ALS has shifted scientific attention toward environmental, occupational, and geographic determinants that may initiate or accelerate neurodegenerative processes. Increasingly, ALS is understood as a multifactorial disease, emerging from long-term interactions between environmental exposures and individual biological susceptibility. Epidemiology and Spatial Patterns ALS incidence varies markedly across regions, occupations, and environmental c...
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When the Land Became the Clue: Geospatial Insights into Chronic Bronchitis in Rural Mysuru, India

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For decades, Karya was like any other quiet village in southern India. Life moved with the seasons. Fields turned green after the monsoon, smoke rose gently from kitchen hearths at dawn, and men left home early to work in nearby farms or local industries. Coughs were common, especially among older adults, but they were rarely a cause for alarm. Breathlessness, persistent phlegm, and night-long coughing were accepted as part of aging, smoking, or years of cooking with firewood. Over time, however, something felt different. More villagers complained that their cough never went away. Some struggled to breathe even while walking short distances. Others woke each morning choking on thick sputum. The illness had no dramatic outbreak, no sudden beginning, it crept in quietly, year after year, embedding itself into daily life. What puzzled the villagers, and later the doctors, was a simple but troubling question: Why was chronic bronchitis so common here, but almost absent in neighboring vill...
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Location: India
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India’s Rare Earth Corridors: Integrating Strategic Manufacturing, Environmental Stewardship, and Long-Term National Resilience

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T he Union Budget 2026–27 marked a decisive turning point in India’s critical minerals policy with the announcement of Dedicated Rare Earth Corridors in Odisha, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu , supported by the ₹7,280 crore Rare Earth Permanent Magnet (REPM) Manufacturing Scheme approved in November 2025. Together, these initiatives reflect a strategic reorientation in how India perceives rare earth elements, not merely as industrial inputs, but as national assets central to economic resilience, energy transition, technological sovereignty, and defence preparedness. Rare earth permanent magnets are indispensable to electric vehicles, wind turbines, consumer electronics, aerospace systems, and advanced defence equipment. Yet between 2022 and 2025, India sourced approximately 60–80 per cent of its permanent magnets by value and 85–90 per cent by quantity from China. In a global environment increasingly characterised by geopolitical rivalry, export controls, and supply-chain we...
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Location: India
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Will Earth’s Environmental Mistakes Be Repeated in Space?

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Human environmental history on Earth reveals a recurring and troubling pattern: exploration is followed by exploitation, degradation, and only later, often after irreversible damage, regulation. From deforestation and fossil fuel dependence to climate change and biodiversity loss, environmental crises have largely emerged not from a lack of knowledge, but from delayed responsibility and weak governance. Today, humanity stands at a similar threshold with outer space. Once confined to state-led scientific missions and geopolitical symbolism, space exploration is rapidly transforming into a domain of commercial activity and economic ambition. The rise of private space corporations, satellite mega-constellations, space tourism, lunar bases, and asteroid mining proposals signals a decisive shift from exploration to utilisation, and potentially exploitation. This transition closely mirrors the early stages of industrial development on Earth, when natural systems were viewed primarily as res...
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Location: India
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Turtle Trails in Union Budget 2026–27: An In-Depth Environmental Analysis of Sea Turtle Conservation, Coastal Development Pressures, and India’s Marine Stewardship

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               T he Union Budget for 2026–27, presented by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, introduced a policy initiative titled “Turtle Trails” , aimed at protecting sea turtle nesting habitats while promoting eco-tourism along India’s extensive coastline. By identifying ecologically significant coastal regions in Kerala, Odisha, and Karnataka, the programme brings marine biodiversity into the national development discourse in a manner rarely witnessed in India’s fiscal planning. From an environmental perspective, this initiative represents a critical yet fragile opportunity . Sea turtles are not only endangered species but also key ecosystem engineers that regulate marine ecological balance . Their conservation is intrinsically linked to fisheries sustainability, coastal resilience, climate adaptation, and the livelihood security of millions of coastal communities. Consequently, Turtle Trails must be evaluated not merely as a to...
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Location: India
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