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Kerala’s Electricity Crisis: From Power Cuts to Energy Security

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W hen electricity goes off for an hour in the evening, the immediate question is simple: Why is there no power? But Kerala’s electricity situation in 2026 cannot be understood through that question alone. The more important questions are: How much electricity does Kerala actually need? How much can the State generate internally? How much must be procured from outside? How much dependable electricity is available during the evening peak? How much storage is available to shift renewable electricity into high-demand periods? What happens when the wider Indian electricity system itself becomes constrained? And how prepared is Kerala for a future in which electricity demand continues to rise? These questions became particularly important during 2026, when Kerala experienced significant pressure on its electricity system and restrictions during peak-demand periods. According to figures reported by the Chief Minister’s Office, Kerala’s daily electricity consumption reached 94.76 million units...
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The Forest Pharmacy: When Habitat Loss Takes Away Nature’s Medicine Cabinet

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When animals know what to eat when they are sick A forest can look deceptively quiet. Trees stand where they have stood for decades. Vines climb trunks. Elephants move through the understory. Birds call from the canopy. Insects disappear beneath leaves. Nothing about the landscape necessarily announces that a pharmacy is operating there. Yet, for an animal living in that ecosystem, the forest is not simply a source of food. It is a chemical landscape. Every leaf, bark, root, fruit, seed, flower, resin, fungus, insect, mineral deposit and patch of soil can contain compounds that influence digestion, parasites, inflammation, immunity, microbes or other physiological processes. Some of these substances are nutritious. Some are toxic. Some are both, depending on dose and circumstance. And some animals appear capable of selecting particular natural materials when their physiological condition changes. This phenomenon is studied under the broad field of zoopharmacognosy  the study of ani...
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Location: India
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