Down to Earth’s January 2026 double edition covers eco-anxiety and climate grief among youth (1-15), ecological poverty in tribal states, the SHANTI Act nuclear reforms, MGNREGA’s repeal by VB-G RAM G, the Supreme Court’s Aravalli definition controversy, the groundwater-labour crisis, India’s first National Household Income Survey, and grassroots innovations from banana-waste leather to tribal street schools.
Key Terms
- SHANTI Act: Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India Act, 2025 (repeals AE Act 1962 + CLND Act 2010)
- VB-G RAM G: Viksit Bharat-Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission Gramin (replaces MGNREGA; 125 days; 60:40 funding)
- CGWB: Central Ground Water Board (annual assessment of 6,553 units)
- SDR: Special Drawing Right (IMF basket currency; liability unit in nuclear law)
- CRV: Crustal Reflectivity Variation (seismic wave propagation, relevant to Aravalli mining risks)
- BSMR: Bharat Small Modular Reactor (~200 MWe, PWR technology)
- GIAHS: Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System (FAO designation; Kuttanad = below-sea-level farming)
- AMRUT: Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (₹1.93 lakh crore; 62% to water supply, 34% sewerage)
- WGEEP: Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (Gadgil Report, 2011)
- AWC: Asian Waterbird Census (coordinated by Wetlands International)
- Omarana Water Lily, Nymphaea × omarana Bisset; invasive pink aquatic plant in Kuttanad, Kerala
Sources: NextIAS DTE 16-31 January 2026 Summary, Down to Earth
