Environment

Unchecked, these impacts could deepen conflicts and stall sustainable development goals, particularly SDG 6 on water and sanitation.

As India battles the latest Nipah virus cluster, health officials emphasise that vigilance, rapid response, and public cooperation will be critical to preventing a larger outbreak.

What started as an informal attempt to ease congestion and reduce the physical toll on pedal rickshaw pullers has now evolved into a dominant transport mode across Dhaka’s North and South city corporations.

The EPA, which enforces federal environmental laws, said it would stop estimating the economic value of health benefits from reducing ozone and fine particulate matter, even though it acknowledges that they contribute to pulmonary disease, heart attacks, and premature deaths. 

With 2026 designated the Year of Water, Blue Davos seeks to shift perceptions – elevating water from a peripheral issue to a core developmental and economic priority.

This tradition spans generations: families arrive annually, relying on the Magh Mela as a vital source of income through boat services for pilgrims. Many carry licenses from previous years as proof of their long-standing participation. Yet this year, a bureaucratic hurdle has left them stranded.

Crucially, medium-scale irrigation proposals aimed at bolstering water access in Madhya Pradesh’s Bundelkhand region were discussed alongside measures designed to enhance water regimes for both human use and wildlife needs, particularly for reptiles like gharial crocodiles.

Local communities, for their part, have begun to address some of these issues: they are forming their own trader groups to facilitate legal trade and negotiate better prices.