New Delhi India maintained its position as the fourth largest steel producer in 2011, despite 5.7 per cent output growth as against the world average of 6.8 per cent, the World Steel Association (WSA) said.

Recording an increase of 6.8 per cent in 2011 over 2010, global steel production hit a record 1,527 million tonnes. On the other hand, India produced 72.2 million tonnes steel last year over 68.3 million tonnes in the previous year.

India faces the onerous task of balancing equity and environmental efficacy in the climate talks. It must not repeat the blunder that led to the Copenhagen disaster. THE climate conference in Durban, South Africa, could not have met at a worse or more worrying time. Rigorous scientific work has just been published, which shows that humankind has only a narrow window of opportunity to take climate actions so that global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions peak by 2020 and fall sharply thereafter.

Under growing pressure from the United States, some of Asia’s largest economies are reluctantly looking for options to reduce the amount of oil they buy from Iran, a move that would further tighten the economic vise on an increasingly defiant nation that announced plans for a new round of naval drills in the Strait of Hormuz.

The steel ministry, in a departure from its stand on iron ore exports, has agreed to begin talks with Japan and South Korea on resuming exports from NMDC’s mines. The steel ministry was under pressure from the commerce ministry to depute a delegation to the two countries and commence talks.
Even as the Union Cabinet had decided to allow NMDC to export ore to Japan and South Korea until 2014, the steel ministry had expressed a view that the exports should not be allowed as the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) and the Income Tax Department had raised objections.

Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Managing Director E. Sreedharan says that magnetic levitation (maglev) technology, which will be introduced in Phase III of the project in the city, has “tremendous scope”.

Speaking about the successful high-speed maglev projects in China, South Korea and Japan, Mr. Sreedharan said: “The main advantage of the technology is that the trains are very silent and there is no vibration because there are no wheels. The train floats on a magnetic field…and it can take very sharp radius, and elevations also that can be easily managed.”

The Korean Government has provided Rs. 600 million to tackle the much discussed garbage problem in the country.

The Rs. 600 million-grant comes following a number of discussions held by the Central Environmental Authority, Chairman Charitha Herath with the Korean Government officials, under the direction of Environment Minister Anura Priyadharshana Yapa.

Yapa said garbage was a major issue, thus, modern technology and latest methods were of paramount importance to tackle the problem.

Japan was set to announce on Friday it has finally tamed leaking reactors at Fukushima, in what authorities say is a vital step on the long road to recovery, nine months after its nuclear crisis began.

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda was expected to tell a disaster-weary public that all reactors at the plant, struck by a titanic tsunami in March, were in a state of cold shutdown and were no longer at any risk of spontaneous fission.

Global carbon dioxide emissions from industry rose about three percent in a weak global economy this year, a study released on Monday showed, adding fresh urgency to efforts to control planet-warming gases at U.N. climate talks in South Africa.

The study by the Global Carbon Project, an annual report card on mankind's CO2 pollution, says a slowdown in emissions during the 2008-09 global financial crisis was a mere speed bump, and the gain in 2011 followed a 6 percent surge in 2010.

Goa Mineral Ore Exporters’ Association (GMOEA), has expressed concerns over the possible ban of iron ore exports from the state as reported in certain sections of media & highlighted the cascading effect of such a ban.

Shi vanand Salgaocar, President, Goa Mineral Ore Exporters’ Association (GMOEA), said, “The Goan Mining Industry contributes approximately 35 percent of the state’s GDP. Mining as an industry attracts Rs. 17,000 crores in foreign exchange & brings Rs.6,000 crores by way of direct revenues to State and Central government.”

South Korean steel major Posco has sought more time from the Centre for its over . 53,000-crore multi-product SEZ in Orissa, as it is yet to get adequate land from the state government.