Sibi Arasu honored for his reporting on the environment, including two articles from the Choke Point: Tamil Nadu series

India’s construction boom, projected to generate $US 165 billion of India’s $2.5 trillion gross domestic product this, is largely built on concrete that requires millions of tons of sand from Tamil Nadu and other states. Photograph © Circle of Blue/Sibi Arasu

The Asian Environmental Journalist Association has recognized Sibi Arasu by awarding him the Environmental Journalist of the Year, Merit Award.

Sibi’s award-winning writing includes articles that are a part of Circle of Blue’s Choke Point: Tamil Nadu series, focusing on the unrelenting, illegal sand mining industry in Tamil Nadu; his other work examining how Chennai’s, India, IT corridor has been bullied by fierce flooding, a dangerous cyclone, and severe drought.

The awards are organized annually by the Singapore Environment Council, a non-profit and non-government organization that promotes sustainability efforts both in Singapore and internationally.

Sibi Arasu’s Choke Point: Tamil Nadu Reporting

2017-01 India KSchneider 51530028-logo-2500

Pursuing Riches, Miners Plunder Tamil Nadu’s River Sand

Unrelenting demand for cement drives the illegal and damaging sand mining industry.
#3 2017-01 India Tamil Nadu DMalhotra_C4A7108-2500

A Torrent of Water and Concrete Imperil Chennai’s IT Boom

Ecological distress imperials Chennai's IT corridor.