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Sunday, August 29, 2010
IN NEWS
Ministry of Environment 8: Forests. Government of India (FC. Division). Recommendations of theForest Advisory Committee in Its Meeting ...
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Saturday, August 28, 2010
IN NEWS
Vedanta row puts environment in India
2010-08-28 20:04:29
In a landmark decision on Tuesday, the environment ministry
blocked Vedanta's mining project in Orissa because the forest-hills it
would have destroyed are intertwined with the lives and livelihoods of local
primitive tribes.
It was a stunning victory for a four-year-long global
campaign for the Dongria Kondh tribe against a giant mining firm that has been
pitchforked into India's debate over environmental laws………………………………………………
Eco sensitive: Jairam has come at the right time for
Congress
Nitin Sethi, TNN, Aug 28, 2010, 10.43am IST
People are sipping tea and munching delicious little
biscuits just before a talk on wildlife conservation begins in a not so-swank
seminar hall in Delhi
"So, is Jairam really that good, eh? What do you say? Don't you think he has made a difference?" It's more a statement, but the person - a conservationist used to the power corridors ofDelhi
"It's really not just him. Sonia Gandhi is backing these ideas. He alone couldn't have taken on these big guns. The party has to back him. Do you think Manmohan is with him or against him?" "But you need a solid person there to get it done, you know. He has made enemies out of so many of his colleagues."………………
"So, is Jairam really that good, eh? What do you say? Don't you think he has made a difference?" It's more a statement, but the person - a conservationist used to the power corridors of
"It's really not just him. Sonia Gandhi is backing these ideas. He alone couldn't have taken on these big guns. The party has to back him. Do you think Manmohan is with him or against him?" "But you need a solid person there to get it done, you know. He has made enemies out of so many of his colleagues."………………
Friday, August 27, 2010
IN NEWS
Settle rights of tribals first: Bhuria
Taking note of the complaints received in the Ministry that
some Scheduled Tribe persons living in National Parks and Sanctuaries are being
forced to leave these areas without their rights getting settled, the Minister
has written to the Chief Ministers of Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh,
Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and
Uttrakhand.
In his letter, Bhuria has communicated to State governments
that as per the information available with the Ministry no action has been
taken by State / union territory Governments for the recognition and vesting of
rights of forest dwelling Scheduled Tribes and other traditional forest
dwellers occupying forest land in the National Parks and Sanctuaries……………………………….
Read more: http://www.my-india.net/archives/5110
Central team visits Posco site, takes locals' views
PARADIP: A Central team on Friday visited the proposed Posco
India
The four-member team, led by former environment secretary Meena Gupta began their two-day visit from Dhinkia gram panchayat area in coastal Jagatsinghpur district, where the Rs 51,000 crore steel plant is proposed to be set up.
The team interacted with residents of three villages and sought their opinion on the mega project. "We are meeting people individually to know their views on the proposed project and the manner in which it will affect them," Gupta said. ……………………………….
The four-member team, led by former environment secretary Meena Gupta began their two-day visit from Dhinkia gram panchayat area in coastal Jagatsinghpur district, where the Rs 51,000 crore steel plant is proposed to be set up.
The team interacted with residents of three villages and sought their opinion on the mega project. "We are meeting people individually to know their views on the proposed project and the manner in which it will affect them," Gupta said. ……………………………….
Rahul Admits Role In Vedanta Cancellation
Aug 27th, 2010 - Akshaya
Kumar Sahoo |
All-India Congress Committee general secretary Rahul Gandhi
on Thursday admitted he had played a crucial role in the rejection of forest
clearance to the Niyamgiri bauxite mines and assured local tribals here that he
would continue to fight to protect their interests.
Mr Gandhi, whose visit to this remote and poverty-stricken
part of the state comes just three days after the Union ministry of environment
and forests (MoEF) set aside the forest clearance to the Vedanta refinery
project, said to the tribals: “Two years ago you had requested me to save
Niyamgiri from being leased out to industrial houses. I had promised to work as
your sipahi (soldier) in Delhi
How Green can be the Green India Mission
Posted by: Climate Himalaya
Initiative on: August 27, 2010
The proposed Green India Mission would fail to make
significant difference if the policy of sacrificing the existing natural
forests for the so-called developmental programmes continues unabated. One of
the 8 Missions under National action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) is Green
India Mission (GIM). Its draft Mission
document states the main objective as doubling the area for afforestation in
next 10 years. This mission has a budgetary proposal of Rs. 40,000 crores. As a
new initiative the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) has sought
comments from the public on the Mission
document.
While the main objective of the Mission
Video nails foresters' lies: Expert
TNN, Aug 27, 2010, 02.47am IST
KOLKATA: Fateh Singh Rathore, India
Rathore said the senior officers first buckled under pressure from angry villagers and ordered their junior, a forest ranger, to fire tranquillizer darts at the tiger even as he pleaded he was not authorized to do so. When the dart-hit tiger dug its canines into ranger Daulat Singh Shaktawat's face and plucked out his right eye, two officers just fled, said Rathore.
"By fleeing after issuing illegal orders, the officers not only displayed poor and cowardly leadership, they were callous to leave the tiger as it could have either been attacked or have attacked the villagers," he added.
Rathore said the senior officers first buckled under pressure from angry villagers and ordered their junior, a forest ranger, to fire tranquillizer darts at the tiger even as he pleaded he was not authorized to do so. When the dart-hit tiger dug its canines into ranger Daulat Singh Shaktawat's face and plucked out his right eye, two officers just fled, said Rathore.
"By fleeing after issuing illegal orders, the officers not only displayed poor and cowardly leadership, they were callous to leave the tiger as it could have either been attacked or have attacked the villagers," he added.
Thursday, August 26, 2010
IN NEWS
Four Years On, Debate Rages On Forest
Rights Law
By Keya Acharya
By Keya Acharya
BANGALORE, Aug 26, 2010 (IPS) - It was supposed to help right old wrongs as well as protect India’s forests, but four years after it took effect, a landmark law recognising the forest rights of scheduled tribes remains the subject of acrimonious debates among the country’s government officials, environmentalists, and rights advocates.
Just last February, the environment and tribal affairs ministries, which had been bickering over the ‘right’ implementation of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, held talks in an effort to come to an agreement on forest sustainability.
One result was the setting up of a committee that would to look at sustainable forest management and protection, as well as the settlement of forest dwellers’ rights.
Yet in August 2010,
For full report : http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=52616
China ’s gain India
As neighbour begins drive to save tiger, forest staff
fear poachers’ influx
Niranjan.Kaggere@timesgroup.com
Posted On Thursday, August 26, 2010 at 05:23:29 AM
|
|
|
BE IT defence or the economy,
Now, a pro-conservation initiative there has unwittingly led to concerns about the tiger population here. Normally, As a result, Indian authorities fear poachers will target the tigers here. How to tackle the threat will be one of the main topics at a two-day brainstorming session starting Monday at Kabini tiger reserve. As many as 30 forest officials from various parts of the country and top tiger experts are expected to participate……………………………………………. |
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
IN NEWS
How Much Is Left? The Limits of Earth's
Resources, Made Interactive
Tigers and Economies
Promoting economic development is the key to wildlife
conservation.
There's no shortage of interest in saving the tiger from
extinction, particularly in this Chinese year of the tiger. Last month 13
nations met at a confab known as the Global Tiger Initiative and set a target
of doubling the number of tigers in the wild to 7,000 in 2022 from about 3,200
at present. This weekend the Tiger Forum will meet in China 's northeastern city of Hunchun St. Petersburg ,
Russia
Plenty of money is being thrown at the problem, too. Over
the past decade, the Indian central government alone increased its allocation
for Project Tiger to $128 million in the current 12th five year plan
(2007-2012), up from $32 million in the tenth plan and $16 million in the ninth
plan. This works out to about $25,000 per tiger per year……………..
Read more : http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703632304575451072978477724.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
The law catches up with Vedanta
Last Updated: 10:26 IST(25/8/2010)
Of all the welfare laws of the United Progressive Alliance
(UPA) government, the Forest Rights Act (FRA) is the most crucial to its
overall vision of developing an inclusive society — something that it is waking
up to now, as the decision to cancel Vedanta's mining rights for violating the
FRA, among other laws, shows.
First, the FRA can help the Congress consolidate a
traditional political constituency. i.e. tribals, 8 per cent of the country’s
population, or roughly 84 million people. Secondly, if tribal rights are
protected under the laws, it will contain the spread of Maoism, the “biggest
internal security threat,” according to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
Unlike other welfare measures of the UPA in sectors such as
employment and health, the FRA addresses the most primary component of
empowerment — the right to land .……………………………….
by Mridul Chadha on August 25, 2010
The Indian government has sanctioned $6.4 billion to finance
the efforts to mitigate the perspective impacts of climate change on
the environmentally sensitive and populous areas of the country.
These funds will be used to achieve the targets and goals
mentioned in the National Action Plan on Climate Change released by the
Prime Minister's Council on Climate Change in 2008. The plan of action to
mitigate the impacts of climate change have been subdivided into eight broad
categories covering the most critical areas.
These areas include energy efficiency, solar energy,
sustainable agriculture, water conservation, sustaining the Himalayan ecosystem
and building a knowledge base for understanding climate change and its impacts
better………………….
IN NEWS
Claims of growth in India's forests 'misleading'
The country's native forests are disappearing at an alarming rate, says a new study.
Natasha Gilbert
Native forests in India are disappearing at a rate of up to 2.7% per year. The figures, published in an analysis of the country's forest cover, stand in stark contrast to those of a 2009 survey by an Indian governmental organization, which said that forests have expanded by 5% over the past decade.
India is among the most densely forested countries in the world, and in 2008 the government announced goals to increase forest cover by nearly 10% by 2012. The India State of Forest Report 2009 by the Forest Survey of India (FSI) indicated that the outlook was good.
But William Laurance, a conservation biologist at James Cook University in Cairns, Queensland, Australia, and one of the authors of the analysis, to be published in the journal Conservation Letters1, says that while the figures showing that forest cover in India has grown are "technically correct", they are also "misleading".
"We found a very real and serious loss of native forest," he says, adding that it could put India ahead of most other countries in terms of deforestation…………….
Read more: http://www.nature.com/news/2010/100824/full/news.2010.421.html
August 24, 2010
RELEASE/VICTORY: Vedanta Mine Plan on Sacred Tribal Mountain Halted by Indian Government
Vedanta's controversial bauxite mine on the Dongria Kondh’s tribal land has been stopped, after four years of protests by local peoples supported by Survival International and a wide range of affinity campaigns, including most recently by EI’s Earth Action Network.
By Earth's Newsdesk, a project of Ecological Internet (EI)
CONTACT: Dr. Glen Barry, glenbarry@ecologicalinternet.org
Controversial plans to develop a bauxite mine on sacred tribal land in India [search] have been cancelled by India's environment ministry. The Dongria Kondh’s – an indigenous tribe who have lived since time immemorial around the mountain Niyamgiri in the Indian state of Orissa – demands have been met, and the area will remain wild, lush and sacred. Multi-national company Vedanta’s existing aluminum refinery in the area had polluted local rivers, damaged crops and disrupted the lives of the local tribe; and will now not be able to expand six-fold. This is a Dongria Kondh victory first and foremost.
The project has been delayed by four years because of the Dongria Kondh’s intense opposition locally – including the brandishing of bows and arrows – as well as from environmental and tribal rights group. Globally ……………………………………
Read more: http://forests.org/blog/2010/08/releasevictory-vedanta-mine-pl.asp
Planners come to the rescue of Coal India
JAYANTA ROY CHOWDHURY
New Delhi, Aug. 23: The Planning Commission has proposed that coal mining be allowed in phases in all blocks allotted till the end of last fiscal, with tree cover restored once mining was over.Earlier this year, the environment ministry had divided forests into “go” and “no go” areas on the basis of forest cover, which would severely limit production of miners, particularly Coal India Limited.
Recently, the Prime Minister’s Office had reviewed the environment ministry’s position. However, the Planning Commission, in a note, has observed that going by the environment ministry’s directive Coal India’s mining area will be reduced by 30 per cent…………………………………
Read more: http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100824/jsp/business/story_12846719.jsp
District GDP of India
August 24th, 2010
Author:http://www.forestryonthegrow.com/district-gdp-of-india/ - #
For all the districts of India Its hard enough to get GDP statistics by sector at state level. We go a step further. We provide GDP by sector and sub sectors for every district in India. Our methodology, based on the CSO model has been appreciated and the product has been endorsed by organisations such as The RBI…………………………………..
Read more: http://www.forestryonthegrow.com/district-gdp-of-india/
Geer set to become lion's new home
TNN, Aug 24, 2010, 06.38am IST
AHMEDABAD: The roar of lions will soon be heard at the Indroda Nature Park in Gandhinagar. The Central Zoo Authority of India (CZAI) has approved a master plan for the park and authorities are set to start looking for lions and sloth bears for the sprawling forest-like campus.
Recently the park got a pair of tigers. Managed by Gujarat Ecological Education and Research (GEER) Foundation, the park officials will now approach various zoos in the country for a pair of lions and the bear.
The park has one leopard, tigers, wolves, jackals, foxes, wild asses, sambar, nilgai, swamp deer, Thamin deer, chinkara, marsh crocodile, reptiles, flamingos, pelican storks, spoonbill, Ibis among other………………………………
Read more: Geer set to become lion's new home - Ahmedabad - City - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/Geer-set-to-become-lions-new-home-/articleshow/6424179.cms#ixzz0xXiZktyE
The country's native forests are disappearing at an alarming rate, says a new study.
Natasha Gilbert
Native forests in India are disappearing at a rate of up to 2.7% per year. The figures, published in an analysis of the country's forest cover, stand in stark contrast to those of a 2009 survey by an Indian governmental organization, which said that forests have expanded by 5% over the past decade.
India is among the most densely forested countries in the world, and in 2008 the government announced goals to increase forest cover by nearly 10% by 2012. The India State of Forest Report 2009 by the Forest Survey of India (FSI) indicated that the outlook was good.
But William Laurance, a conservation biologist at James Cook University in Cairns, Queensland, Australia, and one of the authors of the analysis, to be published in the journal Conservation Letters1, says that while the figures showing that forest cover in India has grown are "technically correct", they are also "misleading".
"We found a very real and serious loss of native forest," he says, adding that it could put India ahead of most other countries in terms of deforestation…………….
Read more: http://www.nature.com/news/2010/100824/full/news.2010.421.html
August 24, 2010
RELEASE/VICTORY: Vedanta Mine Plan on Sacred Tribal Mountain Halted by Indian Government
Vedanta's controversial bauxite mine on the Dongria Kondh’s tribal land has been stopped, after four years of protests by local peoples supported by Survival International and a wide range of affinity campaigns, including most recently by EI’s Earth Action Network.
By Earth's Newsdesk, a project of Ecological Internet (EI)
CONTACT: Dr. Glen Barry, glenbarry@ecologicalinternet.org
Controversial plans to develop a bauxite mine on sacred tribal land in India [search] have been cancelled by India's environment ministry. The Dongria Kondh’s – an indigenous tribe who have lived since time immemorial around the mountain Niyamgiri in the Indian state of Orissa – demands have been met, and the area will remain wild, lush and sacred. Multi-national company Vedanta’s existing aluminum refinery in the area had polluted local rivers, damaged crops and disrupted the lives of the local tribe; and will now not be able to expand six-fold. This is a Dongria Kondh victory first and foremost.
The project has been delayed by four years because of the Dongria Kondh’s intense opposition locally – including the brandishing of bows and arrows – as well as from environmental and tribal rights group. Globally ……………………………………
Read more: http://forests.org/blog/2010/08/releasevictory-vedanta-mine-pl.asp
Planners come to the rescue of Coal India
JAYANTA ROY CHOWDHURY
New Delhi, Aug. 23: The Planning Commission has proposed that coal mining be allowed in phases in all blocks allotted till the end of last fiscal, with tree cover restored once mining was over.Earlier this year, the environment ministry had divided forests into “go” and “no go” areas on the basis of forest cover, which would severely limit production of miners, particularly Coal India Limited.
Recently, the Prime Minister’s Office had reviewed the environment ministry’s position. However, the Planning Commission, in a note, has observed that going by the environment ministry’s directive Coal India’s mining area will be reduced by 30 per cent…………………………………
Read more: http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100824/jsp/business/story_12846719.jsp
District GDP of India
August 24th, 2010
Author:http://www.forestryonthegrow.com/district-gdp-of-india/ - #
For all the districts of India Its hard enough to get GDP statistics by sector at state level. We go a step further. We provide GDP by sector and sub sectors for every district in India. Our methodology, based on the CSO model has been appreciated and the product has been endorsed by organisations such as The RBI…………………………………..
Read more: http://www.forestryonthegrow.com/district-gdp-of-india/
Geer set to become lion's new home
TNN, Aug 24, 2010, 06.38am IST
AHMEDABAD: The roar of lions will soon be heard at the Indroda Nature Park in Gandhinagar. The Central Zoo Authority of India (CZAI) has approved a master plan for the park and authorities are set to start looking for lions and sloth bears for the sprawling forest-like campus.
Recently the park got a pair of tigers. Managed by Gujarat Ecological Education and Research (GEER) Foundation, the park officials will now approach various zoos in the country for a pair of lions and the bear.
The park has one leopard, tigers, wolves, jackals, foxes, wild asses, sambar, nilgai, swamp deer, Thamin deer, chinkara, marsh crocodile, reptiles, flamingos, pelican storks, spoonbill, Ibis among other………………………………
Read more: Geer set to become lion's new home - Ahmedabad - City - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/Geer-set-to-become-lions-new-home-/articleshow/6424179.cms#ixzz0xXiZktyE
Monday, August 23, 2010
IN NEWS
Sunita Narain: Sharing profits for new gains
We need to change our belief that minerals are more
important than forests, water or people
Sunita Narain / New
Delhi
The draft Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation)
Amendment Bill, or MMDR Bill, includes a crucial provision to share the wealth
of mining — 26 per cent of the annual profits — with people who live near the
projects. But industry wants this profit-sharing clause dropped. The Federation
of Indian Mineral Industries (Fimi) says it will breed lazy people, who will
only drink and beat up their women. The Confederation of Indian Industries
(CII) and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci)
have reportedly made similar representations to the group of ministers (GoM)
considering this Bill. Clearly, this opposition is not just shortsighted. It
completely misses the point that today the poorest in India
Let us be clear, the minerals that we need for our growth —
from coal for our power to bauxite for aluminium and iron ore for steel — are
all found in areas where there are our richest and most dense forests. These
are also the lands where the tigers of India
roam, where the rivers of peninsular India
flow from and where the tribals of India India
The question is how will India
FOREST QUALITY A CONCERN, OFFICIALS & NGOS PUNCH
HOLES IN GOVT'S GREEN INDIA MISSION
Publication: Financial Express
Date: Sunday, August 22 2010
Date: Sunday, August 22 2010
As environment & forests minister Jairam Ramesh prepares
to present the Rs 44,000-crore Green India Mission blueprint to Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh for approval, he would have to take a serious note of the
concerns raised in the just-concluded public consultations on the draft mission
document about the challenging target of doubling afforestation and
eco-restoration areas as well as enhancing the quality of forests.
The mission, which aims to double the green cover in 10
years to 20 million hectares (ha) to store 6.4% of the country's greenhouse gas
emissions by 2020, is one of the eight missions under the National Action Plan
on Climate Change (NAPCC) launched by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in 2008…………………………..
Man-tiger conflict on the rise as forest lands
encroached
Rachna Singh | TNN
Jaipur: Human intervention in the tiger reserve is proving costly with a third man being mauled by the animal in Ranthambore in four months. In fact, several efforts by the government towards tiger conservation have failed to yield result despite several crores spent on the project. The project has not helped the villages around the reserve.
According to Dharmendra Khandal, conservation biologist, Tiger Watch, an NGO: “There is very large grazing pressure on the reserve. July to October is the most problematic period since most of the cattle of nearby villages move into the reserve forest. Besides, due to heavy grazing pressure it has not been possible to constitute core areas for Sawai Mansingh Sanctuary and Kailadevi Sanctuary. The recurrent conflict with villagers regarding grazing in the
According to Project Tiger Reserves, funded by the Centre,………………..
Orissa CM Naveen Patnaik meets Prime Minister, Jai Ram
Ramesh
Report by Orissa Diary bureau; New Delhi
The requirements of the Forest Rights Act have also been
fully met. If the forest clearance is withheld/withdrawn at this stage, it will
raise serious questions about the credibility of Govt. of India, he said. The
people residing in the area have been promised a very handsome compensation
package and they have gladly accepted it. Any disturbance to the project
at this stage would seriously impact its progress, he pointed out. The Prime
Minister noted the various points raised by the Chief Minister and promised to
remove the hindrances to the POSCO project very soon…………………………
U’khand all set to host national forestry games
Jotirmay Thapliyal Tribune News Service Dehradun, August 20
Uttarakhand is all set to host its first and nation’s 19th All-India Forest Sports Meet in October next year. Preparation has already begun on a war footing with the state Principal Conservator of Forests convening a meeting on September 6 in Dehradun to oversee the arrangements.
Jotirmay Thapliyal Tribune News Service Dehradun, August 20
Uttarakhand is all set to host its first and nation’s 19th All-India Forest Sports Meet in October next year. Preparation has already begun on a war footing with the state Principal Conservator of Forests convening a meeting on September 6 in Dehradun to oversee the arrangements.
The state government had recently given a go ahead signal to
the state forest authorities for hosting the games that will incur an estimated
expenditure to the tune of over Rs 4 crore, major chunk of which will be
contributed by the state government, while a part of it will be funded by the
Union Ministry of Environment and Forests. Money through sponsorships and entry
fees will also be generated as an additional source………………………………………………….
Sunday, August 22, 2010
IN NEWS
Green ministry panel takes forest rights to grassroots
Says Gram Sabhas Alone To Decide If They Want To Part With Forest Land
Nitin Sethi | TNN
The N C Saxena Committee that called for scrapping the Vedanta bauxite mining project in the Niyamgiri Hills of Orissa has set a precedent that could jolt the entire mining industry — it recommended that under the Forest Rights Act, the gram sabha (village council) is the only authorized body to decide whether or not it wants to part with a patch of forest land for a project.
Going beyond the immediate case of Vedanta, it says the rights of those who lived in or used the forests but were earlier illegally barred should be completely settled under FRA before the environment and forests ministry gives a green signal to divert forest land for projects.
Unlike in the case of Vedanta, it says the Union environment ministry should be barred from giving conditional clearance to a project on the mere assurance of the state government that FRA has been complied with……………………..
The N C Saxena Committee that called for scrapping the Vedanta bauxite mining project in the Niyamgiri Hills of Orissa has set a precedent that could jolt the entire mining industry — it recommended that under the Forest Rights Act, the gram sabha (village council) is the only authorized body to decide whether or not it wants to part with a patch of forest land for a project.
Going beyond the immediate case of Vedanta, it says the rights of those who lived in or used the forests but were earlier illegally barred should be completely settled under FRA before the environment and forests ministry gives a green signal to divert forest land for projects.
Unlike in the case of Vedanta, it says the Union environment ministry should be barred from giving conditional clearance to a project on the mere assurance of the state government that FRA has been complied with……………………..
How many trees make a forest
The number of trees that constitute a forest varies from
state to state. But in one particular case being heard by the Supreme Court, a
judge was left counting the trees in his backyard!
The apex court's forest bench comprising Chief Justice S.H.
Kapadia, Justice Aftab Alam and Justice K.S. Radhakrishnan was hearing the
cause of a park in Noida which is being developed by Uttar Pradesh Chief
Minister Mayawati to dedicate it to the ruling Bahujan Samaj Party's Dalit
icons.
In Uttar Pradesh, the presence of 50 trees on an area of two
hectares is good enough for the land to qualify as a forest.
A senior counsel who appeared for the state said going by
this definition of the forest one could hardly go for any construction activity
in half of Delhi
Senior counsel Jayant Bhushan, who is opposing the park on
behalf of Noida residents, countered this by saying there was no place in Delhi
But Justice Alam corrected and overruled the senior lawyer
saying in his own official bungalow there were 75 trees!
Saturday, August 21, 2010
IN NEWS
Written
by
Published on August 21st, 2010
The Forest department of
the state government has entered into an official contract with the farmers of
these villages wherein they will be paid through the Clean Development
Mechanism for plantation of plants such as Jund, Eucalyptus, Sheesham, Beri and
Dates. Farmers have already planted these and several other cash crops over a
300 hectare land.
The Forest department had
provided extensive benefits to the farmers when the project was launched. The
farmers are planting cash crops as well as orchards on wastelands which have
not been cultivated since 1990. Incentives such as 100 percent subsidy …………………………………………….
Rs 25,000 crore kitty for tackling climate change:
Ramesh
PTI, Aug 21, 2010, 06.18pm IST
Replying to a debate on a private member's resolution for setting up a fund for dealing with climate change, the minister said money is being raised through cess on coal and compulsory afforestation fund.
Besides, the finance ministry has sanctioned Rs 5,000 crore as recommended by 13th Finance Commission………………………………….
Read more: Rs 25,000 crore kitty for tackling climate change: Ramesh - Developmental Issues - Environment - Home - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/developmental-issues/Rs-25000-crore-kitty-for-tackling-climate-change-Ramesh-/articleshow/6388070.cms#ixzz0xG42zu5e
Hurdles before India
Basant Behera is a confused man. A small farmer from a
nondescript village in Orissa cannot be faulted for not understanding
implications of mega projects or even the Forest Rights Act. He doesn't know if
he should accept or return the cheque the administration gave him to relinquish
his right over the land on which he had been growing betel vines for years.
If he accepts the cheque, it will make the government's job of acquiring land for the proposed Rs 52, 000-crore Posco project that much easier. Basant and Rohit Behera of Bhuyanpal village in Jagatsinghpur could, in fact, be the first to take home cheques worth Rs 1. 15 lakh each as ex-gratia from the administration…………………
Read more: Hurdles before India's biggest FDI project - India - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Hurdles-before-Indias-biggest-FDI-project/articleshow/6386861.cms#ixzz0xG4FhgOX
If he accepts the cheque, it will make the government's job of acquiring land for the proposed Rs 52, 000-crore Posco project that much easier. Basant and Rohit Behera of Bhuyanpal village in Jagatsinghpur could, in fact, be the first to take home cheques worth Rs 1. 15 lakh each as ex-gratia from the administration…………………
Read more: Hurdles before India's biggest FDI project - India - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Hurdles-before-Indias-biggest-FDI-project/articleshow/6386861.cms#ixzz0xG4FhgOX
Road work held up for want of forest clearance
Tribune News Service
Tribune News Service
Shimla, August 19
The Public Works Department (PWD) has not been able to start work on as many 266 road projects for want of the mandatory clearance under the Forest Conservation Act.
The Public Works Department (PWD) has not been able to start work on as many 266 road projects for want of the mandatory clearance under the Forest Conservation Act.
This was stated by PWD Minister Gulab Singh in the Vidhan
Sabha during the Question Hour. He said the government had taken steps to
expedite the process for obtaining clearance but the procedure was quite
tedious.
The problem was compounded after the Supreme Court ruled
that states would also have to pay the Net Present Value (NPV) of the forest
land involved for obtaining clearance.
The government paid Rs 26.02 crore as the NPV in 2009 and
this year it had earmarked Rs 13.55 crore for the purpose…………………….
Indian panel deals 'new blow' to Vedanta mine plan
(AFP) – 7 hours ago
NEW DELHI — Plans by resources giant Vedanta to build a mine
on land held as sacred by an Indian tribe have been dealt a fresh blow after
another government panel opposed the project, reports said Saturday.
The 8,000-strong Dongria Kondh tribespeople in Orissa state
believe the remote Niyamgiri Hill range -- where the mine is mooted -- is the
home of their God Niyam Raja, and rely on the land for their crops and
livelihood.
London-listed Vedanta, the second-largest aluminium producer
in India
Use of benefit cost analysis with equity
considerations to evaluate social forestry projects in India
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Title:
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Use of benefit cost analysis with equity considerations to
evaluate social forestry projects in
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Author:
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Khetarpal, S. K.
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Degree
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Master of Science - MSc
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Program
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Forestry
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Copyright Date:
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1989
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Abstract:
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Benefit cost analysis (BCA) has been found to be an
inadequate tool for evaluating social forestry projects because of its
indifference, to income distribution and inability to evaluate some
environmental benefits (Sirivastava and Pant, 1979). Application of BCA, with
consideration of income distribution, to the evaluation of social forestry
projects in
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URI:
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Series/Report no.
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UBC Retrospective Theses Digitization Project
[http://www.library.ubc.ca/archives/retro_theses/]
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Scholarly Level:
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Graduate
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Files in this item
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Files
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Size
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Format
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Description
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View
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7.464Mb
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Adobe Portable Document Format
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Friday, August 20, 2010
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Protection of Wildlife and Forests
The Government has made changes in the system to safeguard and strengthen to protect wildlife and reserve forests are as follows:
i. The Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, has been amended from time to time and made more stringent against wildlife related offences.
ii. Threatened species of wildlife are placed in the Schedules of the Wildlife (Protection), Act, 1972, thereby according them the highest degree of protection.
iii. The Centrally Sponsored Scheme of 'Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats' was modified in 2008 to accord better protection and conservation to wildlife in the country by adding two new components to the existing components viz 'Protection of Wildlife outside Protected Areas' and 'Recovery Programme for saving Critically Endangered Species and their Habitats'.
iv. The Government has created the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau as a multi disciplinary agency to complement the existing state machinery to deal with wildlife crime having ramification beyond state and national borders.
v. Wildlife staff posted in highly sensitive areas has been provided with arms, wireless sets and vehicles to keep check on wildlife poaching and trade.
The measures taken by the Government to strengthen the protection of wildlife and reserve forests are as follows:
vi. The Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, has been amended from time to time and made more stringent against wildlife related offences.
vii. Threatened species of wildlife are placed in the Schedules of the Wildlife (Protection), Act, 1972, thereby according them the highest degree of protection.
viii. The Centrally Sponsored Scheme of 'Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats' was modified in 2008 to accord better protection and conservation to wildlife in the country by adding two new components to the existing components viz'Protection of Wildlife outside Protected Areas' and 'Recovery Programme for saving Critically Endangered Species and their Habitats'.
ix. The Government has created the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau as a multi disciplinary agency to complement the existing state machinery to deal with wildlife crime having ramification beyond state and national borders.
x. Wildlife staff posted in highly sensitive areas has been provided with arms, wireless sets and vehicles to keep check on wildlife poaching and trade.
xi. Training and capacity building programmes are organized to improve the skills of wildlife staff to improve the investigation and prosecution of wildlife offences.
xii. Under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme ‘Intensification of Forest Management’, financial assistance is being provided to State/Union Territories Governments for strengthening forest protection. The Scheme is being implemented through the respective State Forest Departments.
xiii. The Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Integrated Forest Protection Scheme (IFPS) was modified in 2009 by adding four new components and renaming it as Intensification of Forest Management Scheme (IFMS). The scheme supports activities like forest fire control & management, strengthening of infrastructure, survey, demarcation and working plan preparation. The new components of protection and conservation of sacred groves, conservation and restoration of unique vegetation & ecosystem, control and eradication of forest invasive species and preparedness for meeting challenges of bamboo flowering and improving management of bamboo forests have been included to strengthen protection of Reserve Forests.
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Mechanism presently in operation for better co-ordination with States in matters of serious environmental concerns are as follows:
i. State/Union Territories Governments are made aware of the critical environmental concerns through various means of communications and meetings and are made to address these problems through existing systems.
ii. State Governments are empowered to address environmental issues like forest fire, climate change, poaching of wild animals, encroachments of forests, pollution etc through various national programmes and schemes.
iii. States are made part of the national legal framework to address these environmental concerns.
iv. Regular feedback and monitoring of the measures adopted by the States/Union Territories Governments is done by the Government of India.
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This information was given by the Minister of State for Environment and Forests (Independent Charge) Shri Jairam Ramesh, in a written reply to a question by Shri DhruvaNarayana in Lok Sabha today.
KP
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
IN NEWS
Press Information Bureau
Government of India |
| Wednesday, August 18, 2010 | |||||
| Ministry of Environment and Forests | |||||
AGRO FORESTRY | |||||
| 17:26 IST | |||||
| The National Forest Policy, 1988 provides for social forestry, farm forestry etc. on the various categories of land other than notified / recorded forests. These activities including agro forestry can be undertaken on non forest land. The State Governments are encouraging plantation of trees on various categories of non forest lands to meet the requirement of the people for timber and timber products to reduce the pressure from forest areas. As per India State of Forest Report (ISFR), 2009,the growing stock of the woody biomass is 1,599 million cubic metre out of the total 6,098 million cubic meter from Forest and Tree cover. Further Gram Van Yojana scheme, mooted by Government of India, envisages planting on non forest land during 12th five year plan. This information was given by the Minister of State for Environment and Forests (Independent Charge) Shri Jairam Ramesh, in a written reply to a question by Shri Ravneet Singh & Shri Om Prakash Yadav in Lok Sabha today. KP | |||||
http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=64980
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Monday, August 09, 2010
IN NEWS
‘A forestry satellite will be launched in 2013 so that we can monitor the forest cover of the country on day to day basis,’ Environment and Forests Minister Jairam Ramesh informed the Rajya Sabha.
‘A family of forestry satellites will be launched, it will make real time monitoring possible,’ he said.
Replying to supplementary questions, the minister informed the house that the country has gained over three million hectares of forest in the last 10 years.
‘India Brazil , three million hectares of forest is cleared every year but in India
August 9, 2010
Gas Shortages In India Threaten Survival of the Forest
Many small towns in the country of India
No where is this more true than in the rural country of Himachal Pradesh. As more and more villagers make use of firewood from the forests, however, the deforestation is putting stress on the surrounding environment in ways that threaten the viability of the ecosphere…………..
For full report, right click on:
Students learn about biodiversity
KARTHIK MADHAVAN
Thirteen thousand is the number of butterfly species in India India
Not only that, 18 per cent of the plants in India
There is more to our nation, as a group of students learnt at the two-day event the Institute of Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding, Coimbatore, conducted recently………………………
For full report, right click on:
Posco's India
2010-08-09 09:54 (UTC)
By Krittivas Mukherjee
NEW DELHI, Aug 9 (Reuters) - South Korean POSCO's $12 billion steel mill project in India could be cleared soon after a panel investigating a breach of law in acquiring land for the plant submits its report on August 16, a top official said on Monday.
Optimism for the project, now delayed by over three years, has risen, given the fact that its progress is being monitored by the prime minister's office as a test case reflecting the country's investment climate………………………………..
For full report, right click on:
Posco Says Indian Enviroment Ministry Asked Orissa to Stop Acquiring Land
By Sungwoo Park
Posco, South Korea ’s biggest steelmaker, said India
The order followed a non-government organization’s claim more native residents are living in the forest land than the state reported, Choi Doo Jin, a spokesman for the Pohang-based mill, said today, without identifying the organization. The ministry plans to count for itself the number of households after the Orissa administration asserted its tally was correct, he said………………
For full report, right click on:
Climate change: how to play our hand?
There have always been extremes of weather around the world but evidence suggests human influence is changing the odd
Peter Stott
guardian.co.uk, Monday 9 August 2010 16.20 BST
Over the past week or so, Pakistan has been devastated by its worst floods for generations and Moscow has suffered under a blanket of smogafter its hottest day in 130 years of records. What is causing these and other recent extreme weather events and are they linked to climate change?
Because of a rare meteorological pattern we can see a connection between extreme weather across Eurasia . Usually, the flow in the upper troposphere over northern India , the Himalayas and Pakistan Pakistan Moscow , forest fires and damaged crops are another consequence, as was the excessive rain over China
For full report, right click on:
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