IN NEWS

Faltering "Tiger State"


Editorial Posted On Monday, October 18, 2010

A tigress nursing three cubs, allegedly hit by a vehicle in Madhya Pradesh's Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve died of internal haemorrhage at "Jhurjhura" on 19 May last. The killing caused a furore in India and abroad. According to the National Tiger Conservation Authority's (NTCA) member-secretary enough evidence was available to indicate that the vehicles involved in the accident entered the Reserve illegally after 9.30 PM. However, as the cars allegedly, carried sons of two State Ministers the investigations were squelched thanks to the power and influence of the 'culprits'.

Vociferous demands including from the Union Ministry of Forests & Environment (MOEF), for enquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigations (CBI), were ignored. Instead, the provincial Criminal Investigation Department (CID) was asked to investigate. According to those aware of the ways of the State, this was done only to put a lid on the case. Apparently, this is true as the investigations have led nowhere even after five months. Those responsible have remained anonymous.

The Jhurjhura tigress's death only exemplifies the State Government's attitude of utter indifference towards protection of tigers. With the tiger population plummeting, every activity, or lack of it, makes news leading to visible desperation in the country. Sighting of new-born cubs, mating or refusal to do so by tigers and deaths--natural or due to internecine fights--all make news.

Numerous non-Governmental national and international organisations are running campaigns ..........................

http://www.centralchronicle.com/viewnews.asp?articleID=49839



India panel majority want Posco clearances scrapped

Mon Oct 18, 2010 10:14am GMT

NEW DELHI Oct 18 (Reuters) - A review

NEW DELHI Oct 18 (Reuters) - A review of Posco's steel mill project in eastern India says the plant could violate forest laws, and a majority of the review panel says existing green clearances should be scrapped, the environment minister told reporters on Monday.

The four-member panel presented two separate reports which will now be examined on Oct. 25 by the country's Forest Advisory Committee before Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh takes a final decision.

In August, India's environment ministry ordered a halt to all work on the project, including land acquisition, while the panel probed if the forest rights act that seeks to protect forest land and settlers had been violated. [ID:nSGE67A0A1]

http://af.reuters.com/article/metalsNews/idAFSGE69H0A820101018



Neutrino Observatory gets green signal

The India Neutrino Observatory is essentially a Rs1,000 cr detector to study a class of elementary particles called neutrinos that is expected to glean new insights into the evolution of the universe and the fundamental structure of matter

Jacob P Koshy

New Delhi: India’s most ambitious science project, which was stalled in the face of several environmental glitches, has finally got the green signal.

The environment ministry on Monday accorded crucial forest clearances to base the so-called India Neutrino Observatory (INO) at Bodi West Hills, a forest reserve in Madurai. The INO is essentially a Rs1,000 crore detector to study a class of elementary particles called neutrinos that is expected to glean new insights into the evolution of the universe and the fundamental structure of matter.

Funded by the department of atomic energy and a host of universities, the project was hanging fire since original plans to locate the project at Singara, a sensitive bioreserve in the Western Ghats, were stymied by the central environment ministry on ecological grounds. The INO now requires approval by the Cabinet to move forward.

http://www.livemint.com/2010/10/18193405/Neutrino-Observatory-gets-gree.html



Gaurs may be shifted from Kanha Reserve to Bandhavgarh

PTI, Oct 17, 2010, 02.21pm IST

BHOPAL: After successful translocation of a tiger and two tigresses to Panna, 20-25 Gaurs (Indian Bisons) are likely to be shifted from Kanha Tiger Reserve to Bandhavgarh National Park in January.

"Most probably, the Gaurs will be translocated from Kanha to Bandhavgarh in January," Bandhavgarh Field Director C K Patil told PTI today.

Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Conservation Corporation of Africa, state Forest Department will be involved in the exercise of bringing the Gaurs from Kanha to Bandhavgarh - both situated in eastern Madhya Pradesh, he said.

January is the best time to shift the Gaurs, which usually descend from the hills during this period and enter the wild, he said. ....................................

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/flora-fauna/Gaurs-may-be-shifted-from-Kanha-Reserve-to-Bandhavgarh-/articleshow/6763631.cms



India: CSE Announces Media Fellowship: Justice At Bay, The Forest Rights

Millions of people are linked to forests, some derive their livelihoods from them, others call them home. The forests, however, are subjected to continuous exploitation due to varied reasons beyond the realm of sustainance, rendering the forest dwellers most vulnerable. To protect these communities against harassment, eviction, displacement and encroachment, the Forest Rights Act was introduced in December 2006. For the first time in history, these villagers were given legal rights to their homeland and awarded the responsibility of managing the forests and forest resources.

Industry and the state, however, continue to have a vested interest in forests. Corporates entice the state with their ambitious proposals and dreams of development, fell the forests, dig out the minerals and leave without reclamation displacing the entire forest community. The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) offers a media fellowship to journalists to study, investigate and report on the implementation, violation and drawbacks of the act and its fallout on the forest dwelling communities.

Duration: Two months – December 15, 2010 to February 15, 2011 – with one month of travel time and another month for research, writing, publication and submission of stories and features.

Compensation and funding: Selected fellows will each receive a stipend of Rs 40,000 .............................

http://indigenouspeoplesissues.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7118:india-cse-announces-media-fellowship-justice-at-bay-the-forest-rights&catid=74:funding-a-grants&Itemid=103



Protests against power

Vijay Pinjarkar, TNN, Oct 17, 2010, 05.30am IST

NAGPUR: Vidarbha Bachao Samiti (VBS), a forum of intellectuals, social workers and professionals, on Friday vowed to wage a battle against 85 power plants and 33 coal-based industries proposed in Vidarbha that the Samiti says would jeopardize life of people in the region.

Some of these projects are in initiation stage while some have applied for terms of reference (TOR) and environment clearance with the ministry of environment and forests (MoEF). The state forest department too has forwarded many proposals to National Environment Engineering Research Institute ( NEERI) for study about their effect on forests.

VBS has claimed that the 85 coal-based power plants will generate 55,000 MW electricity. .......................................

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/Protests-against-power/articleshow/6762080.cms





Is that lipstick eco-friendly?

Published: Monday, Oct 18, 2010, 9:27 IST

By Asha Chowdary
Place: Bangalore
Agency: DNA



Do earth-unfriendly chemicals lurk in your box of face powder? Will your bathing soap endanger the earth’s forests? Is your tube of lipstick safe for you and the planet?

These are the questions women are asking as they head to the stores to pick up cosmetics and skin care products.

Companies are also making an extra effort to project themselves as ‘green’ companies, either by using recycled packaging, working with botanical ingredients, adding fewer chemicals or sending the proceeds of the sale of some of their products to green initiatives across the world.

A company that makes it a point to follow environment friendly methods is Lush. Their products are made of natural ingredients, using carefully ...........................

http://www.dnaindia.com/lifestyle/report_is-that-lipstick-eco-friendly_1454212



Indigenous Medicinal plants, Social Forestry and Tribal

AUTHOR’S: M. P. Singh, J. L. Srivastava and S. N. Pandey

PUBLISHER: Daya Publishing House

ISBN: 9788170352730

YEAR: 2003 (First Edition)

PAGES: 519

SIZE: 14 X 22 X 2.5 cm.

BINDING: Hard

LANGUAGE: English

ABOUT THE BOOK: In the modern medicine also plants occupy a very significant place as a raw material for some imporatn drugs although synthetic drugs and antibiotics brought about a revolution in controlling different diseases. But these synthetic drugs are out of reach of millions of people. Those who live in remote places depends on traditional healers, whom they know and trust. Judicious use of medicinal herbs can even cure deadly diseases that have long defined synthetic drugs the relationship between man and tree has existed since time immemorial.The usefulness of trees and their protection was emphasized in ancient literature like Puranas and the "Bhagawat Gita".

More than 100 medicinal plants are used in modern medicine. Plants used in traditional system of medicine of Pharmaceutical houses in collected from wild sources. Man of the medicinal plants are cultivated commercially now a days for extraction of some important active constituents for use in modern medicine.



http://cgi.ebay.in/Indigenous-Medicinal-plants-Social-Forestry-and-Tribal-/320604175698



No-go area issue to 'least' impact CIL production



BS Reporters / Kolkata/ New Delhi October 17, 2010, 0:17 IST



A clear picture of the impact of “no-go areas” on Coal India’s (CIL’s) production is likely to emerge after a committee of secretaries examining the issue submits its report.

A panel of secretaries under Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister’s Office, TKA Nair, is examining the issue. “Only a preliminary exercise to identify the no-go areas has been done. The government will ensure that CIL’s coal production in future is least implicated,” a top CIL official said. No-go areas are stretches with rich forest cover and biodiversity where forest land diversion applications are not entertained..................

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/no-go-area-issue-to-%5Cleast%5C-impact-cil-production/411764/