Order of the Madras High Court regarding relocation of Thengumarahada village in the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve, Tamil Nadu. The court said that the guidelines for preparation of the Tiger Conservation Plan itself mandates relocation of human settlements affecting the core area of tiger reserves. The Supreme Court in Ajay Dubey …
The effects of global environmental change, including coastal flooding, reduced rainfall in drylands and water scarcity, will almost certainly alter patterns of human migration. Conventional narratives usually cast these displacements in a negative light, with many millions of people forced to move, and tension and conflict the result. Our study …
BEYOND USUAL SUSPECTS A case for neglected species in wildlife research and conservation For most of us wildlife is represented by large mammals like elephant, rhino, lion and tiger, may be birds like hornbill, raptors, peafowl and waterfowl and awe inspiring reptiles like marine turtles, crocodiles, python and king cobra. …
ON SEPTEMBER 9, the Supreme Court ordered detergent company Nirma to file its reply to the show cause notice issued by the Union ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) within three months. MoEF had issued the notice in May, asking the company to explain within two weeks why the environmental …
ON SEPTEMBER 9, the Supreme Court ordered detergent company Nirma to file its reply to the show cause notice issued by the Union ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) within three months. MoEF had issued the notice in May, asking the company to explain within two weeks why the environmental …
The government will address the housing problems of those living in underserved settlements in Colombo with a project where 30,000 housing units will be constructed. The Treasury has allocated Rs 90,000 million for the project. The Urban Development Authority (UDA) has been entrusted with the task of constructing the houses. …
Among the wild cats, cheetah is unique and is the only extant member of the genus Acinonyx notable with its non-retractable claws and pads. The cheetah made headlines last year when the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), New Delhi, announced setting aside three grassland sanctuaries to bring the extinct …
Wildlife Conservation Department Director General Dr Chandrawansa Pathiraja stressed that no elephants in the South will be relocated either for the construction of the Mattala airport or for the proposed Games City in Hambantota hosting Commonwealth Games in 2018. He said that the media reports that the Government was planning …
Sri Lankan authorities plan to relocate 200 wild elephants from their habitat in Hambanthota to build an international airport and a game city in anticipation of a successful bid to host the 2018 Commonwealth Games. Quoting a government minister, Xinhua news agency reported that if selected to host the games …
Section 38V of Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972 provides that Tiger Reserve should be inviolate. 643 sq km area of Nagarhole National Park is declared as core critical tiger habitat, prior to the promulgation of the "The Scheduled Tribes and other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act 2006". Though …
In what could set a precedent for forest rights struggles, six villages in Madhya Pradesh have stalled a government plan to notify their forest as wildlife sanctuary. Gram sabhas of these villages have passed resolutions against the proposed Katthiwada wildlife sanctuary in Alirajpur district. While the government is yet to …
These guidelines released by MoEF for voluntary village relocation in notified core critical tiger habitats of tiger reserves aim to ensure that in the process of conservation and protection of tigers, the rights of forest dwellers are respected. The Ministry has released a draft protocol /guidelines for voluntary village relocation …
THERVOY Kandigai village, 50 km northwest of Chennai in Thiruvallur district, is planning another protest against the Tamil Nadu government’s plan to set up an industrial estate on its 405 hectares (ha) of common forestland. People were encouraged by the recent Supreme Court ruling declaring the transfer of common land …
FRESH guidelines by the Ministry of Environment and Forests to identify inviolate areas for wildlife have bypassed the Forest Rights Act of 2006. They threaten the interests of forest dwellers. Issued on February 7, they empower the Divisional Forest Officer and the Park Manager to arbitrarily identify areas in and …
THE past two rainy seasons 65-year-old Ramdas Rana has spent much of his sleeping hours adjusting his bed to an elusive dry patch. The thatched roof of his hut has been leaking since 2008. He could not repair it because the grass used for thatching is out of bounds for …
The Ministry of Environment and Forests has withdrawn its latest guidelines for creating inviolate space for wildlife. The guidelines for creating Critical wildlife Habitat (CWH), issued on February 7, violated the Forest Rights Act, 2006, and threatened the interests of the forest dwellers (see: ‘Misguided rules’). The ministry also asked …
Top forest officials and members of the National Forest Rights Act Committee are on a collision course after the panel submitted its report to the government and stated that the Act was not implemented in its true spirit. A war of words ensued after the panel, formed by the environment …
Wild tigers are at a tipping point and action, or inaction, in the coming decade will decide their fate. Action will lead to the tiger’s recovery; inaction or mere maintenance of the status quo will lead to its extinction. The GTRP represents the last best hope for the survival of …
Ahmedabad: The union minister for forest and environment Jairam Ramesh added a fresh chapter to the Asiatic lion controversy by first suggesting that as per experts
The death of a tiger last month, two and a half years after it was brought to Sariska, proves the National Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan is not safe for the big cat. The death also brought to light little action has been taken on the recommendations of the Tiger Task …
