Affidavit on behalf of Union Territory of Puducherry in the matter of a news item titled "India lost 2.33 million hectares of tree cover since 2000 Global Forest Watch" which appeared in the Indian Express, April 13, 2024. The report dated April 25, 2025 said that there is no loss …
recognising the worsening global epidemiological trends for dengue, the recently held 55th World Health Assembly of the World Health Organ isation (who) passed a resolution urging the international community to spend more funds and expend efforts on dengue research. who reports that every year, 50
After 30 long years of virtual inaction by the powers that be and a violent struggle by local communities, the fate of the 710-megawatt (mw) Koel Karo hydroelectric project is sealed. Or so it seems, with sources in the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (nhpc) claiming that the project
Residents of Gurdwara Road in Delhi's Karol Bagh succeeded in preventing the chopping down of around 90 trees that are more than 50 years old. After the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (mcd) felled four trees under a road-widening project, the people of the locality threatened to take to the streets. …
In a move that may render nearly half a million families homeless, Thailand's senate recently withheld the passage of the much-awaited community forestry bill (cfb). The proposed legislation that has been blocked was meant to hand over control of forests to the people residing in them. Instead, the country's upper …
Gloom and doom with a sense of humour is how this website describes itself, and it couldn't have been said better. Packed with interactive features, this is one web magazine that knows how to hold its readers and entice them to return. Games, an :sk Umbra' column, and interestingly, a …
the Andhra Pradesh (ap) Water, Land and Tree Act, 2002, meant to clamp down on over exploitation of groundwater, could lead to increased bureaucratisation, fear some experts. To come into force on June 1, 2002, the act is meant to promote water conservation and prevent over-exploitation of water sources in …
The saga of panchayati raj, particularly from the time of introduction of Constitution 73rd Amendment, has been full of hope and despair. While the amendment has certainly propelled participatory process at the local level and provided avenues for social mobility of the weaker sections, the states have yet to devolve …
The Prime Minister (pm) Atal Bihari Vajpayee's vision of water management does not filter into the National Water Policy, which he released on April 1, 2002. His speech was totally at variance with the policy he unveiled. Was it mere rhetoric or does he have no say in guiding the …
THE concept of community participation has been globally accepted as an essential tool for the protection of forest resources. In developed countries community participation has been considered necessary for the exchange of information, education and training. Forest policies in these countries also stress on the recreation of communities through forestry …
Till last year, Chittaranjan Locomotive Works (clw), in West Bengal was just another nondescript place. Today, the walled railway township is hitting the headlines for its anti-plastic drive, which commenced in right earnest at the start of the new year. The campaign follows a statewide ban from January 1, 2002, …
The villagers of Papua New Guinea (PNG) are caught in a legal tangle. They would invite prosecution from their own country's courts if they continue to demand compensation for environmental damages resulting from the Ok Tedi copper mine in PNG, operated by Broken Hill Proprietary, a large Australian mining group. …
• India's DNA scientists have initiated a project to clone the Indian cheetah by using the genes of its Iranian cousin. Scientists from the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) in Hyderabad will assist these DNA scientists to complete the project within five years. • Twelve persons were taken …
The closure of tunnels T3 and T4 comes even as a vast majority of people displaced remain to be rehabilitatedeven as recommendations of the Union government appointed Hanumantha Rao Committee remain to beimplementedeven as the Prime Minister appointed Murli Manohar Joshi committee is yet to submit its report and even …
Our penchant for setting up yet-another committee never seems to end. But when all they do is endorse the position of the government, with little thought of public interest, what purpose do they serve, one often wonders. Take the Ranganath Mishra committee on plastic waste management or the R A …
for years the rainforests of Assam have suffered the ignominy of isolation and neglect. Attempts are now underway to conserve this national heritage with active public participation. As a measure of this enterprise, a three-day festival rejoicing the cultural and spiritual links between these rainforests and the local communities was …
I n the past few decades, society has played a proactive role in purging the market of toxic products. This has been largely possible due to sustained information campaigns, highlighting the damage these noxious substances cause to the environment and health. Cases in point are public disclosure drives that have …
The United Nations Development Programme (undp) is launching a new initiative for conserving Mount Kilimanjaro by involving communities who live around the mountain. "Under the aegis of the project, we will work closely with these communities to ensure that the mountain resources are used in a sustainable manner,' said undp …
Rajasthan, which is facing a severe drought for the third consecutive year, has decided to start a social audit system for its relief operations. The state government, which has undertaken its largest-ever relief operation this year, claims that the work is free from any financial leakages. The audit system is …
This is a story of hope and of a major change. For the first time in the last 50 years, several state governments are dealing with drought in a different way
