Affidavit by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in the matter of Sisir Kumar Panda Vs Union of India & Others dated 20/05/2025. The issue pertained to the removal of illegal construction/obstruction caused by the state authorities as well as the private persons in the ecological sensitive zone …
the coast of Orissa is today a picture of death and devastation. The super cyclone that hit the state's 10 coastal districts on the morning of October 29 remained centred there for about eight hours, with wind velocities rising to nearly 300 km/h for almost four hours. Swept by the …
not since 1942 has Orissa witnessed a cyclone of this magnitude. On October 18, a devastating cyclone ripped through one of the state's largest cities, Berhampur in Ganjam district, and adjoining districts leaving a trail of destruction. At the last count around 100 people, including many children, had died and …
RESERVES of platinum have been found for the first time in India at Baula-Nuashahi in Orissa by the Geological Survey of India (gsi). The concentration of platinum found in the region is believed to be at par with the world's leading platinum mines in South Africa, Russia, usa and Zimbabwe. …
In Kesharpur, a tiny village in the foothills of Orissa’s Nayagarh district, villagers search for a baton in their frontyard every morning. Two families find a baton each. The batons decide their day’s work
In every village, a committee is elected by the people. There is a blanket ban on felling and stray grazing. The committee supervises these bans and resolves all conflicts. It also collects fines, decided by the villagers, for any violation of the protection rules. Similarly, it decides the village peoples' …
Orissa's forest protection movement, which started in different places at different times, has become so strong that neither do forest officials find it easy to enter the forests protected by communities nor has the government been able to implement its conservation programmes. But the government refuses to acknowledge their efforts. …
What is your concept of conservation when the state is facing severe degradation of the forests and other environmental problems? My concept is very clear: there has to be a fine balance between development and ecology. But whatever policies we formulate must be accepted by the people. We need development …
A poll issue Villagers put forward a charter of six demands to political leaders, from village to state-level, seeking rights over the forests they have created it's a battle between the haves and the have-nots. At stake is 400,000 hectares (ha) of forest land in Orissa
1920s: The British introduced railway lines in Orissa. Commercial exploitation of forests began in a big way. 1930s: In Dhenkanal, people revolted against the king for rights over the forests they traditionally protected. Lapanga village in Sambalpur became the first recorded village to protect forests.The king of Mayurbhanj initiated JFM …
orissa's green cover has shrunk by 1,420 square kilometre (sq km) in the last nine years, bringing down the total forest area from 59,555 sq km in 1990 to 58,135 sq km in 1999, forest department sources said. The biannual report published by the Forest Research Institute at Dehradun in …
four villages in the Khurda tehsil in Orissa , are facing a severe drinking water crisis. The water, according to reports, contains toxins. The residents of Singpur, Balasing, Balasinghpatna and Pallibalasingh are struggling against the onslaught of a number of diseases but the state government is yet to take corrective …
January 5, 1998. A number police personnel and district officials in several vehicles descend on Kucheipadar, a remote tribal village in Rayagada district, Orissa. They dismantle a roadblock put up by the villagers. As several people including children and women gather, they are teargassed and lathicharged. People sustain injuries on …
What is the problem in Chilika? The local fisherfolk in Chilika for many years have used traditional methods to catch fishes to earn their livelihood. The problem started when the prawn culture began in the early 1990s. Big money lured the mafia, who comprise of non-fisherfolk, and influential people such …
the Orissa government has finally decided that there will be no renewal of leases for prawn fishing in the Chilka lake area. The government has also approved of a comprehensive fishery policy for the lake. Jagannath Patnaik, revenue minister of Orissa has said that a bill giving shape to the …
"i am proud to die for the rights of the fisherfolk.' These were the last words Bacchanidhi Behera uttered before he succumbed to a police bullet in the firing in Orissa's Sarano village in Khurda district on the night of May 29-30. Chilka Lake is Asia's largest brackishwater water body …
Olive Ridley sea turtles that arrived at the Gahirmatha beach in Orissa after a gap of two years continue to be in the news. Even before the excitement over the mass nesting has faded, the hatchlings have started to emerge ( Down To Earth , Vol 7, No 21). The …
with the successful testing of Agni ii on April 11, India has developed a combat-ready missile designed to deliver nuclear warheads anywhere in Pakistan and deep inside China. However, some environmentalist say that the testing was in violation of the defence ministry's commitment to the Orissa High Court. Two days …
The enthusiasm among wildlife lovers and conservationists about the 270,000-odd Olive Ridley turtles that arrived at the Gahirmatha beach in Orissa may be short lived ( Down To Earth , Vol 7, No 21). According to the state wildlife department officials, over 25 per cent of the turtles' eggs have …
The defence ministry violated its own commitment to the Orissa High Court when it test-fired Agni-II intermediate range ballistic missile from the Wheeler Islands. Only two days before the tests, officials at the interim test range at Chandipur in Orissa had filed an affidavit in the court on behalf of …
