Judgment of the Supreme Court in the matter of In Re: Zudpi Jungle Lands. A batch of applications involved a peculiar issue concerning the situation prevailing in the six districts of eastern Vidarbha region namely Nagpur, Wardha, Bhandara, Gondia, Chandrapur and Gadchiroli. The issue pertains to the status of the …
The general council of the Awami Tehrik (Pakistan) condemned the construction of the greater Thal canal and the proposed construction of the Kalabagh dam under army pressure saying that President Gen Pervez Musharraf was trying to prolong his rule. The meeting, which was presided by Rasool Bux Palijo, expressed determination …
Unicef has called for formulation of policies on drinking water including national water quality standards at provincial and national level in Pakistan and establishment of coordinating mechanisms for drinking water and sanitation at provincial level. Most of the drinking water available to consumers is 'grossly contaminated', with the situation getting …
The Himachal Pradesh High Court issued notice to the state government on the issue of encroachment on the forest land in Lahaul and Spiti area by the foreign nationals. The matter was brought to the notice of the court through a letter written to the Chief Justice by a travel …
The government announced a phased programme for introducing Euro-IV vehicular emission norms in the country by 2010, requiring a total investment of Rs 55,000 crore by the oil and automobile industry. The policy will seek to improve fuel quality and vehicular engine specifications.
State Bank of Hyderabad (SBH) introduced 'Varun Mithra', a 'first-of-its-kind' scheme to promote rainwater harvesting, and 'Fin Bowl', a scheme for small traders to improve their ambience and other infrastructural needs. "We have launched the scheme to popularise the rainwater harvesting methods and give a thrust to recharge the sagging …
The mahogany trade remains legal within stringent international rules. With a recent crackdown on illegal logging in Brazil, for years the world's mahogany king, Peru is in the midst of a decade-long boom, and is now the largest producer. Last year, government figures show, Peru exported 45,000 cubic meters of …
The Assam State is perhaps heading fast towards that time when its entire population will have to throng the natural history galleries of the museums to know as to what does a rain forest mean. This is despite the fact that the State had
Lush green fields and forest land in the Vasai-Virar region, about 50km from Mumbai, appear all set to become the new hunting ground for private developers who are reportedly being sided by a powerful local politician. There is large-scale consternation among locals as they realise the implications of the new …
Despite the wood mafias having succeeded to an extent in their efforts to smuggle out trees, the effort of the forest defence group (FDG) has successfully brought back the green cover, as the plantation drive by the forest department and the FDG has produced good results. Under a scheme introduced …
While the Centre has decided to implement the national forest policy in a time-bound manner by bringing 33 per cent of the total geographical area of the country under forest cover by 2012, it will not be possible to achieve the target in hill states like Himachal Pradesh. As per …
The Himachal Government would soon frame a policy on the encroachment of government lands, particularly of forests with a focus on providing at least 80 square metres to 120 square metres plots for house to homeless Himachalis. Himachal Chief Minister, Virbhadra Singh, at a press conference here said today, that …
Keeping in view the objections by the Centre on two notifications issued by the previous BJP-HVC regime, the Himachal Pradesh state government withdrew these and brought the three categories of waste land 'gair mumkin, charagah bila darakhtan and nakabil charand' again under the ambit of Forest Act, 1980.
The Sri Lankan government is planning to sign an agreement, under the US Tropical Forestry Conservation act, to bind Sri Lanka's forests for external debt, soon. Under this arrangement those forests will in future be managed by a committee comprising representatives from the US government, International NGOs other than local …
Scientists have struggled for years to understand how the lowly silkworm spins the strongest natural fibre known to human beings. Now they have cracked the mystery. The secret is the animal's ability to carefully control the water content in its silk glands. Scientists have known for some time that silk's …
• The Ministry for Protection of the Environment and Natural Resources of Russia has sold nine plots of wood in the Kaluzhsky region through an Internet auction. Apart from over 1,600 hits from Russia itself, the auction site had traffic from Ukraine, US, Germany, Bulgaria, Norway, United Arab Emirates, South …
The forests of Honduras may soon lose their armed protectors. Authorities in the eastern part of the country have been directed by President Ricardo Maduro to hunt down and put behind bars a group of radical environmentalists guarding local woodland. In an interview to La Prensa newspaper, three members of …
Is traditional medicine the answer to the healthcare needs of the state? In rural areas, traditional medicine is the major healthcare option. It is well respected, as western medicine system is non-existent in far-flung places. Even otherwise, traditional and modern practitioners participate equally in providing healthcare. Our medicines are highly …
green light given: The Central Electricity Authority has granted the final techno-economic clearance (TEC) to the North-Eastern Electric Power Corporation (NEEPCO) to execute the 1500-megawatt Tipaimukh Hydro Electric Project. The Rs 5163.86-crore venture was cleared after Mizoram granted a no-objection certificate. Manipur too fell in line earlier. The six-phase project
