Considered a potent weapon for combating Naxalism, the distribution of land titles to tribals and forest workers under the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006, is not moving at a satisfactory pace in UP in comparison to other states. This, despite Chief Minister Mayawati's repeated orders to expedite the process. The Naxals mislead tribals living in abject poverty. The latter are also exploited by forest officials and police. The FRA recognises...
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Lavasa will have to pay for not abiding by rules, says Ajit Pawar by Amruta Byatnal
A day after the Union Environment Ministry issued a show cause notice to Lavasa Corporation Limited for alleged illegal constructions, Maharashtra's Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar refused to take sides. As chairman of the Maharashtra Krishna Valley Development Corporation, Mr. Pawar had given 141.15 hectares from the Valley land to Lavasa on a 30-year lease, allegedly without government permission. Asked whether he would re-think this decision, Mr. Pawar said: “Lavasa will have...
More »Environmental clearance for Jaitapur nuclear project by Vinaya Deshpande
The 9900-MWe Jaitapur Nuclear Power Project has received environmental clearance, but with quite a few strings attached. Union Minister of State for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh announced the clearance with 35 conditions and safeguards during a press conference here on Sunday. Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan termed it a historic day and said that the project would see an investment of Rs. 1 lakh crore. “It is the largest engineering project...
More »Vote for people power
Jharkhand embarked on its first panchayat polls in three decades on an encouraging note today, recording an impressive turnout in defiance of a few determined efforts by Maoist groups to disrupt the process at various places. Voters queued up from early morning, helping the state to notch up a poll percentage of 64.7 per cent with Chief Minister Arjun Munda’s home district of Seraikela-Kharsawan recording the highest turnout of 79 per...
More »Experts group to study NAC proposals on food security Bill by Gargi Parsai
Led by C. Rangarajan, it has been appointed by Manmohan In a significant move, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has formed an experts group chaired by the chief of Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council, C. Rangarajan, to examine the recommendations of the Sonia Gandhi-headed National Advisory Council on the proposed food security Bill. The move surprised members of the council who met here on Friday to discuss the draft of the National Food...
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