The Forest Advisory Committee of the Union environment and forests decided on Monday to not lift the temporary stay order on the forest clearance for Posco's Integrated Steel Project at Orissa. This would imply continued stay on all activities at the Posco site. After a lengthy hearing with the state government officials present, the FAC decided to refer the possible violations of the Forest Rights Act to the Union ministry of...

The Forest Advisory Committee of the Union environment and forests decided on Monday to not lift the temporary stay order on the forest clearance for Posco's Integrated Steel Project at Orissa. This would imply continued stay on all activities at the Posco site. After a lengthy hearing with the state government officials present, the FAC decided to refer the possible violations of the Forest Rights Act to the Union ministry of...

Monday’s polling to Kerala’s first all-tribal panchayat, damalakkudy, in Idukki district would be marked in history for the elborate preparations underway to get a reclusive tribal community to participate in democracy. Edamalakkudy, 38 km from Munnar hill station, has no motorable road, no power or communication network. There are 700-odd families of Muthuvan Scheduled Tribe, which live in small settlements at Edamalakkudy, situated amidst dense forest. To fill the communication gap at the...

In a bid to build up pressure before the meeting of the Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) to decide the fate of Posco’s mega steel plant in Orissa, those opposed to it stepped up the momentum. Project opponents, led by Posco Pratirodha Sangram Samiti (PPSS), the organization spearheading the agitation against the South Korean company, held a massive rally and protest meeting yesterday at Balitutha, entry point to the project site. People...

The Orissa government on Monday strongly rebutted the findings of the four-member committee that recently submitted its report on POSCO’s proposed iron and steel plant in the state, saying all due processes had been followed and that there had been no violations of any legal provisions. Senior officers of the Orissa government, including Revenue Divisional Commissioner Pradipto Kumar Mohapatra and Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) Priyanath Padhi, appeared before the...