‘It has become a toothless organisation, which hasmade no difference to neglect of the river' Claiming that the National Ganga River Basin Authority has become a toothless organisation which has made no change to the government's neglect of the national river, three of its non-governmental members have submitted their resignations to the Prime Minister, chairperson of the body. “In three years of the NGRBA's existence, we have only had two meetings,” said...

-The Economic Times The Supreme Court has asked the government to implement the ambitious interlinking of the rivers project in a time-bound manner to tackle drought and flood in various parts of the country. The court also appointed a high-powered committee for planning and implementation of the project.  A bench comprising Chief Justice SH Kapadia, Justice AK Patnaik and Justice Swatanter Kumar on Monday said the Centre and concerned state governments should...

Not only are the Forest Rights Act and the Panchayats Extension to Scheduled Areas Act routinely violated in Chhattisgarh, the adivasis are also short-changed on legislative representation and reservations in government jobs. As the state cedes land to capital while reducing the adivasis to an ornamental presence, there is increasing assertion of adivasi identity, born out of class predicaments and experiences of displacement as much as notions of indigeneity. Supriya Sharma...

-The Telegraph   An atmospheric depression that created a zone of rain across parts of Orissa caused water levels to rise in several rivers, meteorologists said today. The depression had delivered rain over Balasore, Keonjhar, Angul districts late last week, causing the upper Brahmani and lower Brahmani to swell, but scientists today said they expect no rainfall over the next two days. “At 9 this morning, the Brahmani (river) at Jenapur had risen to...

-The Telegraph   After Mahanadi, Brahmani and Baitarani are wreaking havoc and the two rivers have left as many as 1,114 villages marooned. Six choppers of the navy and air force were pressed into service for airdropping relief material in the flood-affected pockets. Two more helicopters are expected to reach by tomorrow to expedite the relief operation. “The next 36 hours will be crucial as the water level of the Brahmani is rising,” said...