-The Telegraph Bengal should follow in the footsteps of Mendha Lekha if it wants to beat back Maoists. And so should Odisha, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. That’s what rural development minister Jairam Ramesh has advised in a letter he wrote last week. Create “more Mendha Lekhas”, he said, referring to the Maharashtra village that gave villagers community rights over minor forest resource and transit permit to sell such produce. For thousands...

-Pratirodh Bureau Activists led by Narmada Bachao Andolan leader Medha Patkar have alleged that the much awaited Land Acquisition Bill was actually a "diluted version" of the Standing Committee's recommended bill.   The activists under belonging to various groups, including National Alliance of People’s Movements, National Forum of Forest people and Forest Workers, Kisan Sangharsh Samiti and Sangharsh claimed that the "positive" position taken by the Standing Committee had been diluted by the...

QUEZON CITY (PIA) -- The Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation (RMAF) announced today the six winners of the 2012 Ramon Magsaysay Award. The awardees were from Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Philippines and Taiwan. A press statement from RMAF said hen Shu-Chu, from Taiwan, is being recognized for “the pure altruism of her personal giving, which reflects a deep, consistent, quiet compassion and has transformed the lives of the numerous Taiwanese she has...

-The Telegraph Jharkhand has earned the dubious distinction of being one of the worst performers in climate and environment protection, faring poorly in a survey carried out by the Planning Commission. The report card showing Jharkhand in 20th position on the Environment Performance Index (EPI) 2012 was sent by the Planning Commission to the forest secretary two days ago. “The report is yet to be released officially, but being ranked 20 among all...

—AFP World farm production must rise 60 per cent by 2050 to meet the needs of a growing population but this has to happen in a “more sustainable way”, the U.N. food agency FAO and the OECD said on Wednesday. “It’s mostly going to be about productivity”, said Angel Gurria, head of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), at a press conference in Rome, explaining that farmland area would increase...