Groups from across India gathered in Delhi recently to assess the Forest Rights Act’s journey since 2006. The law is often dubbed as ‘landmark’ because it ended the age-old illegality surrounding communities living in forest areas by entitling them to individual and community land title. It also went beyond the colonial paradigms of the forest bureaucracy to recognise community efforts at protecting and preserving forests. Numerous groups and individuals working...
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RTI activists allege attack on them planned by BJP MLA's kin
-PTI Panaji: Goa RTI Forum today claimed in a police complaint that the nephew of a BJP MLA was among those who masterminded the alleged attack on RTI activists by a mob 10 days ago. “From the photographs put up on various Goa Forums, on the social networking site as also from reports in the local newspapers, the agitation seemed to be led by the nephew of sitting MLA Subhash Faldesai, who...
More »Days of excessive profits are over-Ajay Dsouza
-The Hindu New, more fair and transparent norms for iron ore mining are now being put in place in many States Hit by debilitating mining curbs (including an outright ban in some States) and a clampdown on exports through high duties, India’s iron ore industry today is a pale shadow of what it was for much of the last decade, despite some recent forward movement on restarting iron ore mining in Karnataka,...
More »Jumbo con: Chhattisgarh fudges forest data for coal mining -Nitin Sethi
-The Times of India The Chhattisgarh government fudged records, concealed facts, changed policy and altered decisions while the Union environment ministry overlooked all such illegalities to open up 1,899 hectares for mining in Hasdeo Arand, one of the best patches of forests in central India. Initially, the Centre had decided to protect Hasdeo Arand by making it a no-go zone for miners. The Chhattisgarh government too had moved to get the dense...
More »Growth in pits, PM targets mining in opposition-ruled states -Rajeev Deshpande
-The Times of India Under pressure to energize the economy ahead of the 2014 election, the Manmohan Singh government is reaching across political divides to rescue mining projects in opposition-ruled states of Goa, Odisha and Karnataka. With third quarter growth sinking to 4.5% and the economic survey pointing to a mining and quarrying slowdown as a reason for poor industrial growth, the Centre has decided to ask the Supreme Court to relax...
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