-The Hindu The devastating landslips were caused by the undercutting of fragile hillsides for highways rather than by dams, which actually helped mitigate the floods The natural calamity of June 16 through 19 that devastated the whole of Uttarakhand and large areas of Himachal Pradesh and western Uttar Pradesh - an area of almost 20,000 sq.km. - was one of extremely rare severity among all the hydro-meteorological disasters to have struck India. Intense...

-The Hindu Some hydel projects that claim exemption from environmental clearance on the basis of size provide a misleading picture of their impact Why would more than four gram panchayats, environmental activists from three States, the presiding swami of the Subramanya Temple, botanists, fisheries scientists, and institutions like the Indian Institute of Science oppose a small hydel project in a remote corner of the Western Ghats in Karnataka? Aren't small hydel projects...

-The Times of India LUCKNOW: Illegal mining in Uttar Pradesh between 2005-11 caused a loss of Rs 1,400 crore to the exchequer, says a draft report of the comptroller & auditor general. The report, prepared on the activities of state geology and mining directorate, belies state government's claims on checking illegal mining and indicates that illegal mining is widespread. It reveals several procedural gaps in legal quarrying as well. The auditors, who...

-Outlook The Uttar Pradesh government today reluctantly admitted before the National Green Tribunal (NGT) that illegal sand mining was going on in the state and not even a single environmental clearance granted for it in Gautam Budh Nagar district. "We (UP government) have not caught anyone till now. It's there Lordship. Yes it (illegal sand mining) is going on," the counsel, appearing for Uttar Pradesh government and its Chief Secretary, said. A five-member...

-Outlook Expressing concern over the recent tragedy in Uttarakhand, the Supreme Court today prohibited setting up of any new hydroelectric power project in the state and directed the Centre to constitute an expert body to study environmental degradation caused by such projects. The court directed the Ministry of Environment and Forests and the Uttarakhand government not to grant any further environmental or forest clearance for any hydroelectric power project until further orders. "We...