Making it clear that illegal mining would not be allowed to continue, the Supreme Court, acting on a report of the Central Empowered Committee (CEC), on Friday directed suspension of the 19 mining leases in Karnataka in the Bellary region and restrained these mines from carrying on operations until further orders. The Forest Bench comprising Chief Justice of India S.H. Kapadia, Justice Aftab Alam and Justice K.S. Radhakrishnan passed the restraint order...
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Endangered pig-nosed turtles falling easy prey to poachers by G Venkataramana Rao
Every time the three irrigation canals of Prakasam Barrage, which pass through the city, are closed for the summer, the endangered species of pig-nosed turtles become easy prey. Though they are well-camouflaged in the slush and mud of the canal bed, poachers know where to look for them. Armed with a stick or rod, they keep poking until they hit the turtle's hard shell. Gaddam Yesu, who is still in his teens,...
More »Bamboo is liberated, says Jairam Ramesh by Meena Menon
Gram Sabhas given equal say in Forest Rights Act Bamboo had been declared minor Forest produce recently Transit passes to allow villagers to use, sell bamboo within the community “Today, bamboo is liberated,” proclaimed Union Minister of State for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh at a function here on Wednesday, where he handed over to Mendha's community leader Devaji Tofa a transit pass that would allow the sale and transportation of bamboo within...
More »No decision taken on Bt Brinjal by Gargi Parsai
No decision was taken at the first meeting of experts that deliberated on issues relating to the moratorium on the commercial release of Genetically Modified Bt Brinjal. The experts were invited by the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) for their views on the controversial issue. Noted agriculture scientist M.S. Swaminathan, however, recused himself from the meeting. He told The Hindu that being a member of a Parliamentary Committee that was looking into the...
More »Village wins three-decade battle to sell bamboo by Jaideep Hardikar
Power comes through the barrel of a gun, Mao Zedong said. For Lekha-Mendha, though, such power seems rooted in bamboo. The village in Maharashtra’s Gadchiroli today became the first in India to win the right to grow, harvest and sell bamboo, a key goal of a five-year-old central law which aims to give tribal communities control over some resources of the jungles they live in. “This is a historic day. Bamboo has...
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