-Down to Earth States exploit the delay in the drafting of rules for the Compensatory Afforestation Fund Act to assert rights over land claimed by communities under the Forest Rights Act More than a year after Parliament passed the Compensatory Afforestation Fund Act 2016 (CAF), the Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) is yet to roll out the mandatory rules to implement it. In fact, the ministry in November...
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Grass or tree?: A rule reclassifying bamboo claims to benefit tribals - but industry will gain more -Nitin Sethi
-Scroll.in At the heart of the problem is a discrepancy between two laws on rights for Adivasis to the bamboo growing on their traditional forestlands. Across the world, taxonomists have classified bamboo as a grass. But under Indian law, it was treated as a tree. This definition has long given state forest departments monopolistic control over the valuable natural resource. On November 23, the central government loosened this grip by amending the...
More »Should Rajasthan's Open Prisons Be Replicated Across the Country? -Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar
-TheWire.in A new report has recommended extending the scheme to all women, aged and infirm undertrials, claiming that it has many social and economic benefits for both the state and the inmates. A study on open prisons and parole practices in Rajasthan suggests that the “successful system,” operational in the state since 1955, be emulated across the country. The study, initiated by the Rajasthan State Legal Services Authority (RSLSA) and Rajasthan high court...
More »Chief Justice's Actions Trigger Debate On Fairness, Transparency -Sunetra Choudhury & Sunil Prabhu
-NDTV The Supreme Court is hearing a case that alleges senior judges were involved in a conspiracy to seek bribes and influence cases. New Delhi: In a sudden hearing on Friday, five judges of the Supreme Court headed by the Chief Justice of India said that he alone has the power to call a constitution bench because he is "master of the roster". In doing so, they cancelled an order passed on...
More »After making old cows unviable to maintain, Madhya Pradesh wants to force farmers to pay for them -Rohan Venkataramakrishnan
-Scroll.in With reports of abandoned cows destroying crops, the state’s cow protection panel has proposed penalties on owners who set them free. The Bharatiya Janata Party is scrambling to contain the fallout of its efforts to prevent the slaughter of cows, which have distorted rural economies in unforeseen ways. To deal with one unexpected consequence, a Madhya Pradesh government panel has now recommended penalties for farmers who abandon their cattle. This highlights...
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