-Down to Earth The committee has to meet regularly to come up with suggestions on the way forward regarding the implementation problems of FRA The Union government September 10, 2020, created an inter-ministerial committee comprising officials from the environment and tribal affairs ministries , to look into the issues plaguing the Schedule Tribes and Other Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 or FRA. The officials of both ministries blamed the poor...

-Down to Earth Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs should create a COVID-19 response cell to monitor issues and provide support, it said The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) crisis has hit the forest dwellers in India hard: The pandemic has led to a loss of livelihood and employment, caused food insecurity and socio-economic distress for the marginalised forest-dwelling communities, according to a new report. Atrocities and injustices faced by these communities due to forest,...

Often exports made by a country to the rest of the world are seen in a positive light by us. It is because exports not only earn precious foreign currencies (that can be used for importing goods and services or simply be used for building forex reserves), it also helps in generating effective demand for goods and services produced in that country and hence, contributes to economic or GDP growth....

-Scroll.in Mining companies stand to benefit from one of the amendments being pushed through without proper public consultation. India’s mining law enables the government to recover 100% of the value of minerals extracted illegally. Based on this provision, in August 2017, the Supreme Court of India ordered the recovery of Rs 17,576 crore from mining companies that had extracted iron ore and manganese in Odisha in violation of environmental laws. If the Modi...

-The Indian Express Hardline conservationists fail to see possibilities of people-wildlife coexistence The COVID-19 pandemic has driven migrant workers back to their villages, including many situated inside or on the fringes of forested areas, including sanctuaries and national parks. Even as they seek to remake livelihoods there, a new battle has emerged between the forest department (FD) and these local communities. It pertains to the declaration of a Critical Wildlife Habitat (CWH),...