Lauri Myllyvirta, the Finnish Greenpeace campaigner who visited the Jaitapur nuclear power project area in Ratnagiri district last year, has denied that he showed any films or other material like photos to the local people agitating against the project. In an email interview from Indonesia, Mr. Myllyvirta said these claims were absurd. He visited the area on November 20, 2010 and left the next day. On Monday, Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan...

Governments rarely shy away from showering farm sops but Karnataka’s BJP government hopes to reap gains with a debatable claim: that its policies have helped reduce farmer suicides. State agriculture minister Umesh Katti recently reeled off in the Assembly suicide figures (see chart) that show a declining trend since 2008-09, when the B.S. Yeddyurappa cabinet took power. The assertion that the slide is because of the government’s efforts follows an agriculture...

Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan's visit to Jaitapur didn't cut any ice with locals protesting the 9900 MW nuclear power project planned there. Soon after, several people were arrested in a case of rioting filed in December, the arrest of Dr Milind Desai, a local protester who was stopped by industries minister Narayana Rane while slamming the government on stage has further incensed the situation. Activists now allege that the arrests are...

Ratnagiri Collector Madhukar Gaikwad has denied permission for the two-day Independent People's Tribunal ‘public hearing' on the Jaitapur nuclear power project proposed to be held on March 6 and 7 at Niveli, one of the affected villages. Deepika D'Souza of the Tribunal said that Mr. Gaikwad, in a letter on Friday, refused permission as per orders from the police. No grounds for disallowing the meeting were given, she said. Ms. D'Souza said...

Activists opposed to a nuclear power plant in Jaitapur plan to go ahead with an “inquiry” by a people’s tribunal into environment and rights violations by the project even after 14 protesters were arrested for alleged rioting. The protesters were held over a riot that broke out in December following the death of a local resident after being hit by a police Jeep. Among those arrested is Milind Desai, a resident of...