--Press release by Mineral Inheritors Rights Association (MIRA) dated 27th August, 2020 The Ministry of Mines has put up a notice on 24th August, 2020 seeking public comments on substantial matters of reform of mineral laws, rules and regulations within a period of 10 days, i.e. 3rd September, 2020. The state governments have not yet been consulted and a 10-day period for the states to respond undermines the federal spirit of...

-The Indian Express The environment ministry needs to be clear about its role — its mandate is to create and sustain a regulatory framework that prevents the plunder of our natural resources, not actively accelerate the pace of environmental devastation. The draft Environmental impact assessment (EIA) notification 2020 proposed by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has met with massive opposition. As the (hard-won) extended public consultation period draws to...

-Down to Earth The ordinance does not expressly define ‘extraordinary circumstances’: Such legislative ambiguity makes one question the entire exercise of introducing this particular provision As the Union government announced massive reforms as part of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) relief package, attention went to three agriculture sector ordinances related to farmers’ trade, contract farming and amendments in the Essential Commodities Act. While each of the three ordinances have far-reaching implications from legal...

-TheWire.in The decision, which has been severely criticised as it comes in the wake of rising hunger in the country, was defended by the government as being needed to manufacture alcohol-based hand sanitisers. New Delhi: A high-level meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 3, 2020 all but cleared the way for the government’s much-criticised decision to convert ‘surplus’ rice to ethanol, information obtained by The Wire via the Right...

-Newslaundry.com The draft EIA Notification 2020, activists say, is a major setback for environmental justice as it weakens public consultation and dilutes compliance norms for corporates. The Indian government is censoring three environmental advocacy groups that are raising concerns about the draft Environment Impact Assessment Notification 2020. Fridays For Future India, Let India Breathe and There Is No Earth B have had their websites blocked. In a statement on July 13, Let India...