-The Telegraph Bhubaneswar: The state government today reacted sharply to the Centre's decision to reject Vedanta's plan to mine bauxite from the Niyamgiri hills in Kalahandi district. Mining of bauxite in the Niyamgiri hills was to be carried out by the state-owned Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC) and Sterlite Industries Limited, a Vedanta group subsidiary. Steel and mines minister Rajanikant Singh said: "It is really unfortunate. The UPA government is not serious about the...

-The Hindu     Environment Ministry rejects Vedanta's plan to mine Niyamgiri The Union Environment Ministry has taken a decision in two high profile cases, rejecting the forest clearance for Vedanta's bauxite mining project in Niyamgiri Hills of Odisha, and renewing the stand-alone environmental clearance for Posco's eight million tonnes per annum steel plant. The rejection of Vedanta's proposal to dig in the Niyamgiri hills came after 12 village councils of Dongriya Kondh tribal groups...

-The Telegraph New Delhi: The Supreme Court today overruled the Centre and directed it to set up a national regulator to deal with the mandatory environmental impact assessment processes for forest-related projects that can range from mining to industrial ventures. The implications of such a watchdog for industry were not immediately clear in the absence of specific modalities but a clearance logjam blamed on the environment ministry was seen as one of...

-The Hindu     Greenpeace India said the Power Ministry had informed CBI that it did not recommend Hindalco for the Mahan coal block. Questioning the non-transparent manner in which the Mahan coal block was allocated, Greenpeace India on Tuesday demanded cancellation of the coal block and sought a thorough enquiry into the role of Essar Power and the Madhya Pradesh government in the whole issue. The demand by Greenpeace comes close on the heels...

-Live Mint India needs to move away from wild swings in making environment policies The Western Ghats, spread over six states in western and southern India, cover an area of approximately 165,000 sq. km. They are home to a unique ecosystem in the country that is under threat from human activities. Nearly 59% of this area has been exploited: habitation, plantation or agriculture. Only 41% of the area is a natural...