135 Dams In Region Have Just Nine Per Cent Of Water Left

Rajkot: Tempers are running high in the pilgrim town of Virpur. Without drinking water for the last 25 days, residents have called for a bandh on Thursday to vent their anger. The bandh call comes barely 10 days after a group of women ransacked the municipality office in Jetpur town to protest against the scarcity of water.

Faces Hurdles In Environment Clearance In Andhra Pradesh

There seems to be no end to the trouble of the state PSU, Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC). Under fire from activist-turned-politician Arvind Kejriwal for an alleged scam of Rs 20,000 crores for its offshore gas exploration in KG Basin, off Andhra coast, the premier bluechip company is now facing the ire of the Andhra Pradesh government for failing to take forest and wildlife clearance.

It has asked GSPC executives to “stop work” of laying down a crucial submarine pipeline to take gas from KG Basin to its onshore gas terminal (OGT) via an area which is 10 km of the Corianga sanctuary without necessary clearances. It asks them to explain “why action shouldn’t be taken” for violating forest and wildlife laws.

As against planned gas production of 95.87 mcm, company produced 153.992 mcm

Oil & Natural Gas Corporation Ltd (ONGC) has achieved highest natural gas production from its Gujarat gas fields for the month of November, a statement from the union ministry of petroleum and natural gas (MoPNG) showed. As against the planned monthly natural gas production of 95.87 million cubic meters (mcm), ONGC produced 153.992 mcm of natural gas from its Gujarat assets during November, achieving 160 per cent of the planned production. This is the highest production achieved among other exploration companies in the country for the month.

Rajkot: Crores of gallons of precious water, which could have irrigated at least 10,000 acres of farmland and provided drinking water to lakhs of households for months, is simply flowing into the arid saltpans of Little Rann of Kutch.

Locals say the water has been overflowing from the sub canals of the Zinzuwada branch canal for the past 45 days, but authorities have turned a blind eye to the waste. The water from the sub-canals is given to farmers but there is no system of conserving the excess, which is allowed to drain out into the Little Rann.

Mehsana Resident Comes Up With Solar Rickshaw

Palanpur: As his small toy-like solarpowered tricycle passes through the streets and bazaars of Mehsana with his three children seated snugly behind him under a canopy, loud cheers are heard from passersby. Everyone seems to love the novel contraption moving smoothly on the roads. “Even the traffic policemen wave at us and at times give us money,” said Shamsuddin Ansari, the owner of this new solar rickshaw. He is a native of Amhera village in Bijnor district of Uttar Pradesh now settled in Mehsana.

Plans to open International Centre on Mining Safety and Automation with industry support

State-owned mining major, Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation Ltd (GMDC) is planning to set up centres of excellence for the stone industry in North Gujarat. The company is also searching for an industry partner to set up an international centre on mining safety and automation, top government official informed on Monday. "The board of directors of the company has decided to set up an international centre on mining safety and automation in Gujarat. Also, at Ambaji in North Gujarat, we are trying to set up centres of excellence for the stone industry, to provide skill enhancement for the youth in the mining sector," said M Sahu, principal secretary, department of industries and mines, Government of Gujarat.

A BSF proposal to divert forest land in wildlife sanctuaries in areas bordering Pakistan is facing stiff resistance from conservationists who feel that road construction in the protected site will

Press Council of India Chairman Markendya Katju today hit out at Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, describing as “phoney” his claims of development in the state and saying its malnutrition rate

Seeking to make Gujarat a major destination for holidayers, the state tourism policy, to be announced early next year, will be offering several incentives for investors.

Apart from improving the infrastructure and amenities in the established spots around the state, the policy would aim at promoting private investments in a host of new destinations, including the coastline, Gujarat Tourism Commissioner Sanjay Kaul said.

For the past 29 months, the court case between NTPC and Reliance Industries (RIL) on two gas-based power plants in Gujarat has not come for hearing at the high court here.

NTPC took RIL to court in December 2005, after the latter would not sign a gas sale and purchase agreement (GSPA) because of a dispute over a clause relating to unlimited liability. It contends expansion of its Kawas and Gandhar olants have been delayed indefinitely, thanks to RIL.