The Gujarat High Court on Wednesday ordered Alstom Bharat Forge to stop operations within the premises of Adani Port & Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) in Mundra, Gujarat, until the SEZ obtains th

Despite new lakes being announced every year in its budget, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has been found wanting when it comes to their upkeep.

The Gujarat High Court on Wednesday stayed construction and further development activities by all units in the Adani Group-owned Mundra Port Special Economic Zone (now Adani Port Special Economic Zone (APSEZ)) in Mundra taluka of Kutch district, till environmental clearance is granted by the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF).

The directions were issued on a public interest litigation (PIL) filed last year by villagers of Navinal village in Mundra opposing construction, and other developmental activities that changes the landscape, topography or geography, within land and area of APSEZ.

AHMEDABAD: In what may come as a setback for AMC, the union ministry of urban development has sent a report highlighting shortcomings in the JNNURM projects implemented in Ahmedabad city. Union minister Kamal Nath, in his letter of April 25, 2012, has informed the state government to take "immediate actions" based on the inquiry report.

A team of urban ministry officials was in the city recently to inquire into the allegations fielded by the opposition Congress in the AMC. The union ministry has also asked CAG to inquire into the implementation of JNNURM projects across Gujarat cities.

With the onset of the scorching summer, would-be brides fight shy of getting married into families in two villages in Gujarat because they have to trudge long distances each day to fetch water in intense heat.

The acute water crisis that stares at Jetpur and Devaliya villages in Vadodara district has not only spelt hardships to the people there, but also brought problems of finding girls for youths of marriageable age.

AHMEDABAD: For the first time a new standard for operations for BRTS has been introduced by the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP). From the next year onwards, the city's BRTS will be rated against 70 other similar mass transit networks across the globe, said ITDP officials.

The ITDP has released the BRT Standard, Version 1.0 - a new scoring system based on internationally recognized best practice in bus rapid transit (BRT) system design.

Gandhinagar: Amid loud talk about spread of canal irrigation, especially Narmada-based, leading to asharp fall in the amount of electricity going into the farm sector, a recent Planning Commission document has revealed just the opposite.

Titled “Annual Report 2011-12 on Working of State Power Utilities and Electricity Departments”, the document, prepared by the power and energy division of the Planning Commission, has found no decrease in the share of agriculture in the total sale of power in Gujarat.

‘State does not distribute seeds, it only certifies for distribution'

Despite opposition from various quarters, including the agricultural experts and the farmers' organisations, the Gujarat government has refused to impose a total ban on distribution of the Monsanto hybrid maize seed named “Prabal” to the farmers in the State, particularly the tribal agriculturists.

AHMEDABAD: There are more than 1,700 tigers in the country today. In contrast, there are just 411 Asiatic Lions, all of them in Gujarat. And yet the proposed Wildlife (Protection) Amendment Bill of the Union government maintains a deathly silence on lion preservation in the country.

The draft of the bill, uploaded on the Union forest and environment ministry's website for comments, does not mention the pride of Gujarat even once while there are elaborate provisions for tiger protection. This has left many wondering if this is plain oversight, or there are other reasons for the ministry hearing the tiger's roar and turning a deaf ear to the lion's.

AHMEDABAD: If everything goes according to plans, the Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) will have three more routes by June-end. These new routes will take BRTS to Iskcon crossroads, Visat petrol pump in Chandkheda, and Soni-ni-Chawl.

The Ahmedabad Janmarg Limited (AJL) wanted to start these new routes by the end of this month, but could not. Now in all probability, the new routes will be added by June-end.