On World Rivers Day, observed usually on the last Sunday of September, the South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People (SANDRP) called on the government to focus on the deplorable state of Indian

“Environmental impact assessment tends to ignore wider impact on biodiversity”

In a move that will bring cheer to wildlife lovers but could dismay industry lobbyists already complaining about the difficulty in obtaining green clearances, the government plans to add biodiversity conservation as a new criterion to grant environmental and forest clearances. “There is no biodiversity clearance till now,” admitted Union Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan, speaking ahead of the United Nations summit on the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) which begins in Hyderabad next week.

The eleventh Conference of Parties (COP 11) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) to be held here next month is likely to lay emphasis on resource mobilisation for execution of the 10-year 'Strategic Plan' adopted at the tenth summit held in Nagoya of Japan in October 2010.

CBD is an international treaty for the conservation of biodiversity. With 193 Parties, the convention has near universal participation among countries. The tenth CBD had adopted a new ‘strategic plan’ to guide international and national efforts to save biodiversity. The Parties to the convention had agreed to a substantial increase in the level of financial resources in support of the implementation of the strategy.