GUWAHATI, March 18 – Expressing grave concern over the unabated destruction of the State’s forests and the resultant loss of biodiversity and damage to the environment, public activist Prof Deven D

Samaja Parivarthana Samudaya (SPS), the NGO which brought the large-scale illegal mining in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka out into the open, has approached the Supreme Court seeking directions for scrapping of all mining leases in Bellary, Chitradurga and Tumkur districts.

SPS also sought a CBI probe into the criminal conspiracy allegedly hatched by officials and people’s representatives for the massive loot of iron ore in the region.

Jammu: More than double the forest land has illegally been encroached upon in the Jammu region as compared to Kashmir, admitted the state government.

Silchar: People close to Minister Siddeque Ahmed had allegedly evicted a number of families and unlawfully grabbed forest land measuring nearly 1000 bighas at Bilbari Forest beat under Patherkandi Forest Range.

Ahmed’s men had also allegedly burnt down a good number of trees and chased away the poor people who had been staying there at least for last seven decades.

JAMMU: Admitting that unscrupulous elements have been making attempts to encroach upon land in and around major cities of the State, Government today said that about 19 lakh kanal State, Forest and Kahcharai land is under encroachment across the State.

In response to a question of CPM MLA, Mohd Yousaf Tarigami, Minister for Revenue, Raman Bhalla, admitted in the Lower House that unscrupulous elements have been making attempts to encroach upon the State/Kahcharai/ Forest land in and around major cities of the State.

Rampant felling of trees without any resistance from the forest department have unsettled the habitats of birds and animals

SILCHAR: Serious concern has been expressed at the unabated deforestation in the valley of Barak, threatening the flora and fauna. The recently concluded international seminar organized by the Department of Ecology and Environmental Science, Assam University, and the related research papers have pointedly focused on the loss of greenery or green cover in the forests of the three districts of Cachar

DFO, Tehsildar, cops among land grabbers

JAMMU: Over 270 kanals of land worth crores, belonging to Forest department, Jammu Development Authority (JDA) and State Revenue department has allegedly been grabbed by some persons including a few influential persons with the political patronage in Sidhra and Dwada area, near Golf Course and adjacent to the Mahmaya temple in Bahu Range across river Tawi under Jammu Forest Division.

KOKRAJHAR: Keeping an eye on the wanton destruction of forests and illegal encroachment in the reserve forest land of Bodoland, former members of rebel groups under Ex- BLT Welfare Society, Surrend

Silchar, Feb.

If court puts a cap on iron ore mining in Karnataka, it will be a severe blow to steel industry's expansion plans

The Central Empowered Committee’s (CEC) final report on illegal mining in Karnataka submitted to the Supreme Court recently has sent shockwaves through the iron ore mining and steel industry in the state. Some of the recommendations of the CEC, if accepted by the Supreme Court, will curb illegal mining and that is a laudable goal. However, in doing so, it may also deliver a hammer blow to the state’s expanding steel industry.