Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) on Monday asked promoters of upcoming Maheshwar power project in Madhya Pradesh to comply with the report of Environment Ministry and rehabilitate displaced people befo

A committee constituted by the Union ministry of environment and forests (MoEF), on the directive of the National Green Tribunal, has submitted its investigation report which categorically states t

The century-old one-horned Asiatic rhino habitat in Terai Arc is turning into rehabilitation zone for the threatened species.

With the new year approaching, the forest department is gearing to get its boots dirty and dig trenches to safeguard its land from encroachers. With 2,232 illegal structures, incsluding shanties, huts and pucca houses, razed so far, the department has now spread its patrolling to prevent these structures coming up on its land again.

The eviction-and-demolition drive follows a Bombay High Court order. On Sunday, 10 hectares of fresh land was officially restored after the drive. The campaign of reclaiming the forest land started 10 days after the festive season in November, when slumdwellers were asked to produce documents to prove their legal status.

The Maharashtra government on Wednesday filed its reply in the Bombay HC on the irrigation scam.

Biometric cards to be issued to fishermen in the area

The government will not declare a ban on fishing in the area around the LNG terminal at Puthuvypeen as part of security measures, Minister for Fisheries K. Babu has said. Replying to a calling attention motion moved by S.Sharma in the Assembly on Tuesday, he said the Indian Navy had not sought a ban on fishing in the area around the terminal. “They have only asked the State government to take steps for proper surveillance,” he said.

The government proposes to create an enabling environment for the social empowerment of the de-notified tribes so that they could utilise reservation benefits in education and employment.

A nation-wide survey of de-notified tribes’ settlements is to be conducted to form the basis for introducing a suitable shelter programme for them. They could be entitled to free or subsidised housing under various government schemes.

Kaziranga: Rhino calves separated from parents during annual floods in the Kaziranga National Park and young rhinos left orphaned by poachers are finding a new home at the Manas National Park, the other world heritage sanctuary in Assam.

Doing this job is the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation which has completed a decade of its existence in the state. Director of Kaziranga National Park, N K Vasu, told PTI, “The rehabilitated rhinos are released back to the wild in the Manas National Park in an effort to refurbish the rhino population there after it suffered a near wipe-out a decade ago due to insurgency.”

The new Land Bill — cleared by the Union Cabinet last week — gives the government an ‘option’ to return the acquired land to its original owners if it remains unutilised for 60 months.

Land owners can then transfer such land acquired by the government for its own use or PPP projects involving public purpose to any private entity/individuals. At its earlier deliberations, the rural development ministry, the nodal body for the land Bill, had rejected the suggestions of a Parliamentary panel for returning the unutilised land to original owners.

The contentious Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (LARR) Bill, which got the Union Cabinet’s approval last week, may not be completely in line with the recommendations of the Sumitra Mahajan-led standing committee on rural development or the original draft of 2011, but seeks to give greater rights to original land owners.

The revised Bill stipulates the original land owners a 40% share in the appreciated land value as opposed to 20% earlier, besides allowing the return of unutilised land to either the land bank or the original land owner. This is in contrast to the provision in the earlier draft of the Bill that required the unused land to be returned to the land bank only.