Page 185 - Environment
Ravi river dam project decision taken in December last
Even as Water Resources Minister Nitin Gadkari announced the decision to stop to Pakistan India's share of waters from eastern rivers, it has emerged that the Union Cabinet had taken a decision in December last on implementation of Shahpurkandi Dam national project on river Ravi in Punjab that would involve "minimising" flow of water to Pakistan.
Automatic rly coach washing plants to be set up at Puri, Vizag
The East Coast Railway (ECoR) Thursday said it has decided to install automatic coach washing plants at Puri and Visakhapatnam Coach Maintenance Depots. It is expected that less fresh water would be consumed to clean exterior part of the coaches after installation of these plants, compared to what is being used now, an ECoR statement said here. Rakes would be cleaned in around 20 minutes while they would pass through along a specified track in the coach maintenance depot. At present, cleaning is done when they are in stationary position. A detergent compatible with the body and paint of the coach will be used for washing in the automatic plants. For installation of the plants, orders have been placed with the Central Organisation for Modernisation of Workshops (COFMOW), New Delhi, an autonomous body under Ministry of Railways, the statement said. The estimated cost of each automatic coach washing plant is around Rs 2 crore and the two plants could start functioning by ..
Checkdams: Madras HC puts onus on Tamil Nadu govt
The Madras High Court Thursday wondered as to why constructive steps had not been taken in Tamil Nadu by successive State governments for constructing checkdams across rivers to prevent water draining into the sea. A division bench of the court's Madurai bench, comprising Justices N Kirubakaran and S S Sundar, was hearing a PIL seeking construction of a dam at the foothills of WesternGhats near T Krishnapuram in Peraiyur taluk of Madurai district. The bench said Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala had been building checkdams, but why was not Tamil Nadu constructing any such dam. The judges said it was the bounden duty of the Tamil Nadu government to build checkdams and preserve the available water instead of letting it into the sea whenever there were good rains. The bench sought to know about the number of rivers in the state, including perennial rivers, the volume of water flowing through them and let into the sea, and the number of checkdams constructed, regular ...
Gohain inaugurates double line between Hojai & Habaipur
Union Minister Rajen Gohain Thursday dedicated the newly constructed double line section between Hojai and Habaipur in Assam and also inaugurated newly constructed station buildings at Hojai, Lanka, Dhalphukhuri and Habaipur. Speaking on the occasion, the Minister of State for Railways said work on double line of the Digaru to Hojai and from Habaipur to Lumding section is going on in full swing and would be completed by the end of March 2020. An amount of Rs 28,905 crore has been allocated since 2014 for construction of projects which is about twice the fund of Rs 12,660 crore allocated during 2009 to 2014, the minister said. He also said that apart from commissioning of Bogibeel bridge, six new line projects, three gauge conversion projects and as many doubling projects totalling 1,299 km of track has been commissioned in the northeast since 2014. Stating that three new lines and four doubling projects worth Rs 16,312 crore have been sanctioned since 2014, Gohain said .
Four Bangladeshis, one Indian held with 300 kg beef in Meghalaya
Four Bangladeshi nationals and one Indian were arrested on Thursday for possessing 300 kg of beef worth Rs 90,000 in Muktapur area which is on the edge of the India-Bangladesh border in Meghalaya's West Jaintia Hills district.
India will stop share of its water flowing into Pakistan: Gadkari
India has decided to stop the flow of its share of water to Pakistan from rivers under the Indus Water Treaty, a move seen as an immediate fallout of deadly terrorist attack that killed 40 paramilitary personnel in south Kashmir. Water Resources Minister Nitin Gadkari tweeted to convey the decision of the government to stop India's share of water going to Pakistan. But the actual implementation of the decision may take up to six years as dams as high as 100 metres will have to be built to stop such flow, officials said insisting it decision was in no way a violation of the Treaty and was only aimed at getting the rightful due to people of the country. Under the Indus Water Treaty signed in 1960, the waters of the western rivers -- the Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab -- was given to Pakistan and those of the eastern rivers -- the Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej -- to India. India's share of water from Ravi, Beas and Sutlej rivers came to 33 million acres feet (MAF). While about 95 per cent of the ...
Issue ordinance to protect tribals from eviction: CPI(M) to govt
The CPI(M) on Thursday demanded that the government issue an ordinance to protect all tribals and traditional forest dwellers, following a Supreme Court order, which, the party claimed, would lead to eviction of millions of families belonging to such communities from forests in 16 states. The Supreme Court had on February 13 asked 21 states to apprise it about the action taken by them over the issue of eviction of tribals and forest dwellers whose claim for the forest land have been rejected. A PIL had challenged the validity of the Forest Rights Act, passed in 2006 by Parliament to give back to traditional forest dwellers their right to access, manage and govern forests within their village boundaries. The apex court asked the chief secretaries of the states concerned to file affidavits stating whether the incumbents in respect of whom the rejection orders have been passed, have been evicted or not and if not, the reasons for the same. "In the wake of the Supreme Court order for ...
BJP alleges scam in Bengal crop procurement, demands CBI probe
BJP National Secretary Rahul Sinha on Thursday alleged corruption in procurement of paddy from farmers in West Bengal and demanded a CBI inquiry into the scam.
Gadkari suggests UP farmers to change cropping pattern; pitches for biodiesel from sugarcane
Union Minister Nitin Gadkari Thursday suggested that farmers in Uttar Pradesh should change cropping pattern to get more benefit and also pitched for producing biodiesel and ethanol from sugarcane. Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Gadkari laid the foundation stone of the Rs 5,000-crore Panipat-Khatima highway project. He also laid the foundation stone of a Rs 232-crore project under the Namami Gange programme. The minister also appealed to the people to get over the practice of casteism and work for the development of the country. He said farmers of the state are facing problems as they are not getting profit from their sugarcane crops. He said sugar rates in global market are down and there is no profit in sugarcane farming.
Control American cattle breeds to tackle stray animal problem: Opposition
Opposition benches in the Punjab Assembly Thursday pitched for controlling American bovine breeds as one of the steps to tackle the problem of stray animals, saying the foreign breeds could not be related "genetically, biologically and religiously" with indigenous ones. They also sought formation of a House committee to find solutions for tackling the problem, which was responsible for the rising accidental deaths in the state. During the ongoing session, AAP MLAs Aman Arora and Manjit Singh Bilaspur, and Lok Insaaf Party legislator Simarjit Singh Bains sought to draw the animal husbandry minister's attention towards the problem of American Bulls (Jersey), cows and stray animals. Arora said a number of lives were being lost because of the problem of stray animals and he accused the state government of not taking appropriate steps to take care of strays, despite a cow cess being charged. The AAP legislator said political parties and governments were shying away from acting in this ...
Bangladeshi cargo ship capsizes in Hooghly river, all crew members rescued
A Bangladeshi cargo ship capsized in the Hooghly river in West Bengal's South 24 Parganas district Thursday but all eight crew members, including an Indian, were rescued by local fishermen, police said. The Ship 'MV Allal Shah' was carrying fly ash and was on its way to Bangladesh from Khidderpore dock in Kolkata. As there was low visibility due to dense fog, the ship hit sand bars near Nodakhali area of the district and capsized, police said. The Khidderpore dock is a riverine port of the Kolkata Port Trust. Eight crew members of the ship - 7 Bangladeshis and one Indian - were rescued by the local fishermen and handed over to the police, they added.
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj memorial: SC declines urgent hearing on NGO's plea
The construction of the proposed Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj memorial off the Mumbai coast will remain stayed for the time being as the Supreme Court on Thursday turned down the Maharashtra government's plea seeking an early hearing of an appeal challenging the project. The apex court had earlier orally asked the Maharashtra government authorities not to proceed with the construction activities and issued notice to the state government and others on an appeal of an NGO challenging the Bombay High Court order refusing to stay the construction. A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi was told by senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for the Maharashtra government, that the NGO's plea be heard urgently in view of the fact that the construction activities were halted. "We cannot let Maharashtra jump the queue," the bench, also comprising justices L Nageswara Rao and Sanjiv Khanna, said. Earlier, the apex court had sought the responses of the Centre and the Maharashtra government ..
Asia Rice: Top export hubs grapple with waning demand as supplies mount
(Reuters) - Rice export markets in India and Thailand were pressured this week by slack demand as harvests poured in, continuing a slow trend in top Asian hubs this year, while Vietnam struggled with a growing stockpile exacerbated by Chinese import restrictions.
Elephant protects little girl from others in herd
An elephant stood guard to protect a four-year-old girl, who had fallen down from a scooter, from other members of the herd in Jalpaiguri district Thursday, forest officials said. The incident occurred on National Highway 31 near Garumara forest when a family of three was returning to Lataguri after offering puja at a temple inside the forest. The highway divides the forest into two parts. On the way home, businessman Nitu Ghosh, who was with his wife Titli and daughter Ahana, stopped the two-wheeler after seeing that a herd of elephants was crossing the road. After a while, the elephants went into the other side of the jungle and Ghosh resumed his journey, officials said. However, some other members of the herd that were still inside the jungle appeared on the road and the scooter almost ran into them. Ghosh applied the break suddenly and all the three fell down. One of the jumbos came forward and stood still keeping the girl in the space between its legs, while other ...
Over 400 fishermen from Gujarat are in Pak jails: govt
The Gujarat Government informed the Legislative Assembly Thursday that more than 400 fishermen from the state are lodged in jails in Pakistan at present. Fishermen from the state are often apprehended by the Pakistan Maritime Security Agency for allegedly crossing into that country's waters. To a question by Congress MLA Chirag Kalaria, fisheries minister Purshottam Solanki said in a written reply that as of December 31, 2018, 433 fishermen from Gujarat were in Pakistani jails. He also informed that the neighbouring country released 687 fishermen in the last two years -- 510 in 2017 and 177 in 2018. To a question by Congress MLA Babu Vaja, Solanki said the state government gives Rs 150 per day to the families of fishermen captured by Pakistan, towards daily expenses in the absence of the family's breadwinner. A total of Rs 1.88 crore were paid to 344 families in 2017 and Rs 1.71 crore were paid to 307 families last year, the minister said.
Jharkhand CM launches Rs 100-crore Sweet Revolution scheme
Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das on Thursday launched the first phase of the Rs 100-crore Sweet Revolution Scheme under which 1,207 farmers will be given Rs 1 lakh for bee keeping.
Odisha government to implement PM-KISAN scheme
The Odisha government on Thursday said it will implement the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme and cooperate with the Central government to extend benefits to the farmers.
Value of shamlat land in Pb could probably match repayment of state's entire debt: Sidhu
Asserting the Congress government was committed to freeing 'shamlat' land (village common land) from encroachment, Punjab Cabinet Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu told the state Assembly that the value of such land could probably match the repayment of the entire debt of the state. To AAP MLA Kanwar Sandhu's question about steps being taken to vacate government land from illegal occupation in Kharar and Naya Gaon in Mohali, Sidhu said, "Mutation of shamlat lands of Punjab was in collusion done in the names of private persons in the year 1995. Matter of such lands of Mohali district adjacent to Chandigarh are pending in the high court." The local government minister also informed the House that the high court had constituted Justice Kuldeep Singh tribunal in 2011, according to which mutations had been wrongly done in names of private persons in 1995. "The present value of these lands is tentatively to the tune of lakhs of crore rupees. In case the status of shamlat lands of entire state is .
CAG slams Arunachal govt for anomalies in border dev plan
The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has criticised the Arunachal Pradesh government for anomalies in the implementation of Border Area Development Programme (BADP) in the state. The BADP was started in the country during the 7th Plan period (1985-1990) for two reasons - balanced development of sensitive border areas through adequate provision of infrastructure facilities, and promoting a sense of security among the local population residing in border areas. During the 9th Plan (1997-2002), the programme was extended to several other states of the country including Arunachal Pradesh which shares 5,830 kilometers long border with three countries - Myanmar, China and Bhutan. The CAG report said priority was not given to villages situated within 0-10 kilometers from the international border as per the guideline. It said 340 schemes - 186 in Tawang district and 154 in Upper Subansiri - were taken up in villages situated between 10 to 23.75 kilometers from the ..
No dearth of funds for Namami Gange: Gadkari
Union Minister for Water Resources Nitin Gadkari on Thursday said there is no dearth of funds for the implementation of projects under Namami Gange. Gadkari, who was here for the foundation laying and inauguration of a slew of national highway projects worth nearly Rs 5,555 crore, was addressing a gathering at Chandi Ghat here. "There is no dearth of funds for the Namami Gange projects aimed at cleaning the river and maintaining its uninterrupted flow and the Centre will ensure that nothing impedes their implementation," Gadkari said "Ban Ganga in Laksar will be revived to add to the flow of water in the Ganga," he said. He also sought individual monetary contributions from people to the mission assuring them that their contribution will be credited straight into the Namami Gange accounts. Speaking about the status of the Namami Gange projects in Uttarakhand, he said out of 33 sewage treatment plants to be set up in the state work on 19 had already been completed, work is in progress .
