<p>Order of the National Green Tribunal in the matter of News item titled "Pavana River enters ‘priority 1’ category due to increase in pollution" appearing in the Hindustan Times
This article chronicles the peaceful struggle and eventual success of the people of Alibag, Maharashtra, against the attempts by corporate bodies, with the help of the state government, to grab land f
Extending a green thumb to the city, Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has decided to buy 200 new buses by June-end that will run on Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) and start observing a
In a setback to environmentalists, the Pune Municipal Corporation Court on Monday rejected the plea of voluntary group Parisar opposing the construction of a road on the Mutha riverbed.
Two separate incidents of fire were reported in Pimpri-Chinchwad on Sunday afternoon.
With increasing incidence of man-leopard conflict, the recent one being at Nigdi, Pune forest division is all set to carry out a study on the "Genetical mutation in leopard species.' This is to study how leopards adapt themselves to human habitat. The first of its kind study has been approved at a meeting held by Union Minister of State for Environment and Forests (MoEF) S Raghupathy in the city. Deputy conservator of forests, Pune circle Ashok Khadse, who attended the meeting told The Indian Express of this development. The degradation of quality wildlife habitat and natural prey has forced leopards naturally to move towards human habitations. "We will carry out the study and have been asked to put forth our detailed proposal before the ministry,' said Khadse. The study will try to analyse the reasons behind the leopards adapting to sugarcane fields and agricultural lands and choosing dogs as their prey. While the proposal is yet to be worked out, Khadse said an earlier study of habitat and prey base in forest areas of Junnar division, Bhimashankar Sanctuary of Pune division was carried out. With a number of leopards entering populated areas, the recent one being the one at Nigdi, this study will help to understand this movement. The study will also observe whether the leopards have got acclimatized to human surroundings. Khadse said the expansion of Junnar rescue centre was another issue taken up and which was given the go- ahead from the ministry. Participation of various social organisations in wildlife management and implementing the metro green project too were discussed.
An unauthorised vermiculture project of the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) has ruined the life of a Pimpri hotelier U N Sukheja. His "Gurukripa veg - non veg restaurant' in Chinchwad Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation(MIDC) area, had to be closed within a month of its opening, all because of a vermiculture project that PCMC constructed on the land exactly opposite his hotel. According to official documents, PCMC was supposed to plant trees there. Instead, it constructed the vermiculture pit, where about 4.5 tonnes of hotel waste were treated every day. The foul smell and insects ultimately led to customers avoiding Sukheja's hotel, forcing him to close it. Sukheja had started this hotel on the land (plot number 10) he leased for 99 years from the MIDC in October 1996. He also took a hefty loan of Rs 45 lakh from the Rupee Co-operative Bank in 1999 to construct it. The hotel started functioning on March 8, 2000 and was earning up to Rs 30,000 per day, Sukheja said. "I ran from pillar to post in both MIDC and PCMC offices. In October 2000, the CEO of MIDC released an order for removal of the project. But the local MIDC officers took no action,' he said. Sukheja wrote letters to the Police Commissioner and MIDC, threatening to immolate himself. Meanwhile, loan recovery agents started bothering Sukheja for repayment. He approached Azeem Khan, the then CEO of MIDC, who in a letter dated October 14, 2002, requested the then Co-operation Commissioner Bijay Kumar to postpone the recovery action. Khan admitted that the PCMC's vermiculture project was "unauthorised' and had led to the closure of Sukheja's hotel. By the time the vermiculture project was finally removed in 2004, the bank had sealed Sukheja's hotel. Purushottam Jadhav, regional officer of MIDC, Pune said, "Sukheja still possesses the land and his hotel is mortgaged to the Rupee Bank.'
When R K Pachauri, chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) received the Nobel Peace Prize in December last year on behalf of the IPCC, which bagged the award jointly with Al Gore, he had clearly mentioned that he would first want to pay tribute to the thousands of experts and scientists who have contributed to the work of the panel over almost two decades. Two Puneites figure in the long list of experts who have contributed to the IPCC in the area of climate change. The Indian government has taken special cognizance of these scientists and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has issued certificates "recognising their contribution.' Two MeT officers from Pune
Devyani Rana, programme officer at the Energy and Environment unit of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) - the United Nations Global Development Network - was in the city on Sunday for a meeting with the Commonwealth Youth Games (CYG) Committee to discuss the Environment and Green Games Initiative of CYG Pune 2008. Suresh Kalmadi, a member of parliament and CYG's organising committee chairman, conducted the meeting. Also present were Sandhya Mulchandani, adviser, CWG Delhi 2010, Vijay Kumar Gautam, chief operating officer, CWG Delhi 2010, and Municipal Commissioner Praveensinh Pardeshi, among other officers. In its presentation, the organising committee discussed the important objectives of its
The contentious issue of land acquisition for industry cannot be resolved justly without a "precautionary principle' approach that respects livelihood rights. GOING by the number and intensity of protests against displacement under way in numerous States, land acquisition for industrial, mining and infrastructure projects has become India's single most contentious issue. Land is now the main site of struggle as popular movements confront predatory capital, which can only accumulate through dispossession. At stake are thousands of square kilometres of land on which at least a few million livelihoods depend. For instance, the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) which have received formal or "in-principle' approval will alone need over 2,000 square kilometre. If the even larger swathes typically involved in mining leases, plots earmarked for industry, and areas claimed by highway development, and above all, by suburban housing
THEworld's largest car maker General Motors (GM) is set to shift gears in India. The company is now looking at investing over $200 million to set up a powertrain plant in India to manufacture engines and components which will reduce the vehicle costs. The powertrain facility is aimed at a lot more than just meeting the domestic demand as engines made at the proposed unit are expected to be used in GM's global brands. Powertrain facility will manufacture engine, transmission and drivetrain that power vehicles. "We have not decided on where to locate the plant or by when it would be operational. But we do know that investment would be in excess of $200 million,' said GM India president and MD Karl Slym. An announcement in this regard is expected soon. Mr Slym, however, did not divulge details on the type of engines or specifications of the engines that would be made in India. This could be GM's third plant in India after Halol (Gujarat) and the under-construction unit at Talegaon (near Pune). The move is aimed at gaining a competitive edge in the domestic market as the company aims to capture a 10% share of the passenger car market here. GM India registered a 68% growth in sales in 2007, selling 60,032 units as against 35,823 units during 2006. GM is also drawing up expansion plans at the Talegaon plant which is to start production by the year-end. It will have an initial production capacity of 1,40,000 units. According to Mr Slym, the second-phase of expansion at Talegaon will see the production capacity being raised to 3,00,000 units. "Expansion at Talegaon is a long-term plan. We don't have a timeframe for this. But once phase-II is over, our production capacity will be in excess of 3,50,000 units
