PTI Jun 28, 2013, 08.20PM IST
PARADIP(ODISHA): In its bid to complete land acquisition for the proposed Posco project near here by first week of July, the Odisha government today resumed land acquisition amidst stiff opposition from villagers who alleged use of force to demolish their betel vines.
"We have to acquire another 700 acre of land from Gobindpur village for the Rs 52,000 crore project. This is the last phase of land acquisition exercise," Jagatsinghpur district collector S K Mallick told reporters.
Stating that the district administration of Jagatsinghpur along with the state-owned Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (IDCO) had been undertaking land acquisition for Posco project, Mallick said they acquired certain amount of land today by demolishing 18 betel vines.
An amount of Rs 36 lakh has been given to affected farmers as compensation, he said.
Mallick, however, rejected the allegation of use of force to acquire land at the proposed plant site of the South Korean steel major here. "Many of the 19 betel vine owners have given their consent to take their land," Mallick said.
The district collector said the villagers had raised betel vines on government land and they were evicted today after paying compensation. "The land acquisition activities will continue tomorrow," he said.
Jagatsinghpur SP Satyabrata Bhoi, who was present during the land acquisition site along with 6 platoons (180 personnel) of force, however, admitted that the police chased away certain
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protesters who opposed demolition activities.
"There has been no lathi charge at the site. Police personnel have chased away certain people. We have maintained maximum restrain while dealing with women protesters," Bhoi said.
The villagers, on the other hand, claimed that police resorted to lathi charge as owners of the betel vines opposed demolition of their betel orchid. "I am a strong opponent of Posco project. They demolished my betel vine without my consent," alleged Hiramani Rout.
"The policemen beat up elder persons, women and children who opposed betel vine demolition. They acquired land without consent of the farmers. How can Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik now say that land acquisition is being done in a peaceful manner," asked Prakash Jena, a former member of Dhinkia gram Panchayat Samiti.
Jena, also a member of the Posco Pratirodh Sangram Samiti (PPSS), the CPI-backed agrarian body, said the state government earlier took their president Abhay Sahu into custody in order to use force for acquiring land.
"Though some of the protesters attempted suicide by consuming poison at the land acquisition spot, police took them into custody for some hours," said
Tapan Mohanty, a resident of Gobindpur village.
The state government have so far demolished about 350 betel vines in the proposed plant site villages and acquired about 2,100 acre of land for Posco project, sources said adding that the steel major required 2,700 acre of land to start construction of its 8 MTPA steel mill in first phase.
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Malankara Bishop calls to shut down illegal quarries
The existence of natural streams mainly depended on the existence of hills from where they originated.
Kerala, June 23, 2013: Bishop Gabriel Mar Gregorios, Metropolitan of the Thiruvananthapuram diocese of the Malankara Orthodox Church, opened a protest of the people demanding to shut down illegal quarries in Kerala.
The Environment Protection Solidarity Council (EPSC), which organized the prtest, wanted the State government to take effective steps to close down all illegal granite quarries and crusher units functioning in Kalanjoor panchayat without any further delay.
The solidarity council, in association with the People’s Acton Council (PAC) at Kalanjoor, staged a dharna in front of the Mini Civil Station here on Saturday, protesting against the recent police action against the PAC workers who had staged a non-violent agitation on
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June 15 against the move to sanction more granite quarries by the Kalanjoor grama panchayat.
Bishop Gabriel Mar Gregorios said popular agitation played a key role in environment protection and arresting the protesters for staging a non-violent agitation could never be justified.
The existence of natural streams mainly depended on the existence of hills from where they originated. Protection of hills and wetlands was, therefore, a prime responsibility of the society and the human world as a whole, he said.
- hindu
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BE A WASTAGE WARRIOR
The UK-Based Institution Of Mechanical Engineers in a January 2013 report found that 1.2 to 2 billion tonnes of food produced around the world each year never reaches a human stomach. This is not just wastage of food, but also of natural resources used to produce food. Which is why the fao's theme on world environment day this year was "Think. Eat. Save." Here are easy ways to do your bit:
» When dining out, request smaller portions. If that is not an option, consider ordering one dish between you and your friend. Request for a doggy bag in case of leftovers.
» Use FIFO (First in First Out) as a kitchen rule. Cook and eat what you bought first. Store newly bought vegetables at the back of the cabinet/fridge. Keep older ones on top for easy access.
» Keep the fridge temperature at below 5oC. Research shows that up to 70 per cent of our fridges are too warm, so food won't last as long as it could.
» Bread goes stale faster in the fridge than outside. Store it in a cool, dark place such as a bread box.
» Cling wrap items like meats and cheese or place them in an airtight container. Make most of your food by cooling leftovers as quickly as possible after cooking and storing them in the fridge.
» Make a shopping list so that you don't buy more than you need. Don't succumb to marketing tricks (buy 1 get 1 free) that lead you to buy more food than you need. It may seem like a steal but it turns out more expensive overall if that much food is discarded.
» 'Best before' dates suggest peak quality. Most foods can be safely consumed well after these dates. The important date to look out for is 'Use By'. Eat food by that date or check if you can freeze it.
» Clean and cut veggies before putting them in the fridge. Use zip-lock bags to store food. Peas and meats are best stored in the freezer.
» Instead of scrapping leftovers, transform them
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into another dish. Stale rice makes good fried rice, for instance.
PLATE LEFTOVERS TO MANURE
In 2007, Parel's ITC Hotel brought in the Organic Waste Converter, with the idea of minimising waste production. Every two hours, the hotel staff dumps its vegetable waste and plate leftovers into the waste converter, which is capable of recycling 600 kg organic waste every day. Bone waste is dumped into a shredder and then into the OWC. Around 50 kg of organic waste is recycled at one go and about half to one kg saw dust is added with 25-50 gm of bacterial culture to promote the conversion into manure. After churning for about 10-15 minutes, manure is kept in baskets (above) and water is sprinkled on it to keep it wet. After 10 days, the manure is ready to be used in plants.
SHAMEFUL NUMBERS
1,20,00,000 Kg of veg & fruits arriving at APMC Market each day
9,60,000 Kg can't be sold due to damage; gets wasted
500 No. Of plates at a 500-guest wedding
125 Average no. Of plates wasted due to over-ordering
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(Following may be contacted to collect leftovers)
The Arham Group: Call them a few hours before the event is about to get over & they will arrange a pick up:
Nimit Sheth 9821875656
Ritesh Vaid 9867622002
The Shelter Don Bosco, Wadala W:
Accepts leftovers of cooked food till 8pm. If you want to donate non-perishable items such as biscuits, etc.. you can go in later.
Call: 24150562
Courtesy: E-forward
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Kerala Religious concerned about Poison in food (CNUA)
Over 200 religious representatives gathered at the Clarist Center spent a day reflecting on the impact of pesticides in the daily food. The CRI President Samaritan Provincial, Sr. Thomasia SABS and the Secretary Sr. Donna took the initiative to get the large group working in the diocese of Trissur to dwell on the relevant topic.
Jesuit Fathers, Fr. Rappai Poothokaren, James Morais and Robert Athickal led the reflections during the day long seminar. The three are organizing series public hearings on ecology in major cities of the State as part of the setting up of an Ecology Center in the tribal region of Attapady. Because of the shortage of labor and the expensive fertilizers and pesticides, people as a whole do not cultivate anymore that daily rice and vegetables in Kerala. Today rice, meat and vegetables arrive daily from the neighboring States in big quantities.
Fr. Robert Athickal presenting a recent study on pesticides showed that while the deadly pesticide Endosulfan was banned in Kerala, the neighboring states use the same nearly 1000 kiloliters every year. It may be mentioned that the notorious endosulfan was banned at the instance of the Supreme Court, which verified that over 5000 children were born with birth defects in the district of Kasargod where Endosulfan was used profusely. Today the same Endosulfan and similar pesticides are commonly used in the neighboring States where people generally practice industrial agriculture. Aamir Khan in his Satyameva Jayate earlier cited the study of an IIT professor from Kanpur who found out that mothers’ milk contained over 800% of Endosulfan than allowed.
Fr. Athickal cited the study which showed that Cancer and heart-related complications have shot up by 200% in Kerala. "Poor families fall victims to the pesticides and subsequent sicknesses" said Fr. James. An average of Rs 5 lakhs was spent to treat cancer cases which certainly was above the capacity of the poor marginal families.
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When the CRI president Sr. Thomasia stated that the traditional bond the people had with the earth has vanished at the juggernaut of progress marched in. Bishop Thattil suggested that the CRI could take initiatives to promote an Eco-spirituality for our times. "The Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Conference (KCBC) has recently brought out a very insightful document on ecology" said Fr. Athickal. KCBC’s Towards Green Pastures is absolutely relevant an innovative document for our troubled times, Fr. Athickal reiterated. By Fr. Rappai Poothokaren SJ Jesuit Eco Mission email : jecomi13@gmail.com
A professor of Economics, Fr. Rappai suggested that the people could easily go for changes in lifestyles as a way of countering the health problems. "Everybody has to chip in to counter the labor shortage. All the families could set up Organic kitchen gardens, opt for Vertical farming techniques and opt for nourishing Organic jackfruits and guavas instead of the expensive poison-ridden apples and mangoes." Countered Fr. Rappai.
The Jesuit team already conducted series of workshops in Calicut and Trissur areas and is heading towards Cochin and Trivandrum. "The people are facing unprecedented crisis on the health front" said Auxiliary Arch bishop Raphael Thattil who was present at the CRI meeting.
When the CRI president Sr. Thomasia stated that the traditional bond the people had with the earth has vanished at the juggernaut of progress marched in. Bishop Thattil suggested that the CRI could take initiatives to promote an Eco-spirituality for our times. "The Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Conference (KCBC) has recently brought out a very insightful document on ecology" said Fr. Athickal. KCBC’s Towards Green Pastures is absolutely relevant an innovative document for our troubled times, Fr. Athickal reiterated. By Fr. Rappai Poothokaren SJ Jesuit Eco Mission email : jecomi13@gmail.com
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Why there is local opposition to coal mining in Karanpura Valley in Jharkhand
By Deepak Das (Eco Jesuit via CNUA)
The Hazaribagh Jesuits’ Dalit Vikas Centre at village Patra is in the middle of the Karanpura Valley, in India’s Jharkhand state. Its activities include a network of village schools, women’s microcredit groups, pastoral care, all the while with focus on the weaker communities who are termed as Dalit.
There are two significant points about this Karanpura Valley. The first is that the area has a rich natural environment that has sustained the livelihoods of the area’s inhabitants since ancient times. It is part of east India’s Damodar water basin, whose monsoonal floods have made the lands of the valley a highly fertile "rice bowl," the richest in the state. Multiple cropping ensures a continuous supply of vegetables throughout the year. The valley’s foothills, on either side of the towering Mahaudi escarpment, contain good jungle with diverse flora and fauna. The enduring nature of human settlement is evident in the ancient megaliths and ancient rock-art sites that can be found across the valley, a focus of current archaeological study. The valley’s indigenous communities have lived in harmony with the land for thousands of years and their relationship with the land has a sacred meaning.
The second point of significance is that the valley is rich in coal, with deposits very close to the surface. Dig a well and out comes coal. The locals dig it for
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domestic fuel.
The North Karanpura coalfields amount to around 27% of India’s reserves. These coalfields have been parcelled off into 23 coal blocks, to be given away to public and private sector companies. More than 100,000 hectares of land have been allocated for mines and supporting infrastructure, land which is home to over 200 villages.
The community’s experience of previous coal mines has not been a positive one, with unfulfilled promises of economic development and with devastating damage to the environment, what has been described by Human Rights Watch as a chaotic and lawless regulatory system for mining. This has led to strong grassroots opposition to further coal mining activities.
For one thing, there will be the devastation of large tracts of good agricultural land, a damage that will never be rectified. Community consultation in the decision making phase is largely led by middle men and contractors, resulting in a deficit of genuine community involvement and the absence of free, prior, and informed consent. Attempts at compensation fail to account for the loss of livelihoods that are a consequence of displacement from productive agricultural land. Financial compensation, of whatever amount, does not include meaningful economic development.
The overall comprehensive extent of the impact of these mines is hidden, in that the government gives no objection to each mine on the basis of its own impact assessment, ignoring the impact of adjacent mines. A river might carry the run-off from the mines and the multiple run-off will kill the river. There are other issues: the burning of non-renewable fossil fuels, global warming, India’s downstream demand for electricity, the urban beneficiaries.
This opposition has been rather intense this summer, and it faces a significant struggle against the vested interests of mining companies and local authorities who support it. Too often dissent is met with intimidation and the violence. - http://ecojesuit.com
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