Haryana government killing the Aravallis and people: Mining
Five people were killed in a landslide at a mining site in the Bhiwani district of Haryana in January 2022. The site, according to reports submitted in the National Green Tribunal, was illegal and unscientific but had still got a go-ahead for mining after a penalty was paid.
According to the official documents, nearly three reserved forests and three protected forests falls within a 10-kilometre radius of the mine lease area.
It is alleged that the miners are drawing water from the ground below the permissible limits and extending their mining activities beyond the designated area to the protected areas in Aravallis.
In the last 8 years, Gurugram’s Aravallis lost more than 10,000 acres of the Natural Conversation Zone (NCZ), which is considered to be the greenest area of the city’s forest cover, a recent report submitted to the NGT showed. According to a report, 3,676 square kilometres and 776.8 sq. km. (i.e., 4.86% and 1.02% of the total Aravalli forest land across the states) were converted into barren land and settlement respectively from 1975 to 2019 and 5,772.7 sq. km. (7.63%) of forest land has decreased in the Aravallis.
Black paddy, black lungs, coal mining has wrought havoc in Odisha’s Sundergarh
Sundergarh in Odisha is a ‘black land’. No, it does not have black soil. It is a coal mining area and the activity has wrought havoc on the health and livelihoods of the local residents, mostly indigenous communities such as the Hill Khadia, Bhuyan and Gonds.
The Hemagir block of Sundergarh district is enveloped in toxic black coal dust. This is because 3,500 trucks pass through 45 villages daily, ferrying coal from nearby open cast mines.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) cases in Sundergarh have gone up by almost 45 per cent in the last decade. Coal miners are exposed to crystalline silica dust, which causes silicosis and other morbidities. These lung diseases have resulted in impairment, disability, and premature deaths.
People living in coal belts have higher incidences of respiratory illness, compared to the general population and Hemagir block is no exception. Dust due to coal mining has also hit the livelihoods of farmers. The paddy grown in Sundergarh is black which gets its signature black-purple colour from a pigment called anthocyanin, which has potent antioxidant properties. The discoloured black paddy of Hemagir, on the other hand, is a cancer-inducing poison.
👉 DTE
HC Orders Probe Into Illegal Coal Mining In Meghalaya
The Meghalaya High Court Wednesday directed state chief secretary and director general of police to file an independent report into the alleged illegal coal mining in the state.
The HC took cognizance of reports and the complaint filed by the traditional village chief of Nengchigen in Garo Hills against certain persons, including the police, alleging widespread illegal mining of coal within the clan lands.
It also threatened to appoint a special investigation team (SIT) to probe the alleged illegal coal racket in the state.
City scientist bags international ‘special achievement award’ for work on owls
Prachi Mehta, a wildlife scientist from wildlife research and conservation society (WRCS), a Pune-based organization, has bagged the ‘World Owl Hall of Fame’ special achievement award by the international owl centre (IOC), USA.
Mehta’s work has received recognition at national and international forums. In February 2022, the IOC announced that it had decided to confer the award to Mehta for her outstanding contribution to owl research.
Some of the projects on the forest owlet carried out by WRCS include distribution surveys for the owlet in Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat. This survey was successful in locating two new locations of the forest owlet in the Khandwa district of MP.
Mehta has been studying the ecology of the endangered forest owlet in Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. Under her lead, WRCS has been carrying out research on the forest owlet since 2005. She has published 11 research papers in national and international journals.
👉 TOI
Locals perform last rites of ‘langur’ in Phaphund: U.P
The love for animals was witnessed in Mohalla Barfi Tola market of Phaphund town of Auraiya district on Wednesday where a langur’ (monkey) died after coming in contact with a live electric wire on Tuesday. The locals arranged a funeral procession with band-baja’ for the dead ‘langur’ and performed its last rites as per Indic traditions.
They chanted hymns and walked behind the cart in which the ‘langur’ was being carried to the outskirts of the town for its last rites. Earlier, the locals gave bath to the dead body of the ‘langur ‘ that was wrapped with saffron colour shroud and a flower garland was placed around it as per Indian rituals. After this, the funeral procession was taken out by burying it by rituals .
👉 TOI
Environment India is a PAN INDIA Volunteer initiative for ecological awareness and incorporate conservative environmentalism in the society. Your support will encourage us to provide you this free service. To support us you just have to follow us and share posts more to create awareness. You can also share your thoughts and articles to publish on topics related to Environment and Wildlife.
🌱🌏🌱
Comment and tell us your thoughts
Join our Group 👉 Environment India to share your eco-awareness message
Now you can also join our WhatsApp group 👉Environment India
Environment India 