By A Representative Expressing deep concern over the findings of the first assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the Climate Action Network, which is a network of 850 NGOs across the world, has said that it is more than certain than ever before that human activities are responsible for climate change. The first installment of the IPCC’s fifth assessment report was signed off by nations after its summary was negotiated line by line in Stockholm last week. Sanjay Vashist, director of Climate Action Network South Asia, said in a press release that though global warming “requires immediate action”, polluters have failed to make “equitable allocations and concrete actions” to fight the danger.

By Jitendra Rathod* The Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013 received assent of the President on September 18, 2013 and it was published in the Gazette of India on September 19, 2013. There is a general view among civil society organizations and like-minded individuals that the Act would eradicate the most inhuman practice of manual scavenging from India. After going through its provisions, it is not possible to support such a view. In fact, one is prompted to raise certain concerns and suggest that the Act is ineffective in addressing the issue of manual scavenging. It appears incapable of ending the practice of manual scavenging, which would continue to prevail in large parts of India, like before.  Following is point-by-point critique of the Act: Section 2 (1) (d) of the Act says that “hazardous cleaning” by an employee, in relation to sewer or septic tank, means its manual cleaning by such employee without the employer fulfilling his...

By A Representative The Gujarat Forum on Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), which is an apex body of several environmental bodies and individuals, has asked the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), Government of India, to withdraw the approval letter granted to the Adani Power for its CDM project – grid connected energy efficient power generation – installed in the coal fired power unit in the Mundra special economic zone (SEZ) in order to earn carbon credits from the international market. In a letter to Dr A Duraisamy, director and member-secretary, National CDM Authority, the Gujarat Forum has said that the registration to the Adani Power cannot continue after a high-level committee headed by top environmentalist Sunita Narain, appointed by the MoEF itself, found "serious environmental violations" by the Adani Power.

By A Representative The Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA), top anti-dam organization, has disputed claims by Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi at a rally in Bhopal that the Sardar Sarovar project (SSP) has helped both Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh in a big way, and gains would have been much greater had the Government of India helped raise the Narmada dam’s height to the full reservoir level. The NBA said, Modi, along with Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan, has “begun playing the same old SSP card, knowing pretty well that the project, which the Planning Commission estimates to cost more than 70,000 crores as on date, is ten times the initial sanctioned cost, and has not lived up to its tall political claims and paper promises.”

Rally in Panna for silicosis victims By A Representative Expressing concern over failure of the Madhya Pradesh government to work out any schemes for the deadly silicosis victims of the state, senior activist Jagdish Patel, who is director, Peoples Training And Research Centre, Vadodara, and has been fighting for the silicosis victims of the Khambhat region of Gujarat for quite some time, has written a strongly-worded letter protest letter to Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Madhya Pradesh chief minister. Wondering the veracity of the CM's claims through advertisements in dailies which say that he has transformed the state from Bimaru to a developed state, Patel says, "We strongly feel that development without social justice to the working class people is development with destruction”.

By A Representative In a major setback to India, the elected representatives of half a billion Europeans in 28 countries have decided to come up with a resolution on October 9, which considers caste discrimination an important human rights issue that warrants a coordinated action by the European Union system. The resolution asks all EU countries to "carry out a systematic assessment of the impact of trade and/or  investment agreements on groups affected by caste discrimination, and to address these issues with the industry representatives, governmental authorities and relevant civil society organisations."

Patthar Khan Mazdoor Sangh demonstration led by Yousuf Baig By Ashok Shrimali* Workers in Panna district of Madhya Pradesh are up in arms against the state government indifference towards silicosis, the deadly disease rampant in sandstone mining. Occupational and Environmental Health Network of India (OEHNI) coordinator Mohit Gupta in a statement has said this has happened because workers in these mines are suffering from silicosis for long, “yet, the owners have failed to provide any facilities or protective equipments to them, as is common in the country.” Worse, “they have not even been issued any ID cards, and they have no knowledge either about the name of the owner or the mine for which they are working for.”

Panic near Mithi Virdi because of the proposed N-power plant By A Representative  In a move to launch a fresh campaign against the proposed nuclear power plant by the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) in the very midst of the lush green area of Mithi Virdi in Bhavnagar district, the anti-nuclear plant organization, Bhavnagar Gram Bachao Samiti, has how worked out a fresh strategy – to involve citizens of Bhavnagar city. In a statement issued in Mithi Vidri, the Samiti – in association with a dozen other voluntary organizations – has said, “If the rural areas of Bhavnagar district will suffer, the townspeople will not be far behind.”

By A Representative Anti-Namada project sentiment appears to be fast spreading deep inside Madhya Pradesh. Latest reports suggest, over the last ten days, a civil disobedience movement is being carried out by thousands of oustees of the districts of Dewas, Khandwa, and Harda, affected by the Indira Sagar dam, which Narmada Bachao Andolan describes (NBA) as “the largest impoundment in the country”. An NBA statement said, “The state government tried to crush the movement by declaring section 144 on the waters of the Indira Sagar dam, but in all three districts, thousands of oustees have broken the section offering arrests, and spread Jal satyagraha.”

By A Representative The National Alliance for People’s Movements (NAPM), an apex body of more than dozen organizations across India, has alleged that the Rajya Sabha vote in favour of the Land Acquisition, Resettlement and Rehabilitation Bill was accomplished after agreeing to “three regressive amendments suggested by the Madhya Pradesh government and accepted by the UPA government.” It believes, “These amendments will take away the rights of the dam and canal affected people, even then hope is not lost on the struggling adivasis and farmers of the Narmada valley.”

Bombay Hotel area in Ahmedabad: Without internal roads Janvikas, a well-known Ahmedabad-based NGO taking up human rights issues, recently surveyed as many as 63 Muslim-concentrated areas to find out if they are provided with necessary social and economic infrastructure to enable their human development. The survey has found the 2002 communal riots have adversely affected most of these areas. Results of the survey: *** The Sachar Committee, constituted by the Prime Minister, is known to have found glaring underdevelopment of Muslim-concentrated areas, especially basic infrastructure such as water and sanitation, banks, educational institutions, internal and approach roads, representation of Muslims in employment, under-representation of Muslims in government services, negligible access to credit from nationalized banks and other allied sectors, and so on. Based on the Sachar Committee’s findings, the Prime Minister announced a 15-point programme for the welfare of minorities in 2006. T...

Janvikas, a well-known Ahmedabad- based NGO taking up human rights issues, recently surveyed as many as 63 Muslim-concentrated areas to find out if they are provided with necessary social and economic infrastructure to enable their human development. The survey has found the 2002 communal riots have adversely affected most of these areas. Results of the survey: *** The Sachar Committee, constituted by the Prime Minister, is known to have found glaring underdevelopment of Muslim-concentrated areas, especially basic infrastructure such as water and sanitation, banks, educational institutions, internal and approach roads, representation of Muslims in employment, under-representation of Muslims in government services, negligible access to credit from nationalized banks and other allied sectors, and so on. Based on the Sachar Committee’s findings, the Prime Minister announced a 15-point programme for the welfare of minorities in 2006. The programme (click HERE to download) aimed at achievi...