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Showing posts from November, 2013

Women's group demands action in sexual harassment case of a junior woman advocate in Vadodara court

By A Representative Well-known Vadodara-based women’s group Sahiyar has demanded urgent formation of Prevention of Sexual Harassment Committee in Vadodara district and sessions court, which, it said, has not been done despite the fact that several representations by “concerned lawyers and citizens” on the matter have been made. In a statement issued by Sahiyar, the NGO has said, not only should the committee be formed but its announcement should be placed at a place where people are able to see that such a committee exists in the court. The statement was made in the context of a case of sexual harassment of a junior advocate by a colleague.

Financial MNC identifies Jaiprakash Associates among top world cos using asbestos, allegedly causing cancer

By Ashok Shrimali* In its latest research report, “Asbestos: Assessing Exposure of Certain MSCI World Index Sectors”, Citi, the American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, has identified eight Indian companies as consuming asbestos, a product which it says “is strongly associated with disease including mesothelioma, lung cancer and asbestosis, caused by exposure to asbestos fibers.”

Impact of Modi's absence from Gujarat: Annual plan spending shows deceleration compared to last year

By A Representative Making an all-out effort to win the 2014 Lok Sabha polls by campaigning all over India, Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi’s long absence from the state is starting to take a heavy toll on the expenditure on social sector. This is reflected in the spending on annual plan, the funds mainly meant for developmental works, on health, education, social justice and empowerment. Latest figures from the state’s finance department suggest there is a considerable slowdown in the expenditure incurred on the annual plan over the first last six months of this financial year. The spending was Rs 17,217.81 crore in the six months till 2012-13, while in 2013-14 it was Rs 15,738.06 crore.

Gujarat govt's policies are "not in consonance with objectives of international family farming year"

By A Representative Three voluntary agencies, Paryavaran Mitra, Paryavaraniya Vikas Kendra and Millet Network of India, on the occasion of the International Family Farming Day (November 22) have sharply criticized the main thrust of the Gujarat government, of industrial growth, saying, for this it has “come up with many liberal policies for land acquisition”, putting forth “many circulars like acquisition of government and gauchar land for special economic zone (SEZ) projects and regarding use of wasteland for corporate farming.”

Central Information Commission has "no information" on pendency of cases before January 1, 2013

By A Representative In reply to a right to information (RTI) query, the Central Information Commission (CIC) – which India’s highest body to hear appeals to RTI applications to the Government of India and other Central authorities – has said that a whopping 24,326 cases were pending to be cleared by before it “as on October 2013”. The reply, sent to an RTI applicant, Kalpeshkumar Gupta of the Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad, interestingly, said that “before January 1, 2013, pendency of cases was not maintained by the CIC.” Gupta had demanded “appeals pending for years” before it.

Workers' safety, and health security remain unaddressed in South Gujarat factories, says Surat workshop

Inside a diamond unit By A Representative A trade union workshop in Surat, in which tens of workers’ leaders and social activists participated, has expressed serious concern over lack of awareness about occupational health hazard not only among large sections of unorganized workers of South Gujarat, majority of whom are migrants, but also trade union leaders, who seek to organize them. A note, prepared on the workshop by Jagdish Patel, a senior social activist from Vadodara, who works on occupational health issues, has said that the situation becomes particularly piquant because about 85 to 90 per cent of the unorganized workers are migrants working in about 400-odd textile processing units and diamond polishing units.

Participants at national seminar apprehend, the new land acquisition Act will camouflage democratic rights

Medha Patkar By Madhuresh Kumar The Right to Fair Compensation, Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act 2013, enacted recently, “will not end the land conflicts, nor will it provide relief to the millions who have been displaced, and hence there is a need to bring urgent amendments to the Act and also give inputs to process of rule making for Act”, social activist Medha Patkar of the Narmada Bachao Andolan said reflecting the views expressed at the two day national meeting on “Struggle for Land Rights and New Land Acquisition Act”, where representative several social movements from 10 states took part at the Gandhi Peace Foundation, Delhi.

Ahead of 2014 polls, two US Congressmen want White House to "engage" India on religious freedom

Keith Ellison By A Representative In an unprecedented step, two US Congressmen, Keith Ellison, Democrat from Minnesota, and Joseph Pitts, Republican from Pennsylvania, have moved a resolution in the House of Representatives calling upon the US government to engage the Government of India, as also state governments in India, on issues related with “religious freedom and related human rights” in US-India strategic dialogues. The resolution acquires significance, as it especially seeks to criticize BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi by name for inciting communal riots in Gujarat.

MASS writes to World Bank chief, may agitate if livelihood, environmental concerns are not addressed

Dr Kim By A Representative In a letter to World Bank president Dr Jim YongW Kim, Dr Bharat Patel, general secretary of the Machimar Adhikar Sangharsh Sangathan (MASS), writing on behalf of the “affected communities” of the Tata’ Mundra ultra mega power plant (UMPP) in Kutch, Gujarat, has said, even “almost three weeks” after the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO) published its report there is no action on the Tata plant from the Bank’s arm, International Finance Corporation, which is part-funding the project. The letter comes close on the heels of a protest to Dr Kim by several US and European NGOs expressing concern over his failure to act despite CAO raising serious environmental and livelihood issues.

Aftermath of Uttarakhand tragedy: women toil hard, jobless men drink their earnings

By Tathya Macwan*  After a long and exhausting journey of three days, we finally reached Khumera village in Ukhimath tehsil (taluka) of Rudraprayag district, Uttarakhand. Our journey started from Ahmedabad on October 24, 2013 with few people from the Vishwagram Trust, which is located in Mehsana, Gujarat. The Vishwagram Trust took the initiative to assist youths of Uttarakhand in getting jobs, either locally or outside. Those willing would be brought to Gujarat and trained in vocational programmes at the Dalit Shakti Kendra, located near Sanand town in Ahmedabad district. These courses would include photography, computer (software and hardware), mobile repairing, tailoring, etc. Some qualified people would be offered direct job, too. A small survey carried out by the Vishwagram Trust during the trip revealed that more than 90 per cent of the youths in Uttarakhand were jobless. I was there as part of the team to photograph and observe the all-round destruction and loss of life the i...

Ignoring untouchability: Gujarat govt-sponsored study's casual approach

By   Prof Ghanshyam Shah*  Navsarjan, an NGO working among the Dalits for over two decades, has waged several struggles against the practice of untouchability. Currently it functions in more than 3,084 villages, against discrimination and for the improvement of the economic conditions of Dalits i.e. oppressed. It works towards a more democratic and egalitarian social order. Towards the same mission, Navsarjan has documented its struggles for land rights and justice, against atrocities on Dalits, and has also published literature on education. It has studied the practice of untouchability in 1589 villages in Gujarat (click  HERE ). [1] 

Polluter pays principle? Gujarat’s CETPs heavily supported by public money

By Rohit Prajapati* Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi in his book ‘Convenient Action: Gujarat’s Response to Challenges of Climate Change’ (2011, pages 132-133), has printed a photograph of Vapi’s Common Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP) which even today does not operate as per the prescribed norms of Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB). When the CETP of Vapi industrial area is not able to meet the prescribed GPCB norms, what message does the CM want to convey to the country and the world by printing a two page photograph of this treatment plant? On this issue we have posed several questions to him in our review of his book but he has been unable to answer a single question. The constant advocacy by the pollution affected people, people’s organisations and NGOs regarding the increasing pollution levels in the industrial areas of India forced the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs) in 1989 to initiate the process of indexing the criti...

Activists insist, World Bank president must act on eco-concerns on Gujarat power project

By A Representative Over a hundred prominent organisations and activists have expressed "shock" over World Bank President Dr Jim Kim’s "inaction" on the audit report on the Tatas Mundra ultra mega power project in Gujarat, adding, they condemn such a move and demand that the International Finance Corporation’s (IFC) withdraw from the project. In a letter sent to Dr Kim, they said, “People’s movements and their allies in India are shocked that you have cleared the IFC management’s response to the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO) Audit Report on Tata Mundra Project”.