Cities that have a vision and development strategy, have made progress under the Swachh Bharat Mission, make timely salary payment to municipal staff and have a mechanism to redress grievances and an e-newsletter will be eligible to take part in the Smart City Challenge, which will allow them to compete for funds under the ‘Smart City’ scheme.

At the end of a two-day consultation hosted by the Ministry of Urban Development, the States and other stakeholders to identify the parameters for choosing the cities that can compete, it was suggested that percentage points be allocated for further ranking of cities. The Ministry has clarified that cities will have to compete for the funds allocated under the scheme.

States’ suggestions “States have suggested certain parameters that include self-financing ability, which will have a 25 per cent weightage in the selection criteria, institutional systems and capacities (25%), existing service levels and committed plan of action for three years (25%), track record in implementing reforms (15%) and quality of vision document (10%),” said an official of the Ministry.

The States have suggested two sets of reforms for small and metropolitan cities. These include land monetisation, increased FAR norms with transparent policies, quick progress towards e-governance and online service delivery, integrated GIS-based Master Plans including for sanitation, mobility, land use, digital connectivity, disaster risk management and climate change. Policy reforms, fixed tenures for Mayors and municipal officials, improving revenues through 100 per cent collection of taxes and user charges, minimum educational qualifications for corporators and their capacity-building, economic master planning for cities before physical master plans, creation of municipal cadre and credit rating have also been identified.

“The States have suggested that in addition to the PPP model, they should be given the option of EPC [Engineering Procurement Contract] and user fee-based concessions to promote private sector participation. They want to impose impact fee on organisations that benefit from improved infrastructure, government support for making projects viable for private investors, unbundling of services to make projects investment-worthy and creation of a low-cost pooled fund with the support of the Asian Development Bank, the World Bank, pension funds and sovereign funds etc.,” said the official.

- The Hindu, February 1, 2015

Overexploitation of groundwater, coupled with virtually no recharge of the water table in the absence of good rains for the last six years, appears to have triggered the geological event known as “sinkhole” in this perennially drought-prone district of Andhra Pradesh. In a first of its kind phenomenon, the sinkhole was noticed on the dried Chitravati riverbed near the Goddumarri village of the district. It had a depth of 30 feet and a diametre of 25 feet.

“I heard a deafening sound and saw a depression developing fast into a large cavity. Although we were away from it, we ran fearing it might drag us in,” said Obula Reddy, a farmer who owns an orchard close to the sinkhole on the outskirts of the Goddumarri village. Sinkholes usually form in soils characterised by rocks of gypsum or dolomite or limestone which melt in water available in the sub surface channels, leading to a sudden collapse, said Manikanta, senior geologist.

On Chitravati riverbed case too, the formation of cavity was triggered by depletion of ground water. Deputy Director of Groundwater Department P. Purushottam Reddy confirmed the development and said the intensity of drawing ground water through a string of agriculture borewells was high in the vicinity of the river, where there were a number of sweet lime orchards. Lack of good rains in the last six years only added to the problem.

“Limestone occurs at a depth of 250 ft below the surface in the Chitravati river belt which is where the water table also starts. With the water depleting to around 750 to 850 ft, the cavernous limestone zone develops into a layer, collapsing into itself,” Mr Reddy explained.

- The Hindu, February 1, 2015

India’s foremost naturalist and conservationist, Valmik Thapar publishes the second book in his triology that chornicles India’s diverse wildlife spread over 16 climatic zones

It was in 1961 that Valmik Thapar saw his first tigers at Corbett National Park, and 40 years hence, he says that the journey has been sheer magic. As he puts it, “I didn’t know then that I would spend the rest of my life being mesmerised by wildlife.” Now known as a defender of tigers, and India’s foremost naturalist and conservationist, Valmik Thapar has devoted himself to the cause of preserving India’s flora and fauna. Having authored and edited over 25 books, making films for the BBC and taking on the establishment, he has tried everything he could to serve the cause of India’s fast depleting precious natural heritage. His latest book Wild Fire, published by Aleph, is the second book in a trilogy that began with the acclaimed Tiger Fire, which was published in 2013. And the next and final book of the series, Winged Fire, is on Indian birds, which will be published this year.

Valmik reminisces, “I was eight or nine years old when I had my first introduction to the forest. My uncle was a UP forest official, so our family holidays were often at the Corbett National Park. Later as a documentary filmmaker, I began visiting Ranthambore, which is the root of all my learning. It was there that I met Fateh Singh Rathore, my tiger guru and friend. In many ways, what I am today is because of what Fateh Singh triggered in me. The most remarkable thing about him was that he welcomed me with open arms into the folds of the forests of Ranthambore, and we created a unique partnership, both of ideas and their implementation. He had a quality that few forest officers have today — of welcoming all kinds of people and inspiring them on their missions in the world of wildlife.”

Wild Fire is divided into three sections. The first section, Thoughts from Elsewhere, takes the reader on a quick tour of the country’s natural heritage in the 21st century. The second section, The Wildlife Chronicles, collects the finest accounts of India’s animals from the first century onwards.

It has stories about the great predators, magnificent herbivores, evocative accounts of some of the most striking animals in the country and some reports of rare sightings of river dolphins, bats, shrews and other lesser-known members of the animal kingdom. Contributors to this section include travellers, hunters, writers, photographers and naturalists such as Pliny the Elder, Ibn Battuta, Babur, Akbar, François Bernier, Isabel Savory, Jim Corbett, George Schaller, Kenneth Anderson, M. Krishnan, E.R.C. Davidar, Peter Jackson and Ruskin Bond. The third section, Wild Fire, contains a selection of some of the finest photographs ever taken of India’s mammals, making it one of the most comprehensive book on Indian mammals with some never-seen-before pictures.

I met Valmik, a big burly bearded man with a fierce intensity in his eyes that is so reminiscent of the tigers he loves, in the conference room of his publishing house. The room seemed too small to contain him. He clearly belongs in the outdoors with his tigers and the world they inhabit. He says, “It took about a year to complete the book that is about the splendour of our wildlife. People say that I am only concerned about the tiger, but that is incorrect — the tiger can only exist in synergy with his habitat, and this book is about his world.”

Having been part of many government committees on conservation of wildlife, Valmik is more than a little disillusioned with the establishment, and a fiercely vocal critic of the way it works. Today, his own NGO, Ranthambore Foundation, is dedicated to saving nature. As he explains it, the trilogy will document a period of time when we still had remnants of wildlife. “It will show how people viewed wildlife through history, and how to keep animals like these alive. India’s wildlife is amazing; with 16 climatic zones the variety is astounding.”

Married to Sanjana Kapoor, daughter of actor Shashi Kapoor, Valmik has a ten-year-old son Hamir with whom, for two months every year, he embarks on a journey to discover and celebrate the wild in India and Africa. It is impossible to be with Valmik and not feel his anguish, or to remain untouched by his passion. “I don’t know if things will improve, but for God’s sake, at least we can try. The Wildlife crime bureau is not as active as it should be. There is a plethora of laws but no proper implementation — the bureaucrats don’t care, there is no accountability and politicians come and go.”

Valmik says the corporate world will engage itself in the cause of wildlife conservation if the government engages them as equals or partners. Business leaders like Sunil Mittal, Mukesh Ambani, Raj Salgoankar, Himadri Kothari are passionate about wildlife, and will come forward for the cause, but the government’s attitude has to change. Valmik concludes, “You have to be hospitable. Rathore welcomed me into his domain, today there are none who do.”

- The Asian Age, February 1, 2015

The ministry of home affairs is planning to hold a high-level probe into “land pattas” given to suspected foreign nationals, encroaching the land of reserve forest in Assam.

Disclosing that it was delaying detection and deportation of foreign nationals in Assam, authoritative security sources in the home ministry told this newspaper that suspected foreign nationals are using such land-pattas given against encroached reserve forestland to delay their deportation. Indicating that the home ministry was planning to probe the veracity of such land pattas, security sources said that New Delhi was extremely worried as it was also posing a serious threat to security scenario of the state.

Clarifying that adivasi and local tribal communities have been living in reserve forest areas for a very long time, security sources said that the encroachment of reserve forestland by suspected foreign nationals was certainly an alarming phenomenon. Informing that Assam government delayed preparation of the National Register of Citizenship (NRC), security sources said that home ministry has released the fund for preparation of the NRC long back.

Asserting that it would not be delayed further, security sources said that now, the Supreme Court was monitoring the preparation of NRC and appointment of presiding officers in the foreigners’ tribunals. The Gauhati high court has already been asked by the apex court to expedite the process of appointing judges in the foreigners tribunal to make them functional. Security sources said that ministry has decided to go for electrification of the international border and illuminating the stretch of nearly 262 km border with Bangladesh with floodlights.

- The Asian Age, February 2, 2015

Though the mud chariots are not visible, its maker narrates a fascinating slice of the past

The toy chariot-maker one used to see in Brahmin Gali in the 1950s was spotted again after all these years. He was a slim boy then with a shaved head and chutiyaliving with his parents but now was a shrivelled-up old man with grey hair and an unkempt beard. Shambu of yesteryear has stopped making chariots. Having become a grandfather, he stays home most of the time looking after his son’s children, whose father is a municipal school teacher and wife a nurse in a general practitioner's clinic. The old house he lived in has been rebuilt by the new owner and he and his family occupy a barsati near Mori Gate.

Talking about times past, Shambu Dixit said that it was his grandfather who had started making toy chariots. Now that he had crossed 80, he guessed that Chandu Dada must have been born around 1888 and took to the craft after watching chariots being taken out during the Ramlila from Dauji-ka-Mandir in Esplanade Road that leads to Chandni Chowk, bang opposite the erstwhile Fort View Hotel. The hotel was so named as it gave a grand view of the Red Fort and was one of the best in those days, with a newly-opened cinema hall below. When the Grand Durbar of 1911 took place,

Chandu Dadu saw the chariots transporting members of the royal party and remodelled his ones to make them look slicker, with a turbaned rider who looked more like a raja than a charioteer. Shambu’s father learnt the art from him and passed it on to Shambu after he had passed Middle School from Anglo-Sanskrit School in Daryaganj. He tried to become a clerk but did not succeed after which he fell sick and was diagnosed with tuberculosis. It took him long to recover with Unani treatment at the Hindustani Dawakhana in Ballimaran, though once he thought he was going to die. It was as much due to the medicines given by the hakim sahib as the prayers of his devout mother that had saved him was his fervent belief.

Every morning his mother used to go and worship at the Sitla Mata Mandir and sometimes took him along too if he was fit and pour water from the nearby Shiv ling on his head, making him drink some of it also. When his parents became old and sick he nursed them, besides making three chariots every day and selling them in Nai Sarak for Rs.2 each, which was a satisfactory amount those days. Along with his father’s savings he was able to make ends meet. Besides, his mother would make papad and badianfrom moong ki dal and sell the stuff to neighbours and those living in the nearby galis. After many a hardship he was able to get married to a girl who also belonged to a poor Brahmin family.

She had passed her Matric examination and got a job as a teacher in a patthshala. But encouraged by him she became a trained nurse and, after that things changed for the better for the family. Meanwhile his parents died and Shambu and his wife had two children, a son and a daughter, who filled up the vacuum in their lives.

That was all a rambling account of family history but one was more interested in knowing about how he made the chariots. Shambu thought for a while and then related the nitty-gritty of the toy trade. In the morning he used to go to the roof of his house and collect the mud that he had moulded like dough the previous day and left to dry. Close by was a flower pot with the tulsi plant in it,

which he watered before his mother came to pray and sing before it like Nutan sang later in the film Main Tulsi Tere Angan Ki. His belief was that because of the blessing of the tulsi his fingers became so dexterous that he could make not one but three chariots a day. The clay was moulded to make horses which also had to be put on the terrace to dry, after that he made the wheels and finally the chariots decorated with coloured cloth. The completed chariot was indeed a work of art which surpassed even his father’s and grandfather’s creations. To bear out his claim one remembers that the horses looked so real that one felt like buying a chariot but couldn’t because the pocket money was only four annas and two rupees seemed a big amount.

Had Shambu been making toy chariots now, he would have earned not two but 200 rupees for each which would have made his daily earnings gross Rs.600. But despite this he thinks his days as chariot maker are long over as he cannot put in that much of hard labour. But the old tulsi plant is still there in his barsati which he waters every day before praying, for like C.A. Kincaid’s masterpiece this tulsi plant also tells Shambu’s tale of old.

- The Hindu, February 2, 2015

Deccani sultanates during the 16{+t}{+h}and 19{+t}{+h}centuries were very cosmopolitan and art flourished in the area during the period. However, the culture of the region was overshadowed by the Mughal art that was prevalent at the same time.

In order to bring the grandeur of the Deccan back for people to admire, the National Museum is organising a 53-day show titled ‘Nauras: The Many Arts of the Deccan’ which has on display about 120 objects belonging to the National Museum which have either been taken out of its reserves or moved in from its galleries. A Ragamala painting has also come in from the National Gallery of Modern Art.

The exhibition has been curated by art historians Preeti Bahadur and Kavita Singh. It is divided into six sections and displays paintings, manuscripts, metal-ware, textiles and arms made by artists from the Deccan. Some of the pieces on display are: the armour of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb who had fought military campaigns in the Deccan; the Al -Buraaq, which is a painting of a composite creature believed to be the steed of Prophet Mohammed for his flight to paradise; and an intricate Kalamkari coverlet.

National Museum Director-General Venu Vasudevan, who opened the exhibition, said ‘Nauras’ could be an “ideal template” of a case collaboration between a public, private and academic institution as they were all involved in putting the show together. The Art Aesthetics Project founded in 2014 is a co-organiser of the event that is on till March 20 at the National Museum.

- The Hindu, February 2, 2015

A stone slab weighing about 40 kg fell off the ‘Jalakrida Mandap’ (water recreation hall) of the 12th century Sri Jagannath Temple in Puri on Monday. The stone was found early on Monday morning and there was no casualty as there were no devotees present at the place at the time, temple public relations officer Laxmidhar Pujapanda said. Archaeological Survey of India has started the repairing work, he said. People were barred from going near the site after devotees visiting the temple later in the day protested, he added. ’Jalakrida Mandap’ is located close to Maa Bimala Temple in the main temple premises. ASI had completed its repair and restoration works inside the temple in December last year.

- The Hindu, February 3, 2015

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has banned stone and marble mining taking place without environmental clearance in Rajasthan’s Alwar district.

Acting on a plea seeking ban on “illegal” mines that are functioning in contravention to the environmental laws, the tribunal issued notices to the Environment Ministry, Rajasthan government, Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board and others, seeking their response by March 2.

“No person would be permitted to carry out mining activity who does not have the requisite environmental clearance, consent from the Pollution Control Board and permission from the mining authorities,” the tribunal said.

Alwar resident, Khayali Ram, had filed a petition seeking directions to stop the functioning of “illegal” mines in the district. Khayali has alleged that “illegal mines” were in close proximity to the Sariska National Park and Tiger Reserve and “also in the area which forms part of Aravalli hills”.

- The Indian express, February 3, 2015

Seepage from the Koteshwar dam across the Bhagirathi in Tehri district has intensified protests by the local people against the 400-MW project. They allege leak of water through several cracks on the dam wall.

District Magistrate Yugal Kishore Pant, who visited the dam site on Tuesday, said: “There is slight seepage from the dam, but it is under construction. The process of grouting is under way and there is nothing to worry.”

Jyoti Prasad, who lives near the site, said, “The seepage from several places in the dam is evident, but the authorities continue to deny it.”

Villages threatened’

The villages in the vicinity are already facing land sinking, and seepage poses an additional threat. “There are several leakages from the main wall of the dam and it has become a threat to the downstream villages and areas such as Devprayag and Rishikesh,” Mr. Prasad said.

However, the dam authorities denied the allegations and made counter-charges against the protesters.

H.L. Arora, General Manager, Tehri Dam, said, “Villagers are diverting attention because they want compensation for collateral damage from the dam construction. They are protesting to get contracts and jobs in the dam, but we can’t appease everyone.” The dam, a project of the Tehri Hydro Development Corporation and part of the Tehri Power Complex, produces electricity and regulates water released from the Tehri reservoir for irrigation. The dam is 22 kilometres downstream of the Tehri dam.

- The Hindu, February 4, 2015

The carrying capacity of the Indian Sunderbans has been exceeded, and the increased population is exerting pressure on the fragile and richest ecosystem of the world, a World Bank report has said.

“The population is growing and exerting even greater pressure on fragile and recovering natural systems. As a result of high birth rates and migration inflows, population density is high and growing,” said the report “Building resilience for sustainable development of the Sunderbans.” The Sunderbans has a high population density of about 1,000 persons a sq.km, equivalent to the 1,030 of entire West Bengal.

Referring to a non-lending technical assistance household survey conducted in 2011, the report points out that 27 per cent of the respondents said they migrated from Midnapore, 4.7 per cent from other locations in southern West Bengal, 17.4 per cent from Bangladesh.

About 46 per cent reported that they had lived earlier in a different location within the Sunderbans.

The report was presented at the end of a three-day workshop organised by WWF- India and EnGIO and the West Bengal government.

- The Hindu, February 4, 2015

Three areas in Delhi would be taken up as models for developing the capital as a smart city. Government sources said Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has suggested a Lake City in Mayur Vihar-II, development of a land patch in Karkardooma in eastern part of the city and a greenfield project in outer Delhi.

The DDA has suggested the areas at a meeting that was attended by a delegation from Spanish government led by minister of trade Jaime Gracia-Legaz Ponce. Sources, who did not wish to be named, said Spanish government has shown keen interest to associate itself with making Delhi a smart city.

According to sources, the two brown field projects in east Delhi would fall under the plan of developing Transit-Oriented Development zones. TOD zones break away from the conventional model of city growth by creating a pedestrian-centric, open space where public transport is encouraged and every need from parks to hospitals and schools to groceries are brought within walking distance of one's home. The Karkardooma smart city island will come up on 2.8 lakh sqm area while Lake City in Mayur Vihar will cover 80,000 sqm. TOI has learnt that DDA has said the greenfield smart city would be developed in an area of 20,000 hectares in outer Delhi.

- The Times of India, February 4, 2015

In the urgency to grant industry its due with promises of ‘Make in India,’ the marginalised cannot continue to be victims of grave policy neglect and continuing alienation

For some years now, the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF)has been perceived as a roadblock to development or a facilitator for the industry depending on which side you are on. Former Union Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan’s recent letter to Sonia Gandhi also alludes to the conflict in the Ministry.

The Ministry had humble beginnings: it began as a department in 1980 and was set up as a Ministry in 1985 after India’s participation in the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm. It was in many ways Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s leadership and participation in Stockholm which prompted the Ministry’s inception. Now, India has a plethora of laws which relate to the environment and its regulation.

Over time, even as many notifications have come into force after Supreme Court orders, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) was set up in 2010 — infinitely more effective than the earlier National Environment Appellate Authority. However, enforcement is far from satisfactory.

The raging debate between environment and development is even more intense now as the country is on an ambitious growth path and there is scant regard for people’s rights or natural resources. Union Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Prakash Javadekar has repeatedly said there will be no destructive development. Yet, ordinances on the proposed changes to the Land Acquisition Act and on mines and minerals have led to fears that amendments to environmental laws will be brought in through ordinances.

All over the country there are struggles against projects which threaten to displace people, deprive them of land and livelihoods and give them no decent alternatives. Northeast India, ignored by policymakers for long, has become the new battleground against massive hydel projects. In this scenario, protection of the environment and people’s livelihoods are pitted against the powerful industry lobby and there are no prizes for guessing who is winning. The recent ordinances on land acquisition and mining leave no room for doubt that business interests have prevailed.

Reviewing laws

There are also threats to dilute the Forest Rights Act (FRA). Last August, the MoEF decided to appoint a High-Level Committee (HLC) headed by a former Cabinet Secretary to review six environmental laws. As the committee’s report created disquiet, it is now being reviewed by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Environment which has already heard one round of criticism from leading environmentalists in the country.

The HLC went straight for the jugular and targeted the regulatory mechanism. The only reasoned suggestion it seems to have made is on genetically modified (GM) crops where it advocates caution.

“Protection of the environment and people’s livelihoods are now pitted against the powerful industry lobby” Besides that, that it has proposed a new Environment Law (Management) Act under which new offences are prescribed, applicants who want environmental clearances for projects are expected to be honest and truthful, and the concept of ‘utmost good faith’ is statutorily introduced. The HLC dilutes the role of the NGT; the Tribunal will only be able to judicially review the decision of Appellate Boards. It introduces special environment courts and proposes new agencies — the National Environment Management Authority at the national level and the State Environment Management Authority to replace the Central Pollution Control Board and State Pollution Control Boards, both of which are notorious for their inaction and corruption. Replacing them with a new set of committees is not going to improve efficiency or honesty. Little wonder then that the report of the HLC has sparked nationwide outrage.

While Mr. Javadekar said the report was a historic achievement that would strengthen processes to balance developmental commitments and environment protection, the criticism is that it seeks to dismantle the basic structure of India’s environmental law. The report violates Article 21 of the Constitution since interests of industry have been given importance, and overrides the right to clean air, water and a balanced ecosystem, said a critique titled “A Recipe for Climate Disaster and Silencing People’s Voice” by environmental lawyer Ritwick Dutta, and activists Himanshu Thakkar and Manoj Mishra and Debi Goenka. The critique notes that recommendations of the HLC suggest dispensing with public hearings in projects of “strategic” and “national importance” and dispensing with public hearings in most regions that are already severely polluted. This is based on the theory that there is no need to hear the affected public since the situation cannot possibly get worse. The power sector and coal mining projects undefined ‘fast track treatment’ through ‘Special Procedure’ that appear likely to short-circuit or eliminate public hearings and gram sabha approval. The way in which the revised procedure is recommended, approval will be a matter of right, the critique says. Further, in the 113-page report, the word “speed” in the context of speedy clearances is mentioned 13 times, the critique added. The emphasis swiftly shifts from concern for the environment to “time-consuming clearance processes.” In addition to exempting the public from hearing these projects, the committee has also made recommendations on who can participate in the public hearing and what issues can be raised. For instance, only environmental, rehabilitation and resettlement issues can be heard by the public, though the present Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) notification 2006 allows all persons to participate in the public consultation process.

In addition, the report enforces the stereotype that environmentalists obstruct development. It refers to “genuine public participation” as though public hearings are not genuine otherwise.

Curbing laws

The government’s decisions to block funding for Greenpeace and other environment NGOs and not allow a campaigner to go abroad to speak on coal mining in Mahan are clear indications that dissent is not going to be tolerated. Last year’s Intelligence Bureau report on NGOs explicitly sets out an agenda to curb movements which question the current development path. In Gujarat the fisherfolk of Mundra who have been displaced by a major power plant have not been given project-affected status; in Odisha, gram sabhas’ opposition to coal mining has been disregarded. People fighting battles for survival have only one option: to approach the courts or the NGT. Sometimes, even court orders are not obeyed.

The Ministry of Tribal Affairs, the nodal agency for the FRA, has been writing stern letters to the Environment Ministry emphasising the fact that the FRA is not delaying project clearances. The multilayered approach for project clearances is time-consuming. While appreciating the need for speedy approvals, public participation must not be lost sight of.

India is rife with examples of development refugees — farmers have been displaced by the Bargi dam in Madhya Pradesh, the Baiga are being evicted from forests where they once thrived, fisherfolk are struggling for survival, among other examples. To add to this, there is a new genre of climate refugees who are affected by the rise in sea levels, changes in cropping patterns and other climate change impacts.

Sustainable development needs serious commitment, capacity building at the local level and urgent action. Science has clearly underscored the need for urgent action if the world has to be saved from the irreversible impacts of climate change. The HLC is silent on climate change for the most part and it will be astounding if India, poised to grow more, doesn’t factor in climate change while “streamlining” its environmental laws. In the urgency to grant industry its due with promises of ‘Make in India,’ those already in India, especially the marginalised, cannot continue to be victims of grave policy neglect and continuing alienation.

[email protected]

- The Hindu, February 4, 2015

Countries all over the world are using this humble resource as a tool to combat climate change. But in India, bamboo is usage has not evolved, despite strong cultivation. The Government must rescue this valuable resource

Whether it is to restore degraded land or to regain dwindling forest cover, bamboo is fast emerging as a preferred choice. Bamboo has a fast growth rate as compared to other tree species. It also has the ability to deliver major reduction in carbon emissions. According to studies by the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan, bamboo roots reduce soil erosion by up to 75 per cent and have immense potential to fight global warming. Countries are increasingly including bamboo in their climate change mitigation strategies. This will help create sustainable development policies and investment plans.

China is the first country to use bamboo as a climate change mitigation tool. With more than 50,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent certificates issued in voluntary markets, more is expected with the application of the Chinese regulatory carbon market that will come into effect in 2016. In addition, China has also initiated crucial afforestation projects which involve bamboo and it is expected that due to these initiatives, bamboo forests will store more than a million tonnes of carbon by 2050.

Bamboo is also helping China recover its lost forest cover. According to data from the Global Forest Watch, China’s Yunnan Province lost about 5,00,000 hectares of tree cover from 2001 through 2012. Geneva-based Gold Standard Foundation has included bamboo in its afforestation and reforestation methodology, including issuance of the equivalent of 46,000 tonnes of carbon credits for bamboo reforestation in Yunnan. This is bound to help China to set an example for other countries to take concrete measures to tackle climate change.

The immense capability of bamboo has spurred the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to explicitly recognise it as a strategic resource in combating climate change. Bamboo has humble origins and it is a member of the grass family. Poaceae, with about 1,250 native species is growing across the globe in the America, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Asia. Bamboo has a plethora of benefits — it rapidly restorates compromised forest areas, large-scale carbon sequestration, supplies a sustainable source of energy, and provides raw material for construction and textiles. All of these have redefined the importance of bamboo as a multi-faceted resource.

India has a strong heritage of bamboo use, but this has predominantly been restricted to handicrafts, paper and building purposes. Inspite of strong cultivation and output, bamboo usage has not evolved. As the world takes a lead to transform this unassuming resource into an effective tool to manage climate change, India too must transform bamboo into an effective ally to combat climate change. To begin with, energy potential must be introduced to the mainstream energy resource options. As India grapples with growing need for energy resources, the need for fossil fuels is increasing to unhealthy levels. To counter this, solar and wind energy has received enormous attention from the Government. But these forms of renewable energy suffer from the drawback of intermittent availability and challenge in storage for later use.

Off late, nuclear energy for civilian use has become a part of the alternative option to fossil fuels, but this form of energy has expensive investment as a precondition. India cannot, therefore, rely on any one type of renewable energy to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels and must create a smart energy mix that is able to include all forms of energy sources including bamboo to meet the overall energy demand of the country without compromising on the climate and environment.

For instance, bamboo can effectively serve as a suitable biomass energy source for the people who currently rely on harvesting forest cover for their energy needs. This will help preserve our forests and contribute towards lessening the global warming. But before bamboo is viewed and used as a strategic tool in the mitigation of climate change, bamboo cultivation and production needs to be supported and assisted against the problems such as changing and erratic rainfall patterns leading to losses of jobs and businesses.

The North East is often termed as the hub of bamboo in the country with almost 56 per cent of India’s bamboo production coming from the eight hilly States of the region. But the climate there has been changing fast, and so has been the rainfall — the average annual rainfall of 2,450mm a year is now decreasing at a rate of 11mm per decade. This is affecting the production and the quality of bamboo.

The Government must intervene and rescue this valuable resource before it disappears into obscurity. Incentivised and subsidised commercial bamboo plantations, coupled with technological inputs, sourced from across the world, will help recover lost ground. This will enable bamboo to be in the reckoning as a competent energy resource, besides being a capable instrument in challenging climate change.

- The Pioneer, February 5, 2015

Problematic wildlife causing damage to human property and crops can now be declared vermins for a specified period in a given area, following which they can be culled without restriction. The Environment Ministry has released advisory in this regard in the context of managing human wildlife conflict.

The species under Schedule I & Part II of Schedule II which are listed as endangered are however exempted from this advisory. If implemented, it will apply to animals as blue bulls, wild boars that destroy crops but also to animals like wild dogs, chitals, sambars, langurs, and many species of birds that damage crops.

According to the advisory, States have been asked to send proposals to declare wild animals or their herds as vermin if they pose threat to human property/ crops, or if they have become so disabled or diseased as to be beyond recovery. While declaring animals as vermin, officials will not have to give any justification to hunt them as is the case with Schedule I animals like tigers and leopards.

Sections 11(1) (a)/ (b) of Wildlife Protection Act 1972, has already empowered the Chief Wildlife Wardens for hunting of any problem wild animal if it cannot be captured, tranquillised or translocated.

Further, Section 62 of WLPA also empowers Centre to declare wild animals other than those listed under Schedule I & II to be vermin for specified area and period. But no such proposals have been received by the Environment Ministry so far. However, according to sources in the Ministry, despite specific advisories and guidelines from time to time for animals like tiger, leopard, bluebulls etc, the State Governments are not equipped to deal with the situation. There have been suggestions from many quarters that species like bluebull and wild boar should be put in Schedule V (vermin) of the WPA so their populations can be culled.

The sources further pointed out that to mitigate man-animal conflict outside the protected areas the Centre had even sought proposals to grant aid for managing man animal conflicts as a part of the annual plan of operations under the centrally-sponsored scheme for Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats.

According to sources in the Ministry, the advisory comes in the wake of similar issues being raised by certain MP’s in Parliament, particularly in connection with the depredation of crops by wild boars and blue bulls. However, care must be taken that protected species should not be hunted in the name of elimination of vermins under political pressure.

- The Pioneer, February 5, 2015

The numbers and diversity of the bird population coming to Delhi in the winter months have registered a fall according to a report released by the Asian Water bird Census.

AWC is the largest water bird census conducted by the Wetlands International South Asia in coordination with State coordinators to record the status of important wetlands and water birds diversity.

“Due to global climate change there has been an adverse impact on migration trends of long distant migratory birds with us. We have observed that winter migration is now late, there is arrival of less bird diversity in lesser number everywhere in the country,” said T. K. Roy, ecologist, Delhi State Coordinator, Wetlands International South Asia.

He noted that there earlier existed several natural wetlands for water birds in Delhi, most of which have now vanished. They are drying up due to rapid urbanisation and climate change, which is causing reduced rainfall.

This has impacted even Najafgarh Drain and Jheel, the longest sewage drain of Delhi which became an alternative wetland habitat for resident water birds and which also hosts a large number of exotic migratory water birds from Central Asia, North Asia and Siberia. “Even Najafgarh Jheel is now drying up due to less rainfall during last monsoon and rapid urbanisation i.e. construction activities in the vicinity of the wetland, surrounding cultivation and human interference,” noted Mr. Roy.

Among the resident water birds which were spotted here this season were black-winged stilt, grey heron, red-naped ibis, glossy ibis, Eurasian thick-knee and painted stork. The migratory species spotted were greater flamingo, Eurasian spoonbill, Eurasian coot and greater-spotted eagle.

- The Hindu, February 6, 2015

Sarnath, an important seat of Buddhist pilgrimage, is all set for a major redevelopment as the World Bank has agreed to fund upgradation of the township and also its adjoining villages known for its local handicrafts. To begin with, a World Bank team has already visited Sarnath to prepare a broad roadmap for redevelopment as a tourism and cultural hub and study living conditions in villages.

Located just a few kilometers from Varanasi near the confluence of the Ganga and the Gomti rivers, Sarnath has caught the World Bank’s attention as a large number of Buddhists and foreigners come to visit the town where Lord Buddha gave his first sermon. It is also a sacred place for Jains as Shreyamshanath, the 11th Trithankara, was born here.

Stating that redevelopment of Sarnath was part of the Rs.1800 crore World Bank project that covers the region, government sources said the plan was to develop the important tourist destination into a world-class tourist spot, besides exploring tourism-linked opportunities to help local craftsmen and villagers increase their income. Sarnath is also known for its deer park and a bird sanctuary, which would be upgraded.

- The Hindu, February 6, 2015

If you are one of those people who hanker for the “good old days” when not everything was mechanised and life was “so simple” then you are in for a real treat. Soon, people will be able to take a trip down the ages by hiring a “chartered train” pulled by a steam engine or old locomotives for short trips.

The Indian Steam Railway Society (ISRS) has proposed short trips on 51 routes like Delhi-Agra-Fatehpur Sikri, Mysore-Bangalore, Baroda-Sabarmati etc to the Railway Ministry. The idea is to maintain the public’s interest in and affection for steam engines and antique trains which were once in the service of Viceroys, Vice-Regals or Maharajas.

Besides making money, the Railways will also have an opportunity to restore and preserve some of the century-old steam locomotives which are now either part of Rail Museums or gathering dust and rusting in the boondocks.

“Barring a couple of them plying in their new avatar of “toy trains” in Shimla and Darjeeling, now there is a need to revive the same in some identified short routes. Initially the steam locomotive trip can be initiated between Delhi and Rewari as several steam engines have been preserved and are in a good shape at the Rewari Loco Shed. We want a fixed timetable to be maintained so that the steam locos can be plied on a regular basis and they can also be hired by private individuals for weddings, birthday parties etc,” said senior Railway officer Ashwani Lohani who is also the working president of the ISRS.

The trains may be powered by XE, AWE, 16 7200WP locomotives and YF, YG models stationed at the Rewari Loco Shed. The maximum speed these locomotives can pull a train of three or four coaches will be 50 kmph but ideally they would be permitted to travel at a speed of 40 kmph. Currently the Palace on Wheels runs on a fixed schedule which is a very costly affair and has mainly become a foreign tourist attraction.

“Since they are slow moving machines the timings will have to be organised so that it serves the purpose,” Lohani told The Pioneer during an interaction at the 12th National Steam Congress on Steam Locomotives on Sunday at the National Rail Museum. Lohani is now a CMD and Commissioner of Madhya Pradesh Tourism and in his stint as DRM Delhi Division he restored and preserved the heritage of steam locomotives at Rewari.

ISRS is engaged in generating and preserving public affection for steam locomotives besides taking steps for preserving the locomotives and associated skills. For rail aficionados, the society conducts exhibitions and seminars centering around steam locomotives and annually holds a National Congress on Steam Locomotives. Former Railway Board Member (Mechanical) Lalit K Sinha is president of the society formed in 1999.

It was for the first time that a foreign country, State Railway of Thailand participated when Chief Project Development, Property Management Bureau Ms Kanrawee Thongpull made a presentation on Steam Locomotives in Thailand.

- The pioneer, February 9, 2015

The National Green Tribunal has ordered a ban on roadside shops and eateries along the animal corridors near Assam's Kaziranga National Park among a slew of directions in the wake of increasing wildlife casualties due to vehicular movement on the adjacent highway.

Taking exception to the state's failure to address the issue, it also directed the Assam government to submit records of animal fatality for 2013 and 2014 on the next date of hearing, March 12.

"The state government has not taken effective measures to prevent animal casualty on National Highway 37 which is passing along the Kaziranga National Park stretch, one of the most prestigious national parks in the country. "Animals being living creatures and part and parcel of environment, certainly need due care and protection and their killing on the roads adds to degradation and consequent pollution of the environment besides loss of precious wildlife in the country," a bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar said.

The tribunal asked the Assam government to ensure fixation of sensor-operated automatic barriers at the animal corridors and ascertain whether speed check cameras were in working condition or not.

"Shops and eateries (dhabas) should not be permitted on the roadside along the animal corridors and due care is to be taken in this regard.

"Complete data shall be submitted of the vehicles challaned for exceeding the limit specified in that area which would be prominently displayed," the bench said.

It also directed the state government to remove and demolish unauthorised structures on the roadside, particularly in the animal corridors.

The tribunal's direction came while hearing a plea filed by environmentalist Rohit Choudhury opposing expansion of the highway stretch claiming that "continued unregulated use of NH-37 is leading to death of wild animals and reptiles in large numbers in road accidents".

- The Times of India, February 9, 2015

The Visit India Year, launched by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj in China, is a welcome initiative that indicates the Modi Government's commitment to developing the tourism sector to its full potential. However, to realise these plans, it administration has to look beyond a glitzy advertisement campaign. The Incredible India campaign, though ground-breaking and very successful in its own right, is now more than a decade old and past its expiry date. A new idea idea is needed but, more importantly, the focus has to be on improving the infrastructure of the tourism industry — from making it easier for foreign tourists to avail Indian visas, to presenting all that the country has to offer in a palatable and indeed profitable manner, to improving the overall law and situation.

The Government has already made a good start in this regard by easing visa processes: In November 2014, the visa on arrival facility, available to only 12 countries, was extended to 43 more and the results are already showing. In December 2013 alone, tourist arrivals jumped by 421.6 per cent, compared to the same period in 2013, according to the Ministry of Tourism. The Government must also focus on making India more accessible to the world — this, of course, means more number of flights to Delhi and Mumbai, but also additional flights to cities like Kolkata and Chennai, as well as better rail and road connectivity within the country. As of now, only a few States (usually the ones like Rajasthan and Kerala that derive a large chunk of their revenue from tourism) have good transport facilities. Most others are plagued by potholed highways and trains that run several hours behind schedule.

This is also true for hotels, tourist lodges and youth hostels; the entire sector needs a capacity augmentation. Another aspect that requires immediate attention is law and order. Popular tourist destinations are often also cesspools of unscrupulous agents looking to make a quick buck at the cost of the unsuspecting tourist. This, of course, is not just an Indian problem but it can surely be handled better. We need an enabling state that will keep a close watch on the sector without destroying entrepreneurial spirit with over-regulation. Sanitation is also a major put off, especially where tourists from the luxury segment are concerned. Hope the Clean India campaign will make a difference in this regard.

The Government also needs to think out-of-the-box to make the most of India's tourism potential. For example, there is a lot that can be done to make religious tourism more attractive. Different circuits — such as the Buddhist circuit — need to be developed and marketed aggressively. Also, given India's huge coast line, tourism on cruise ship can be promoted. There's also a lot of scope for adventure tourism (think river rafting and mountain climbing). Medical tourism is also a growing sector and is expected to grow at 30 per cent this year alone.

- The pioneer, February 9, 2015

Though distance separates the two Salimgarhs, both have several interesting stories connected with them

Salimgarh, north-east of the Red Fort is a monument worth visiting, more so now that it houses the museum of the freedom struggle. But how many know that there’s a Salimgarh in the Agra Fort too? While the one in Delhi was built by Jalal Islam Shah (1545-54), son of Sher Shah Suri, its namesake owes its inception to Jahangir who was Prince Salim before he became Emperor. Some think that Islam Shah was partly responsible for its construction too before Humayun recaptured the kingdom he had lost to Sher Shah Suri.

Delhi’s Salimgarh with rubble ramparts and circular bastions was built next to an old fort of the Afghans and Islam Shah, more famous as Salim Shah, made it his retreat whenever he moved out of the Purana Quila to the triangular monument. It is a solid structure and past it the first railway line was planned in Bahadur Shah Zafar’s time despite royal displeasure. Whenever Jahangir travelled to Lahore or Kashmir and stopped in Delhi after leaving Agra, he made his camp on the Yamuna and spent the nights in Salimgarh. After succeeding Akbar, he added a number of buildings to the Agra Fort, among them the Jahangiri Mahal and Salimgarh.

This two-storied building is located west of the Dewan-e-Am and served as a music hall, where the Emperor enjoyed sessions of mosique from renowned ustads. But as the night advanced and Jahangir became dizzy with wine (it is said he could quaff several cups in one sitting), he would call for the nautch-girls. Some of them so impressed him that they became his concubines, of whom there were at least 300 though the inmates of his harem are believed to have numbered thousands of women (like his father who had at least 3,000). The walls of the building were embellished with exquisite carvings of paries (fairies) and Omar Khayyam-type cup-bearers (who sometimes brought wine from a gigantic stone cauldron), tempting the onlooker to taste the heady juice of the grape and make merry like in the hHazardastan (Arabian Nights). But Greek (Yunani) and Roman example was also there as it influenced Mughal emperors brought up to appreciate the annals of Yunan and Roma or else how would one find Cupid in one of the marble panels in the Dewan-e-Am of Delhi and Orpheus playing the lyre to lure back his long-lost beloved Eurydice from Hades? The original Salimgarh in Delhi, however, had a more gaunt history, though whenever Jahangir stayed in it the drinking and revelry followed there too, with nautch-girls accompanying him from Agra.

In later times Salimgarh served as a prison for rebel princes and nobles. Aurangzeb imprisoned his brother Murad here, after getting him drunk, and eventually got him murdered. Jahandar Shah was also held in it briefly before being done away with on the orders of his nephew Farruksiyar (who had overthrown him to become Emperor) though he too was similarly killed seven years later in 1719. Shah Alam, blinded by Ghulam Qadir Rohilla, languished in Salimgarh until the Maratha ruler Mahadji Scindia rescued him and had the Rohilla tortured and executed. After the Revolt of 1857, Bahadur Shah Zafar was at first confined to Salimgarh as a State prisoner. The officers of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s Indian National Army (INA) were also held here while their trial took place in the Red Fort where, besides Bhula Bhai Desai and other legal luminaries, Jawaharlal Nehru also defended them in the court martial.

The Salimgarh in Agra did not serve as a prison but in 1857 the British officers and civilians took refuge in the fort along with Indian Christians from the city and the Sikandra Mission. As a matter of fact, Lt-Governor Colvin died there and was buried close to Salimgarh outside the Dewan-e-Am, where his grave still exists. Now Union Minister R. S. Katheria, who is also the MP from Agra, has demanded that Salimgarh, Birbal’s haveli and other buildings which fall in the two-thirds area of the Agra Fort in the Army’s possession be transferred to the Archaeological Survey of India so that visitors could see them.

The Minister feels that if all the buildings in the 94-acre fort are thrown open, more tourists will be motivated to extend their stay in the city. Meanwhile Delhi’s Salimgarh has no such restrictions, making it a popular tourist site, especially after the discovery of some hitherto hidden buildings, including abaoli of Mughal times.

- The Hindu, February 9, 2015

Thousands of flamingo eggs have been found abandoned in one of the six breeding colonies in the Little Rann of Kutch (LRK). Every year lakhs of flamingos arrive in search of food and for breeding at LRK. Bird watchers and experts, who visited the site, attribute the drying up of water at the site as the reason for the unusual situation.

After the flamingos had laid their eggs, the water in this particular breeding site located between Wasraj bait and Dhrangadhra dried up sooner than anticipated resulting in a scarcity of food and water and forcing the flamingoes to abandon their eggs.

Wildlife photographers who visited the site claim that the number of abandoned eggs could be between 15,000 and 18,000. But officials claimed that only around 1,300 to 1,500 eggs were deserted.

"We visited the colony as part of our wildlife trips recently. The colony had turned into a mass grave. It was strewn with thousands of nests with unhatched eggs. We made an estimation of the number using the volunteers," said Nilam Patel, an avid wildlife photographer from Dahod.

"Flamingos will normally stay with their chicks till they mature and rear them with great care for a period of one-and-a-half month. They will abandon them only in extraordinary conditions," Patel told TOI.

"We have visited the area. There are about 1,200 to 1,300 nests with unhatched eggs. The birds are erratic breeders and breed in thousands. They have successfully bred in five other colonies in LRK. The wasted eggs are preyed upon by raptors frequenting the region," said Surendranagar's deputy conservator of forests, Pradeep Singh.

The flamingos need salt encrusted damp mud to build nests. Also the place where the nest is built has to isolated and inaccessible to human and predatory intervention.

- The Times of India, February 10, 2015

Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) gives up exploration midway and the Centre too has not released funds.

Fund crunch and gross indifference have put paid to the development of a prospective tourist spot.

The archaeological findings at Kotagadda in Kondapur mandal of Medak district can be as important as the remnants of Hampi in Karnataka.

But the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has given up exploration midway and the Centre too has not released funds, resulting in a potential tourist site being left untapped.

Exploration of the 100 acres identified and protected by the ASI can throw light on 2,000 years of Satavahana history, it is believed. Excavation was taken up by the ASI during 2009-11 in about two to three acres, instead of the entire stretch, under the guidance of Dr. G. Mahewari. But the work could not be completed as the Centre did not release funds.

Located at about 20 kilometres from the district headquarters town of Sangareddy and 70 kilometres from Hyderabad, the site is adjacent to a huge tank spread over 50 acres on the outskirts of the mandal headquarters.

The site has a striking resemblance to Hampi ruins of the Vijayanagaram empire and can attract large number of tourists if properly developed, it is said.

The already excavated area is covered with plastic, cloths and sand, with bushes growing all over. Covering of the excavated areas is part of protection measures, officials say. A circular structure with rectangular chambers all around, a huge fire altar and an apsidal structure along with square/ rectangular chambers were found at the site during the recent excavation. The antiquarian remains include a Lajja Gouri plaque, coins of various metals such as led, copper and silver, beads of terracotta, glass, shell, paste and semi-precious stones, human and animal figurines in kaolin and terracotta, iron implements, bone objects and terracotta sealing with Brahmi inscriptions, according to a report prepared by the ASI on Kondapur.

“On the basis of excavated findings - inscribed led and copper coins of Gutamiputra Satakarni, Sri Satakarni and Sri Pulamavi, Roman Arretine ware, roulette ware, glass vessels akin to that of Arikmedu and Ter, Roman coins, inscribed sealing – the settlement at Kondapur can be assigned a time bracket datable to 2nd century BC to 1st century AD,” the report says.

This area needs urgent attention from the authorities as well as the Union Government for speedy excavation activities.

- The Hindu, February 10, 2015

A preliminary offer on this was made when Amit Lang, Director-General of the Ministry of Economy, Israel, met Indian officials.

In an effort to deepen economic cooperation, Israel has offered its expertise and technological capabilities to India in its ambitious drive to clean up the Ganga. A preliminary offer on this was made when Amit Lang, Director-General of the Ministry of Economy, Israel, met Indian officials on Tuesday.

Mr. Lang is leading a large trade delegation to continue talks on the Free Trade Agreement (FTA), which both countries had initiated in 2007, as well as expand cooperation in the field of water management, waste water treatment and more. Mr. Lang said the “agenda of the visit is mainly to introduce technologies to India.” On the delay in concluding the FTA, Mr. Lang said, “We have few challenges on the Indian side.” “Israel has no real concerns… It is an open market,” he added. The Israeli delegation has submitted a proposal to the Indian side on the issue.

The FTA will be further discussed when External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj visits Israel in the next few months. Israel has made significant technological advancement in desalination and drip irrigation with the world’s largest desalination plants and recycles 90 per cent of water for agricultural needs. India-Israel ties received a major boost when Prime Minister Narendra Modi met his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu last September.

- The Hindu, February 11, 2015

Delhi had planned for a riverfront for Yamuna as early as 1913 to give the new capital an aesthetic promenade from Wazirabad in the north to Indrapat (Purana Qila and its surroundings) in the south. Hundred years on, the central government continues to idealize urban riverfronts like that of the Sabarmati and has been floating proposals to make Yamuna an urban infrastructure component such as dredging it to make it navigable.

Awadhendra Sharan, associate professor at Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, whose research paper on Yamuna was published in Elsevier's journal of City, Culture and Society, traces how various authorities at different times in history tried to develop the river and the riverfront. Around 1956, the Town Planning Organization suggested development of a riverfront for recreational activities with playgrounds, swimming pools, and fishing and bathing areas. "It drew attention to the possibility of taming the river by building a dam," writes Sharan.

Cultivation of melons on the banks in summer and fishing were common in Okhla. Floods were an annual phenomenon but there was ample land for free flow of river during the monsoon months. A new phase of urbanizing the river began after Independence in 1955-56 leading to floods becoming a health issue with waste water discharge points near the river affecting quality of drinking water. In 1990, DDA too planned several urban projects to integrate the city and river.

Over the past two decades, Yamuna became extremely polluted and ceased to be a perennial river. This is when the government started blaming squatters in illegal colonies along Yamuna for the pollution and began pushing "technological solutions". One of the major changes in approach is marked by the high court nod to the Commonwealth Games Village. Sharan recollects in his paper how there were discrepancies in various technical reports submitted to the court on the impact of Games Village which led to the court deciding that the area for it was not on the floodplains.

Another high court decision in March 2003 led to removal of the Yamuna Pushta slum cluster. But various studies and experts say this will not help address pollution. According to one such study, around 3,600 million litres of wastewater generated in the city goes to Yamuna; of this less than 1% is contributed by the slum dwellers.

Sharan suggests the "precautionary principle" should have been applied before such irreversible changes-like building Akshardham and the Games Village-were made. "I have tried to argue from all the historical evidence that's available that we should leave the river as it is and not convert it into a real estate operation. That makes more economic and ecological sense," Sharan says.

- The Times of India, February 11, 2015

Built in 1833, it was the first office of Reserve Bank of India

Overlooking the Dalhousie Square in Kolkata, stands one of the masterpieces of Italian architecture in the city, known as the Currency Building. This dilapidated structure, which served as one the oldest banks of India and housed the Reserve Bank of India till 1937, is gradually being restored to its former glory.

The Currency Building was built in 1833 for housing the Agra Bank and later, the Government of India occupied large parts of the building for housing and issuing paper currency, P.K. Mishra, regional director (east), Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), told The Hindu. Till 1937, the building served as the first office of the Reserve Bank of India, Mr. Mishra said. Archaeologists have come across evidence of an underground canal from the river Hooghly through which water was channelised to cool the freshly minted coins. Several storerooms were built to hold currency, evident from the thick iron sheets covering not just the walls, but also the floors and even the roof of such rooms. Intricate work

Dr. Mishra said the cast iron gates, large brick arches and Venetian windows with intricate designs are the main attractions of the building. The roof is arched with iron joists and the floor is covered with marble and chunar sandstone. “The central hall of the courtyard used to get light through the skylights on top of the large domes. The second floor is also similarly built, the rooms are spacious and paved with Italian marble,” Mr. Mishra said. While most of the heritage buildings of Kolkata — the first seat of power of the British Empire — reflect the Gothic style of architecture, the Currency Building stands out for its unique Italian style.

Years of neglect Despite the rich archaeological and historical significance, the building suffered years of neglect and at one time, was even used as a storehouse by the Central Public Works Department. The arches and domes of the building were damaged and the whole structure was covered by thick vegetation. In fact, there were plans to demolish the building before the ASI intervened in 2002 and started renovation.

“So far about 30 per cent of the restoration work is complete and now a master plan has been prepared to restore the arches. It is a very intricate work, we want to ensure that the curve and elevation of arches are not changed. Renovation is being done with the help of old photographs of the building,” Mr. Mishra said. The ASI plans to make the renovated building into a museum for rare archaeological sculptures.

- The Hindu, February 11, 2015

While Protected Areas (PAs) make up less than five per cent of country’s total area, wildlife conservation should focus on securing wildlife corridors to maintain connectivity. A study developed by researchers of Wildlife Conservation Society, University of Florida, Wildlife Trust of India and Yale University focuses on animal dispersal patterns based on data on animal movement. The concept is based on identifying existing, often degraded forests that physically connect two PA’s, and securing these corridors.

The new study has found inadequacies in current approaches to identify potential movement routes for animals in a landscape between forests. The research paper, titled “From dispersal constraints to landscape connectivity: lessons from species distribution modeling”, points out that the basis of these models should be based on data collected by animal movement or dispersal. Surprising as it may seem, this, in practice, is often neglected, it said.

The study provides fresh perspectives to the contemporary concept of connectivity, or corridors, between forests to save tigers and other wildlife, researchers now stress on broadening the people’s understanding of ‘connectivity’ to address challenges of conservation effectively.

The study suggests learning from the animals themselves to identify their potential dispersal routes. It also calls for increasing conservation toolkit to include appropriate new interventions, rather than limiting ourselves to just existing or demarcated forest corridors. According to the study, the new view will help develop innovative connectivity strategies as it advocates thinking beyond the typically-used thread-like ‘wildlife corridors’ for allowing animal movement. Methods have been developed for modelling animal dispersal through focus on identifying where animals move.

“Animals do not exclusively seek and use corridors demarcated by humans to move across landscapes. In reality, we know that tigers, elephants and other animals use fields, plantations and other human-modified lands for movement in addition to corridors. Hence, what is required is to better understand what allows animals to move and what hinders them - conservation strategies that emerge from this understanding will be more effective and more sustaining,” says Divya Vasudev, the lead author of the paper.

- The Pioneer, February 12, 2015

Frozen beneath layers of mountain ice in Peru, scientists have found toxic trace metals that point to sources of pollution 240 years before the industrial revolution. Researchers who studied ice core records from the high-altitude Quelccaya ice cap (in Peru) found “archives” of preindustrial trace elements, which they have traced back to 16 century colonial silver-mining operations in Potosí (now Bolivia). Quelccaya is one of the few sites on Earth where pre-industrial pollution of air caused by human activity can be studied today.

Around 1540, the Spanish Empire forced Incas to work on extracting silver in Potosí’s mountaintop mines, the main source of silver at the time. The pollution from the mining and smelting activities was carried by the wind 500 miles northwest into Peru where it settled on the Quelccaya ice cap, says a paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Spanish Conquistadors, who were mainly interested in silver, saw a technological breakthrough in 1572 with a mercury amalgamation process, which triggered an unprecedented mining boom across the Andes. The Incas, who also knew how to refine silver, used a “huyara” or wind-drafted furnace made of clay. Researchers used a mass spectrometer to identify chemicals — including arsenic, chromium and lead — present in the ice, starting from 800 AD. After the demise of the Inca Empire (A.D. 1532), the concentrations and trace elements increased, they found.

Unlike in the case of other continents, trace element deposition arising from human activity in the 20 Century started later in South America. However, the deposition was several times higher than during the Colonial period. The deposition during the Colonical period, in turn, was several times higher than during the Inca Empire “when natural fluxes for the region dominated.”

- The Hindu, February 12, 2015

The master craftsmanship behind Indian swords was highlighted when scientists and conservationists from Italy and the UK joined forces to study a curved single-edged sword called shamsheer. The study, led by Eliza Barzagli of the Institute for Complex Systems and the University of Florence in Italy, is published in Springer’s journal Applied Physics A-Materials Science & Processing.

The 75-cm sword from the Wallace Collection in London was made in India in the late eighteenth or early nineteenth century. The design is of Persian origin, from where it spread across Asia and eventually gave rise to a family of similar weapons, called scimitars, forged in various Southeast Asian countries. Two different approaches were used to examine the shamsheer — metallography and a non-destructive technique, neutron diffraction — allowing researchers to test the differences and complementarities of the techniques.

“Ancient objects are scarce. The most interesting ones are usually in an excellent state of conservation. Because it is unthinkable to apply techniques with a destructive approach, neutron diffraction techniques provide an ideal solution to characterise archaeological specimens made from metal when we cannot or do not want to sample the object,” said Barzagli.

The sword’s high carbon content — of at least one percent — shows it is made of wootz steel. This type of crucible steel was historically used in India and Central Asia to make high-quality swords and other prestige objects. Its band-like pattern is caused when a mixture of iron and carbon crystalises into cementite. This forms when craftsmen allow cast pieces of metal to cool down slowly, before being forged at low temperatures.

- The Hindustan Times, February 12, 2015

The report of the High-Level Committee for reviewing environmental laws has a misplaced focus on speedy project clearances and wrongly attributes their delays to environmental laws

The report of the High-Level Committee (HLC) on a review of environmental laws may no longer be in the news, but its potential for impacting environmental governance in the country has not diminished. That potential will become real soon enough. A note of caution at this stage is therefore warranted.

Assuming that the process of examination and clearance of ‘projects’ by the Ministry of Environment and Forests (with Climate Change now added to its title) was not operating well, and was taking far more time than it should have, what needed to be examined was the operation of the clearance procedure and not the laws, unless the examination of the procedure pointed in that direction. The HLC’s work should have been essentially examining detailed case studies of hundreds of projects that had passed through the machinery, and not a review of the laws. Thus, the very formulation of the task was wrong.

Moreover, the task so formulated could not possibly have been completed within the derisory period of two months (extended to three) given to the Committee. There was also a fundamental ambiguity in the Terms of Reference set by the Ministry. The crucial portion is: “To recommend specific amendments needed in each of these Acts so as to bring them in line with current requirements to meet objectives.” What are these “current requirements” and “objectives”? Was the Ministry interested in enhancing the effectiveness of the environmental laws in conserving and protecting the environment, or was it primarily, if not exclusively, interested in ensuring the fast clearance of projects under these Acts?

Given those two problems — very limited time and an ambiguous ToR — one wishes that the HLC had declined the assignment or insisted on a one-year period (if not two years) and a clear definition of the purpose that the government had in mind in setting up the Committee. There is universal agreement that the HLC simply did not undertake extensive consultations with the State governments, subject matter specialists or with the people in different parts of the country. The Committee will doubtless claim that it did what was feasible within the time available, but that is no answer. It does not alter the fact that what needed to be done was simply not done.

In this article I will confine my observation to a few selected recommendations that will bring out the thrust of the report. ‘No go’ areas and forests The HLC wants to confine the ‘No go’ classification of forests to areas with 70 per cent canopy (apart from Protected Areas). An area with 70 per cent canopy will be a very dense forest. With that criterion for ‘No go,’ the classification will cover only a minuscule fraction of the country’s forest area. This will reduce the ‘No go’ classification to a mockery. Further, an area with a modest or low canopy may earlier have been a dense forest and may have deteriorated because of human activity.

In such a case, should we try to regenerate the lost forest cover or open the area to further depredation by denying it the ‘No go’ classification? Besides, is ‘canopy’ the only consideration in determining the value of a forest and its place in people’s lives? The Committee has enhanced the extent of compensatory afforestation needed for diversion of forest land and also raised the Net Present Value (NPV) payment required for permitting diversion. However, what the Committee has failed to consider is the dubious nature of the very idea of compensatory afforestation. Once a forest is allowed to be diverted to non-forest use, the ecological system is gone and cannot be restored.

That loss cannot be compensated. The conclusion that this leads to is that the diversion of a forest to non-forest use, or (in the case of a dam project) the submergence of a forest, should as far as possible be avoided, and resorted to only minimally and in unavoidable cases. The HLC shows no awareness of this point. When diversion of forest land has necessarily to be done, there should of course be ‘compensatory afforestation’ elsewhere and NPV payments, but these conditions are by no means effective deterrents of diversion.

The Committee wants to confine the mandatory statutory public consultation to environmental, rehabilitation and resettlement issues only; permit only genuine local participation; and dispense with public hearing in situations where local conditions are not conducive to the conduct of hearing, or in the matters of projects of strategic importance and national importance, etc.

This precludes any discussion of the merits of the project and the options available for the ends in view. The underlying discomfort with the very idea of a public hearing, the desire to whittle it down as much as possible, and a distrust of the local community, are evident. This is an inadvertent revelation of a bureaucratic or technocratic attitude and contempt for the people. The HLC wants to dispense with consultation with the gram sabha in the case of so-called ‘linear projects’ (a dubious categorisation).

In the constitutionally mandated democratic decentralisation scheme (i.e., Panchayati Raj), the gram sabha is a crucial institution. The Committee cavalierly recommends a reduction of its role. A bizarre recommendation is the invocation of the principle of the presumption of ‘utmost good faith.’ What this means is that the government will accept all statements, data, reports, and other material submitted by the project proponent as true and valid, and make its decisions on that basis, subject to the invocation of penal provisions in the event of the subsequent discovery of mala fides.

The report itself had pointed out earlier that “our businessmen and entrepreneurs are not all imbued in the principles of rectitude” which implies that we must presume mala fides rather than good faith. If the basis on which the clearance is given turns out later to be false, the government can doubtless put the person concerned in jail or impose heavy fines on the violator, but can the damage done to nature, ecology or communities be reversed? Problematic recommendation

The recommendation of an overarching Environmental Laws Management Act (ELMA) is very problematic. Normally, from a law we proceed to rules for implementation or administration. The rules constitute subordinate legislation. In the HLC’s recommendations, we proceed from one set of several laws (substantive ones) to another law, a single one (a ‘management’ law, i.e., a procedural or institutional one).

This is not a case of subordinate legislation; the management law will be as much a law passed by Parliament, as the substantive laws. As a matter of fact, please note that in order to achieve quick, single-window clearances, the substantive laws are to be subordinated to the management law (Section 3 of the proposed ELMA). In reality, the sole purpose of ELMA is not the protection of the environment or forests or wildlife, but the facilitation of clearances. As this will be the overarching law, the substantive laws will stand downgraded. This will trivialise all the important concerns underlying those laws.

To sum up, one might say that having readily accepted the government’s identification of ‘development’ with industrial and mining projects, its misplaced focus on speed of clearance, and its wrong attribution of delays to the environmental laws, the HLC has produced a hasty, half-baked, inadequately thought-through report. If accepted by the government and implemented, it will have serious adverse consequences. The report needs to be totally rejected. (Ramaswamy R. Iyer is a former Secretary, Water Resources, Government of India.)

- The Hindu, February 13, 2015

The Environment Ministry has given its go-ahead to the Maharashtra government’s plan to erect a statue of Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji in the Arabian Sea, about 2.6 km off Mumbai coast.

The decision to grant environment clearance came on the recommendation of the Environment Appraisal Committee (EAC) which had taken up the issue on Monday. It also happened to be the day when the 60-day deadline for people to raise their objection to an amendment to the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) notification of 2011 came to an end. This proposed amendment, the draft notification for which was issued on December 11, 2014, had allowed land reclamation in sea for construction of monuments and memorials, though only “in exceptional” cases.

Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar told The Indian Express that he had granted his approval to the project two days ago. “We have made sure that the project has minimum environmental impact. It is an important project that is close to the heart of people in Maharashtra. And it is going to be very similar to the Statue of Liberty in the United States,” he said. Interestingly, Javadekar insisted that the project, as cleared, would not involve any reclamation of land.

The December 11, 2014 draft amendment to the CRZ notification of 2011 was brought for the specific purpose of allowing reclamation of land for building monuments and memorials. The phrase “except for construction of memorials/monuments and allied facilities only in exceptional cases by the concerned state government, on a case to case basis” was inserted in the clause that seeks to prohibit “reclamation for commercial purposes such as shopping and housing complexes, hotels and entertainment activities” in a CRZ area. The proposed amendments also allowed the utilisation of “rocks/hills/natural features” for development of memorials and monuments, something that is otherwise prohibited.

Javadekar claimed no objections had been received by the government on the proposed amendments in the 60-day period. “Only one suggestion was received. There were no objections,” he said. Environment clearance to the project was on the agenda of the February 9 meeting of the concerned EAC as well. After discussions, the EAC recommended a conditional approval to the project.

- The Indian express, February 14, 2015

‘If Adani can’t conduct its operations with transparency, how can the public trust it to protect our environment?’

The Australian Greens party and 350.org and other organisations have called for an immediate moratorium on the Adani Group’s proposal to dredge the Great Barrier Reef for a controversial coal port expansion at Abbot Point in Queensland, Australia. Adani Enterprises bought the Abbot Point terminal for about $2 billion in May 2011.

Their reaction came following reports by Fairfax Media questioning the transparency of Adani Enterprises’ Australia operations. A statement by 350.org said the port expansion, which would make it the world’s largest, will open up a series of nine mega coal mines in Queensland’s Galilee Basin, tripling Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions. The project is yet to get federal approval. “These disturbing new allegations about Adani call into question the legitimacy of the approvals process for Abbot Point and the Galilee Basin coal mines,” said 350.org Australia CEO Blair Palese in the statement.

Mr. Palese called for a full and proper investigation into the legitimacy of Adani’s operations and a halt to the approval process following the new information uncovered by Fairfax, which reveals that most of the companies associated with Adani Enterprises’ Australian coal operations are not controlled by the public face of the company, Gautam Adani, but by his eldest brother, Vinod.

A spokesperson for the Adani Group in an email to The Hindu said: “It can be clearly seen that vested interest groups which have a single-point agenda to stop the project of national importance for both the countries and to tarnish the image of Adani Group continue to use Greens and other organisations with baseless, incorrect and imaginary stories.”

The spokesperson said Australian mining companies of the Adani Group are owned by Adani Enterprises Ltd. (AEL) partially along with AEL’s own 100 per cent step-down subsidiary, Adani Global PTE. A step-down subsidiary means subsidiary of one’s own subsidiary company. To that extent, mining companies in Australia clearly fall within the line of ownership of AEL, which is the listed entity of the group. Therefore, to say that the Australian coal operations are not controlled by the public face of the company is false and consequent irresponsible allegation is absurd, the spokesperson added.

The Fairfax investigation said company documents revealed that Adani sold its stake in Abbot Point in 2013 to a Singaporean company. However, this was not made known to Australian authorities or the Bombay Stock Exchange. Adani was also found to still control a number of Australian companies linked to its Carmichael coal project in the Galilee Basin, despite excluding these companies from its 2013-14 accounts.

To this, the spokesperson said the change of ownership of Abbot Point Coal Terminal was initiated in January 2013 at the meeting of Board of Directors (BOD) of Adani Ports & SEZ Ltd. (APSEZ). The stock exchanges were informed about the decision by the company on January 28, 2013, as also on May 15, 2013.

Subsequent disclosures about the progress of the divestment of stake of APSEZ in Abbot Point Coal Terminal have been made in the annual report of APSEZ for the FY 2012-13 and FY 2013-14. These documents are available on the website of the company as also on the websites of BSE and NSE where the company’s shares are listed. Senator Larissa Waters from the Greens party called for a probe into who controls the Abbot Point Coal Terminal and Carmichael coalmine.

- The Hindu, February 14, 2015

Of the 5,871 sq km increase in the forest cover of India, West Bengal accounts for nearly 64 per cent of this rise, reveals the latest report of Forest Survey of India. A study conducted by the Forest Survey of India that was recently published points out that West Bengal’s forest cover has increased by 3,810 sq km, which is followed by Odisha where increase in forest cover has been 1,444 km and Kerala where the increase has been about 622 sq km.

Commenting on the increase in forest cover in West Bengal, Principle Chief Conservator of Forest, West Bengal, Azam Zaidi told The Hindu that along with other steps the State’s joint forest management, which involves the participation of the local people, is one of the reasons for the increase. “Increase in the forest cover of the State is mainly due to coppice growth (dense growth of small tress) and afforestation inside the forests, growth of commercial plantations and shade trees in tea gardens,” the FSI report states. West Bengal, a state with high population density, has only 18.93 percent forest cover.

Depletion in north-east Interestingly States from northeast like Nagaland, Arunanchal Pradesh, Tripura and Manipur, whose forest cover comprises over 75 percent of the State’s area, have shown a decrease in forest cover. “The current assessment shows a decrease in forest cover to the extent of 627 sq km in the north eastern region. The main reason for this is attributed to the biotic pressure and shifting cultivation in the region,” the report says.

In Andhra Pradesh, a State with 16.77 percent of its area covered by forest, there has been a decrease of 273 km of forest area. While the forest cover has decreased by 176 sq km in Madhya Pradesh and 53 km in Chhattishgarh, it has increased by 496 sq km in Jharkhand and 446 sq km in Bihar.

The Satellite based remote sensing data that has been used for estimating the change in forest cover has shown that that there has been an increase of 31 sq km of ‘very dense’ forest cover compared to the last assessment carried two years ago. It has also revealed that ‘moderately dense’ forest has decreased by 1,991 sq km while ‘open forests’ have increased by 7,891 sq km, putting the overall increase at 5,871 sq km.

- The Hindu, February 15, 2015

Birdwatching was once considered a pastime of the elite, but over the past few years people from almost all walks of life have been spending time in green watery zones to catch the chirp of the winged creatures. Networks of enthusiasts have swelled at a brisk pace in India and one of these groups added another feather to its cap this month – one million bird sightings, a fivefold increase from an annual exercise a year ago.

Not that the number of birds has gone up, but the number of birders certainly has –from about 1,000 on the Bird Count India network in 2014, to 3,000 this year. The network has a burgeoning database of birds in India, as the government does not conduct a bird census even for the endangered species. Suhel Quader, a scientist at the Bengaluru-based Nature Conservation Foundation who started the initiative two years ago, said people have disposable incomes and they are willing to spend it on equipment – cameras and binoculars – to observe nature from close quarters.

While the advent of digital photography has made clicking pictures easier and more affordable, the internet has provided a platform to share them with the world. “Hundreds of people put pictures of birds on their Facebook pages and we have tried to bring them together for having a national database of birds,” Quader said. Increasing awareness about wildlife among the youth is another reason for such a jump in bird sightings with about a third of the contributors below the age of 40, he added.

“If the birds go missing from an area, it is the first warning for people. Lots of birds in a place indicate that surface water quality is good and air is better,” said Fayaz Khudsar, a wildlife biologist at Delhi’s Yamuna Bio-Diversity Park.

The initiative has helped chronicle birds like Indian Pitta that was viewed in Delhi for the first time in 60 years and migratory birds like Whooper Swan being spotted in Himachal Pradesh’s Pong Dam lake after 13 years. The Indian Pond Heron is now the fifth most commonly spotted bird in India, appearing in 35% of the lists. This would not have been possible without people like former Customs commissioner Vinod Goyal, who got interested in wildlife photography about a decade ago during his posting in Chhattisgarh’s Raigarh city.

“People buy jewellery from their savings. I bought a camera and other equipment to pursue my hobby,” he said. Then there are enthusiasts like Balram Bhargav, a busy cardiologist at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), and Delhi police sub-inspector Rajeev Kumar. “Wildlife photography is like opium. It takes you in,” said Raghav Bagel, a software professional at Tata Consultancy Services, who carries his camera all the time to catch birds on the move.

In 2014, 800 unique bird species were recorded in India, the highest for any country. This year, Quader’s team estimates that the number of species would almost double, turning global spotlight on India as a hot birdwatching destination.

- The Hindustan Times, February 15, 2015

India always fascinated foreigners who were smitten by its monuments, beauty, culture and much more

We are always curious to know what others think about us! About 118 years before President Obama came calling to Delhi, compatriot Mark Twain had observed: “So far as I am concerned India is the only foreign land I ever daydream about or deeply long to see again.” Fifty years later John Wohlfarth, after serving in India, recorded in his diary: “The world needs India intact! Tear down Roman ruins if you will, level Cyclopean walls, build bridges with stones of gothic abbeys and feudal fortresses but lay no hand on the glory and grandeur of India.

” Both US visitors were among those who looked at the country without prejudice, unlike the British. Twain was fascinated by the monuments of Delhi and Wohlfarth too while sitting under the Qutub Minar, wandering in the Purana Quila and the Red Fort or while viewing the sublime beauty of the Taj Mahal. These impressions are among many recorded by Pran Nevile during research in the US Library of Congress which gave birth to the treatise, “India Through American Eyes” (Primus Books).

In 1833, while Akbar Shah-II was on the throne, American ice was introduced into the Mughal empire. It replaced mountain ice brought from the Himalayas since the time of Akbar the Great in bullock carts and stored in wells to last through the summer. In Shah Jahan’s reign there were ice-fields near Turkman Gate where ice made in winter was stored for use when the weather turned beastly hot. The credit for bringing the first ice-ships to Calcutta, Bombay and Madras goes to Frederick Tudor, who as a result became a very rich man and the ice-fields of Turkman Gate slowly disappeared.

There is a fascinating account of Elehu Yale (after whom Yale University is named) who as Governor of Madras received a female Mughal emissary (from Delhi) reported to be of “majestic form and the magnificence of whose pearls and diamonds were beyond description”. There was also a report about a nawab’s wife, published in 1743 (Mohammed Shah’s reign), whose “glittering costume, elaborate sophisticated make-up and exotic jewellery, which adorned her from head to toe”, was enchanting. The refreshments served on “gold plates, with guests being entertained to 60 dishes” were among the amazing accounts of Mughal hospitality.

Bayard Taylor, who came in 1853 (four years before the First War of Independence) as correspondent of New York Tribune, was fascinated by a ride in a palanquin. After going about in it in the Capital, he took a horse-drawn Dak buggy and travelled from Delhi to Meerut, Agra, Mussoorie, Kanpur, Lucknow, Allahabad, Benaras and Calcutta. About the Taj, he observed: “Did you ever build a castle in the air? Here is one brought down to earth… when seen from a distance, so like a fabric of mist and sunbeams.” In 1871, the Rev William Butler said “that a flute played gently in the vaults below where the remains of the Emperor and his consort repose, produces a sound, which is perhaps the finest to be heard as it were from heaven and breathed by angels”.

Gertrude Emerson, who visited Delhi, Agra and Lahore in 1923, says, “Here were lavishly scattered the great red sandstone forts and gates of Akbar, the marble palaces and pearl mosques of Jahangir, Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb and the magnificent tombs they constructed”. She goes on to say: “I sat alone for a long time once at the top of one of the four minarets surrounding the Taj Mahal.

It was a night of a full November moon, and silver mists clung to the Jumna, flowing silently past the great marble platform from which the Taj rises with ineffable grace. I had had my first view of this far-famed ‘Crown of Palaces’ from the Jasmine Tower at Agra Fort, whence Shah Jahan, an old man and a prisoner, fallen upon evil days, must often have looked out mournfully at the beautiful mausoleum he had erected many years before, in honour of Mumtaz Mahal, his queen… Suddenly in the moonlight it was like the breast of a lovely woman.” According to Percy Brown, it was the magic of Indo-Persian architecture blended by rulers originally from beyond the Oxus.

As for dance and music, Lily Strickland Anderson, a prolific composer of music, writer and painter, was captivated by the performance of two nautch girls invited from Delhi to perform at a Raja’s party in Bombay. They were obviously from Chawri Bazar and akin to midsummer night fairies. Some other Americans were struck by the soulful singing in the fields and village streets “and the many sorts of (rural) work done to the lilt of a song”. All in all, an amazing saga of a medieval and emerging modern scene. Such was the milieu that produced Esther Sherman (Ragini Devi), her daughter, Indrani Rehman and granddaughter Sukanya.

- The Hindu, February 16, 2015

The Capital is set to get the country’s first mobile app designed to monitor air pollution in the city on real-time basis. The app, also the first to be launched by the Centre, goes live on Tuesday and would monitor air quality in five regions of Delhi.

The app, called SAFAR-Air, has been designed by the Pune-based Indian Institute of Tropical Metereology (IITM), an autonomous institution under the ministry of earth sciences, and will provide updates on current air quality and forecast for up to three days. A similar service will be launched in Mumbai and Pune soon. “The app provides easily understandable colour-coded advisories for people to plan their outdoor trips based on air quality,” said Gufrain Beig, project director of system for air quality forecasting and research (SAFAR).

The app is based on the air quality forecasting project handed to IITM during the 2010 Commonwealth Games and the latest air quality index prepared by the Central Pollution Control Board. The index uses a colour-coded system to indicate air quality wherein red means that one should stay indoors. According to the index, air quality in most of the monitored locations in Delhi was red in December and January. The situation has improved slightly in February with the warm weather helping the dispersal of pollutants.

Air quality advisories will be available for north, south, east, west and central Delhi. But, the information may not be very precise as IITM has one monitoring station for each zone, with some at a distance from highly-polluted zones.

The app does not take into account the air pollution monitoring done by the Central Pollution Control Board and the Delhi Pollution Control Committee, whose network of pollution monitoring stations is much bigger than that of IITM. For the app to introduce a warning system, IITM will need to upgrade the software that collects air quality information on real-time basis. In addition, synergy between different agencies that collect data on air quality in Delhi will be essential.

In 2014, the World Health Organisation (WHO) listed Delhi as the most polluted city among 1,600 in the world, for particulate matter pollution. It also warned that air pollution was the six biggest killer in India. According to a recent study, air pollution in Delhi can reduce one’s life by up to three years.

- The Hindustan Times, February 16, 2015

As the smart cities initiative gets under way in India, U.N. Special Envoy for Cities and Climate Change Michael Bloomberg has cautioned that global financial institutions are increasingly coming under pressure not to assist any development activity that does not adequately address environment and climate change concerns. During a meeting with Union Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu, Mr. Bloomberg, who has agreed to assist the Ministry in organising a ‘City Challenge’ competition for assessing cities and towns for inclusion in the smart cities development programme, emphasised that smart cities should be environment friendly. Mr. Bloomberg pointed out that carbon emissions in New York had been reduced by 19 per cent and life expectancy increased by three years in the past few years. A senior UD official said Mr. Naidu gave a broad account of the various initiatives being undertaken by the Centre, including the building of smart cities, new urban development mission for 500 cities, development of heritage cities and Swachh Bharat Mission, among others.

- The Hindu, February 17, 2015

The Brahmaputra Board is set to be renamed as the “North East Brahmaputra Basin Authority” (NEBBA) as the NDA government has decided to revamp the authority which will now focus equally on all seven north east states, undertake flood mitigation measures and focus attention on all small and big rivers merging into the Brahmaputra. The issue has been hanging fire for couple of years now. The Union home ministry and the water resources ministry along with other stakeholders have finalised the move and a bill to tweak the Brahmaputra Board Act is likely to be introduced in the forthcoming session of Parliament, top sources said.

Issues of irrigation, hydro power, flood control, water conservation, water quality and ground-water planning can all get due attention when the new authority is in place, a source said adding that the top brass of all states will be members of the new authority.

Top sources in the government said that the present functioning of the Brahmaputra Board had been under the scanner as several northeastern states had alleged that their concerns were being neglected and the primary focus of the board was on Assam.

Arunachal Pradesh had also raised concerns about the revamping of the board which were allayed by the Central government in the last few days.

Sources in the government said that water being a ‘’state subject,” it was not the intention of the Central government to interfere but the revamping of the board and its re-naming is being done to accommodate concerns of all seven states. The MHA has allayed the federal concerns raised by certain CMs, an official said. “The word basin was also suggested in the nomenclature for the new authority so that its authority extends to all rivers merging into the Brahmaputra among other things,” the official said. Recently, Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi had termed the functioning of the Brahmaputra Board as unsatisfactory and demanded that the Centre must accord priority to the setting up of a Brahmaputra River Valley Authority which has been a long standing demand of the state. At a recent meeting with the river development and Ganga rejuvenation minister Uma Bharati on Tuesday, the chief minister had flagged certain issues saying that the problem of erosion is more serious than flood

- The Hindu, February 17, 2015

WCF is staging street plays, rallies to create awareness on forest fires

With intense heat building up as summer nears, and Bandipur turning dry, authorities are galvanising volunteers from the local community to fight any outbreak of fire in the days ahead.

Wildlife Conservation Foundation (WCF) has taken up the task of creating awareness on forest fires in villages surrounding Bandipur through street plays, rallies and distribution of pamphlets. Three such plays have already been staged at Hangala, Kundgere and Mangala.

“Though prevention is ideal, forest fires are a reality in Bandipur as also other national parks in summer. Containing the fire is top priority. This can be done if there is immediate sighting and action to douse the fire, which requires an early warning system,” said D. Rajkumar of WCF.

He told The Hindu that sensitising and roping in the local community living on the fringes of forests is one of the best methods to evolve an early warning system. This is why the WCF has taken up the task of spreading awareness among the communities.

About 35 villages and 44 eco-development committees, and 64 educational institutions have been covered under the awareness drive so far. Students have also been apprised of their role in case they sight a fire.

- The Hindu, February 18, 2015

The construction of the bridge on the Hiran river in Sankheda taluka of Chhota Udepur — which nearly 125 students swim across to get to school in Narmada district — is set to begin soon.

Officials of the Roads & Buildings (R&B) department have finalised the design of the elevated 215-metre river bridge, with tenders expected to be floated by the end of this month.

According to the R&B Department of Vadodara, the design of the Hiran river bridge has been finalised and sent for technical sanction to the Panchayat circle. The department is hoping to float the e-tenders to invite bids for the construction of the bridge by the end of February. According to executive engineer H Parmar, the bridge is 215-metre-long and will be elevated to ensure that the swelling Hiran does not overflow. Parmar says, “We have conducted soil testing after taking samples in October. It is conducive for construction and so the design was finalised.

The bridge will be diagonal from Chamarwada in Sankheda to Kareli in Chamarwada. It has been given elevation as Hiran is known to swell during monsoons.” According to Parmar, the construction on the bridge would commence by March. Chief Engineer R&B Panchayat P R Patelia said that although no deadline had been set to float the tenders, the technical sanction of the bridge is expected anytime as the procedures of design is complete.

Meanwhile, a tar road has been constructed from Utavadi to the banks of Sewada — the path that the children living in Sankheda, across the river, must trek every day to get to school after crossing the river. The road has been constructed as the first step to the bridge that will meet Narmada at Kareli — about 2 kilometers before Sewada. According to local villagers, the bridge will ease movement not just for students, but for everyone in the village. Dilip Baria, a resident of Sewada, says, “Currently, without any connect to the two banks, the villagers of Sankheda taluka are forced to swim across the river even for the most basic needs.

Even the cremation ground is on this side of the river and when a person passes away, the body is tied to bamboo sticks and raised above the waters by villagers carrying it across.”

The students of the school in Utavadi are thrilled about the prospect of having their coveted elevated road across the Hiran. Tinkle Baria, a student, says, “Once the bridge is ready, we will be able to cycle or even walk to school very easily. It would mean a permanent solution to the problem.”

- The Indian express, February 18, 2015

Now one can check real-time air quality in certain parts of Delhi and Pune. The ministry of earth sciences (MoES) has launched a smartphone app called 'SAFAR-Air' to provide the data to people. It also provides a forecast for the next two days and a health advisory along with a colour-coded grading of air quality in different city zones. The app can be downloaded for free from Google Play store, the MoES and the System of Air Quality Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) websites.

In Delhi, the app will provide air quality for east, north, south, west and central Delhi. And in Pune, the app will cover urban, suburban and two other zones. A similar monitoring for Mumbai is going to be launched in April. App users can also compare the levels in these cities. For Delhi, the app will be sourcing instant air quality data from three to four monitoring stations, like Lodhi road, Airport, Mathura road, Delhi University, managed by SAFAR.

The app automatically identifies ones location and provides air quality data and description. If one wants to access more information like health impacts and the precautions one can take, then details in the app can be browsed. "I think the app has been launched to give people a handy tool. It can help people, especially those who are in the vulnerable category such as children, people with respiratory or cardiac problems and the elderly," SAFAR's chief project scientist, Gufran Beig, said.

The app was launched by MoES secretary Sailesh Nayak. He also launched a toll-free interactive voice response system (1800-180-1717) for air quality and weather related information which is user-friendly and available in Hindi, English and regional languages.

- The Times of India, February 18, 2015

Within multilingual societies, maintaining the languages of ethnic and cultural groups is critical for the preservation of cultural heritage and identity

I am not white. I am not black. I am not yellow. I am Asian, but I am rarely classified as one. I am Indian, but barely recognised as one. I dress in jeans and T-shirts, I eat at the local McDonald’s, I watch “Will and Grace” with a religious fervour, and I listen to Justin Timberlake on my iPod when I am walking to class. But I have also read the Koran in Arabic, I fast every year during Ramadan, I love watching Indian movies, and I sing songs by Lata Mangeshkar when I’m cleaning the house. To most people this may sound like descriptions of two different people or a complete identity crisis. I also speak both Hindi and English fluently and feel comfortable with both parts of myself, one of my students said in response to my question on mother tongue. She said she considers herself part Indian and part American. Living in a diverse place like the United States, I meet and converse with all kinds of “desis” — but how many of them can speak and understand their parents’ native language?

Cultural awareness

Language is the essence and identity of culture, and is a major tool for communication. It is a major tool for exchanging ideas, emotions and feelings. To know your language is the key way to keep and preserve your culture. In recent times, the idea of cultural awareness in the U.S. has increased; thus allowing, for example, Urdu to be more culturally accepted.

At a time when Bollywood movies are rapidly making their way into American theatres, a cross-cultural experience is being defined. And not only through movies. Cusay, the traditional, hand-woven, ornate shoe of South Asia, for example, is no longer available exclusively in Indian, Pakistani and other regional stores; it can now be found in Macy’s and Nordstrom’s shoe departments and even at exclusive boutiques on Rodeo Drive. As distinctly Indian trends and themes make their way into American culture, it is becoming easier for Indian-Americans to assert their identities and celebrate their heritage and native language.

“As distinctly Indian trends and themes make their way into American culture, it is becoming easier for Indian-Americans to assert their identities and celebrate their heritage and native language”

A language is more than just a means of communication. It is a repository of a community’s collective history and heritage. It also provides an identity and a focus that binds a community together, which makes individual accomplishments easier. With Hindi having a prominent web presence, Hindi songs in Devanagari script can be easily found and enjoyed. And because of the presence of regional languages on the web, words such as puja, namaste, lassi, mehendi, kabaab have become common in American cities. On the importance of mother tongue, Sanjeev Shekhar, an Indian-American living in St. Louis, Missouri, says: “It allows children to know their roots and they will be able to pass it on to their children, thus securing their culture for the future generations.”

Part of curriculum

Studies in Indian languages are an invariable part of building a broader campus community that is aware of the rich linguistic and cultural histories that immigrants and their children have brought with them to the U.S. Many students take Hindi to fulfil their language requirement in colleges and universities. With this trend Hindi has also become part of some of the universities’ curriculum. Acceptance and opportunities given by the universities have encouraged many students to venture out and experience their mother tongue to its full capacity.

“A cultural event opens the doors for friendship and it allows you to communicate with people you would have never approached before,” said Sufyan Badar, who recently completed his PhD from Louisiana State University.

After 9/11, there has been a change in not just the U.S., but the whole world. There is a trend now to gain more knowledge about other cultures. Hindi is not forgotten in the U.S.; in fact, it is making waves across the country. Mushaira, yet another interesting cultural and literary event, is also making waves in the U.S., and is increasingly becoming very popular year after year. Most popular among these Mushairas are the ones organised in different U.S. cities by the Aligarh Muslim University Alumni Association — better known as the annual Sir Syed Day Banquet and International Mushaira. “[Holding] Mushaira in the U.S. and bringing poets from the subcontinent are attempts to meet and keep our tradition alive and provide an opportunity to the young generation to get familiar with their native language” said 45-year-old Shaheer Khan, the man behind this mission.

Within multilingual societies, maintaining the languages of ethnic and cultural groups is critical for the preservation of cultural heritage and identity. Using one’s mother tongue at home will make it easier for children to be comfortable with their own cultural identity.

(M.J. Warsi, a doctorate in Linguistics, teaches at Washington University, U.S. E-mail:[email protected])

- The Hindu, February 19, 2015

Coal-based thermal power plants have been an expensive proposition. There is no other option to be available in the future. Hence, it is essential to reduce the adverse environmental and ecological impact of coal-fired power plants

Coal-based thermal power plants are the epitome of pollution. They have come to symbolise the toll extracted by this form of energy generation on the environment. Every form of power generation, whether it is generation efficiency, pollution control, fly ash or wastewater management, all play a crucial role to degrade the environment.

In fact, visualising thermal power plants that help meet India’s energy requirements in an environmentally responsible manner seems like an oxymoron. More than 65 per cent of India’s electricity generation capacity comes from thermal power plants, with about 85 per cent of the country’s thermal power generation being coal-based. In addition, the 10 largest thermal power stations operating in India are all coal-fired.

Historically, coal-based thermal power plants have been an expensive proposition for the environment. A typical thermal power plant of 2,000 MW needs nearly 3,000 tonnes of coal per day and generates an average of 5,000 tonnes of flyash per day. The use of coal results in low calorific value and produces very high ash content— as high as 55 to 60 per cent — with an average value of about 35 to 40 per cent.

Further, most of the coal is located in the eastern part of the country and requires transportation over long distances, mostly by trains run on diesel, further adding to pollution. Other alternative sources of ‘clean’ energy are yet to reach the required scale of operation. For instance, hydro-electricity has been able to contribute up to 25 per cent of the country’s energy needs, but with ecological concerns looming large over the hydro-electric projects, the precious momentum gained by this energy source has already begun to wane.

In the foreseeable future, there is likely to be no other option available, as the nuclear power programme envisages an installation of 20,000 MW of power by the year 2020, when it will still be around five per cent of the installed capacity. Hence, it is very much essential to reduce the adverse environmental and ecological impact of coal-fired power plants, by introducing suitable green reforms in this industry.

In order to lend prominence to the effort of ushering in green thermal power plants, the Government must establish standards to which the power plants must conform. These standards must include aspects such as waste disposal, optimum utilisation of resources and the role of modern technology towards pollution prevention. For instance, water pollution is an avoidable facet of thermal power generation, and plants can use air-cooled condenser technology to cool the towers of the plant, instead of using water.

The initiative to promote thermal power production will a get major impetus if the thermal plants include environment into their production costs. In order to galvanise the producers into action, Environmentally-Friendly Pricing Policy can be implemented. The EFPP can aim to charge differential prices for the produced power according to the emission performance and standards followed by the power plant.

As per this initiative, those plants having emissions as per the prescribed norms can qualify for a market price. Whereas, plants that surpass the emission norms must have a penalised price per unit. This is essentially a polluter pays principle that not only accounts for environmental costs, but also makes accommodation for compensation in event of any negligence towards the environment.

The EFPP can instill sensitivity towards nature besides encouraging the enterprises to have a responsibility for their actions pertaining to moderation in the use of environmental resources. A research must be initiated to find ways through which a power plant capacity can be increased and at the same time reduce the environmental impact and also ensure that the production cost of per unit of electricity comes down.

One of the ways that can be explored is to convert coal into gas and transport the same to all power plants through a pipe grid. This will immediately help control pollution, regulate water usage and reduce consumption of furnace oil. Other benefits would include lesser land requirement to set up a plant, lower wear and tear and hence lower operational costs besides a healthy increase in plant load factor.

As the energy demand soars unabated, India must not wait for the renewable energy sector to mature. Instead, technologies must be accessed that will enable the power sector to integrate renewable energy with thermal power generation. These measures need to be accompanied by independent green-rating systems for power plants. The ratings can decide the price at which the plant can sell the units and what Government subsidies and incentives it is eligible for. This will help the cause of cost-effective and environmentally responsible power generation.

- The Pioneer, February 19, 2015

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) seem to have locked horns over the issue of water supply to Red Fort, after the DJB slapped a water bill of Rs 2 crore on the ASI.

According to sources in the DJB, the ASI had not paid water charges of Rs 96 lakh. “They have not paid water charges for a long time. As a result, the actual amount is Rs 96 lakh while the rest of the amount, Rs 1.04 crore, is surcharge,” a DJB official said.

Senior ASI officials confirmed they had received the water bill from the DJB. A senior officer told Newsline that the controversy over the water bill arose last year after the DJB stopped supplying water to Red Fort — one of the three World Heritage Sites in the city.

“Everything is inter-related. The ASI had not paid the bill last year because the DJB had stopped supplying water to Red Fort. By their own admission, DJB officials said the line supplying water to Red Fort had worn out and become unusable. The DJB had demanded Rs 14 lakh from ASI to replace the same — an amount which we submitted last year. Yet, the lines have still not been replaced with DJB citing tendering and other issues,” the ASI official said.

“How can the DJB not supply water to a World Heritage Site? Apart from Humayun’s Tomb and Qutub Minar, Red Fort is one monument that gets the highest footfall of domestic and foreign tourists daily. Water is a basic facility at such an important site. The DJB supplies water to Red Fort in a “bulk connection”. It is supposed to be a 24-hour water supply, and the pipelines are thicker than the normal ones. But what is the use of such worn-out pipes that cannot be used at all?” the official said.

The DJB, on the other hand, maintained that water supply to the heritage site has not been cut-off. Stating that repairing the internal pipelines at Red Fort was a different issue, a DJB official said, “Maintenance of these internal lines is generally the responsibility of the individual under whose name the bill is made. Since Red Fort is a heritage site, we took up the issue of repairing/replacing internal lines at a cost of Rs 15 lakh as a special concession. However, this case is separate from the payment of the water bill.”

- The Indian Express, February 19, 2015

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) seem to have locked horns over the issue of water supply to Red Fort, after the DJB slapped a water bill of Rs 2 crore on the ASI.

According to sources in the DJB, the ASI had not paid water charges of Rs 96 lakh. “They have not paid water charges for a long time. As a result, the actual amount is Rs 96 lakh while the rest of the amount, Rs 1.04 crore, is surcharge,” a DJB official said.

Senior ASI officials confirmed they had received the water bill from the DJB. A senior officer told Newsline that the controversy over the water bill arose last year after the DJB stopped supplying water to Red Fort — one of the three World Heritage Sites in the city.

“Everything is inter-related. The ASI had not paid the bill last year because the DJB had stopped supplying water to Red Fort. By their own admission, DJB officials said the line supplying water to Red Fort had worn out and become unusable. The DJB had demanded Rs 14 lakh from ASI to replace the same — an amount which we submitted last year. Yet, the lines have still not been replaced with DJB citing tendering and other issues,” the ASI official said.

“How can the DJB not supply water to a World Heritage Site? Apart from Humayun’s Tomb and Qutub Minar, Red Fort is one monument that gets the highest footfall of domestic and foreign tourists daily. Water is a basic facility at such an important site. The DJB supplies water to Red Fort in a “bulk connection”. It is supposed to be a 24-hour water supply, and the pipelines are thicker than the normal ones. But what is the use of such worn-out pipes that cannot be used at all?” the official said.

The DJB, on the other hand, maintained that water supply to the heritage site has not been cut-off. Stating that repairing the internal pipelines at Red Fort was a different issue, a DJB official said, “Maintenance of these internal lines is generally the responsibility of the individual under whose name the bill is made. Since Red Fort is a heritage site, we took up the issue of repairing/replacing internal lines at a cost of Rs 15 lakh as a special concession. However, this case is separate from the payment of the water bill.”

- The Indian Express, February 19, 2015

The common ancestral language of Indo-European languages — such as Hindi, English and Greek — originated about 5,500-6,500 years ago, scientists have found. Linguists have long agreed that Indo-European languages are the modern descendants of a language family which first emerged from a common ancestor spoken thousands of years ago.

Now, a new study gives us more information on when and where it was most likely used. Using data from over 150 languages, linguists at the University of California, Berkeley provide evidence that this ancestor language originated 5,500-6,500 years ago, on the Pontic-Caspian steppe stretching from Moldova and Ukraine to Russia and western Kazakhstan.

The research provides new support for the “steppe hypothesis” or “Kurgan hypothesis,” which proposes that Indo-European languages first spread with cultural developments in animal husbandry around 4500-3500 BC. An alternate theory proposes that they diffused much earlier, around 7500-6000 BC, in Anatolia in modern-day Turkey.

Researcher Will Chang and colleagues examined over 200 sets of words from living and dead Indo-European languages; after determining how quickly these words changed over time through statistical modelling.

- The Pioneer, February 20, 2015

Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma is an iconic Indian musician, famous for his renditions on the santoor. Speaking with Meenakshi Sinha, Pandit Sharma, who will perform at the 68th Shankarlal Music Festival, discussed the spread of santoor’s popularity, enriching Indian youth with roots and modernity — and government formation in Jammu & Kashmir:

You’re credited with introducing santoor to classical music — how widely has it spread?

I do happen to be the first musician to introduce Indian classical music on santoor, which was till then only used in Sufi Kashmiri music. The credit actually goes to my father and guru Pandit Umadutt Sharma, a vocalist of the Benaras gharana and a very versatile musician. It was his idea to bring santoor to classical music and he trained me in this art.

Today, santoor’s become an integral part of Indian classical music — 60 years ago, nobody could imagine it would become so popular. Santoor is also appreciated around the globe now. In the last 46 years, i’ve got the opportunity to play for audiences in all five continents.

People around the world use santoor music for meditation. Many surgeons use santoor music in their operation theatres and for playing around patients. On the lighter side, there are restaurants and soaps called santoor!

This is all because of divine grace.

How has your Kashmiri identity influenced your music?

Our state is known as Jammu & Kashmir. I was born in Jammu and we are Dogras. There is no other state like ours in our country, where we have so many different languages, Dogri to Kashmiri and Ladakhi. All the cuisines are different from one another and so is the folk music. Pahadi, which i play many a time, is influenced by Jammu’s folk music, although i also know and play Kashmir’s folk music. Ladakh has folk music influenced by Buddhist culture. Many people call santoor a Kashmiri folk instrument. But santoor is actually a Kashmiri Sufi music instrument.

I’ve been very fortunate to have experienced the beauty of all the regions of my state — my music is immensely influenced by all these folk melodies.

How do you analyse J&K’s recent elections and what do you expect from a new government?

Well, so far the government has not been formed because of the split verdict.

We are waiting for a stable government — one which does justice to all the regions of the state.

As a veteran classical artist, how do you view India’s youthful audiences now?

I think the youth of the country is our biggest asset. After travelling over the world, i’d say Indian youth are in no way inferior to youth of any other country — they are brilliant.

I feel they should know the cultural heritage of our country, the value systems of ancient India, and then combine these with modern thinking — that would truly make India a world leader.

If they get disconnected from our roots, they will make an India which will be one of the countries in the world — but not a leader.

- The Times of India, February 20, 2015

A recent report of International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) expressed “significant concern” over four of the country’s natural world heritage sites which include the Western Ghats, Kaziranga National Park, Manas Wildlife Sanctuary and the Sunderbans. The Great Himalayan National Park, Nanda Devi, Keoladeo National Park and the Valley of Flowers National Park were categorised as 'Good with some concerns'.

The report says that conservation is threatened in these regions due to commercial hunting, tourism, dams, road construction — all of which have contributed to rising biotic pressure.

A total of 228 world heritage sites were assessed across the world in this regard. The report has acknowledged the conservation efforts made for well-managed sites and also to promote the exchange of effective management strategies between the sites. It also made an attempt to identify the more serious conservation issues faced by the natural world heritage sites and to figure out an action plan to resolve the issues.

The report has special mention on Western Ghats. There are 39 serial world heritage sites in the region across the States of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

In the threat assessment of the sites, the experts from IUCN recorded that the biodiversity in the Western Ghats is under extraordinary pressure on account of the huge population pressure which is both within the property as well as surrounding it. The report states: “The sites that are traditionally conserved by small populations of indigenous people leading sustainable lifestyles, face many challenges. There exist a large number of threats which severely threaten the Outstanding Universal Value of the property. It would require coordinated conservation responses at all levels, including political, sociological and biological, to overcome the challengers.” The perpetual need for development will also continue to put pressure on the site.

The report noted that although at the time of inscription, the values in the world heritage sites of the Western Ghats may have been good, but enough data is not available regarding the current state and trend of these sites. In order to ensure that the values are conserved, targeted monitoring of these sites is the need of the day.

Apart from this, the report also identified climate change as another major factor which in the coming days will further aggravate a system that is already threatened. The Sunderbans also deserves a mention in this regard.

- The Pioneer, February 20, 2015

The small, sleepy town of Bundi is caught in a web of history

Have you ever been on a time travel? Well, I have….to Bundi, a small sleepy town huddled somewhere in the Hadouti region of North-west Rajasthan. Time has frozen in this town, inextricably caught in the web of history. No proper rail connection, no commercial establishment worth the name, dusty roads, vintage homes and havelis converted into lodgings; nevertheless this petite town remains attractive with the historical antiquity it is bestowed with. A small town spreading across the floor of the valley and straggling up the bare hills, with a lake in the middle and a fort looking down at it as a royal guardian, Bundi seems a miniature painting tucked on the horizon.

I took the overnight train from Delhi and headed straight to my hotel – Hadoti Palace tucked as a white nymph, in the middle of the town. The hotel is built in a colonial style and the doomed lobby of the hotel makes it spacious with natural light coming in from many windows. The town looks isolated and independent, perplexing me one moment and exciting the other. It has a fairytale history; as the legend goes, back in the 12th century, restless young nobles of the warrior Chauhan clan vanquished the Bhil and Meena tribes of these lands. One group chose the neighbouring area of Kota, the other settled in Bundi.

The actual marvel of this town is its architectural history, now stuck in a time warp. ‘Seeing around places can be done on foot also,” the hotel manager told me. I contacted Kuki ji, an archaeologist and guide, to take me to places hidden in Bundi. I was to be in his custody for two days.

“Let’s see the city marvels first…,” he said and we proceeded to the Rani ki Baori, tucked in the middle of the town. Built by Rani Nathavati, in the year 1699, this 46-meter deep Baoli is supposedly the deepest in the region. The step-well has a narrow entrance marked by pillars and elephant statues facing each other, and pictures some elegant carvings on columns and brackets.

Bundi has its treasures strewn across the city.

More you cover the city and drive through the countryside, more you will find the remnants of the Rajputana Empire that ruled this land. The neighbouring district of Bhilwara also stands as a Rajputana gift but is lesser known and less travelled by. Next I made my move towards the City Palace, massed across a rocky height, approached by flagged ramp.

We entered through the Hathiya Pol, a tall portal surmounted by stone elephants so typical of Hadoti. Grand and elegant, only these words can define the city palace. A fleet of steps from the Hathia Pol leads to Rattan Daulat where a white marble throne stands. Another noteworthy apartments is the Chattra Mahal which has exquisite wall paintings of the famous Bundi Kalam. They have come a long way in making Bundi world famous for its miniature paintings. On the other side is Chitrashala, quadrangular with cloistered galleries running around it. It was established by Rao Raja Umed Singh in the 18th Century and holds some of the best of Bundi murals. I was completely staggered by the quality of the art pieces. I walked past masterful depictions of life in the palace, painted predominantly in blues, greens, greys and delicate whites. Kukuji points out at some master-pieces, ‘a bored queen’ and a ‘justice loving king’.

Once you come out, you need to climb another cobbled ramp to reach the crest of the Taragarh fort. Standing tall as a royal custodian, the fort commands a marvelous view of the plains of Hadoti towards the east, the lovely azure waters of Jait Sagar below on one side, the quaint town of Bundi on the other and the girding forests and hills all around.

From there we moved to the famous Kipling’s house or ‘Sukh Niwas’, the summer palace of the erstwhile ruler, famed not only for the serene lotus-filled lake it borders, but also for its distinguished guest Rudyard Kipling. This is the place where Rudyard Kipling used to come to write ‘Jungle book’.

I was curious to know more of Bundi, to explore it beyond its regal past. My guide Kukiji had assured me to take to some uncharted territories. No travel map suggests that there are two waterfalls in Bundi and one of them the Bhimlat waterfall was on our map that day. It’s a drive of about two hours from the main city through the Chitoor Road Chauraha, locally known as the Khooni Vhauraha. It is said Bhimlat falls was created by Bhim to quench thirst of Pandavas while on Vanvas. Historical facts, however suggest that both Bhimlat falls and Menal falls (around 100 kms from Bundi) were created due to 8th Century earthquake. It is said earlier tigers used to walk within Bhimlat area and people could watch them from the top.

Another 30 kms and we were at Bijolia, an ancient temple town. Bijolia was part of the Mewar kingdom under the Parmar king and was later passed on to the Chauhan kings in the 12th Century. The Bijolia tour will take you to Undeshwar temple. A very unique thing about the temple is that it has its lower sanctrum under water. Other features include the spiralling pagoda and rich engravings on walls and ceilings. Another important attraction of the temple is the shikhar of the Ganesha temple, the chattaris or pavilions of the temple will leave you amazed at the dexterity of the architectural skill of that era.

An archaeologist in Kukiji brought me to Gagardha (30 kms from Bundi), a small branch of River Chambal, an area where he has discovered rock paintings which belong to pre-historic age, showing life style of that era. We made another excursion to Rameshwar, where an ancient temple and some more rock paintings waited for us.

After these excursions, it was time to return, through the same rickety roads that houses many shepherd communities, giving me countless moments to capture. We crossed Bhil communities and had our evening tea at their home, the typical spice laden, thick, sugary Rajasthani tea. We drove our way back to the main town, now wrapped in the cacophony of urban life.

We halted at the main bazaar to have Bundi’s very own ‘dal bade’ and another religious halt at Bundi’s favourite juice stalls. In the evening, Bundi looks like an old, forgotten city, now with some fancy lighting system and randomly scattered street lights. I was back to Hadoti Palace, shining brilliantly on a silvery night. I had a brilliant menu set for me, starting with a round up to the vintage car collection, the hotel houses, then a well laid traditional meal and lastly off to late night movie in Ranjit Talkies, next to my hotel.

Bundi is a story nursed by time. For all the bustle of the city, there is a timeless, trapped-in-amber, atmosphere about Bundi which, for many visitors is oddly reassuring in our ever changing world.

(The author blogs at handofcolors.wordpress.com)

- The Hindu, February 22, 2015

The Mughal era books need to be preserved for posterity

The library of Dara Shikoh, near Chakkipat on the Yamuna’s right bank in Agra, is now a municipal office and its vicinity boasts an akhara. The books housed in the library or most of them, were brought to Delhi when Shah Jahan moved his capital to it and wanted the heir apparent Dara to stay by his side lest any harm befell him if he was appointed governor of some province (subha), like his brothers Aurangzab, Shuja and Murad. The library existed in the Kashmere Gate area, later becoming a polytechnic institute, another library behind the Jama Masjid, became a girls’ school. But the question is what happened to most of the books? Quite a few of them were destroyed in 1857 by the British, bent on revenge. Some others fell into private hands and were sold as “raddi” during the upheaval of 1947 by those going away as refugees to Pakistan. It’s worth noting that the books in the library of Prof Ahmed Ali, author of “Twilight in Delhi”, in Kutcha Pandit were sold one by one by a servant who had stayed behind and was reduced to penury after the professor opted to migrate to Karachi.

Some books of the Mughal era may be found in the National Library, in the British Museum Library in London and in the U.S.

Congress Library. Besides some others were taken away to Pakistan by migrants. A few of those books are with the old residents of Delhi, Lucknow, Hyderabad and Agra, like the now disintegrated library of Nawab Faiyaz Khan, but 75 per cent of them are lost forever. It was something like the loss of Greek, Arabian and Persian masterpieces when the libraries in Athens and Alexandria were burnt during wars and by Mongol and Han hordes and vandalism by fiercely bigoted Arab and Turkish soldiers fired by the zeal to destroy all vestiges of the “idolatrous ages” of the Middle East. Such destruction also took place during the medieval Crusades and earlier by Attila and Hannibal. The Emathian Conqueror (Alexander) may have spread the house of Pindars but little else.

In a study on medieval libraries, written in 1970, father had this to say:

“The Sultans of Delhi and their nobles, who preceded the Mughals, had rich literary tastes and established a large number of public and private libraries. Jalaluddin Khilji founded the Imperial Library in Delhi and appointed Amir Khusrau its librarian. But it was Babar who really did augment the Delhi library.

“Humayun, inherited the legacy and added to the library seven halls, each named after a planet. He was so fond of books that he carried them to the battlefields. On one such occasion in fact he lost several rare ones. At Agra, he raised a set of magnificent buildings called Khanna-i-Tilism (house of magic), the first floor of which housed the library. Towards the end of his adventurous life he converted the pleasure house of Sher Shah in Delhi’s Purana Quila into a library.

“Akbar, although illiterate, turned out to be the greatest patron of art and translation of books, for each of which he maintained a separate cell. The biggest of his several libraries was the Imperial Library in Agra Fort. According to Abul Fazl, the library was divided into several parts. Some of the books were even kept inside the harem.

“Experienced people bring them daily and read them before His Majesty who hears (sic) every book from beginning to end,” he wrote. Akbar had books brought from distant places and also encouraged scholars to write treatises, calligraphists to copy them and painters to illustrate them. He bought a richly illustrated version of the manuscript of Razm-Nama (the Mahabharata translated into Persian) for £40,000. “There were more than 24,000 books in the Imperial Library alone and they kept increasing. Fazl’s collection of 4,300 manuscripts was added to the library and the library of Itimad Khan was acquired after the conquest of Gujarat.”

Jahangir was a great lover of art, with an avid interest in old tomes. Shah Jahan had a godly collection of books. His son Dara, however, was more studious and collected books on poetry, Sufism and mythology, including Hindu scriptures. Aurangzeb’s books were mostly religious ones. The latter Mughals did not evince much interest in books. Bahadur Shah Zafar was however a lover of learning, being a poet himself. The disintegration of Mughal libraries took place during the First War of Independence and the upheavals of Gardi-ka-Waqt but after that English scholars made good use of them, like William Fraser.

It would be worthwhile if the Union Human Resource Ministry and Archaeology Survey of India acquire Mughal era literature from all known sources and establish a Central Mughal Library in the near-deserted Purana Quila, bigger than the partially revived one of Dara Shikoh.

(The author is a veteran chronicler of Delhi)

- The Hindu, February 22, 2015

Art lovers will no longer have to throng big galleries to buy artwork. The NDMC is planning to establish ‘art streets’ in Connaught Place and other areas in the city on the lines of those in Italy.

The New Delhi Municipal Council has already invited request for proposal for a public-private partnership project under which painters and sculptors can produce and sell “live paintings and sculptures”.

Easier access
“If one wants to buy artwork, he or she will have to go to one of the big galleries. Also, not all artists, including fresh college graduates, have access to such galleries,” said NDMC chairman Jalaj Srivastav. “Hence, we plan to bring art as well as artists on the streets as in places like Italy where artists are seen painting or sketching on streets and selling them simultaneously,” he said.

The civic agency will award the contract for the PPP project to an independent art institute or company through a competitive bidding process.

The project is likely to take off in another two months and the first art street will be launched near Rajiv Gandhi Handicrafts Bhawan in Connaught Place.

Tehbazari mode
“The concept will be more like artists in ‘tehbazari’ (street vending) mode and people will get to see artists painting on the spot.

“We will begin with the emporium lane on Baba Kharak Singh Marg. Originally, I wanted to start with Safdar Hashmi Marg but due to vehicular traffic and parking problems there is too much local resistance there. We are working it out,” Mr. Srivastava said.

No restrictions
The artists will neither have to pay any fee to the civic body for doing business on the art streets, nor there will be any restriction on the selling price of their artwork.

“The NDMC will not be charging the artists. Our intention is to make the place lively. A licensing mechanism will be developed so that there is no chaos on the street,” he said.

Around 20-30 artists will be allowed to sit on the street at one point of time. They will have to get a license first and will operate on a rotational pattern, he added.

The institute or company selected for the project will be responsible for the display of paintings and sculptures.

Maintenance of the site and reviewing the matters related to safety and environment management measures will also be the prerogative of the institute or company. —PTI

We plan to bring art as well as artists on the streets as in places like Italy where artists are seen painting or sketching on streets and selling them simultaneously

- The Hindu, February 23, 2015

Qutab Golf Course will try to transplant close to 450 trees-mostly keekar-to give the campus a facelift. The golf course, which had applied for the forest department's permission to transplant these trees about two months ago, recently got the permission with riders on how the transplantation has to be done to avoid damage.

Forest officials are certain that many trees won't survive this costly and time-consuming process. "It's not an easy process. Trees need to be uprooted with a bulb of soil around it and delicately planted on the other site. Each transplantation will cost Rs 20,000 to Rs 25,000. There is no guarantee it will work," an official said. However, he also pointed out that most of these trees "are not very big and about 10 years old, giving us hope that they can be transplanted."

The trees are likely to be transplanted within the 110-acre campus to make place for a clubhouse, another driving range and associated practice facilities, and a new course layout. To offset the loss of trees, if any, the 18-hole golf course will have to plant 10 times the number of trees felled or transplanted.

Recently, a large tree that got uprooted near Lady Shri Ram College was lifted and put back at its original spot. The forest staff had requested a crane and another machine from National Building Construction Corporation (NBCC) to lift it and place it back.

"It's standing now. But we have to see whether it survives. While we have managed to get the machine for free, for golf course DDA will have to arrange for such equipment," another forest official said.

The government has reportedly also invoked a "public interest" clause to exempt the project from provisions under Delhi Preservation of Trees Act (DPTA), which bans large-scale felling of trees. A DDA official said lieutenant governor Najeeb Jung had given them the exemption.

Before DDA can start the redevelopment work, it will have to pay Rs 32,200 for each of the 450 trees or about Rs 1,44,90,000 as a deposit, a part of which will be refunded by the department once DDA completes the compensatory plantation.

- The Times of India, February 23, 2015

Environment Minister, Prakash Javadekar, on Monday released the smart e-book outlining the green agenda for 2015. Among the important worklists for the year include time-bound disposal of applications, greening degraded forest, besides putting forth country’s stand on climate change in CoP 23 in Paris, sustainable development.

“The Environment Ministry that was earlier regarded as hindrance to development has now become a facilitator to sustainable development,” said Javadekar. The Ministry is working to make India a ‘plastic-free country’ drive where common man would be involved in awareness campaigns, and thus be encouraged to give up plastic. “Rivers, lakes and ponds would also be restored, while reviving save water and electricity campaign,” he said. There was also stress on people’s participation in the various green campaigns. In the coming days, the Environment Ministry would initiate drives for turning degraded lands into urban patches of green. The campaigns would be designed to ensure the participation of the youth.

The e-book will be launched in Hindi and can be accessed through various mobile platforms as iOS and Android. He further cleared apprehensions regarding the present laws on environment that they may get diluted to make clearance of development projects smoother. “We are not diluting any rule or Act to facilitate the development,” he stressed.

The smart e-book called Development without Destruction also highlights some of the important initiatives taken by the Ministry during the past eight months. It allows users to share the e-book on various social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Google+. Further, this is the first of its kind smart e-book that incorporates an audio book feature with text to help users listen to each topic in the Ministry.

The smart e-book further contains an interactive feature of an Environment Wall showcasing the varied events, which can be updated at frequent intervals.

- The Pioneer, February 24, 2015

There's fresh hope for an out-of-court settlement for the 65-year-old Ayodhya title suit as negotiators have come up with a formula that suggests that the 70 acres of disputed premises would accommodate both a mosque and Ram temple with a 100-feet high wall separating them.

Hashim Ansari, the oldest litigant from the Muslim side, and Akhara Parishad chief Mahant Gyan Das, met at Hanuman Garhi on Monday to discuss the proposal. Nirmohi Akhara, the litigant from the Hindu side, comes under the Akhara Parishad. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad would not be involved with the negotiation process, Ansari and Das said.

Das told TOI, "We've discussed our proposal with almost all the Hindu religious establishments and main spiritual leaders. Everyone seems to be agreed. Soon, we'll meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and present our negotiation proposal before him and seek his help and cooperation for the peaceful solution of this dispute."

He added, "The VHP is not a party to our peace process, as its leaders never want to build Ram temple, they just want to create communal tension." Convener of All India Babri Masjid Action Committee Zafaryab Jilani said he has full faith in Ansari and his stand in the courts till date. "Based on my discussions with him, I can say his stand is that of all the Muslims in India, and there's no reason to believe that he would change his stance."

Jilani, who is seen as a crusader for re-building the Babri Masjid, said of the eight original petitioners, Ansari and Sunningdale central Waqf Board happen to be the only two original petitioners. "The rest of the original petitioners have died but their inheritors are pursuing the case," he said. Gyan Das was away from Ayodhya for the past three months looking after the religious services at Nasik Kumbh and Ujjain. He came back to the temple town on Monday morning when Ansari went to meet him.

"We're in favour of construction of both Ram temple and Babri Masjid adjacent to each other but with a huge wall of more than 100 feet in between, as we want to avoid any dispute later. We are drafting the final points of negotiation draft which will be presented before the Supreme Court soon after the hearing restarts," Das said. While the case is being heard by the Supreme Court, various parties involved with the dispute are also exploring the possibility of an out-of-court settlement.

The Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid title dispute is continuing since 1950. The Allahabad high court pronounced its verdict on September 30, 2010, saying that the disputed spot was Lord Ram's birthplace, that the mosque was built after the demolition of a temple, and that it was not built in accordance with the tenets of Islam.

The court had ruled that two-thirds of the disputed site should be allocated to Hindu groups, with the remainder to Muslims. The case then went to the Supreme Court which in its order dated January 27, 2013, ordered status quo in the area governing the disputed site.

"We are not in favour of any action that makes our Musllim brothers think they are losers. So, we strongly condemn VHP and BJP's stand that mosque should be built out of panchkosi parikrama boundaries of Ayodhya, we don't care from for handful of VHP leaders. We only care for the people of India," said Das.

- The Times of India, February 24, 2015

Massive depletion in forest cover in the bordering regions of Faridabad seems to have forced leopards to migrate into the forests of Asola Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary. Wildlife officials confirmed that at least one male leopard is currently in the reserved area. Officials said four chitals were killed in the wildlife sanctuary last week— the signs pointing to a leopard-kill. Officials also said pug marks and scat of an adult male leopard were found near the kill.

“The pattern of killing is very similar to that of a leopard-kill. The hind quarters of the deer has been eaten. This is consistent with how a leopard feeds. We have ordered an autopsy of the carcass to confirm the matter. But the pug marks we found point to a male leopard living in the area. Experts have estimated the animal to be around five years,” a forest department officer said. Faridabad has seen vast areas of forest land making way for urbanisation the past decade. According to records, forest cover depleted from 3,747 hectares in 2005 to 2,446.95 hectares in 2012 – at the rate of 65.27 per cent.

“Loss of prey and natural cover seems to be the prime reasons for the animal moving towards Delhi,” the officer said. “It seems that the big cat came here some time in the past year and found good habitat and abundant prey. There have been reported sightings in the past year. This is excellent news,” he said. The Delhi forest department has been reticent in admitting the presence of a large carnivore in its forests. After a leopard carcass was found in Usmanpur last week, officials had maintained that it was unlikely that the big cat resided in the area. The animal, which was killed by a snake bite, was said to have strayed into Delhi from adjoining areas in Uttar Pradesh.

But experts said leopards have adopted a number of strategies to thrive in areas with dense human presence. A study, titled “Adaptable Neighbours: Movements patterns of GPS-collared leopards in human-dominated landscapes in India”— done jointly by Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), international agencies and state forest departments — found that leopards rarely attacked humans and often went to great lengths to avoid human confrontations.

“Leopards are very adaptable animals. Humans may have modified a leopard’s habitat, but he has learned to live in these modified environments too. Now it is for us to understand this and figure out ways to adjust with them,” Vidya Athreya of WCS said.

- The Indian Express, February 26, 2015

The right foot of a Yaksha statue, dating back to 2nd century BC, was on Wednesday found to be damaged at Indian Museum in Kolkata, reportedly owing to lack of maintenance and proper care.

“I have not been informed but if this happened, it is a great loss to the country. The statue dates back to before Christ and is a rarest of the rare art object. Nothing could make up for the loss. Earlier, they broke the Rampurva Lion Capital, and now this has happened. I will find out tomorrow,” P K Mishra, regional director of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), told The Indian Express.

The incident comes less than a month after the Supreme Court gave an order in a PIL filed by environmentalist Subhas Dutta that the Ministry of Culture should take every step to protect artifacts and historical objects kept in museums across the country.

Incidentally, Ravindra Singh, Secretary in the Union Ministry of Culture, is slated to visit the museum on Friday to meet officials. The damage to the irreplaceable object was discovered on Wednesday morning when some officials were inspecting items to prepare for Singh’s visit. Insiders said an attempt was made to cover the damaged part, but conservation department officials intervened and stopped it.

Later, officials reportedly reprimanded some interns, who work as guides, for not taking proper care of the objects. Governor Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi, chairman of the Board of Trustees of the museum, said, “I am in Siliguri and I will order an investigation when I come back day after tomorrow.”

When contacted, Ashok Nath Tripathy, the museum’s media officer, claimed, “It is not damage. It was done in the course of a chemical process.” Sources said the Stupa, an ancient stone object kept at the Gandhara gallery, has also been damaged.

- The Indian Express, February 26, 2015

The 16th-century Amber Fort in Jaipur has now been opened for viewing at night to promote night tourism in the city. ‘Amber by Night,’ initiated recently by the Department of Art and Culture, presents a spectacular and mesmerising view as sombre lights illuminate it in various intensities. Different hues of coloured light lend a new perspective to the fort’s ambience and elegance.

Open from 7 pm till 10 pm, ‘Amber by Night’ offers a vibrant tour of Jaleb Chowk, Diwan-e-Aam, Mansingh Mahal and Sheesh Mahal to the visitors. The facility is enhanced with lights, fixtures, additional security and a café to provide a fulfilling experience to the visitors. According to Pankaj Dharendra, Superintendent of the Fort, the concept has received a good response with over 200 visitors every night. Some other monuments will also be opened for night viewing in the Pink City shortly.

With the extremely high daytime temperatures, night tourism will add a new dimension to tourism in the city. “With restaurants and coffee shops, it will be quite an experience not only for foreigners but also domestic tourists who come through the year and Amber Fort is definitely an attraction,” he toldThe Hindu. “The serene settings in the night are an experience unlike in the day when visitors are busy clicking photographs. Evenings are quite and peaceful,” he explained. Only some parts of the Fort are open at night as of now.

He said adequate security arrangements have been made for the visitors, particularly the aged and physically handicapped and power back up facilities. Last year, the footfall had been more than 14 lakh. With the Vasundhara government's focus on tourism promotion and heritage conservation, the government will introduce Rajasthan Heritage Conservation Bill in the ongoing Assembly session.

As per the Bill’s provisions, the government can declare any heritage property as protected on the basis of its social, cultural, and historical importance. This will include private property in which case the government will enter into an agreement with the owner. A State Heritage Council will also be set up under the Bill which will identify heritage properties in the State and make conservation and management rules for these.

- The Hindu, February 26, 2015

Delhi, at 180 square km, has the largest forest cover among metropolitan cities in the country. But despite this, experts said rapid urbanization has led to massive loss of natural conservation zones (NCZ) — water bodies, forests and wastelands — in Delhi. Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar in a written reply in Rajya Sabha, maintained that Delhi has the largest forest cover of all four metropolitan cities while the country’s green cover is over 23 per cent.

Last year, in a written reply to the Lok Sabha, Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu had quoted a National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB) study and said a massive decline of NCZ had taken place in Delhi, vis-à-vis those contained in the Regional Plan-2021, notified in 2005.

The NCRB had filed an affidavit to the National Green Tribunal (NGT) admitting to a loss of 15.34% in NCZ in Delhi since 2005. The NCRPB study, done in conjunction with National Remote Sensing Centre, used satellite images and showed that Delhi had lost 22.6 per cent of its water bodies, 15 per cent of its forests and 11 per cent of its wasteland.

“It is true that Delhi continues to have lush forests. Recently, we have learned that a male leopard has made the city’s forests its home. This is great news. But this doesn’t mean that all is well. Forest land is continually mowed down to make way for development in Delhi and its satellite cities,” a senior forest officer said. Mumbai has the second largest forest cover while Chennai has the lowest. “Information provided by the Ministry of Urban Development shows that forest cover of cities as per the respective master plans is Mumbai 86.57 sq km, Delhi 180 sq km and Chennai 24 sq km,” Javadekar said.

- The Indian Express, February 27, 2015

Actor Amitabh Bachchan, who has successfully powered the Gujarat Tourism campaign, and the fight against polio for UNICEF, is now batting for Mumbai’s heritage. Mr. Bachchan has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting him to send Mumbai’s nomination as India’s official entry for the UNESCO World Heritage Site list for 2015. The nomination letter has to be sent by the Centre by March 15 for the U.N. agency to review the dossier.

In a letter dated February 21, Mr. Bachchan said “I am writing to you to bring your attention the need to enhance Mumbai’s nomination for listing as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This nomination dossier for Mumbai’s pitch as a World Heritage Site entitled “Victorian Gothic and Art Deco Ensemble, Mumbai” needs to be officially endorsed by your government as India’s official entry for UNESCO World Heritage site for the year 2015.”

Mr. Bachchan also said that “as a loving Mumbaikar”, he has offered his services to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis during his recent conclave ‘Mumbai Next’ organised with the NGO Mumbai First.

“I shall be most grateful if this issue could have your compassionate consideration,” Mr. Bachchan said in the letter, which also attached a letter sent in January by Mr. Fadnavis to the PM. Each year, the deadline for submission of nomination dossiers to UNESCO’s Paris office by India through its permanent representative to the UNESCO is January 31. Mumbai was in contention for the nomination in 2014 too, but the Centre, then under the UPA regime, also sent the Delhi dossier. As India can only nominate one cultural site each year, Delhi was given preference in 2014.

The Mumbai dossier remained at the UNESCO’s Paris office and should have been the natural contender. But, the Cultural Ministry also despatched a dossier for Nalanda in Bihar before the January 31, 2015 deadline. With Nalanda dossier now in competition, Mumbai could again lose out on the prestigious UNESCO recognition.

That’s where Mr Bachchan’s letter to the Prime Minister, with whom he shares a personal rapport, could play a critical role in tilting the scales in favour of Mumbai. “There cannot be a better champion for Mumbai’s heritage than Mr. Bachchan. Several of his iconic movies, including the title sequence of Muqaddar Ka Sikandar shot on Marine Drive, showcase Mumbai’s heritage buildings in public memory,” conservation architect Abha Narain Lambah who prepared the Mumbai dossier told The Hindu.

- The Hindu, February 27, 2015