Fishing bill on hold

Government to consult fishers

Balangir's distressed migrants

From a resource-rich area to a metaphor for poverty, the Balangir district of Orissa has covered a long distance. Plausibly, it is this journey …

What’s derailing growth of solar energy in some US states?

Despite facing widespread opposition from people, Indiana legislators have been trying to slow the growth of solar for years

Draft wildlife bill to make life tougher for poachers, easier for industrialists

The draft, not yet in the public domain, proposes to turn the National Board for Wildlife, which can raise red flags against large industrial …

Lok Sabha passes Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Bill; paid leaves increase

Women with two surviving children will now be entitled to increased maternity leave from 12 weeks to 26 weeks

Parliamentary panel gives more teeth to Compensatory Afforestation Fund 

However the panel’s report tabled in this budget session misses the forests for the trees  

How to love farmers-the Modi way

Like its other policies, the BJP government's Land Acquisition Ordinance favours industry at the cost of farmers

A question of control

Karnataka's new panchayati raj law has sparked a debate, with the Congress government saying it gives the people more power and opposition …

Curbing selfish sprawl in Tamil Nadu hills

New legislation enacted by the Jayalalitha ministry seeks to contain ecological degradation in the state's hill stations by controlling …

Dolphin kills may provoke US ban

Colombo is at pains to clear itself of the UNEP charge that it is one of the world's five major dolphin catchers.

Ray of hope for transplant patients

A bill introduced during the last session of Parliament seeks to change the definition of death from when the heart stops beating to when the …

The business of environment

ENVIRONMENT PROFILES OF EUROPEAN BUSINESS Dion Vaughan and Craig Mickle Publisher: Earthscan Publications Ltd, London Price: Not mentioned

Filthy lucre

US's Democrats and Republicans break common bread over the fairness, or otherwise, of the Regulatory Reform Bill that could make industry …

A step forward

A new draft has been prepared by the Union ministry of environment and forests to draw up a legislation regulating the country's biodiversity. …

Tirade against toxins

There is no safe disposal of tonnes of hazardous wastes imported to India, observes the Supreme Court

Share-ware

A usual story: a transnational company develops a profitable product based on the resources and knoledge preserved by an indigenous community …

Battling against tobacco

Guatemala is exploring the possibility of legal action against multinational cigarette firms, the first such move by a country

A brigand called government

Whatever the outcome of the hostages crisis in Karnataka, stupid sandalwood protection laws will keep creating smugglers out of India's exploited …

Green levy plan scrapped

Andhra Pradesh government junks ecofriendly tax plan proposed for 15-year old polluting vehicles

Nepal squeezes forest users

The community forest user groups of Nepal will now be required to cough up a steep 40 per cent fee on their total income from sale of forest products

Karnataka hangs on to its sandalwood

The Karnataka government ostensibly allows private production of sandalwood, but actually maintains a tight rein on the trade. In fact, eight …

No truck with reason

It's a clear sell-out. The Union ministry of road transport and highways (MRTH) has given ground to truckers who ended their strike recently: the …

Suddenly tribal

Some wildlifers resorted to outdated anthropology to stop the tribal forest rights bill. They failed

Zurich’s Dr Dolittle is a lawyer

ANTOINE GOETSCHEL, 51, is a Swiss government advocate for animals. A specialist in animal welfare law for 25 years, he explained to SUMANA …

IN MURKY WATERS