Political
Sharing the wealth of minerals – A report by Centre for Science and Environment on profit sharing with local communities
Posted on 03 Jul, 2011 08:57 AMThe report submits the idea that proposal will go a long way in reducing poverty and deprivation in the mining affected areas. It states that the mining industry’s opposition to the proposal has no basis - statistics prove that sharing profits will not dent the industry’s profitability.
The central government has come out with a draft Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Bill, 2010 (MMDR Bill) to replace the 1957 Act. The draft bill which has been vetted by a GoM, includes this provision of sharing benefits. The CSE analysis comes out in strong support of this proposal, and clearly establishes how timely and necessary this provision is.
Mining companies and industry in general have been opposing the government’s recent proposal. Their contention is that this provision, if passed by Parliament, would drastically dent their profitability.
Biodrainage to combat waterlogging, increase farm productivity and sequester carbon in canal command areas of northwest India – A paper in Current Science
Posted on 02 Jul, 2011 03:46 PMThe rise in groundwater table followed by waterlogging and secondary soil salinization is a serious problem in canal-irrigated areas of arid and semi-arid regions. To combat the problem, an agroforestry model for biodrainage was tested in waterlogged fields of Haryana (northwest India), where 10 per cent area (0.44 m ha) is waterlogged resulting in reduced crop yields and abandonment of agricultural lands.
Launch of film 'Mercury in the Mist', NFSC, July 1, 2011, Chennai
Posted on 01 Jul, 2011 11:10 AMOrganizers:
India Water Portal is looking for Content Publishers - Apply by July 15, 2011
Posted on 30 Jun, 2011 05:31 PMDepartment for International Development India is looking for Economic Adviser at Delhi – Apply by July 15, 2011
Posted on 30 Jun, 2011 12:12 PMDFID India manages UK’s development programme worth £280 million per year, delivered in partnership with government, international organisations, private sector and civil society. Programmes with governments of Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Orissa, and the central government work on health, nutrition, education, governance, rural livelihoods, and urban sectors.
DFID India is also developing a programme that aims to enhance collaboration with India on key global and policy issues such as climate change, trade and food security and on poverty reduction in low income countries.
Himalayan solutions for cooperation and security in river basins : A report by Strategic Foresight Group
Posted on 29 Jun, 2011 07:03 PMThis report by the Strategic Foresight Group is a follow-up to its earlier report The Himalayan Challenge: Water Security in Emerging Asia, 2010 . The growing water stress, plans for dams on shared rivers, and uncertainties about the precise impact of climate change have brought water to the forefront of the political agenda of countries in the Himalayan River Basins.
The report recommends policy options for national governments as well as strategies which can be implemented by local authorities and community groups in a politically viable manner. Some of the ideas may on the surface appear to be addressing micro-level issues. However, such micro-level issues do have an important bearing on security at the macro-level in a large continent such as Asia. This is the experience of many other regions as well, as illustrated in several of the chapters in this report.
The objective of this report is to explore how river basins in the Himalayan region, and particularly shared water resources, can foster cooperation and security between Bangladesh, China, India and Nepal. The conventional view is that depleting water resources, growing problem of pollution, uncertain risks posed by climate change together may lead to competition for resources, migration, social instability, internal conflicts and diplomatic tensions between countries. This view is realistic and was discussed in detail in a previous report of Strategic Foresight Group. It has contributed to spreading the awareness of security risks associated with water crisis in the Himalayan region.
Ford Foundation calls for applications from documentary film makers seeking grant
Posted on 29 Jun, 2011 06:10 PMFord Foundation is on the frontlines of social change around the world, working with visionary leaders and organizations to change social structures and institutions—so that everyone has the opportunity to achieve their full potential and have a voice in decisions that affect them.
JustFilms will deepen the Ford Foundation’s support for hallmark documentary films. Building on 75 years of support for the visual arts, JustFilms will follow three distinct avenues for finding and supporting film projects that explore important social justice issues around the world.
Sanctuary Asia invites nominations for Sanctuary Wildlife Awards 2011 – Apply by October 31, 2011
Posted on 29 Jun, 2011 12:31 PMThe sanctuary wildlife awards were instituted to recognise the best in the field of wildlife conservation and to celebrate the unsung heroes of India who are defending her wildernesses and consequently safeguarding her food and water security.
The award categories includes:
- Lifetime service award - An individual whose life has been devoted to the protection of wildlife species or their habitats on the Indian subcontinent
NRAA invites EOI for empanelment of agencies with expertise in the area of RWH and water conservation – Apply by July 25, 2011
Posted on 29 Jun, 2011 12:30 PMNational Rainfed Area Authority (NRAA) has been created to harness and harmonise tremendous potentials of the rainfed agriculture by converting weaknesses into strengths and threats into opportunities by appropriate policies, programmes, professionalism, capacity building, monitoring and evaluation.
Why India is losing its war on hunger – A case study by Oxfam
Posted on 29 Jun, 2011 08:50 AMThe paper argues that the country needs urgent action to protect the universal right to food, prioritize land reforms, and sustainably revive agrarian productivity.
India is home to a quarter of the world’s hungry people. Since the green revolution, the country has produced enough to feed itself, but it has not yet been able to wipe out mass hunger, which haunts the landscape of the countryside and lurks in the narrow alleys of urban slums.
Currently, 40 per cent of the population is malnourished – a decrease of only 10 per cent over the past three decades. Poor families, who spend more than 60 per cent of their incomes on food, are increasingly struggling to stretch their meagre household budgets. Unfortunately, small farmers have not benefited from high retail prices either, as they usually receive far less for their produce. In fact in the past 15 years, in an unprecedented wave, a quarter of a million farmers crippled by debt have chosen to commit suicide.