Ramesh seeks archaeological survey of Gujarat forest

Union Environment and Forests Minister Jairam Ramesh has urged Gujarat to undertake a thorough archaeological survey of the Girnar reserve forest, which is home to the Asiatic lion, as it could contain historical relics.

In a letter addressed to Chief Minister Narendra Modi dated April 21, the minister has pointed out that he was giving the advice on the suggestion of noted historian from the Delhi University, Nayanjot Lahiri, who recently visited the reserve forest and found the remnants of two stupas, possibly of Mauryan dynasty heritage.

According to Lahiri, many loose bricks were also found around it indicating there could have been other stupas in the vicinity.

‘Therefore, it is urgent, that there is a complete survey of the stupa with accurate line drawings and photographs followed by careful archaeological conservation,’ the minister said.

Green bona fides?

Minister for environment and forests Jairam Ramesh has said he was under ‘pressure’ to overlook violations of environmental norms while clearing certain projects. He has not named the projects which he was reportedly forced to give his nod to. However, one can surmise this could have happened in relation to those projects he turned down initially, only to give his assent eventually.

That the minister was under tremendous pressure from ministries such as mines, surface transport, etc that are keen to green signal projects to boost ‘development’ was never in doubt. What is problematic about Ramesh’s candid confession, however, is that it raises questions over the depth of his commitment to the cause of environment. If he is indeed convinced that environmental regulations are being violated, why did he waver and give in? He should have dug in and convinced his ministerial colleagues with strong arguments.

Had he been really convinced over the violations, he should have stepped down on a matter of principle, rather than give his assent and then grumble. Huffing and puffing on environmental issues is not enough. One needs to run with the issue till the very end. With his revelation Ramesh has indicated, sadly, that he lacks the stamina to run the marathon on environment issues.

Ramesh has infused the environment ministry with a new energy. This was a ministry that had become largely irrelevant over the past decade. Ramesh not only raised its profile, but also has pushed environmental issues to the fore of public discussions. He has rightly argued that we cannot deforest or pollute our way to prosperity.

Yet, with his confession that he buckled to pressure on several projects, it does seem that these arguments were empty bluster aimed at scoring points with activists. Was Ramesh’s passionate espousal of the cause of India’s dwindling forests, its tigers and magnificent marine life only confined to rhetoric?

Ramesh will find that giving the go-ahead to projects that violate norms will not be problematic if he assiduously implements the ‘polluter pays’ principle. That is, if a mining project envisages destruction of forest land, it will be given the green signal only if it engages in reforestation, rehabilitation and so on in a way that it undoes all the damage done. That way, neither Ramesh nor the public will regret his green signalling development projects.

Article By : Sanctuary Asia 

The Politicisation of Forest India

This article  by: Bittu Sahgal Sir, sanctuary asia.


People who claim that people and animals can co-exist should wake up and smell the forest. It's burning.

Yes it is possible for dense wildlife populations to live with very thin human populations. Yes it is possible for dense human populations to live with very thin wildlife populations (not the large carnivore variety). But the recent trend of social activists to suggest that tiger reserves be turned into raw material sources for markets, with forest dwellers harvest, transporting and supplying all manner of goods from tendu patta and mahua flower to bamboo, sand and stones to urban middle men, is just plain suicidal. This is neither going to enrich any forest dwellers nor benefit wild species, which will just vanish, as they have been vanishing from every human dominated landscape in the past 50 years.

Neverthless, this much is true. The rural constituency is vital to the future of wildlife. And forest dwellers living OUTSIDE our protected area network should be the first beneficiaries of all economic inflows and outflows. But this should be for livelihoods that enhance the ecosystem, not deplete it. Sanctuary has been trying for some time to communicate this concern with those who champion the Forest Rights Act, but with little success.

The truth is that villages next to wildlife areas do bear the brunt of conservation costs, yet no policy offers them sustenance for saving wildlife, only for exploiting bamboo, or tubers, or tendu patta etc., which is a lose-lose proposition and has never enriched anyone but the tendu barons, or the timber mafia, or the stone and sand mafia.

Yet social activists, who are otherwise decent and honest, seem unwilling to accept the fact that turning forest dwellers into conduits for unlimited urban demand condemns them to the loss of their resource base and a life of permanent serfdom. This is why the Prime Minister's Office and the National Advisory Council keeps coming up with more and more populist schemes (the latest being permission to harvest bamboo from forest that the tiger needs) at the cost of our ecological security.

Meanwhile as this politicisation of forests continues apace, social activists continue to bask in the belief that it is their 'power and brilliance' that is helping them win the day against the 'wildlife wallahs'.

Without forests, where is the question of forests rights?

Forest dwellers and those living around forests should have GUARANTEED employment and livelihoods, but not as conduits to supply forest biomass to bottomless markets. They should in fact be recognised officially as ecosystem farmers - caregivers for Intensive Conservation Units (ICUs) who are respected across the world, whose food, water, health, education and financial well-being should become our national objective. Unfortunately, many human rights activists and social workers whose understanding of the ecological imperative is not quite up to scratch, believe that turning such communities into channels that end up feeding gluttonous urban demands amounts to offering them legitimate livelihoods, even though this ends up exhausting their larder and driving them to penury in the long run. Here is one such example of tendu, Diospyros melanoxylon, which even the most sensible activists continue to champion in a most senseless way:

BY : Bittu sehgal Sir, sanctuary Asia,

Tiger population rises on the back of conservation efforts

The tiger population in the country has risen to 1,706 in 2010 from 1,411 in 2006, the latest Tiger Census released today said, thanks to sustained conservation efforts.


The census, which was the most comprehensive and scientifically conducted exercise so far, used cameras installed at strategic points like water bodies in forests, as also in respective territories of big cats.

Computers were used to analyse and collate the data.

The 2006 Census had shown a sharp fall in the number of tigers in ‘protected areas’ - reserves, national parks and wildlife sanctuaries - in 19 states across the country.

According to it, India had only 1,411 wild cats left in its forests.

Whale shark tagged with satellite collar off Gujarat coast

The whale shark was listed under Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act in 2001, according it the highest level of protection.
For the first time in India, a whale shark has been tagged with a ‘satellite collar’ to track the migration routes, behaviour and ecological preferences of this member of the largest fish species in the world.


The satellite tag was put on the fish last week by a team of researchers from the Whale Shark Conservation Project, a joint venture of the Gujarat Forest Department and Wildlife Trust of India (WTI).

According to WTI Assistant Field Officer, Manoj Matwal, another whale shark will be tagged by mid-May.
“The first set of data received indicated that the tagged whale shark, a 6.5 m long male rescued off the Gujarat coast, had reached the coast of Maharashtra moving southward,” Mr. Matwal told PTI.

“We plan to install a similar satellite tag on another whale shark, preferably a female, by mid-May as after that they are not seen off the Gujarat coast,” he said.

“For the second tagging, we are exploring the sea near Veraval and Sutrapada in Junagadh district where the spotting (of whale shark) has been good.”

Satellite-tagging is the latest initiative under the Whale Shark Conservation Project. Earlier there have been efforts to do photo-identification, genetic analysis and visual tagging of whale sharks in India.

“The satellite tag, which is a marine equivalent of a satellite collar, was attached to the caudal fin of the fish.
Data from the tag is transmitted to the satellite every time the fish surfaces,” Mr. Matwal said.

“This tag is expected to last for about six months and give us data related to movement of the fish, its preference in water temperature, diurnal and nocturnal activities and swimming patterns between different layers of water.”

The success of tagging was confirmed after receiving the first signal 68 hours after the tag was fixed.
“The signal was received 250 km off the coast of Mumbai, revealing that it had travelled southward,” Mr. Matwal said.

Over the coming months, researchers would be closely following the movement patterns of the whale shark.
During the tagging operation, WTI also collected a tissue sample of the fish for genetic analysis.

The whale shark was listed under Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act in 2001, according it the highest level of protection.

Whale shark is the largest fish species in the world with a flattened head, and a wide mouth positioned at the tip of the snout that stretches almost as wide as the body. The creatures are greyish, bluish or brownish above, with an upper surface pattern of creamy white spots between pale, vertical and horizontal stripes.

Whale sharks were once hunted off the Gujarat coast for its liver oil, which was used to water-proof boats. But after initiation of Whale Shark Conservation Project in 2008, the local fishermen have been made aware of the importance of the fish, and they now participate in conservation activities.

by :The Hindu

Lioness killed by crocodile?

Lake, Where Carcass Was Found Floating, Has Crocodiles
A nine-yearold lioness may have been killed in a crocodile attack, suspect forest officials. This is the second big cat to die in the last two days in Khambha, the eastern part of the Gir sanctuary.

On Sunday morning, the forest department found the lioness’ carcass. Primary investigation revealed that the lioness could have died due to drowning as the carcass was found floating in the pond. The possibility of poisoning was ruled out as the carcass had not turned black.

R L Meena, conservator of forest said that the recovery of the carcass floating in the lake, which is about 150-metre long reveals, shows that the animal may have drowned. He said that the lake also has some crocodiles; hence, the possibility of a crocodile attack cannot be ruled out. However, only a post-mortem would reveal the exact cause of death.

In a similar incident a lioness was found dead in the same area on Saturday. The officials said that it had died of old age.

Meena, however, added that a major cause of worry for forest department was that same water hole was being used by wild as well as domestic animals. He said that the post-mortem report of a lion revealed that the death was due to infection of worms. “There was large presence of worms in the animal which were commonly found in domestic animals,” said Meena. This was only due to sharing of a water hole by the lion and some domestic animals.

By : TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Second chargesheet filed in Amit Jethava murder case

Ahmedabad:The city crime branch on Friday filed a voluminous supplementary chargesheet in the RTI activist Amit Jethava murder case. The report was filed after the arrest of the sixth accused Shailesh Pandya, who is a sharpshooter.

One Bahadursinh Rathod, who is believed to have helped the accused persons in carrying out illegal mining activities in the prohibited Gir sanctuary, has been shown as an absconder in the chargesheet. The investigating agency has been maintaining that Pandya had fired on Jethava on July 20, last year in front of the Gujarat high court campus.

They were chargesheeted last year. Pandya was arrested after the first chargesheet was filed. Jethava was killed after he filed a PIL in the high court against illegal mining activities in the Gir sanctuary.

During a hearing on Jethava’s PIL earlier this week, the high court expressed satisfaction over the state government’s actions to curb illegal mining and the judges proposed to dispose of the petition. On getting a nod from the counsel of Jethava’s family, the high court disposed of the PIL.

Meanwhile, Jethava’s father moved the high court demanding CBI probe in the murder case. This petition is pending in the high court.