Set up special farm zones a la SEZs: Swaminathan

 
Agriculture scientist M.S.Swaminathan called for setting up Special Agricultural Zones (SAZs), on the lines on the much-touted Special Economic Zones (SEZs), to achieve food security and food sovereignty through sustainable farm practices. As in the case of SEZs,special incentices and support must be given to farm facilities in SAZ areas so that the country could usher in a second Green Revolution, he said. The guiding priciples of the SAZs were preservation of ecology, optimization of economic and social benefits, equity, creation of additional jobs and energy conservation. The concept would help to realize the unta
piped potential of rainfed areas and ensure national nutrition security and food sovereignty.


(The Hindu, 24th April 2007)

Tsunami early warning system by September

 
An early warning system about tsunami and storms in the Indian Ocean will be functional in Hydrabad by September, said a Senior Union Home Ministry official at a national conference on disaster management convened here to review monsoon preparedness. Being set up at the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services in Hydrabad, the system will generate and issue timely and reliable warnings. The Department of Ocean Development is the nodal agency to set up the tsunami warning system in the Indian Ocean said Secretrey (Border Management) in the Union Home Ministry U.N.Panjiar.

Mr.Panjiar called upon the States to introduce systems to facilitate quick information management during natural calamities and to alert authorities concerned during disasters. The State should also set up their own search and rescues teams, which should be given specialized training and necessary equipment. These teams could cater for the needs of other States also during crisis.
(The Hindu, 24th April 2007)

Pathrakadavu will spell disaster for Bharathapuzha:DFO report

 
The proposed 70-MW Pathrakadavu hydroelectric project will be disastrous to the already degraded Bharathapuzha,according to the Forest official in charge of Silent Valley National Park. Divisional Forest Officer for Mannarkkad and Silent Valley, K.V,Uthaman, sounds this warning in a report to his department assessing the environmental impact of proposed hydroelectric project to be located just on the fringes of the National park.

As reported in The Hindu from Palakkad on April 21, the report says, "the first and foremost impact (of the project) will be on the long-term viability of the existing Silent Valley National Park". The report goes on to say that damming the Kunthipuzha for the project will be the last nail on the coffin for the Bharathapuzha, since the Kunthipuzha is one of the few surviving perennial streams emptying into the river. The proposed hydroelectric project is to be located on the southern flank of Silent valley plateu about 400meters up the base of te steep slope and 800 meters below the crest. Thirteen streams originate from this flank. Their channel conditions and the vegetation on their banks indicate that they were perennial in nature in the past. Most of these streams dry up in summer due to the forest degradation that had taken place in recent years. The report says that the proposed dam at Pathrakadavu and seven kilometer winding road to be constructed up the steep slope to the site of the dam, involving heavy earth work, would spread damage over a very large patch of forests in this fragile region, killing the stream that feed the Bharathapuzha.

(The Hindu, 24th April 2007)

State should go in for hydroelectric projects: Balan

 
Electricity Minister A.K.Balan saidthat Kerala would be plunged into darkness if it did not go in for hydroelectric projects. The State produced only half its requirement, he said. the Minister said the Government had received sanction to start 33 hydel project. It took more than 10 years to get various clearance for the Athirappilly project, he said.These projects when completed will generate 500 MW power. The Minister said 250 MW would be produced from wind energy during the next four years of the LDF Government. The delay in getting sanction for hydel project was on account of opposition from environmental groups and other technical reasons. Any project takes more than 10 years to get sanction.


(The Hindu, 20th April 2007)

Greens to oppose Pathrakadavu project

 
Environmental organizations have called a meeting at Mannarkkad town on Sunday to chalk out plans to oppose the Pathrakadavu hydroelectric project. The project will pose serious threat to efforts to conserve the unique rainforests of Silent Valley, they said." The project is being taken up as an alternative to the Silent Valley hydroelectric project that was dropped in the late seventies in the face to stiff resistance from environmentalists and a worldwide campaign to protect the forests as natural heritage," Director of 'One Earth One Life' Tony Thomas said.
He said that the main left bank wall of the pathrakadavu project dam formed the Nilikkal boundary of Silent valley park, contrary to the claim of the KSEB that it would be constructed at Pathrakadavu, far down stream of the Pathrakadavu waterfall.

(The Hindu, 22nd  April 2007)

Tourism project at Maniyar Dam soon

 
Water Resources Minister N.K.Premachandran said that an integrated tourism project, having Maniyar Dam as base, would be launched soon. The project would be launched jointly with Tourism and Irrigation Departments.Boating, garden, ropeway and specially-made accommodation facilities in tune with the ecology of the area will be offered to the tourists in the first phase,the Minister said.

(The New Indian Express,21st  April 2007)

Krishnapuram Athirthi Chira to get face lift

 
Glad news for the lovers of Onattukara culture and traditions who cherish the historic edifices left over by the Kayamkulam kingdom and those who value the importance of a place like Krishnapuram. The age-old Athirthi Chira at Krishnapuram, near Kayamkulam, the place where the horses of the Kayamkulam kingdom were given a bath according to the legend, will be converted into a cultural tourist center by the State Government. The Athirthi chira, which is situated at a Stone's throw from the Krishnapuram palace known for its Gajendra Moksham paintings, will have a newfound look once the cultural tourist center project is completed.


(The New Indian Express,21st  April 2007)

Found:Wattieza, the world’s oldest tree known

 
Fossil hunters in the U.S.have found the world's oldest known tree, a palm-like giant of a species called a Wattieza that lived some 380 million years ago. The discovery resolves a riddle that has dogged paleo-botaniosts for 137 years and sheds light on how forests slowly yet powerfully sculpted the earth's landscape, the team reports in Nature, the weekly British science journal.
The Wattieza hails from the Middle Devonian period, from 397 to 385 million years ago, which was a critical time in the evolution of early land plants. The middle Devonian was an incubator era, giving rise to a whole range of productive strategies among plants and the precursors of leaves for photosynthesis

(The Hindu, 20th April 2007)

Triphala- a new hope for cure of pancreatic cancer

 
One of the most commonly used herbal formulations in India, 'triphala' has the    potential being a very effective weapon against pancreatic cancer. Latest findings of a research being carried out at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, Pensylvania, have shown that triphala prevented or significantly slowed down the growth of pancreatic cancerous cells implanted in mice.The study was carried out by a team led by Sanjay Srivastava, an assistant professor in pharmacology at the Pittsburgh University, and the results were presented at the annual meeting of the American Association of Cancer Research held on Los Angeles the other day "Triphala trigerred the cancerous cells to dies off and significantly reduced the size of tumors  without causing any toxic side effects" Srivastava said.

(The New Indian Express,20th April 2007)

Form Biodiversity heritage sites

 
Having started implementing the provisions of the biological diversity Act, the State Government now has to get to the task of identifying and declaring biodiversity heritage sites. S.Kannaiyan,Chairman,National Biodiversity Authority said the authority was now looking forward to the State Government forming biodiversity heritage sites with as much zeal as it had shown in initiating biodiversity conservation measures envisaged under the Act. The legislation on Biodiversity, enacted in 2002 contained provisions for forming the sites. The heritage sites would be different from the places declared, "protected zones" by the Forest departments under the provisions of Wildlife protection act. The term " Heritage site" covered both wild and domesticated biodiversity and human cultural relations with such biodiversity.

(The Hindu, 19th April 2007)

Green Marxist succumbs to ‘power’ needs

 
Chief Minister V.S.Achuthanandan, the green man among the hardcore Marxist stalwarts in the state, has finally succumbed to the pressure for 'power' and cleared the Pathrakkadavu hydro-electric project, which he used to fight against in the past. However, deliberately, or not, the Chief Minister uttered not a single word regarding the Cabinet's decision to give administrative sanction to the Rs.247-crore project that has been kept under the carpet for this long for fear of protest from environmentalists and some other hurdles.

The project proposal was prepared by the KSEB way back in 2003, but the then UDF Government decided to soft pedal in the project waited for the Forest Department's opinion over the project. Present Chief Secretary Lizzie Jacob who was the Power Secretary at that time was instrumental in adopting a sluggish attitude towards the project.


(The New Indian Express,19th April 2007)

Gujarat appoints permanent panel to protect Asiatic lions

 
Following the poaching of Asiatic lions in their only abode, the Gir sanctuary in the Saurashtra region of Gujarat, the State Government has appointed a permanent 10-member committee of experts for the conservation of the endangered species. The State committee comes close on the heels of the Centre appointing one. The team visited here inspected the carcass of a lion recovered in the Babariya range, questioned the settlers in the sanctuary and held discussions with the forest officials.The State committee to be headed by the Principal Secretary in the Environment and Forest Department, P.N.Roy Choudhary, would keep reviewing the security systems from time and recommend necessary measures.
The forest department have identified two areas within the state Barda in Amreli district and Higolgadh near Rajkot, which they feel could be developed as "Safari park" both for protection of the lions and development of tourism

(The Hindu, 18th April 2007)

Pulitzer for Usha McFarling

 
Indian-American science journalist Usha Lee McFarling is among a Los Angeles Times team that won a Pulitzer prize for Explanatory Reporting, Usha,whose mother is from Punjab, and photographer Rick Loomis teamed with reporter Kenneth R.Weiss to produce the five-part 'Altered Oceans'which revealed how mankind killed sea life by polluting it.

(The New Indian Express,18th April 2007)

E-District project for two districts

 
The Union Ministry for Information Technology has identified Pathanamthitta and Kannur for implementing the people friendly e-District project in the current financial year. According to Pathanamthitta Collector Ashok Kumar Singh, The National Informatics Centre's district unit has already submitted the draft project proposal as requested by the Union Ministry.

The project is part the National e-governance Plan(NeGP) to cover local high volume services, thus taking the total number of Mission Mode Projects(MMPs) under the plan to 27. The project is being implemented as an integrated sector project through the State Governments. Each district will get approximately Rs. 5 crore for its implementation. The center has formulated the NeGP with a view to prviding all Government services in an integrated manner at the doorstep of the citizen at an affordable cost.

(The Hindu, 17th  April 2007)

NGO for ban on incandescent bulbs

 
Greenpeace, a Non Governmental Organization has called for a ban on the use of the incandescent light bulb to combat climate change and the energy crisis in the country. It wants these "inefficient" bulbs to be phased out from India by 2010. Launching a campaign here the NGO said it would also impress up on the Government the need for a national legislation to phase out yellow bulbs and promote the use of compact fluorescent (CFLs). "Changing a bulb is a small step for each of us, but if all of us decided to do so together, we can reduce India's carbon dioxide emissions and contribution to climate change by 4 percent which is as much as the entire carbon dioxide emission of a country like Denmark" K Srivivassan of Greenpeace told reporters.

(The Hindu, 17th  April 2007)

Amur tiger back from the brink

 
After a century in which its numbers have dwindled to the point on extinction, the Amur tiger, the largest cat in the world, has made an improbable recovery. According toWWF, the tiger's population is at its highest level for 100 years.The latest census of the tiger, which hides in an isolated region near the Chinese border, shows there are between 480 and 520 animals surviving in the wild. In the 1940s the sub-species had nearly died out, with around 40 tigers left. Most experts put its chances of survival as little higher that the dodo's. Yuri Darman, Head of WWF Russia's far—east office, said the tiger's comeback was good news. But he warned that the species remained critically endangered and was at imminent risk if S\China succeeded in lifting the global ban on tiger products at the Global Tiger Forum in Kathmandu.


(The Hindu, 16th  April 2007)

Adventure zones at eco-tourism spots

 
Eco-tourists in the state will soon get a pinch of the real adventure in nature's lap with the Directorate of Eco-tourism thinking beyond river-crossing and rock –climbing. The Directorate has joined hands with the National Adventure Foundation(NAF) to introduce adventure zones of national standards at eco-tourism spots in the state.

To begin with, an adventure zone would be developed at Thenmala Ecotourim Village at Kollam for which a feasibility study is currently being done by the NAF officials.  NAF, a registered organization, has been promoting adventure sports among youth to make them capable of dealing with natural hazards and hurdles. As a starter the Directorate of Eco – tourism had implemented adventure sport 'flying fox'(almost like walking inside a transparent balloon) at Thenmala. Goan banan, Sky walk, air swings are all under the consideration of the Directorate.
The directorate also plans to set up treetop huts in the model of those put up in Wayanad and Edaikal.

(The New Indian Express,15th April 2007)

Project launched to clean Parvathy Puthanar

 
The Government has launched a project to clean up the polluted Parvathy Puthanar canal and the downstream areas of Karamana River. An amount of Rs.4 crore has been earmarked for the project, which involves dredging and opening up the sandbar to let out the polluted water from the canal.

The operation was launched at the Cheriyamuttam coast in Poonthura under the programme to revive the Kovalam-Kollam section of the National Waterway. The Irrigation department is using mechanized equipment to cut open the sandbar. Coastal erosion and the heavy metal pollution of the canal had made life miserable fro the residents. The contamination of the scenic backwaters poses a threat to the tourism industry in the area.

(The Hindu, 15th April 2007)

Tiger monitoring protocol to be introduced in Thekkady

 
Periyar Tiger reserve (PTR) will introduce integrated tiger monitoring protocol by which monitoring of tigers will become a daily affair. Under the protocol, an integrated effort involving camera traps, observation of pugmarks, reading of direct tiger sighting using Global Positioning System(GPS) and monitoring of the prey base of tigers will be made to keep track of the big cat.

The Wildlife Institute of India had suggested introduction of the protocol, which will be introduced after the first monsoon showers, said Padma Mahanti, Deputy Director, PTR. The PTR recently procured 40 camera traps for observing the tigers. Once the camera traps are installed, the entire stretch of the reserve will be covered. Ten camera traps have already been installed. A tiger monitoring team comprisisng 12 tribal yopuths belonging to Mannan, Paliya and Ooralis have been trained in installing camera traps and the GPS. There are indications that tiger population might be go up in PTR. According to the last census the population can be between 36 and 40 in the PTR.


(The Hindu, 9th April 2007)

Tiger monitoring protocol to be introduced in Thekkady

 
Periyar Tiger reserve (PTR) will introduce integrated tiger monitoring protocol by which monitoring of tigers will become a daily affair. Under the protocol, an integrated effort involving camera traps, observation of pugmarks, reading of direct tiger sighting using Global Positioning System(GPS) and monitoring of the prey base of tigers will be made to keep track of the big cat.

The Wildlife Institute of India had suggested introduction of the protocol, which will be introduced after the first monsoon showers, said Padma Mahanti, Deputy Director, PTR. The PTR recently procured 40 camera traps for observing the tigers. Once the camera traps are installed, the entire stretch of the reserve will be covered. Ten camera traps have already been installed. A tiger monitoring team comprisisng 12 tribal yopuths belonging to Mannan, Paliya and Ooralis have been trained in installing camera traps and the GPS. There are indications that tiger population might be go up in PTR. According to the last census the population can be between 36 and 40 in the PTR.


(The Hindu, 9th April 2007)

Is Gir going the Sariska way

 
Gir Sanctuary is on the way as Sariska in Rajasthan, the heaven of tiger, the recent census shows. Wide spread poaching is the latest challenge for Gir sanctuary, it seems to hunted six lions in their den in the past 23 days, with skinned carcasses, missing claws and bones.
According to 2005 census, total number of living Asiatic Lions stands at 359. Nineteen lions have died since May 2005. Already marred by problems including widespread dispersion-with total 94 lions located in revenue area, staff shortage, in adequate equipment, open wells and electrifying fences - poaching is the latest challenging for Gir Sanctuary. Security too is one of the major concerns. As many as seven highways run into more than 100km a 15km meter gauge train tack and several roads pass through the sanctuary. Also entry to pilgrimage places like Kankai and Tulsishyam is unchecked.

(The New Indian Express, 3rd April, 2007)