Environment

Pune’s DJ Controversy, Ganeshotsav and Assault: The politics of who gets to make noise

The assault on Pune activist Vidyanand Bapat reveals how a demand for lawful, quieter festivals became entangled with political power, religious identity and intolerance of dissent

K’taka: fisher-folk take to the sea in defiance of Honnavar port project

Amid heavy police crackdown and government indifference, fishermen in Kasarkod stage protests, risking their lives to halt the controversial port survey

Noise Pollution Ban: Unequal standards for diverse practices?

The recent Bombay High Court judgment (23rd January 2025) addresses the contentious issue of the use of loudspeakers at places of worship and their legal standing under Article 25 of the Constitution. The case was initiated following complaints by residents about persistent noise pollution caused by loudspeakers from religious institutions (masjids), particularly during early morning and late-night hours. The court examined whether such practices constituted an essential religious function or merely a cultural practice subject to regulation under existing noise pollution laws. The court ruled that loudspeakers are not an essential part of religious practice and directed the Maharashtra government and police to take strict action against violations of the Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000. This ruling aligns with past judicial pronouncements while also raising questions about unequal enforcement of noise regulations across different religious communities.

Can the Swaraj path be India’s answer to climate change?

As climate change intensifies and the inadequacy of the...

From Madrid to Baku: A chronicle of inadequate climate action at UN Conferences

Why are international measures to mitigate Climate Change so slow and ineffective?

River Ganga, communities, cultures & livelihood: will Indians preserve its life-sustaining legacy?

The author’s simple point, addressed to the power elite is to stop destroying the identity of indigenous communities; a destruction of the Himalayas will bring unprecedented crisis to Gangetic plains in India and so, we must not do anything that escalates the crisis we already facing.

250+ activists from across India call for immediate release of Jammu and Kashmir’s environmental defenders

Support democratic and peaceful movements for safeguarding ecology in J&K and the entire Himalayan region says the detailed statement issued today

Detentions and intimidation of social and environmental activists in J&K arbitrary: NAPM

Expressing solidarity with recently detained Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) environmental activists,...

Faith v/s Environment: 17,600 trees felled in U.P. to pave way for proposed Kanwar Yatra route, fact-finding panel tells NGT 

The UP govt. plans to cut 33,776 trees in total for the controversial project, says joint committee; green tribunal directs govt. to clarify if number of trees to be axed has been calculated strictly in accordance with provisions of the Uttar Pradesh Protection of Trees Act reports The Hindu

Indian Coal Giants Pushed for Lax Pollution Rules While Ramping Up Operations

Senior Journalist Akshay Deshmane exposes how giant Indian coal companies influenced the Narendra Modi led Indian government to weaken pollution regulations and expand the sector

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Days of Demands, Hours of Protest: Swatantra Bhardwaj finally detained in assault case

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Pune’s DJ Controversy, Ganeshotsav and Assault: The politics of who gets to make noise

The assault on Pune activist Vidyanand Bapat reveals how a demand for lawful, quieter festivals became entangled with political power, religious identity and intolerance of dissent

Kishtwar Minor’s Rape Case: Selective societal outrage and price of being Gujjar in Kashmir

Recent rapes, assaults and deaths of women and girls from Kashmir’s Gujjar and Bakarwal communities, repressed in the region’s social order and relegated to servitude raises serious questions of gender and Adivasi (indigenous) persons right to life, dignity and access to equal health care

The Normalisation of Suicide at IITs: Institutional blindness and failure

The recent protest at the Lecture Hall of IIT Delhi where slogans of “Investigation, Compensation, and Resignation”, were raised by the student collective raises the crucial demand for redistributive justice, firstly demanding that the administration to recognise these deaths as the failure of institutions to recognise structural inequities, denials and cruelties.