The organisations which may see crackdown include People’s Union for Civil Liberties, Association for Protection of Civil Rights, CPI-ML Red Star and Revolutionary Youth Association, among others, the statement, with a letter addressed to the DGP of Jharkhand, said, insisting, the authorities must assure that no such witch-hunt will be carried out, and there is no attempt to raid and harass people opposing displacement.

On 20th September, 2023, certain news portals made a claim that state police and crime branch of Jharkhand government are initiating investigation into suspected Maoist link of 64 organisations, majorly comprising of organisations working on question of democratic rights, tribal rights, women, peasant and working class etc. The very next day, a joint statement was issued by some of the named organisations, to Director General of Police, Jharkhand; denying the allegations by clarifying their commitment to the democratic cause and the demands of the local people. The said statement also demanded clarification regarding the allegations made in the media report, however, no such clarification has been furnished by the police.

It is important to understand that in previous months, in an NIA raid probing so called “Maoist links” in Jharkhand, various anti-displacement and labour activists such as Damodar Turi, Bacha Singh and others were raided. They are targeted under the presumption that Visthapan Virodhi Janvikas Andolan (VVJA) is a “Maoist Front”. Furthermore, other activists raided along with Turi and Singh are founding members of Jharkhand Jan Sangharsh Morcha (JJSM). It is pertinent to mention that both of these joint fronts are named in the said media reports. Therefore, looking at the recent crackdown on anti displacement activists in Jharkhand; coupled with recent NIA Clampdown in Eastern Uttar Pradesh, slapping of UAPA on anti-displacement activists of Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti and arrests of Dozen of people protesting against rapacious mining and displacement in Mali Parbat ranges, Burhanpur in Madhya Pradesh and Kaimur Mukti Morcha in Bihar; all exposes state’s modus operandi in matters of anti-displacement movements. So it will not be an over assessment to say that building an atmosphere of crackdown might be underway in Jharkhand, in light of these media reports.

An atmosphere of crackdown might be underway in Jharkhand, in light of some media reports

What is even more concerning and eye opening is the naming of organisations like APCR, RYA, CPI-ML- Red Star who are known for working on various issues across the country and have separate ideological positions than the Maoists. Even more ironical is the naming of a Gandhian organisation like Ekta Parishad. The list is long and stretches across ideological and issue based spectrum. If the agencies are actually probing such allegations or if its even a “red scare” tactic, the list is so broad and encompassing ideological as well as organizational boundaries to make it evident that State is adamant to suppress any force that resists displacement and corporate loot. It is clear indication that no force will be spared in the state’s attempt to create “red scare” and brutal crackdown to increase the loot of our resources, by domestic as well as foreign corporates. The state is justifying the intensification these crackdowns and corporate loot simultaneously, all in the name of eliminating the Maoist Movement and development.

Forum Against Corporatization and Militarization (FACAM) demands that the DGP and Jharkhand government must issue a clarification on such claims, assure that no such witch-hunt will be carried out; and stop raiding and harassing the people opposing displacement. We also call upon all democratic progressive forces and justice loving people to stand united against such crackdown on anti-displacement movement to protect our resources, environment and the people’s livelihood.

Courtesy: CounterView

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Today the whole world is facing a health crisis created by the corona virus which has led to a pandemic situation since January and nobody, not even a group of scientists engaged deeply in research work to produce medicines for its treatment, knows when the crisis will end.

But it is possible that it could end in two years after the treatment becomes available. And it is a temporary crisis and may again reappear through a new virus as a result of destruction of deep forests along with its rich biodiversity which is natural shelter of zoonotic viruses.

Across the world, nation-states appear to be totally driven by the capitalist global market forces for profits, and profits are insensitive to the need of a cool earth, an unexpected side-effect of the lockdown due to reduction of air pollution. But countries are determined to enhance the drive of more use of fossil fuels extracting and exploiting natural resources through mining and destroying green forest. By this they are inviting the permanent pandemic which will be in the form of dangerous natural disasters by climate change.

This will pose a very serious threat, not only to human health, but also to nature, human existence as well as civilization. The nations like India, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi following the defiant empire like the USA under the presidentship of Donald Trump, arbitrarily forwards its economy through handing over the natural resources like coal and iron ores to the corporates who neither care for environmental justice nor for scientists warning of destruction by global warming.

The PM justifies the diversion of 41 coal blocks for commercial mining to private Indian and foreign Conglomerate of companies as a means to achieve ‘’Atma Nirbhar Bharat’’ or self reliance of India. But the move is totally opposite of its underlying rationale, action and consequence. Because the sovereign state like India as democratic, republic, socialist and secular, will be resourceless after a short time witnessing the ashes of destructive developmental fires and ultimately (we the people of India) can not claim as sovereign and republic.

The lockdown is not desirable for cooling the earth but the truth prevails in this period that the over polluted cities in the world have seen the clean blue sky, the return of migratory birds, the clean water in rivers and free journey of beautiful deer along with many such flora and fauna on the highways because of stoppage of vehicles consuming fossil fuel and chimneys of industries. In this experience it is learnt and felt that the reduction of greenhouse gases and diminishing extractive industries is the only way to save the burning earth as the mother to every human being and all living creatures.

The learning from Covid-19 lockdown is widely accredited that the less consumption is directly related to prevention of climate change, which is the outcome of high consumption by rich people, high resources exploitation by rich nations and opting for a high lifestyle by the middle class.

Last year 11,000 scientists, in a joint appeal to the heads of nations and the decision makers of every country, had urged to reduce unnecessary consumption, unmindful mining and unending industrialization which is responsible for dwindling non renewable resources and excess emission of carbon dioxide.

This pandemic lockdown should be taken as an opportunity to begin changing the present economic system and developmental paradigms to the sustainable development for achieving minimum needs for dignity of life to everyone without concentration of either natural resources or capital in the hands of limited people or corporates.

But the central government’s new economic package in the name of economic revival is a dangerous antithesis for mitigation or prevention of climate change. It is also fuel to the fire to destroy the livelihood system of the marginalised sections like tribals, Dalits, farmers and labour class who need small-medium industries, food processing, renewable energy for which the protection and conservation of land, forest and water resources and its development are necessary with priority.

This will open the gates for mass employment in every region of the country. The present auction of 41 coal blocks will destroy lakhs of acres of forest and agricultural land in Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. Hasdeo Arand, the longest forest area of 1,70,000 hectares has many ecological spots, elephant corridor and primary sources of water streams to river Hasdeo, a main tributary of River Mahanadi.

Similarly in Anugul and Jharsuguda districts of Odisha 33,000 acres of forest and agricultural land will be diverted and the mining activities will pollute and create water scarcity in river Brahmani which has been already vulnerable to industrial and mining activities. In Jharkhand there will be huge loss of livelihood system of tribal communities. In Maharashtra, a tiger sanctuary will be affected along with land of tribals. In Madhya Pradesh 11 coal blocks are to be auctioned whereas the state is surplus of power generation.

Anyone can point out the purpose of the central gov’t, especially the PM, that handing over such rich non renewable resources to the corporates is violating the principles, laws and restrictions and is subject to scrutiny.

In 2010 the ministry of MOEF had notified 60 thousand hectares as ‘’no go zones’’ and ‘’inviolate area’’ in forest areas of the country. It is a matter of deep concern that there are 11 such restricted zones among 41 coal blocks for destruction. Why this madness? Because these are areas in favour of blue-eyed corporate giants of the ruling boss. All these auctions of mines are fixed ignoring the Forest Protection Act 1986, Environmental Protection Act 1986, PESA of 1996, FRA 2006 and Land Acquisition Act 2013.

In this Covid period, the MOEFCC has cleared Dibang Valley Etalin hydropower project of 3097 megawatts dam in Arunachal Pradesh’s forest area of 1178 hectares which is natural habitat of more then 300 species of birds and mammals along with endemic goat, antelope. It has 2.8 lakh matured trees. The hydro-project above 25 MW was not considered as green energy but the government changed the criteria of limitations to unlimited, only to show the increasing amount of green energy.

India is a signatory to Paris Climate Agreement 2015 on which we have to reduce fossil fuel up to 30-35% till 2030 and have to strive for green energy like solar and wind. The Secretary General of the UN Antonio Guterres has said that the governments shouldn’t open new coal mines in lockdown and they should go for solar and wind energy production to maintain the quiet of the present atmosphere in this pandemic lockdown. The UN environmental chief Mrs Ingar Anderson also said to keep the deep Forest’s untouched to prevent viruses transfer to Human living regions. So if electricity generation is concerned, India has capacity of 4 lakh MW to produce but our maximum national consumption in last year was below 3 lakh MW for which 33 per cent plants have been closed for operation because of low demand.

For the coming 20 years the Indian gov’t has the responsibility to go for increasing green energy without stepping into new thermal projects. This is the conscience of any concerned citizen or a human being who is deeply involved in protection and conservation of non renewable resources as the primary source of livelihood of millions of people. Therefore, the alternative development as the need of the time awakens us that the arbitrary anti climate justice coal auction is unwanted, undesirable and unwise.

In addition to the said plights of coal mining in Odisha, green forest and cropland for another 9 iron ores blocks will be finished by the corporates in Keonjhar and Sundargarh districts. Notification for auction has been done. One of these, a very rich and deep natural forest of 9 lakhs saal trees in Dangalpada of Keonjhar district, has to be untouched for future generational equity. Neither the present gov’t, nor the future has the right to finish the non-renewable natural resources in which the future generations have right of inheritance as nature is not of any one’s property or made by any one or gov’t. To prevent global warming and to stop emissions of greenhouse gases not only the un-mindfull endless mining has to be stopped but also climate emergency directs to conserve the green forest, rich biodiversity and source of streams and rivers for ecological balance and climate justice.

If the people in power like the U.S President Donald Trump, President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil as defiant of science and nature’s retributions and the President of China or the Prime Minister of India are not prepared for environmental and economic justice to millions and millions of people, at least the concern people of conscience in various fields like education, science, sociology, agriculture forest and small medium scale industries have greater responsibility to create pressure through mass awareness to compel the gov’ts and political parties to accept the reality of dangerous permanent virus or climate disaster and opt for sustainable economy of minimum needs for simple dignified life for everybody but not for greed of a few rich.

*The author is President, Lokshakti Abhiyan Lohia Academy

Related:

Green Nobel winner Prafulla Samantara protests against ‘undeclared emergency’

NAPM demands that Centre immediately revoke the commercial auction of 41 coal blocks

Satyagraha with 12 hour fasting by Prafulla Samantara

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In March 2019, the Indian government has come up with a new National Mineral Policy (NMP) that replaced the earlier 2008 Policy.
 
The Policy lays a systematic foundation for the implementation of the Intergenerational Equity Principle.
 
“We have been arguing that we need to see minerals as a shared inheritance, great wealth that we must protect for future generations to inherit. As a corollary, mining is the sale of minerals, and in exchange for our mineral wealth we receive royalties and other amounts. These are erroneously treated as “revenue”, “tax” or “income” with grave consequences – the resource curse, climate chaos, Dutch disease, corruption, crony capitalism, growing inequality, etc,” a statement by the editors of “The Future We Need”Movement and Goa Foundation NGO organisation, an advocacy group for mineral rights, read.

India’s National Mineral Policy 2019 (NMP2019) acknowledges “natural resources, including minerals, are a shared inheritance where the state is the trustee on behalf of the people to ensure that future generations receive the benefit of inheritance.” “This and other languages in the policy reflects Goa Foundation’s advocacy and that of a larger campaign we coordinated across India. With this, three key ministries – finance, environment and mines – have accepted the shared inheritance perspective. The policy review was ordered by the Supreme Court following a discussion on implementation of Intergenerational Equity. The policy proposes a number of steps including a variety of caps on extraction and the need for #ZeroLoss. While we hope the government implements the policy, it also offers concrete grounds for further advocacy and public interest litigation,” they said. 

India’s policy may help other countries adopt a shared inheritance perspective. Earlier in January, Publish What You Pay held its General Assembly where Goa Foundation made a presentation on our advocacy messages. The General Assembly communique calls on “governments, companies and intergovernmental institutions including multilateral development banks to acknowledge and explore, where citizens demand this, the concept of oil, gas and minerals as a shared intergenerational inheritance”.
 
Key proposals of the National Mineral Policy 2019
 

• Proposes to increase the production of major minerals by 200 per cent in seven years, and reduce trade deficit in the mineral sector by 50 per cent in seven years.
• Aims to attract private investment through incentives like the financial package, right of first refusal at the time of auction etc. or any other appropriate incentive according to international practices.
• Introduces the concept of Exclusive Mining Zones which will come with in-principle statutory clearances for grant of mining lease.
• Emphasises on simplifying the clearance process and making it time-bound for mineral development and commencement of mining operations.
• Proposes to identify critically fragile ecosystems and declare such areas as “no-go areas”/ “inviolate areas”.
• Encourages merger and acquisition of mining entities, and transfer of mining leases that have been granted in a transparent manner to ensure a seamless supply of ores and scaling up of business.
• Focuses on a long term export-import policy for the mineral sector to provide stability for investing in large scale commercial mining activity.
• Proposes harmonising royalty and all other levies and taxes with mining jurisdiction across the world.
• Emphasises on ensuring the welfare of mining-affected people/communities and ensuring rehabilitation and resettlement, by a suitable implementation of all relevant Acts / Rules.
• Introduces the concept of Inter-Generational Equity in mineral resource exploitation.
• Proposes development of an over-arching inter-ministerial body, under the aegis of the Ministry of Mines, to institutionalise mechanisms of sustainable mining. The body will also advise the Government on rates of royalty, dead rent etc.

A new standard on Natural Resources is the highest priority in the final Work Plan 2019-2023 of the International Public Sector Accounting Standard Board (IPSASB). “This too is a result of advocacy by Goa Foundation and a global campaign coordinated by us,” the advocacy group said.

“At present, governments incorrectly treat royalties as “income”. Politicians love it – “easy money” which can be used to retain power. Naturally, minerals are extracted at a faster and faster pace. In reality, minerals are usually sold for very large losses – Australia lost 82% of the value of its minerals extracted over 2000-10, a total loss of USD 159 billion! This is a per-head tax of USD 7,000 on every Australian which made a few miners super-rich. Proper accounting would disclose these capital losses as government expenses. Politicians would have to explain to voters why they are selling the family silver for a pittance and consuming the proceeds, leaving nothing for future generations. The error in treating royalties as “income” instead of extraction of mineral wealth originates in the standard for GDP (UN SNA 2008), and is difficult to correct due to opposition from rulers of resource-rich nations and the macroeconomics community (as historical GDP, growth and per capita income series will change significantly, questioning a lot of what is thought to be settled,” they said.

“While the new IPSAS on Natural Resources will take years to agree and even longer to implement, the crucial first step has been taken. In a similar vein, we met with the IMF in August last year to discuss amending the other key standard, IMF’s Government Finance Statistics Manual 2014 (GFSM). Advocacy has begun with UN Statistics as well to correct the SNA 2008 (System of National Accounts) and the SEEA (System of Environmental-Economics Accounts),” they added.
 
The Future We Need is a global movement asking for natural resources to be viewed as a shared inheritance we hold as custodians for future generations. Whose Mine Is It Anyway is a campaign to make government finances and national income statistics treat mining as the sale of minerals.
 
The Goenchi Mati Movement is advocating these principles for all mining in Goa, India. A joint campaign is asking for these principles to be part of India’s National Mineral Policy.
 

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It doesn’t happen often but doesn’t it feel wonderful when occasionally your bank account gets credited by the government? Some of us will have enjoyed this sensation with our LPG subsidies (now withdrawn for many), or the occasional income tax refund.
 

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On 14^th July 2016, the Salem Magistrate's court dismissed Piyush's bail application while granting conditional bail to the other two activists. Sethia has been kept in solitary confinement since his arrest. Moreover, his wife and lawyer assert that Sethia is being subjected to physical and mental harassment and isn't allowed to receive reading material or speak to his wife and other visitors freely.

Furthermore, reports emerge that supporters of Sethia are being intimidated via phone calls to isolate him. Sethia's lawyer says, “he was beaten for a good half an hour before they sent him to solitary confinement”. Sethia then revealed to his lawyer that he was, “abused by a group of unknown persons numbering nearly 30 inside the prison several times”.

The custodial assault of Piyush Sethia and the brutality of Prison authorities has sparked an outcry amongst Civil Society groups. Several groups including the National Alliance of People's Movements and the Coalition for Environmental Justice have demanded the immediate release of Piyush Sethia and have pointed out the work which he has done in the past. This includes creating a cooperative forest in Dharmpuri, leading Salem Citizen's forum to revive water bodies in the area and protecting the natural resources in Salem and the surrounding areas. The Coalition for Environmental Justice have also written a letter to the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, demanding the immediate release and dropping of charges against Piyush Sethia and co-activists. The letter can be found here. 

NAPM's Press Release can also be found below: 

National Alliance of People's Movements (NAPM) condemns this complete arbitrary arrest of environmental activist Piyush Sethia, who has been a crusader for several national level issues including Bhopal Gas Survivors, rights of adivasis and founder of Salem Citizen's Forum. He has worked hard to change the face of the city Salem by organising citizens led efforts to revive lakes, forests, wet lands and so on and is know for his work of promoting alternative handicrafts and creating environmental awareness. 

His arrest on completely false charges can only be termed as political vendetta and an action by disgruntled officials who have been irked by several initiates Salem Ciizen's Forum has taken over years now. 

It's condemnable that he is being tortured in the prison and his bail plea too has been rejected on not tenable grounds, while other two arrested  along with him as has been granted bail. 
NAPM is writing to Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu demanding immediate release of Piyush and demands action against the officials who are guilty for not following the law and also for inflicting torture on Piyush. 

We stand in solidarity with Salem Citizen Forum, Piyush and his family in their struggle for the rights of the people and against environmental destruction. 

In solidarity,Medha Patkar – Narmada Bachao Andolan and the National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM); Prafulla Samantara – Lok Shakti Abhiyan & Lingraj Azad – Samajwadi Jan Parishad – Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti, NAPM, Odisha; Dr. Sunilam, Aradhna Bhargava – Kisan Sangharsh Samiti & Meera – Narmada Bachao Andolan, NAPM, MP; Suniti SR, Suhas Kolhekar, Prasad Bagwe – NAPM, Maharashtra; Gabriele Dietrich, Geetha Ramakrishnan – Unorganised Sector Workers Federation, NAPM, TN; C R Neelkandan – NAPM Kerala; P Chennaiah & Ramakrishnam Raju – NAPM Andhra Pradesh, Arundhati Dhuru, Richa Singh, Nandlal Master – NAPM, UP; Sister Celia – Domestic Workers Union & Rukmini V P, Garment Labour Union, NAPM, Karnataka; Vimal Bhai – Matu Jan sangathan & Jabar Singh, NAPM, Uttarakhand; Anand Mazgaonkar, Krishnakant – Paryavaran Suraksh Samiti, NAPM Gujarat; Kamayani Swami, Ashish Ranjan – Jan Jagran Shakti Sangathan & Mahendra Yadav – Kosi Navnirman Manch, NAPM Bihar; Faisal Khan, Khudai Khidmatgar, J S Walia, NAPM Haryana; Kailash Meena, NAPM Rajasthan; Amitava Mitra & Avik Saha, NAPM West Bengal; Bhupender Singh Rawat – Jan Sangharsh Vahini & Rajendra Ravi, Madhuresh Kumar and Shabnam Shaikh – NAPM, Delhi

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