40,000 trees have been cut in the Talabira village of Odisha’s Sambalpur district to make way for a coal mine, Down to Earth (DTE) reported.

The Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF & CC) gave Stage II clearance to divert 1,038.187 hectares of forest land for the project that is steered by the Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC) India Ltd in Jharsguda and Sambalpur on March 28, which involved the felling of 1,30,721 trees.

This is again a violation of forest rights of the village residents by NLC India Ltd which had signed a mine development and operator contract with the Adani Group in 2018. The forest has been protected by forest dwellers in the Talabira village, along with five other hamlets in the area. The residents had formed the Talabira Gramya Jungle Committee had appointed a guard to protect these forests and used to pay him three kilograms of rice per family.

“We have protected this forest for more than 50 years. Around 3,000 people are dependent on this forest which is around 970 hectares in area. Now, these trees are being cut down by the government for coal,” Hemant Kumar Raut, a resident of Khinda hamlet, told DTE.

No titles have been granted to people these forest dwellers under the FRA 2006 and this has proved to be the bane of their existence. The villagers who have been protecting this forest, have now been told that it belongs to the government and they will have no say in matters of what the government is going to do with it because they did not file for titles. Almost 60% of the population affected belongs to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

Despite it being the duty of FRA officials to create awareness among the people with regards to their rights, they have not completed their responsibility and this lack of legal recognition has led to the forest land being diverted. This, in spite of the government officials having given Rs. 74 lakh and Rs. 14 lakh to the Sambalpur and Jharsguda forest departments.

Kanchi Koli, senior researcher, Namati Environmental Justice Programme, Centre for Policy Research told the publication, “The FRA rules, 2012, require that the concerned officials raise awareness about the Act and its provisions. This is especially important if no claims are forthcoming and can enable the process of filing claims.”

Also, just like in Chhattisgarh where the government run Chhattisgarh Mineral Development Corporation (CMDC) obtained fake no objection certificates from the Gram Sabha to grab land for bauxite mining, villagers in Odisha claim that the district officials acquired a fake Gram Sabha letter indicating that the Gram Sabha had given its consent for the diversion of land.

Although the villagers had written to the collector and the secretary, there has been no action taken yet. A report by Counterview states that the region where the trees are going under the axe is one of the last big forest patches in an area surrounded by industries and mines and has the oldest and most established community forest protection.

The illegal deforestation carried out at Talabari was without the consent of the villagers saw the complicity of 10 platoons of police. They have now proceeded to the Patrapalli village and tree felling is expected to start there soon. The villagers in Patrapalli have been imprisoned in their own homes as the police has surrounded the area and cordoned it off barring any activity.

Earlier as well, the Supreme Court had cancelled the forest right titles of 13,851 families including 6,313 of the Ganjam tribals.

At a time where world leaders are discussing the repercussions of climate change at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP25) and at a time when India must rethink its approach to sustainable development, it is busy chopping trees, whether it be in Odisha, Jharkhand, Kashmir or Mumbai.

Related:

Chhattisgarh HC orders PSU to stop all mining activity
Thousands of Adivasis demand the implementation of FRA 2006
Compilation of Forest Rights Act, Rules, and Guidelines
Odisha govt cancels forest applications of over 6000 tribal families
In Jharkhand, Forest Rights Could Decide Votes In 77% Assembly Seats
Odisha govt cancels forest applications of over 6000 tribal families
Aarey: Trees Felled in the Dead of the Night

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Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) has asked the Lucknow Nagar Nigam (LNN) via a letter to remove 63,799 trees from Hanuman Setu to the Nishatganj bridge to make space for the DefExpo 2020, IANS has reported.

The land is set to be cleared of trees by January 15 of the coming year, after which it will be handed over to Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) which will be hosting the event.

In his letter, LDA secretary M P Singh has said that they had spent Rs 59.06 lakhs on planting the trees along the Gomti River.
 

DefExpo India

The DefExpo is organised by India so as to have Business-to-Business (B2B) as well as Government-to-Government (G2G) interactions in relation to the defence sector on an international level. It will be held from February 5 to 8 around the theme ‘India: The Emerging Defence Manufacturing Hub’ with special focus on ‘Digital Transformation of Defence.’

It is a massive defence manufacturing outreach program that is being organised to showcase the latest arms and weapons available with the Indian defence forces.

Uttar Pradesh has been ramping up on its defence industrial infrastructure, which is likely the reason for choosing Lucknow as the host of the event. It has four units of Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd and nine ordnance factory units.

Earlier in November, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had said the event will showcase the government’s intent to achieve a turnover of USD 26 billion in aerospace and defence goods and services by 2025.
 

Lucknow’s deteriorating air quality

The Uttar Pradesh capital ranks fourth in the list of the most polluted cities in India. At the time of publication, Lucknow’s Air Quality Index (AQI) is at an alarming 288 when “good” AQI is considered to be between the 0 to 50 range.

On November 4, the Lucknow Trade Board reportedly distributed masks to people in prominent areas of the city after the air in the state capital continued to remain toxic.”

With the rising winter chill, fog that engulfs the city is likely to mix the particulate matter and worsen the air quality futher. Environmentalist Venkatesh Dutta said, “Immediate measures are needed as with the fall in temperature, there is a spike in pollution by around 50 units every day.

The Central Pollution Control Board reported that the increased particular matter causes an increase in different health issues such as respiratory problems, liver fibrosis, lung/liver cancer, heart strokes, and bone problems. Live Mint has reported on a number of people simply collapsing breathing the air and being taken to emergency to put on oxygen masks.

Related:

Who is Responsible for the Current Climate Crisis in Delhi?
Env Min pitches ‘Urban Forest’ to counter pollution
The BSF have left the 300 plus livestock to die a slow death
India saw most pollution-linked deaths of children under 5 in 2016: WHO

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