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Himachal villages are first to claim forests rights, J&K's Russian poplars to be felled, Delhi's increasing appetite for power and India's battle with ill health

 
By DTE Staff
Published: Wednesday 15 July 2015

Himachal makes maiden claims under FRA

More THAN 100 villages in Himachal Pradesh have for the first time asserted their rights over community forests under the Forest Rights Act (FRA) of 2006. The forest rights committees of the villages have submitted their claims to the sub-division (block) level committees.

The move followed the Himachal Pradesh High Court order in April asking the government to remove any kind of encroachment in the forests of the state.

"Now that these claims have been made, we would urge the state government to implement FRA in the state before it starts evicting people," says Guman Singh, convenor of Him NitiAbhiyan, a coalition of various non-profits that is working to promote FRA in the state.

J&K to remove `unhealthy' Russian poplar trees

The JAMMU and Kashmir High Court has issued a fresh order asking for the removal of Russian poplar trees across the Kashmir valley. During summers, female poplar trees (populous deltoids) shed a cotton-like material carrying seeds that cause allergy and aggravate respiratory disorders. "The health of general public is of paramount importance than interest of individuals who plant poplar trees of Russian species," the court observed. It said that tehsildars would be responsible for ensuring compliance with the orders passed by deputy commissioners for felling of the trees. In response, the state government has said that "the order will take time to be implemented". In April, the court had issued another order that was not implemented, following which the court directed the government to implement the order at the earliest possible and wherever necessary.

Delhi is the most power-hungry metro

Delhi CONSUMES more electricity than the states of Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Chhattisgarh, Kerala, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, and all states of the North East, suggests the latest report by the Central government agency Central Electricity Authority. The report also highlights that the capital uses more power than all the other metros put together. It suggests that households are primarily responsible for the alarmingly high consumption of power. Delhi's household electricity consumption per capita is about 43 units per month against a national average of 25. This might be because the domestic power tariff in Delhi is the lowest among all metros.

IN COURT



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India's unhealthy story

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