Mining – India 1
1. Environment ministry set for revamp 1
2. Andhra NoC to Nalco for mining lease 2
3. ArcelorMittal coal miners protest in Kazakhstan 3
4. Global Alumina Announces Commencement of Substantial Issuer Bid 4
5. Vedanta's India bauxite mining to begin by October 4
6. T N Ninan: Auction mining rights 5
7. Latha Jishnu: Killing them ever so softly 5
8. Bangalore: Lokayukta Report on Illegal Mining: Govt to act against Nine Officials 8
9. Oppn attacks BJD for "illegally" leasing out mines to private parties 9
Mining – International 10
10. South African miners end underground protest 10
11. India: Proposed Vedanta mine threatens livelihoods and cultural identity of indigenous community 10
12. Siberian government threatens to seize ArcelorMittal coal mines 12
13. Opp uproar over illegal mining 12
14. Montana gov blasts GM plan to cancel mine contract 13
Other News 14
15. Enhanced Allocations for Several Tribal Welfare Schemes 14
16. SCIENTIFIC AND IT BASED MANAGEMENT FOR ZOOS: JAIRAM RAMES 14
17. UNIVERSAL ACCEPTANCE OF SMALL FAMILY NORMS NEEDED: AZAD 15
18. India doing a great deal on climate change: Manmohan 16
19. NGO offers help in installing water pumps, plants 17
20. India’s Production Grows 2.7%; Most in Eight Months 17
Mining – India
Environment ministry set for revamp
Prachi Bhuchar, Saturday July 11, 2009, New Delhi
The Environment Ministry has cleaned up its act, and the new minister is all set to project his new team as lean and efficient, as they try and make the tracking of environment and forest clearances a lot more transparent.
However, despite this attempt, several unanswered questions about the clearance process itself remain.
"The acceptance rate for environment projects has been very high - almost 98 per cent. We are putting a system in place whereby projects go through the whole drill. We have to bring down this unhealthy rate of acceptance," said Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh.
The Environment Minister is setting the bar for clearing all industrial and mining projects since they need his ministry's go ahead.
The minister has put the rejection rate of projects awaiting environmental clearance at two per cent and 20 per cent for those awaiting forest clearance, but environmentalists and lawyers say proposals almost never get rejected.
The Vedanta bauxite mining project in Orissa's Kalahandi district is one such case. It faced severe opposition when it was sent for clearance in 2004, but it was cleared by the Environment Ministry in April 2009 based on this 2003 project report, which is completely outdated today.
Interestingly, the national environment appellate authority, which is supposed to look into grievances against cleared projects is almost defunct. So if you are keen on contesting a project clearance, be rest assured it's going to be no easy task.
One of the biggest criticisms of the environmental clearance process is that there is no accountability and those who are likely to be impacted the most by the project are least heard despite mandatory public hearings.
Therefore, while the Environment Ministry struggles to give project clearances a degree of respectability, in the larger scheme of things, a lower acceptability rate is far from the only problem.
http://www.ndtv.com/news/india/fast-tracking_environment_clearances.php
Andhra NoC to Nalco for mining lease
BS Reporter / Bhubaneswar July 10, 2009, 17:40 IST
National Aluminium Company (Nalco) has got the no-objection certificate from the Andhra Pradesh government for grant of mining lease in favour of the company for two bauxite blocks in Visakhapatnam and east Godavari districts.
These two blocks with a combined reserve of 80 million tonnes of bauxite were allotted to Nalco for its proposed 1.4 million tonne per annum alumina refinery in Andhra Pradesh.
Nalco will invest around Rs 7,000 crore on setting up of the alumina refinery and the mining operations.
“Last week, the Andhra Pradesh government has sent the no-objection certificate to the Centre for grant of mining lease to Nalco for two bauxite blocks”, said BL Bagra, director (finance), Nalco.
The refinery project is likely to come up in Visakhapatnam district but the exact location is yet to be decided.
“We have engaged Mecon Limited for conducting the pre-feasibility study for the project. Mecon would submit its report by August this year”, added Bagra.
He was talking to reporters on the sidelines of the 13th International Conference on Non-Ferrous Minerals and Metals organised by the Kolkata-based Millennium Institute of Energy and Environment Management (MIEEM).
Construction work on Nalco’s Andhra Pradesh refinery is expected to resume in 2011 and it is scheduled to be operational by 2013.
Among other projects of the company, Bagra said, Nalco proposed to set up a 0.5 million tonne per annum aluminium smelter and a 1,250 captive power plant near Jharsuguda in Orissa entailing an investment of Rs 16,000 crore. The project is expected to be operational by 2013-14.
Meanwhile, Nalco has completed the exploratory drilling work for the coal mine which it had identified in Indonesia. The aluminium major had submitted the data on the coal mine exploration to the Central Mine Planning and Design Institute (CMPDI), a fully owned subsidiary of Coal India Limited (CIL). However, the company is yet to decide on the percentage of stake it would pick up in the coal mine.
Nalco had announced an investment of Rs 10,000 crore for setting up a 0.5 million tonne per annum aluminium smelter in Indonesia. It expected the smelter to be operational by 2013-14.
Earlier addressing the delegates, Bagra said there are huge bauxite deposits in Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh which have remained untapped.
Speaking on the occasion, RC Singla, director (mining), Hindustan Copper Limited, said, the company plans to revive the Kaendadih and Rakha copper mines in Jharkhand which were closed on account of economic unviability. “We have already started the revival work on Surda mines in Jharkhand in association with Australia-based Monarch Gold Mining Company”, he added.
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/andhra-noc-to-nalco-for-mining-lease/67374/on
ArcelorMittal coal miners protest in Kazakhstan
Fri Jul 10, 2009 5:32pm IST
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ALMATY, July 10 (Reuters) - A group of coal miners working for the Kazakh unit of global steel maker ArcelorMittal (MT.N: Quote, Profile,Research) refused to leave the mine at the end of their shift on Friday, the company said, without elaborating on the workers' demands.
ArcelorMittal said the protest took place at the Tentekskaya mine, where three workers died last month after part of the mine collapsed. [ID:nLT640869]
"A conciliatory commission is being set up, which will look at all the issues that have come up," the company said in a statement.
"We do understand the emotions of the people, especially after the recent incident at the mine."
A spokesman for ArcelorMittal in Kazakhstan said he did not know exactly what the miners' demands were.
ArcelorMittal, which operates a steel plant in the Central Asian country, also runs several mines to provide it with coking coal. (Writing by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Keiron Henderson)
http://in.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idINLA53254520090710
Global Alumina Announces Commencement of Substantial Issuer Bid
TORONTO, July 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Global Alumina Corporation (TSX: GLA.U) (the "Company" or "Global Alumina"), a corporation participating in a joint venture to develop an alumina refinery, mine and associated infrastructure in the bauxite-rich region of the Republic of Guinea (the "Project"), announced today that it has commenced its substantial issuer bid ("the Offer") by way of a "Dutch auction". The Company has offered to repurchase for cancellation up to US$8 million of its outstanding common shares ("Common Shares") from shareholders for a price ranging from US$0.40 to US$0.65. The formal offer to purchase, issuer bid circular and related documents ("Offer Documents") were mailed to shareholders on July 10, 2009 and have been filed on SEDAR and can be accessed on the Internet at Global Alumina's reference page at www.sedar.com. The Offer expires at 5:00 pm (Toronto time) on August 17, 2009, unless withdrawn or extended by the Company. The closing price per Common Share on the TSX on June 12, 2009, the day prior to the announcement of the Offer, was $0.345. On July 9, 2009 the closing price per Common Share on the TSX was $0.340.
Global Alumina has retained Kingsdale Shareholder Services Inc. to act as the information agent and Computershare Investor Services Inc. to act as the depositary for the Offer.
Neither Global Alumina nor its Board of Directors makes any recommendation to shareholders as to whether to tender their Common Shares to the Offer. Shareholders are strongly encouraged to review the Offer Documents carefully and to consult with their financial and tax advisors prior to making any decision with respect to the Offer.
Global Alumina previously announced its intention to proceed with the Offer in a press release dated June 15, 2009.
About Global Alumina
Global Alumina and its joint venture partners are developing a 3.6 million metric tons per annum nominal capacity alumina refinery located in the bauxite-rich region of the Republic of Guinea. The joint venture partners in the Project are Global Alumina International, Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company, BHP Billiton, Dubai Aluminium Company Limited and Mubadala Development Company PJSC. The Project is one of the most advanced new projects in Guinea with the refinery already in feasibility stage and critical path infrastructure and site work already underway. Global Alumina is positioned to be one of the only companies focused solely on alumina production and sales. The Company offers a first mover advantage over other projects in the region and an opportunity for socially responsible investing in a country that holds over one-third of the world's bauxite resources. Global Alumina is headquartered in Saint John, New Brunswick with operations in Boke, Guinea and has administrative offices in New York, London, Montreal and Conakry, Guinea. For further information visit the company's website at www.globalalumina.com.
http://sev.prnewswire.com/null/20090710/NY4463810072009-1.html
Vedanta's India bauxite mining to begin by October
Fri Jul 10, 2009 3:49am EDT
NEW DELHI, July 10 (Reuters) - Vedanta Resources Plc (VED.L) said bauxite mining for its alumina plant in eastern India would begin by October and the company would invest $1.23 billion to expand its capacity sixfold by 2011.
"Mining operations in the Niyamgiri hills to feed our plant in Orissa will start by October this year," Mukesh Kumar, chief executive of Vedanta's project in the eastern state of Orissa, said on Friday. (Reporting by Bappa Majumdar; Editing by Bryson Hull and Clarence Fernandez)
http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssIndustryMaterialsUtilitiesNews/idUSCOL47748020090710
T N Ninan: Auction mining rights
T N Ninan / New Delhi July 11, 2009, 0:58 IST
There is no other way to stop corruption.
A Marxist-Leninist website has the following information: The 145 million tonnes of iron ore that was extracted in India last year fetched Rs 3,000/tonne in the market. It cost Rs 300 to mine, and another Rs 300 or less was paid as royalty to the government. The balance was profit for the mining company. The numbers may or may not be correct, but the website goes on to look at profit trends in companies like Tata Steel and Sesa Goa, and the resulting valuations for the latter, which changed hands not long ago. Among the questions that the website asks is whether the ore belongs to the local people, the state government, the central government, or the mining company. It is easy to see from this how the alienation of large numbers of people (usually marginalised tribal populations in forested areas) because of mining controversies can have fuelled the Maoist insurgency across the country’s heartland.
Cut to an industry body said to represent mining interests, which has come out in opposition to the policy of auctioning mining rights. This seems quixotic, when the mining of oil and gas fields has been accepted policy the world over. The ground rules under which contracts are signed are well established, and there is no reason why prospecting for coal or bauxite should be not be dealt with in the same way, and why proven reserves should not be auctioned to the highest bidder. This is especially the case when it is well known that the granting of mining rights has been a grey area, with companies lobbying furiously to get rights to one or other block. While it is next to impossible to verify such claims, it is said that at least one minister in the last government was handing out mining rights on the basis of a fixed kickback rate per million tonnes of ore being given. It is precisely this kind of corruption that an open auction is designed to prevent, and it is surprising that an industry body should be opposing it.
As it happens, the government decided more than a year ago that auctions are the right way to go—a stance that China too has taken. The policy adopted in March 2008 said that mining leases would be auctioned to actual users and that exports would be encouraged in value-added form (in other words, the country should export steel, not iron ore). It is not clear that the legislative changes required to give effect to this policy have been carried out; even if they have not, that is only a procedural hurdle.
The states that have the largest mineral deposits are not happy with the auction policy, because they would like businessmen to set up industrial units in the states that have the ore. While this view is understandable, it does not make economic sense. Industries use different inputs and often different minerals in the same industrial process. Transport linkages (including ports) are important in determining location, as is the simple but often complicated question of the availability of land. A businessman should have the freedom to locate his industrial unit where he finds it most convenient; that a mineral comes from a particular state should not be relevant, especially if the state gets an appropriate cess or royalty on the minerals mined within its borders. That cess or royalty, bid in open auction, can and perhaps should be used substantially for the benefit of the people in the area being mined, especially when they are poor and marginalised.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601091&sid=anb3VM_tP0OM#
Latha Jishnu: Killing them ever so softly
Latha Jishnu / New Delhi July 11, 2009, 0:33 IST
Widespread pollution by the Vedanta refinery in Orissa raises serious questions about environmental monitoring.
At first sight the images are picture perfect. There are gurgling streams, a rushing river, a tree-dotted landscape, all of which are partially covered in snow, the kind of destinations tour operators peddle every summer. Then you see scruffy village children and buffaloes ploughing through the white stretches and kicking up a lot of dust and you realise that something is amiss. As the camera zooms in, reality comes as a shocker: This is Lanjigarh in Orissa’s Kalahandi district where snow is as unlikely as apple blossom in Rajasthan. The thick white crust covering the Vamsadhara River and blanketing the surrounding villages is fly-ash — layers and layers of it, the soft, choking dust settling into heavy deposits that have scarred the topography and made life a living hell for people in the area.
These are shots from a documentary that has caused quite a furore in recent weeks. Sham Public Hearing — The True Face of Vedanta is a narrative of the environmental problems that have ensued after metals and mining behemoth Vedanta Resources (2009 turnover: $6.6 billion) set up an alumina refinery in Lanjigarh block of Kalahandi district three years ago. The one-million-tonne refinery along with a 75-MW power plant comes under Vedanta Aluminium Ltd (VAL) which describes its Lanjigarh facility as one of the world’s premier alumina plants “in terms of its technology, human resources and high quality infrastructure”. It also boasts that the refinery is the only zero-discharge plant of its kind in India.
On June 1, VAL was marking a special triumph. It announced that it had bagged the ‘prestigious’ Golden Peacock Award 2009 instituted by the UK-based World Environment Foundation (WEF) in association with Institute of Directors. The selection had been made by a jury of worthies headed by no less than P N Bhagwati, a former Chief Justice of India and member of the UN Human Rights Commission. The award, the company said, “recognises Vedanta’s efforts in setting high standards” in its environment management.
The celebration turned out to be premature. Barely a week later, The True Face of Vedanta, made by Bhubaneswar-based filmmaker Surya Shankar Dash, ripped apart this image. Apart from the environmental degradation, the documentary records the effects of pollution on the hapless villagers. Some of its sharpest images are of the very young victims of pollution — children with all kinds of skin diseases, from suppurating sores and boils to rash, which is on the rise in the area.
No one is certain why the disease is affecting villages like Bundel, which are on the periphery of the refinery. Local residents say the problem is of recent origin and comes from bathing in the river or drinking its water. The probable cause is the seepage of highly alkaline and caustic water from the waste ponds into the Vamsadhara and its nearby streams. The Orissa State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB) has repeatedly brought this to the notice of VAL but despite several show-cause notices the company appears to have been unable to check the contamination.
VAL is dismissive of such charges. Its standard response is that it has adopted the zero discharge system in which no waste/effluent is released outside the plant or red-mud pond or fly-ash pond. A VAL spokesman is categorical: “There is also no contamination of any natural stream or river due to discharge of fly-ash,” he says. As to the photographic evidence of fly-ash covering the streams and villages around the factory, he insists “it is of the inside disposal system of the fly-ash pond”.
Dash refutes this. “You can clearly see the shots are of the river, not of the inside,” says the filmmaker. “You cannot go anywhere near the refinery because the security guards will follow you and try to snatch your camera.” Corroboration of what the film reveals can be found in official documents if one goes looking for it. The OSPCB’s inspection reports are a damning indictment of the way Lanjigarh refinery has handled its wastes since inception. From November 2007, that is barely three months after the refinery started trial operations, OSPCB inspectors have been cautioning VAL about the seepage of contaminated water into the river. Even a January 2009 directive asks the company to set right the leakage of caustic water from its pipelines and to stop the discharge of contaminated water into the Vamsadhara. The reports also highlight the recurring problems that VAL has had with the maintenance of its ash and red-mud ponds, the latter, a lethal effluent of bauxite.
The litany of lapses/defects in the company’s pollution control systems should have occasioned serious disquiet in official circles. But instead of penalties there has been reward. “OSPCB has given us consent to operate up till March 2011,” claims a company spokesman because of the board’s “satisfaction on our environmental measures”.
The bigger irony is that OSPCB has allowed VAL to expand capacity to six million tonnes which will make it the largest refinery of its kind, globally. This is a clear coup for Anil Agarwal’s London-based FTSE 100-company which has been battling a sustained campaign in India and the UK against the Lanjigarh complex. The problems of such aggressive expansive can be gargantuan. Working at just 70 per cent of its current capacity, that is 700,000 tons, the refinery produces 500 tons of fly-ash daily along with 2,500 tons of red-mud, all of which is supposed to be released into their respective ponds. But there is leakage and seepage into the groundwater, as OSPCB strictures show.
Villagers allege that whenever the pipelines carrying the wastes are choked the pipes are cut and effluents released into the streams. At the Belamba public hearing on April 25, OSPCB officials remained mute when over two dozen villagers, many of them from the Dongria Kondh tribe, gave bitter testimony about the effects of the red-mud pond and fly-ash pollution in the vicinity of the refinery. Kumuti Majhi of Sindhuali village said that he was jailed for several weeks for complaining about the pollution. The brooding anger and despair is widespread among the villagers in Lanjigarh and not a single official responded to the repeated charges of the health hazards posed by the refinery.
The True Face of Vedanta has acted as a rallying point for over a 100 global voluntary agencies and activists who have forced WEF to put the award on hold. VAL appears unfazed. “We are expecting the award very soon,” says the company which is preparing for its biggest challenge — the commencement of mining operations in Niyamgiri Hills in the face of entrenched opposition from the Dongria Kondh.
As the company gears up for confrontation with the outraged tribe which considers the hills sacred and the source of their sustenance, the state is providing a helping hand. Bauxite mining will be carried out by the Orissa Mining Corporation in partnership with Vedanta’s sister concern, Sterlite Industries India, under a Supreme Court order aimed at deflecting international censure of Vedanta. Close to 700 hectares has been leased to the joint venture for the mining. However, environmentalists have made a last-ditch attempt to stall the desecration of Niyamgiri. R Sreedhar, director of the Academy of Mountain Environics, which is a trust promoting sustainable development solutions, has petitioned the National Environmental Appellate Authority to quash the mining clearance in view of the many regulatory violations by the company. The petition is scheduled to be heard on July 21 but there appears to be little hope of a reprieve for the environment.
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/latha-jishnu-killing-them-ever-so-softly/363547/
Saturday, July 11, 2009 3:43:10 PM (IST)
Bangalore: Lokayukta Report on Illegal Mining: Govt to act against Nine Officials
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Bangalore, Jul 11: The government has since submitted its action taken report on the interm report on illegal mining in the state, submitted by the Lokayukta. State chief secretary Sudhakar Rao sent the said report to the Lokayukta in connection with the report of six volumes on Friday July 10.
It may be recalled that the Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde had submitted a report to the state government on December 18, 2008, after conducting probe into the illegal mining conducted from the year 2000 to 2006 in Bellary, Chitradurga, Tumkur etc. The Lokayukta had sought an action taken report from the state government within three months from the date of submission of the report. The government, sighting election and other reasons, had postponed the submission of the report.
The report says that two senior officials have denied the charges of lapses levelled against them. The two officers, one of whom is senior IPS officer Jija Harisingh, have vehemently rejected the allegations that they were involved with the mining scandal. They reportedly said that the Lokayukta made a wrong reference to them, as the current officials of Mysore Minerals Ltd had furnished wrong details to the Lokayukta.
It is said, the government has concurred with the Lokayukta's charge against the other nine officials. The state government proposes to take action against these nine officials. The recently adopted mining policy copy has also been enclosed to the letter to the Lokayukta. The government has explained in the letter, the steps it has taken to minimize damage to the environment the mining activity might cause and the modified leasing system for mines it has recently adopted.
Justice Hegde had indicated last week that he would complain to the governor about the government's failure to act on his report. In view of the report now submitted, the Lokayukta said he has dropped the idea of complaining to the governor. He said, he would study the letter and express his opinion on it, on Monday.
The Lokayukta report had pointed out taht 11 officials of different cadres were hand in glove with the illegal mining activities and that the government-owned Mysore Minerals had incurred huge losses due to the corrupt practices, while private miners made huge profits. In addition to damaging environment, forest produce and natural wealth, national highway 17, 48 and 63 suffered huge damages because of the mining activities, the Lokayukta report had pointed out. Provisionally, the loss to Mysore Minerals and the government was put at Rs 800 crore. The report also had indicated that iron ore lease worth Rs 23.22 crore had been illegally distributed during the term of former Chief Minister Dharam Singh.
http://www.daijiworld.com/news/news_disp.asp?n_id=62467&n_tit=Bangalore:+Lokayukta+Report+on+Illegal+Mining:+Govt+to+act+against+Nine+Officials
Oppn attacks BJD for "illegally" leasing out mines to private parties
10 Jul 2009, 2101 hrs IST, Nageshwar Patnaik, ET Bureau
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BHUBANESWAR: The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party and Congress on Friday launched a scathing attack on the ruling Biju Janata Dal [BJD] alleging
that the state government had embezzled nearly Rs 4000 crore by illegally leasing out a few precious iron ore and manganese mines in favour of Ram Bahadur Thakur Limited, a private mineral business firm.
The attack was so sharp and biting that Speaker Pradip Kumar Amat could not transact any businesses in the afternoon session and adjourned the House for at least nine times.
The Opposition, – apparently unsatisfied with the reply of steel mines minister Raghunath Mohanty that Ram Bahadur Thakur Limited firm was not given any mines and a probe was ordered into the allegation of favour made to the to the said company, – demanded a House Committee inquiry.
Bringing an adjournment motion on the issue, the Congress and BJP legislators alleged that the minister’s statement lacked any truth and in reality the company was given iron ore mines at Rugudi, Katasahi and Rudukela near Joda in the mineral rich Keonjhar district. They even pointed out that some powerful and influential politicians as well as senior officials had connived to lease out the mines to the aforesaid company.
“Although Ram Bahadur Thakur Limited had shot down its business in 1999 and a court case on its closure was pending for disposal in Patna High Court, the state government had decided to grant mining to the company without any verification. The company has given power of attorney to one Shakti Ranjan Das, head of a non-governmental organisation, to exploit minerals,” the Opposition said.
Stating that the company was given 96.56 hectares of land, the legislators said 37.741 hectares of the land belonged to forest category. Besides, the power of attorney does not mention the name address of Shakti Ranjan Das.
"In spite of taking actions against the officials involved in such criminal misconduct, the Naveen Patnaik Patnaik – which claims itself crystal clear – has promoted some senior officials. This speaks how the government is determined to make money by selling out the minerals of the state for immediate money," they said.
The ruling party members Bhagirathi Sethi, Priti Ranjan Ghadei, Subarna Naik tried to defend the government saying that there was no need to debate on the issue since the government had ordered probe into the matter.
However, BJP Legislature Party Leader KV Singhdeo, Congress legislators Bhupinder Singh and their fellow legislators insisted for a House Committee probe.
As the Speaker did not give his ruling on the demand and allowed treasury bench members to discuss on the vote on expenditure relating to food and civil supplies department, the Opposition walked out.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/PoliticsNation/Oppn-attacks-BJD-for-illegally-leasing-out-mines-to-private-parties/articleshow/4763821.cms
Mining – International
South African miners end underground protest
07/11/2009 | 06:09 PM
JOHANNESBURG — The head of the South African platinum mines where supervisors were taken hostage in an underground protest says all the miners have returned to the surface.
Ian Rozier, chief executive of Eastern Platinum Ltd., said the protest by about 500 miners ended in the early hours of Saturday morning following successful mediation.
Eight supervisors were held against their will when the miners began their protest Thursday morning at the Canadian-based company's Crocodile River mine northwest of Johannesburg.
Four managed to escape through underground tunnels while the other four were released early Friday evening.
The workers, who are contracted to the mine through other companies, are demanding to be made full-time employees. - AP
http://www.gmanews.tv/story/167169/South-African-miners-end-underground-protest
India: Proposed Vedanta mine threatens livelihoods and cultural identity of indigenous community
The Indian government should immediately withdraw the clearance granted to a massive mining project that threatens the lives and livelihoods of a protected indigenous community living there, Amnesty International said today.
In April 2009, Indian authorities gave Vedanta Aluminium Limited and the state-owned Orissa Mining Corporation permission to mine bauxite for the next 25 years in the Niyamgiri Hills, in the eastern state of Orissa. The mine falls within the traditional lands of the Dongria Kondh community, an indigenous community with special protection under Indian law.
Members of the Dongria Kondh told an Amnesty International delegation in March 2009 that they fear the mine will destroy their sacred sites, decimate their forests, pollute their water source and cause an influx of traffic and people that would threaten their traditional way of life.
“For centuries the Dongria Kondh community have considered the Niyamgiri Hills sacred; central to their collective identity and religious beliefs. The hills are also essential to their economic and physical survival,” said Madhu Malhotra, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Asia Pacific. “The 8,000 strong Dongria Kondh now face an uncertain future.”
The Dongria Kondh have special status under Indian law. Their communities and traditional lands, are protected under the Indian constitution, national laws, and the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
“Contrary to international human rights standards, the Indian authorities have failed to obtain the free and informed consent of the Dongria Kondh prior to the approval of this project,” said Madhu Malhotra. “Now the very existence of the Dongria Kondh as a distinct Indigenous people hangs in the balance.”
Amnesty International is calling on India’s authorities to live up to their international human rights obligations by withdrawing the clearance granted for the mine project until measures are taken to ensure that it will not impact negatively on the human rights of the Dongria Kondh and other communities. In addition, the Indian authorities should set up a genuine consultation process with the communities who may be affected.
Notes to Editors:
• Vedanta Aluminium Limited is a subsidiary of the UK-based company
• The Dongria Kondh are an adivasi (Indigenous community) and were described as ‘endangered’ by India’s Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC). They live on and at the base of the Niyamgiri Hills
• In February and March 2003, the Indian authorities held public hearings on the proposed mine. However, the Dongria Kondh communities living in and around the hills were not told about them. No information was presented at public hearings on the potential risks and negative impacts of bauxite mining in the area.
• Amnesty International’s Demand Dignity campaign aims to end the human rights violations that drive and deepen global poverty. The campaign will mobilise people all over the world to demand that governments, big corporations and others who have power, listen to the voices of those living in poverty and recognise and protect their rights. For more information visit www.demanddignity.org
http://www.amnestyusa.org/document.php?id=ENGPRE200907091133〈=e
Siberian government threatens to seize ArcelorMittal coal mines
PTI
Friday, July 10, 2009 21:16 IST
Moscow: NRI steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal could lose ownership of two West Siberian coal mines if he fails to boost production, the governor of the local Russian region has warned.
"If your team is not able to stabilise production at these facilities, then we propose that you hand them over without compensation," warned Aman Tuleyev, the governor of Kemerovo region where the two coal mines are located.
In a letter to Mittal, the chief executive of the world's largest steelmaker ArcelorMittal, Tuleyev threatened to seize his Siberian coal assets in case of closure of the two major mines. In 2008 ArcelorMittal acquired three Siberian coal mines from its former Arcelor bid rival Severstal.
In March, due to global slump, ArcelorMittal said it may temporarily close its Anzherskaya and Pervomaiskaya mines and introduce voluntary retirement programme and redeploy some key mining personnel to the third Beryozovskaya mine.
Tuleyev threatened to revoke ArcelorMittal's license for the mining in the huge coal deposit of Zhernovskoe in the Russian coal mining region, the Kommersant daily reported.
"I, with full responsibility declare, I will not allow the closure of our mines," Tuleyev wrote to Mittal and threatened to revoke ArcelorMittal's license for the mining in the huge coal deposit of Zhernovskoe.
http://www.dnaindia.com/money/report_siberian-government-threatens-to-seize-arcelormittal-coal-mines_1272945
Opp uproar over illegal mining
TNN 10 July 2009, 10:15pm IST
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BHUBANESWAR: The Opposition on Friday created a ruckus in the Assembly over the issue of illegal mining and export of manganese ore worth in
crores by a particular private company at Joda area in Keonjhar district.
With Congress and BJP members joined in the well over the issue and demanding for an inquiry either by the CBI or the House committee, the chair was forced to adjourn the House repeatedly for nine times before their walkout in the afternoon session.
BJP member KV Singh Deo initiating the debate during an adjournment motion discussion on the issue said that the state government had decided to give lease of three mines in Joda area to a private company, Ram Bahadur Thakur Ltd.
However he alleged that, this company had already been closed since 1999 and a case in this connection was pending in the Patna high court. What was surprising, he alleged that the company again gave its power of attorney to a person to carry illegal' mining operation in Joda area in crores.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Bhubaneswar/Opp-uproar-over-illegal-mining/articleshow/4764040.cms
Montana gov blasts GM plan to cancel mine contract
By MATTHEW BROWN – 17 hours ago
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — Gov. Brian Schweitzer said Friday he wants the Obama administration to force General Motors Corp. to honor its contract with a Montana platinum mine, instead of going overseas to buy the precious metal used to control vehicle pollution.
Schweitzer said the administration was showing bias against Montana at a time when other U.S. jobs were protected with a "buy American" clause in the $787 billion stimulus act.
GM wants to cancel its contract with the Stillwater mine as part of the bankruptcy reorganization that infused the automaker with $50 billion in government loans. Those loans were not part of the stimulus money.
"When it comes to Montana they say buy anywhere but Montana," he said. "What are we going to do if we have a mine strike in South Africa? Shut down the car industry?"
Platinum and two other metals produced by Stillwater Mining Co., palladium and rhodium, are used to make catalytic converters that control pollution in car emissions.
The Columbus company is the only platinum and palladium producer in the country. It is highly dependent on sales to GM and Ford Motor Co., although company officials have declined to offer specifics.
With the metals mined in just two other countries, Russia and South Africa, Schweitzer says GM's cancellation would put the United States at a strategic risk and hurt the mining industry.
GM defended its decision to cancel the Stillwater contract, which the carmaker said was "uncompetitive." The contract set a floor price that meant GM at times bought metal at prices above those on the open market.
"We will continue to make difficult decisions that best position the new GM for long-term viability," said a statement provided by GM spokesman Dan Flores.
All the palladium produced by Stillwater's mines currently goes toward filling its automaker contracts.
The company employs 1,322 people at its two mines near Nye and a smelter and refinery in Columbus. Its majority shareholder is Norilsk Nickel of Russia, which controls 53 percent of Stillwater's stock.
Stillwater had been drafting a challenge to GM's contract cancellation to file in federal bankruptcy court. But with GM emerging from bankruptcy protection Friday, it was unclear if that legal avenue remained open, said Stillwater spokesman John Beaudry.
"Stillwater Mining Co. very much appreciates the governor's support on this issue," Beaudry said. "Our legal people are actively involved in our objection to the (GM) petition to void our contract."
Prices set in Stillwater's automaker contracts require GM and Ford to continue paying a set amount for platinum and palladium even when market prices drop lower. At recent palladium market prices, that provision was shielding the company from the equivalent of $57 million in lost annual sales, according to one of Stillwater's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hxwrRGuvnvkheCuTBa2bkqpZitfQD99BO12O3
Other News
Enhanced Allocations for Several Tribal Welfare Schemes
15:20 IST
In the Budget proposals presented in the Lok Sabha for the year 2009-10, the allocations in respect of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs has been increased from Rs. 1984.16 crore (Revised Estimates of the previous financial year) to Rs. 3220.11 crore. In percentage terms, this indicates an increase of over 60 % over the previous year’s allocations.
There has been a marked increase in allocation for several schemes of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs. For instance, allocation for the Schemes of Post Metric Scholarship, Book Bank and Upgradation of Merit of ST students has been enhanced from Rs. 194.90 crore (Revised Estimates – R.E.) to Rs. 217.85 crore. Similarly, the allocation for the scheme for Ashram Schools in Tribal Sub-Plan Areas has been increased from Rs. 30 crore (R.E.) to Rs. 41 crore.
The highest increase however is proposed under Central Assistance for State Plans under which Assistance for schemes under proviso (i) to Article 275 (1) of the Constitution has been enhanced from Rs. 392 crore (R.E.) to Rs. 1000 crore. Under this provision, grants are given to 22 TSP (Tribal Sub Plan) States and four Tribal Majority States for creating critical infrastructural projects in the Tribal Areas for the Welfare of STs and for raising the level of administration of Scheduled Areas in those States to that of the rest of the State, with a view to bringing them at par with the developed areas.
http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=50168
SCIENTIFIC AND IT BASED MANAGEMENT FOR ZOOS: JAIRAM RAMESH
15:33 IST
Union Minister of State for the Ministry of Environment and forests (I/c), Shri Jairam Ramesh said it is very important to have IT based management system for management of zoos in the country. Addressing 23rd meeting of the Central Zoo Authority here today he further explained that the management is not only of animals, but management of biodiversity also should be part of this management. This will help not only in preservation of flora and fauna, but it will also help in conservation of endangered species. There are about 130 species of trees in the zoo besides 1200 animals. Referring to the exchange of Lions and Cheetah between the state of Gujarat and Singapore, the Minister said we will have exchange of animals at national and international level. We have large population of elephants that can be used for this purpose.
Shri Ramesh released a book ‘Zoos in India-Legislation, Policy, Guidelines and Strategies’ published by Central Zoo Authority. It gives details on Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972,Recognition of Zoo Rules, National Zoo Policy, recognized zoos, various MoUs signed by CZA, concept paper on conservation breeding programme etc.
Shri Vijai Sharma, Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Foresta, Dr M B Lal, Addl. D G ,Wildlife, Dr B R Sharma ,Member Secretary, Central Zoo Authority ,Sh D N Singh, Director, Delhi Zoo and other officials participated in the meeting.
KP
http://pib.nic.in/release/rel_print_page1.asp?relid=50170
UNIVERSAL ACCEPTANCE OF SMALL FAMILY NORMS NEEDED: AZAD
WORLD POPULATION DAY OBSERVED
15:57 IST
The Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Shri Ghulam Nabi Azad has stressed population stabilization. Speaking at a function to observe the World Population Day in New Delhi today, he said that the benefits of developments are being negated by the ever rising population. Reminding that India which has just 2.5% of the global land has about 17% of the world population, Shri Azad said there is a need to refocus on population control in a concerted way. He said that delayed marriage and suitable gap between two children should be highlighted as the possible solution for the growing population. He pointed out that while coercion is not acceptable for promoting family planning, there is need for universal acceptance of the small family norms irrespective of the caste and religion. “Population control is in everybody’s interest and should be promoted from every available forum”, emphasized the Minister.
Stating that the growing population is the root cause of several national problems including poverty, unemployment, rising prices of essential items and law and order. Problems like Naxalism is a reflection of this mismatch between population and resources. The Minster highlighted the role of ASHAs (Accredited Social Health Activists) in educating the rural people and said that the next World Population Day should be observed at every village, block and district level to make it a mass movement.
The Minister of State for Helath and Family Welfare, Shri Dinesh Trivedi said that demography is India’s favour as most of the Indian population is young in comparison to other countries. But to take advantage of this situation, there is a need to promote education and awareness. Health Minister of Delhi Dr Kiran Walia lamented the rising trend of sex selection even among the affluent and educated sections of society. She called for strict implementation of the law to check this practice.
The former Union Minister and Member of Parliament Dr Raghuvansh Prasad Singh described the rising population as one of the most critical problem and suggested awareness, partnership and availability of population control services alongwith strict vigilance and transparency as key to tackle this problem. Lok Sabha MP Shri Sandeep Dikshit suggested change in attitudes of service providers and bureaucracy.
The Executive Director of JSK Shri Amarjeet Sinha said that there is a huge unmet demand for services in the most problematic states of Bihar, UP, Jharkhand Orissa and Chhattisgarh. There is a need that these services are provided to the people at their door-steps.
The programme organized by the Ministry of health and Family Welfare and Jansankhya Sthirta Kosh honoured Rekha Kalindi a student of class iii who refused to marry at the age of 10. The Minister hailed Rekha as brand ambassador for the cause. The couples from the backward and tribal districts of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Orissa were also facilitated as role model for family planning. These couples were also recipients of Prerna Award.
http://pib.nic.in/release/rel_print_page1.asp?relid=50172
India doing a great deal on climate change: Manmohan
N. Ravi
— Photo: AP
U.S. President Barack Obama with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during a round table meeting at the G8 summit in L’Aquila, Italy, on Friday.
L’Aquila, Italy: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told the leaders of the major economies at their summit here that India was doing a great deal to combat climate change with an ambitious National Action Plan and will work with other countries for the successful conclusion of the negotiations at Copenhagen.
In his intervention at the Major Economies Forum (MEF) meeting on energy and climate change, he said the challenge was to change the pattern of economic development based on fossil fuels to one supported by clean and renewable sources of energy. The climate change talks needed to address this link.
Nothing could be farther from the truth than the notion that the developing countries were complacent or were not interested in addressing the consequences of climate change. The developing countries were the ones most impacted and are already facing the consequences of climate change and had a much greater interest in the issue, he said.
India had drawn up an ambitious National Action Plan and had set a goal of cutting emissions by 20 per cent in its 11th Plan. The country was committed to sustainable development but for upscaling it, the creation of an enabling international regime was necessary embedding both equity and international responsibility.
In the negotiations to meet the challenge at Copenhagen, India would do whatever it can. But it should be recognised that action on climate change could not be built upon the perpetuation of poverty. It wanted the agreement at Copenhagen to be “ambitious, comprehensive but, above all, equitable.”
On emission reductions, the Prime Minister said very ambitious targets were needed for 2050 but it was also important for the industrial nations to commit themselves to an interim target of cutting their emissions by 40 per cent by 2020. As for India, it was willing to diverge from business as usual and move to a climate friendly path of development. It can do more if new technologies and funding were made available.
At the suggestion of the United States President Barrack Obama who was chairing the MEF summit, Dr. Singh spoke on the challenges of the developing countries in adapting themselves to the consequences of climate change. He said adaptation was as much a challenge as mitigation of emissions. Pointing out that even if emissions were reduced as envisaged, climate change would continue and the developing countries were already facing the adverse consequences.
Climate change was already a reality for India that was spending 2 to 2.5 per cent of its GDP annually on meeting the consequences of extreme climatic conditions and calamities. For the developing countries, such uncompensated burden will only increase over time. He felt unless adaptation was also addressed, there would not be a successful outcome at Copenhagen.
http://www.hindu.com/2009/07/11/stories/2009071159941000.htm
NGO offers help in installing water pumps, plants
Anupam BhagriaTags : ludhiana, NGOPosted: Saturday , Jul 11, 2009 at 0350 hrsLudhiana:
To combat the problem of water scarcity in the city, Nishkam Sewa Ashram, a non-government organisation, has rendered its services to the public in general for installing submersible pumps and hand-pumps.
Sharwan Kumar, founder chairman of Nishkam Sewa Ashram, said, “Many areas in the city have been facing water shortage. We have decided to install free-of-cost submersible pumps and hand pumps in such areas. For installation of submersible, an amount of Rs 20,000 is needed and for hand pumps the requirement is Rs 18,000. We are ready to give this money but want that area residents should also contribute 25%, i.e labour charges, and should own the responsibility of taking proper care of these pumps installed in their areas.”
He said, “We will charge 25% from area residents, so that they may take care of this public property. Anyone seeking this service in an area can contact Nishkam Sewa Ashram at 2806296 and also at 2806283.”
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/ngo-offers-help-in-installing-water-pumps-plants/488014/
India’s Production Grows 2.7%; Most in Eight Months
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By Kartik Goyal
July 10 (Bloomberg) -- India’s industrial production increased at the fastest pace in eight months as record-low interest rates and government stimulus measures helped revive demand and investment.
Output at factories, utilities and mines jumped 2.7 percent in May from a year earlier after a revised 1.2 percent gain in April, the statistics agency said in New Delhi today. That was more than double the 1.3 percent increase expected by economists.
Economies across Asia are starting to show signs of recovery from the worst global recession since the Great Depression, prompting policy makers to stop lowering interest rates. The World Bank last month said India may overtake China next year as the world’s fastest-growing major economy.
“Industrial activity in India will gain more traction as the favorable effect of lower bank lending rates and a continuing fiscal boost offsets a still-weak export sector,” said Rajeev Malik, a regional economist at Macquarie Group Ltd. in Singapore. The rise in output “pretty much destroys the probability of further rate cuts.”
China’s industrial production rose 8.9 percent in May from a year earlier, after advancing 7.3 percent in April. Japan’s output increased 5.9 percent in May from a month earlier, the third monthly gain.
Factory production may increase further in India in the coming months after Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in this week’s budget boosted government spending on rural jobs and eases the tax burden on companies and consumers.
‘Stable’ Outlook
The budget is consistent with India’s non-investment-grade Ba2 local-currency rating and the nation’s rating outlook remains “stable,” Moody’s Investors Service analyst Aninda Mitra said today.
Bonds pared losses. The yield on the 6.07 percent note maturing in 2014 dropped to 6.37 percent as of 12:50 p.m. in Mumbai, from the day’s high of 6.43 percent, according to the central bank’s trading system.
“The uncertainties relating to the revival of the global economy remain. We cannot therefore afford to drop our guard,” Mukherjee said in his July 6 budget speech in parliament in New Delhi. “We have to continue our efforts to provide further stimulus to the economy.”
India’s $1.2 trillion economy may expand 7 percent in the year to March 2010, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said this week, though the nation should aim for growth of between 8 percent and 9 percent in the medium term to create jobs and reduce poverty.
Faster Than China
The World Bank last month said it expects India’s economy to grow 8 percent in 2010, compared with a 7.7 percent pace of expansion in China.
India’s economy grew 6.7 percent in the year to March 2009, the slowest pace of expansion since 2003. Growth averaged 8.5 percent in the previous five years.
“The budget is putting more money in the hands of consumers,” said Sajjan Jindal, managing director of JSW Steel Ltd., India’s third-biggest producer of the metal. If implemented properly, the tax cuts will “help companies and revive flagging demand.”
Lower borrowing costs are also buoying production growth. The Reserve Bank of India, which last cut interest rates on April 21, next meets to set monetary policy in Mumbai on July 28.
“There are early signs of recovery in some sectors such as automobiles, cement and steel,” India’s Finance Secretary Ashok Chawla said July 7.
Passenger Cars
India’s passenger-car sales rose 7.8 percent in June from a year earlier, the fastest pace in four months, according to figures from the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers. Sales of two-wheelers made by Hero Honda Motors Ltd., India’s biggest motorcycle maker, climbed 17.4 percent last month. Cement production grew 11.6 percent to 17,180 tons in May from a year earlier.
Consumer-goods production rose 12.4 percent in May from a year earlier, today’s report showed. Manufacturing, which accounts for four-fifths of production, climbed 2.5 percent, mining advanced 3.7 percent and electricity gained 3.3 percent, the statement said.
Manufacturing probably continued to strengthen last month, according to the Purchasing Managers’ Index compiled by Markit Economics. The gauge stood at 55.3 in June, the third monthly reading above 50, which indicated factory output increased.
To contact the reporter on this story: Kartik Goyal in New Delhi at kgoyal@bloomberg.net.
Last Updated: July 10, 2009 03:41 EDT
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601068&sid=anb3VM_tP0OM
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