Twitter campaign by environment enthusiasts demand scrapping of Forest Conservation (Amendment) Bill
Nature and environment enthusiasts initiated a Twitter campaign on Monday to voice their concerns against the Forest Conservation (Amendment) Bill 2023. During the campaign, several environment activists and enthusiasts tweeted about the potential setbacks of the proposed amendment to the Forest (Conservation) Act.
Prominent figures, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Rahul Gandhi, the Forest, Environment and Climate Change Ministry, and other political figures, were tagged in the tweets as part of the awareness campaign.
The main demand of the campaign was the withdrawal of the proposed amendment to safeguard Indian forests and promote their conservation. Several hashtags including #ScrapForestConservationAmendmentBill2023 and #SaveIndianForests were used during the campaign.
The Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, which came into effect on October 25, 1980, was enacted to conserve forests by restricting de-reservation of forest and forest land for non-forest purposes. According to Sections 2 and 3 of the act, any de-reservation of forest land requires prior approval from the central government based on the advice of an advisory committee.
An exemption to the forest clearance rules was provided by the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights Act), 2006. Under this act, the central government recognized and vested forest rights, offering certain exemptions to forest clearance for scheduled tribes and other forest-dwelling communities.
However, the proposed Forest Conservation (Amendment) Bill, 2023 seeks to provide exemptions to forest land under the pretext of facilitating social, economic, and environmental needs. The exemptions are aimed at forest lands situated alongside a rail line or a public road maintained by the government, projects of national importance related to national security, construction of security and defense-related infrastructure, camps for paramilitary forces, and public utility projects. The amendment also includes provisions for granting forest land for non-forest activities, such as wireless communications, construction of fencing, bridges, culverts, check dams, waterholes, trenches, pipelines, establishment of zoos, safaris, and eco-tourism facilities.
The proposed amendment has raised several concerns. Firstly, it appears to be contradictory to the original intent of the 1980 Act, which was enacted to prevent de-reservation of forest land, conversion of forest land for non-forest purposes, and large-scale deforestation. Secondly, such forest clearance activities may infringe upon the rights of forest-dwelling communities protected under the 2006 Act, thereby weakening the existing protections. Thirdly, the proposed exemptions to forest lands do not involve the consent or clearance from relevant authorities such as Gram Sabhas, Sub-divisional level committees, District level committees, and State Level Monitoring Committees.
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EAM Jaishankar meets Jamaican PM, gifts over 10 BHISHM Cubes
Kingston (PTI): External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday met Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness and discussed ways to further deepen "political, economic and people-to-people cooperation."
Jaishankar also conveyed greetings from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Holness.
"Pleased to call on Prime Minister @AndrewHolnessJM in Kingston. Conveyed the greetings of PM @narendramodi," Jaishankar posted on X.
"Discussed deepening our political, economic and people-to-people cooperation. Value his commitment towards further strengthening India-Jamaica relations," the post further read.
Also, the external affairs minister handed over 10 BHISHM (Bharat Health Initiative for Sahyog Hita & Maitri) Cubes as a gift to Jamaica.
"Formally handed over 10 BHISHM Cubes as a gift from India to Jamaica, in the presence of PM @AndrewHolnessJM, Health Minister @christufton and FM @kaminajsmith," Jaishankar posted on X.
"The BHISHM Cube mobile hospital system, designed for rapid deployment, will help Jamaica during disasters and emergencies. The gift of these cubes is a statement of friendship, a commitment to disaster preparedness, and an outcome of innovation," the post said.
Jaishankar arrived in Kingston on Saturday evening, marking the first leg of his nine-day tour of Jamaica, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago, aimed at further strengthening India's strategic and cultural ties with the Caribbean nations.
Earlier in the day, he interacted with the Indian diaspora and discussed India's ongoing transformation in infrastructure, human development and technology-driven governance and entrepreneurship with them.
He also highlighted the cricket bond between both countries as India gifted a scoreboard to Jamaica.
A scoreboard was dedicated at Sabina Park in Kingston. It is the home of the Jamaica cricket team and is the only Test cricket ground in the Caribbean island nation.
The minister expressed hope that the new scoreboard would witness many memorable innings, including those symbolising the enduring friendship between the two countries.
Cricket has long been a strong cultural bridge between India and Jamaica, which is part of the West Indies cricket team.
Jamaican players, including Chris Gayle, Courtney Walsh and Michael Holding, have played a major role in shaping the legacy of West Indies cricket in the international arena, contributing to its dominance in earlier decades and its continued global appeal.
