Karnataka Forest Min. halts Iron Ore Mining Lease in Devadari Hills
Bengaluru: In a significant jolt to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 100-day agenda to start mining iron ore in Devadari Hills of Sandur in Ballari, Karnataka’s Minister for Forests and Environment, Eshwar Khandre, on Saturday ordered a halt to the leasing of 401.5761 hectares for iron ore mining in the Devadari Hills.
This comes days after the Union Minister of Heavy Industries and Steel, H.D. Kumaraswamy had directed officials of Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Limited (KIOCL) to commence mining activities in the Devadari forest area.
Minister Khandre highlighted that KIOCL has previously failed to comply with the Centrally Empowered Committee (CEC) directives appointed by the Supreme Court regarding its mining activities in Kudremukh National Park, located in Mudigere taluk of Chikmagalur district. The company's inability to implement remedial measures for its past operations prompted the decision to halt new leases in the Devadari Hills.
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Environmentalists have raised concerns about the potential ecological impact of mining in the Sandur forests, fearing it could lead to the felling of approximately 99,000 trees. They argue that the mining activities would devastate local wildlife and communities, urging the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change to suspend clearance for the Devadari mining project.
In response to these environmental concerns, Union Minister Kumaraswamy assured that there would be no deforestation. He noted that the state government had approved mining on over 404 hectares for the Devadari project in 2019, with subsequent approval from the Central Environment Department. Kumaraswamy emphasized that KIOCL would undertake compensatory afforestation, planting an alternative forest over 808 hectares at a cost of Rs 194 crore before beginning iron ore extraction. He stressed that the Devadari project aims to boost steel production and create jobs.
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Syria says Israeli strikes leave 18 dead in the biggest toll since the war in Gaza began
Masyaf (Syria), Sep 9: The number of people killed in overnight Israeli strikes in Syria has risen to 18 with dozens more wounded, Syria's health minister said on Monday — the largest death toll in such an attack since the beginning of the war in Gaza.
One of the sites targeted was a research centre used in the development of weapons, a war monitor said. Syrian officials said civilian sites were targeted.
Israel regularly targets military sites in Syria linked to Iran and the Lebanese group Hezbollah. Those strikes have become more frequent as Hezbollah has exchanged fire with Israeli forces for the past 11 months against the backdrop of Israel's war against Hamas — a Hezbollah ally — in Gaza.
However, the intensity and death toll of Sunday night's strikes were unusual.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military. Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on targets inside government-controlled parts of war-torn Syria in recent years, but it rarely acknowledges or discusses the operations. The strikes often target Syrian forces or Iranian-backed groups.
Israel has vowed to stop Iranian entrenchment in Syria, particularly since Syria is a key route for Iran to send weapons to Hezbollah.
Israeli strikes hit several areas in central Syria, damaging a highway in Hama province and sparking fires, Syrian state news agency SANA said.
Speaking to reporters, Syrian Health Minister Hassan al-Ghabbash described the strikes as a “brutal and barbaric aggression”. He said the death toll had risen to 18 with nearly 40 wounded.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based war monitor, said 25 were killed, including at least five civilians, while the others included Syrian army soldiers and members of Hezbollah and other Iran-linked armed groups.
One strike targeted a scientific research centre in Masyaf, and others struck sites where “Iranian militias and experts are stationed to develop weapons in Syria”, the observatory said. It said the research centre was reportedly used for developing weapons, including short- and medium-range precision missiles and drones.
Minister of Electricity Mohammad al-Zamel said the strikes had caused “truly significant” damage to water and electricity infrastructure.
“This brutal attack targeted civilian targets, and the martyrs were mostly civilians, as were the wounded,” he said.
Local media also reported strikes around the coastal city of Tartous, which the observatory said were the result of air defense missiles falling.
On Monday afternoon, a charred car remained at the scene of one strike and smoke was still rising from some spots where fires had been put out.
