Nature News, Vol. 4, Issue No.4 (April 2015)

BIRDS

The Times of India 7 April 2015 
Rare birds return to Sundar Nursery: A little off the beaten track, adjacent to Humayun's Tomb and next to a busy railway station is Sundar Nursery. Typically, one would expect to go there to buy plants but the 70-acre urban oasis is nowhere close to an ordinary nursery. This garden complex is replete with old trees and dotted with monuments dating back to the Mughal era. Read more

The Hindu 8 April 15 
Grey Hypocolius sighted in Gujarat: Grey Hypocolius is a rare migratory bird found in northern Africa, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and western India. Two Mumbai-based professionals and keen amateur birders have recently sighted and photographed a rare bird, Grey Hypocolius, at the Narara Marine National Park near Jamnagar in Gujarat. Kunal Munsiff Read more

CLIMATE CHANGE

The Hindu 13 April 2015
Impact of climate change to be examined in Sunderbans : The Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) has proposed to set up long-term permanent monitoring plots in Sunderbans, a world heritage site, having maximum mangrove cover in the world to study the impacts of climate change on its flora and fauna. Read more

ENVIRONMENT

The Hindu 29 April 2015 
Killing a country’s ecology: The Environment Minister insists on clearing all hydro projects, even when the government itself earlier agreed that the Himalayas must be avoided for development work. A battle of epic proportions between the hydroelectric power companies and the people of Uttarakhand has now culminated with the struggle shifting to the office of the Read more 

FORESTS & BIODIVERSITY 

The Indian Express 6 April 2015  
A greenprint for reform: After many years, there will be a high-level meeting, inaugurated by the prime minister and with invitees from all state governments, to discuss “Green India”. The meeting, which starts today, is a great opportunity to usher in change and reform. After 40 years of serving in this sector, I suggest some critical points for action. Read more 

WETLANDS, RIVERS & WATER

Deccan Herald 8 April 2015 
Deadline for Western Ghats states on eco-sensitive areas: Only Kerala has submitted ground report to Centre. The Union Environment and Forest Ministry has set April 2015 as the deadline for six Western Ghat states to submit ground surveys before the Centre decides on notifying the ecologically sensitive areas (ESA) as per the recommendations of the K Kasturirangan committee. Read more

The Indian Express 9 April 2015 
And not a drop to drink: Though water covers nearly 75 per cent of the earth’s surface, fresh water that can be utilised for irrigation, household and industrial purposes is only about 0.5 per cent. A scarce natural resource, it is the sustainer of life and ecology. India occupies 2 per cent of the world’s land area, supports over 16 per cent of its population and has only 4. Read more

The Indian Express 15 April 2015 
Transforming our cities - On water, Singapore shows the way: Most Indian cities suffer from acute shortages and poor quality of water. Singapore, a country whose water challenge was perhaps the worst faced by any country in the world in the mid-1960s, has transformed its water scenario. We often dismiss outside experience as being irrelevant for India’s development efforts. Read more

The Pioneer 21 April 2015 
River-linking lessons from China: While India’s project is yet to take off, China has already finished two out of the three channels of its own river-linking project. Its third channel will divert the waters of the Brahmaputra, and this will have a direct impact on India. The ambitious National River-Linking Project is back in the news, with the Government of India setting up a task force Read more

WILDLIFE & ENDANGERED SPECIES

The Times of India 6 April 2015 
Leopard numbers across the country down by upto 80%, claims wildlife study: Trashing speculation following the spate of recent incidents of human-leopard conflict which indicated that leopard numbers were on the rise, a study conducted by three wildlife scientists has found that the leopard population, on the contrary, has declined by a whopping 70-80 per cent over the past 100 years. Read more

The Hindu 9 April 2015 
Saving tigers caught in the headlights: Any decision to expand roadways must take into account the shrinking wildlife spaces. On April 6, a unique State Environment and Forest Ministers’ conference took place in New Delhi, the first of its kind under the Narendra Modi government. The Prime Minister, Ministers of State for environment and forests and other officials discussed agenda items related to the environment Read more

The Economic Times 14 April 2015 
RTIs punch holes in Prakash Javadekar's claims on growing rhino count: Environment minister Prakash Javadekar's claim that all's well with the country's rhinoceros population is only half the story. While the population of the one-horned rhinoceros is on the rise -- 2,401 at the most recent count undertaken in March -- instances of poaching too have increased, with nine rhinos being killed by poachers in the first 100 days of this year. Read more

The Times of India 11 April 2015 
Economic study pegs value for Sundarbans and other tiger reserves: Tiger reserves may not be solely about conservation. They also have tremendous economic value, the first ever Economic Valuation of Tiger Reserves in India, published by the Centre for Ecological Services Management (CESM) and Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal Read more

The Hindu 21 April 2015 
India has 988 species on IUCN ‘Red List’: Adds 15 species to list of threatened species in 2014, but climbs down a spot to seventh position. India has added 15 more species to the “Red List” of threatened species published by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in 2014, but the country has climbed down a spot to the seventh position. Read more

The Hindu 24 April 2015 
NGT adds armour for protection of rhinos in Kaziranga National Park: After shocking revelations of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India about the dire state of management of Kaziranga National Park, home to one-horned rhinoceros, the National Green Tribunal has issued notices to 71 hotels, resorts and dhabas which have encroached into the eco-sensitive zone of the Park. Read more

Deccan Herald 30 April 2015 
Importance of preserving Karnataka's Western Ghats, tigers: Two recent inter-related developments in Karnataka took place recently. First the reported rejection of the Kasturiranagan report on inclusion of villages in the proposed Western Ghats’ eco-sensitive area by the state government and the other its continued reluctance to declare Kudremukh National Park  as tiger reserve. Read more