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May 7, 2004 Bird trade flourishing in India despite ban: Peta MUMBAI, May 7: Illegal bird trade continues to flourish in India inspite of the fact that the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, bans trading of birds, according to people for ethical treatment of animals (Peta’s) Chief Functionary Anuradha Sawhney here. Poachers bring in thousands of birds, captured from the forests, smuggle them in cramped containers or even stuff them into socks and hide them in shoes, small boxes or even toilet paper rolls. Sixty per cent of the birds die in transit from broken wings and legs, thirst or fright, she said yesterday. The leading NGO also alleged that the loaders and station masters are commonly paid to look away as birds are smuggled into Indian cities. These birds are sold in pet shops and crammed into filthy cages. Some are artificially dyed with garish colours. The Peta pointed out that the birds are flock-oriented. In their natural habitats, they preen each other, fly together, play and sha

December 7, 2007 Ancient site Ter being restored BY MRITYUNJAY BOSE MUMBAI: The Archaeology and Museums Directorate of Maharashtra is restoring one of the most-ancient sites – Ter in Osmanabad district of Marathwada region, which lends testimony to the early Christian era trade from the banks of Terna river and Rome in Europe. "It is a minefield, which gives several important historical perspective. We are restoring it and neighbouring areas and the restoration is expected to be complete in a year's time. We want to bring this heritage site in the international map," says R N Hegde, the Director of Archaeology and Museums Directorate, Maharashtra. Ter was one of the most flourishing trade centers – giving boost to architectural and religious activities. "Over the years hundreds of antiquarian remains from Ter have been reported and studied – and several important facts have come to light," Hedge told 'The Herald'. The excavations has mentioned two m

December 4, 2007 Siberian cranes give India a skip MRITYUNJAY BOSE MUMBAI: The majestic Siberian cranes, which used to arrive at Bharatpur in Rajasthan every winter, appear to have skipped India – these birds have not been sighted in this part of the world since 2001 – and now it is unlikely they would ever come to India again. The last time a pair was spotted was in 2001 at the Keoladeo National Park in Bharatpur, when they flew over Afghanistan and arrived here in spite of bombing raids by US fighter jets to oust the erstwhile Taliban regime, during the month of October 2001 after the September 11 kamikaze. But since 2001, these birds have not been sighted in the famous Keoladeo National Park at Bharatpur – or any other parts of northern India. The reasons are one too many – for their not coming here for wintering. “It is a shame that we lost the Siberian cranes, but many other species are also disappearing. (The) Keoladeo National Park at Bharatpur is in terrible shape due to water-

No. Name & Address Contact Person Name & Email Id's Subject Area Subnetwork Area 1 Centre for Ecological Sciences - Indian Institute of Science(IIS) Indian Institute of Science Bangalore Karnataka-560 012, Bangalore Phone: 91-080-23600985, 22933099, 22932506 Fax: 91-080-23601428, 23600085, 23600683 Email Id: iisc@envis.nic.in ENVIS URL: http://ces.iisc.ernet.in/biodiversity, http://ces.iisc.ernet.in/hpg/envis Org. URL: http://ces.iisc.ernet.in Prof. R.Sukumar - Chairman Dr. T.V. Ramachandran - ENVIS Coordinator Email Id: envis@ces.iisc.ernet.in Western Ghats and Biological Diversity Ecology and Ecosystems 2 Centre for Mining and Environment(ISM) Indian School of Mines Dhanbad-826004, Jharkhand Phone: 0326-2206372, 2202486 Fax: 0326-2206372, 2203042 Email Id: ism@envis.nic.in ENVIS URL: http://www.geocities.com/envis_ism, Org. URL: http://www.iism.dhanbad.org Prof. S.N. Mukherjee - Head Prof. Gurdeep Singh - ENVIS Coordinator Email Id: s_gurdeep2001@yahoo.com

INS Mysore affiliated with Madras regiment MUMBAI, Nov 17/2003: The Indian Army and the Indian Navy took another step forward in their quest for jointmanship when the western fleet’s premier combatant ‘INS Mysore’ and the Madras regiment, signed a charter of affiliation on board the ‘INS Mysore’ at the naval dockyard here this morning. The document was signed by Madras Regimental Centre Commandant Brig G Athmanathan and ‘INS Mysore’ Commanding Officer Capt Arvind Raj Vardhan in the presence of Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) western fleet rear Admiral Vijay Shankar and Lt Gen Dinesh Singh Chauhan, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C), Central Command and the Colonel of the Madras regiment. In a brief interaction with the media after the formal ceremony, Lt Gen Chauhan said while sharing the joy and peace, the affiliation is part of the process in working together in not just peace, but future operational tasks too. Rear Admiral Vijay Shankar said the basic aim is to realise uni

Reliance to play major role in UNESCO site restoration MUMBAI, Sept 7/2004: In a unique initiative towards preserving Indian heritage, the multi-crore reliance group will play a major role in the restoration of Champaner-Pavagadh in Gujarat, one of the 26 UNESCO world heritage sites in India. Champaner-Pavagadh, located 40 kms from Vadodara, is Gujarat’s first world heritage site and the 26th in UNESCO’s India list. Once a prosperous medieval capital of Gujarat and with no less significance in Indian history than Fatehpur-Sikri and Hampi-Vijayanagara, it is also a perfect example of secularism. An exhibition titled ‘Champaner-Pavagadh: forgotten no more’ was inaugurated recently in the presence of Mrinalani Sarabhai, as a troupe of dancers clapped and danced to the strains of Garba, "Maa Pava Tee Gadh Thi.." and Bhil tribals playing bamboo flute. "We are glad to be associated with the heritage trust and CSMVS museum in organising a unique exhibition for the people of Mu

Shabana Azmi inaugurates photo exhibition on Bhuj MUMBAI, July 19/2001: Would archaeologists be able to restore historic monuments that have been turned into rubble by the January 26 killer earthquake in Bhuj ? This is the question that arose in the minds of most visitors as they saw some of the unique pictures that city-based lensman Jayanta Saha clicked in Bhuj before and after the fateful 59 seconds on January 26, 2001. "Oh my God....It is really shocking," said noted actress and Rajya Sabha member Shabana Azmi while inaugurating the exhibition titled "splendour and ruins of Bhuj" last night alongwith her husband, noted writer and poet Javed Akhtar. Earlier, Tina Ambani, associated with the Reliance Group as its photo consultant, complimented Saha. "The splendour of the monuments is gone, only the photographs now remain," lamented Saha as the exhibition opened at the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA) here. A cross section of people from va

Development will continue in big way in Maharashtra: Shinde MUMBAI, March 6/2003: Notwithstanding financial constraints, Maharashtra will have a bigger plan outlay for 2003-04, Chief Minister Sushilkumar Shinde has said. "Let me assure you that the budget this year will be bigger than that of last year", Mr Shinde told UNI last night in an interview at the State Government’s plush Sahyadri guest house at Malabar Hill in South Mumbai. "Come what may, development activities of the State will continue", the Chief Minister said, a few days before the start of the budget session of the Maharashtra legislature, next Monday. Having a record of presenting the State budget as Finance Minister nine times, Mr Shinde, who took over as the Chief Minister in January this year, assured that he will pull the State out of its current financial condition within no time. "It will be one or two years and the State’s financial condition will be back on the track", asserted a

Coast guard carries out exercise in Arabian Sea MUMBAI, Feb 1/2002: For a change the early morning calm over the Arabian Sea was shattered as dornier aircrafts cut across the blue skies to liquidate mock targets, choppers carrying out helobatics and ships displaying a range of coast guard operations on the eve of the 17th anniversary of the coast guard yesterday. Mediapersons witnessed the exercise during a conducted ‘day-at-sea’ onboard front-line ship ‘CGA Samar’, carried out under the supervision of Commodore S Pradeep, Commander of Coast Guard Western Region. While the Agile single-engine Chetak multi-role helicopters, which are the only choppers used by the Coast Guard, performed an array of helobatics leaving the audience spellbound even as they displayed their manoeuvrability through a search-and-rescue exercise, the sleek dornier aircraft displayed several drills and mock firing and aerial recce missions. The oil-spill response and anti-poaching activities were also displayed

India to utilise N-weapons as a deterrent: Mahajan MUMBAI, Mar 28/199: Asserting that India will utilise nuclear weapons as a deterrent, Information and Broadcasting Minister Pramod Mahajan today said that the challenge before scientist and security agencies is to develop a sophisticated command and control system of effecting delivery. "Nuclear weapons cannot be transported or delivered on bicycles or trucks and we need to have an effective command and control system," the Minister said while addressing a huge gathering of BJP workers on the concluding day of Jan Jagran Abiyan here. "It will take a few years time for developing an effective command system", he said, adding that the Government need not be destabilised at this stage. "The nuclear cover will act as a deterrent against enemies and those who have guts to see eye to eye with India," he said and added "we will make the country’s nuclear policy irreversible." We are a peace loving count