After the protests against amendments to the Land Acquisition Act, the Congress party will take up a “massive movement” against the dilution of the environment and forests Acts, said former Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh.
Talking to The Hindu on the sidelines of a talk at the Indian Institute of Science here on Saturday, Mr. Ramesh said the party will take up the opposition to the T.S.R. Subramanian Committee Report, which suggests amendments to six environment laws.
On climate change
“We intend to take it to the masses and start a movement against these amendments,” he said.
During a talk on ecology, Mr. Ramesh said while the attitudes of the UPA and NDA governments were similar towards activists, the current Narendra Modi-led government had a “greater degree” of suspicion against environmental activists.
“There is a deliberate attempt to stifle voices of dissent,” he said.
In the run-up to the conference on climate change in Paris, Mr. Ramesh said it would be “convenient, but a non-starter” strategy for India to claim it has low emissions per capita and should be exempt from climate change action.
“We can’t use the fact that 500 million have no electricity access to claim we do not emit. By 2030, India will have emissions as much as the U.S. While we may not be the source for greenhouse gases, we are contributing to its continuing discharge,” he said.
