The Supreme Court has asserted in a judgment that forests in India are a national asset and a major contributor to the nation’s financial wealth.
“It is the spirit of the forest that moves the earth,” a Bench headed by Justice M.M. Sundresh observed in a judgment based on an appeal filed by the State of Telangana against a High Court decision “graciously gifting” forest land to a private person. The State’s forest officials, expected to preserve the forest, had made matters worse by filing conflicting affidavits in court about the nature of the land in question. The apex court ordered ₹5 lakh in costs from both the State government and the private persons. The State was asked to open an enquiry against its own forest officials.
The judgment has come at a pivotal time when the controversial Forest Conservation (Amendment) Act of 2023 or the FCAA has attracted widespread criticism. The FCAA is accused of giving a free hand to States to regularise encroachments in protected forests and determine diversions of forestlands. The Act has been criticised for paving the way for the commercial exploitation of forests, besides exempting infrastructural projects from environmental clearance.
“Depletion and disappearance of forests would ultimately lead to a massive extinction of organisms,” Justice Sundresh, who authored the judgment pronounced on April 18, observed.
The court said concepts of carbon credit and green accounting to evaluate a nation’s wealth had become a reality. “A country with excess forest cover would be in a position to sell its excess carbon credit to the one in deficit. This in turn underlines the significance of forests in contributing to the financial wealth of a country,” the court noted.
The judgment said India’s forests serve as a major sink of carbon dioxide (CO2). The value of mitigation has put a conservative value of $5 per tonne of CO2 locked in our forests, this huge sink of about 24,000 mt of CO2 is worth $120 billion, or ₹6 lakh crores.
The court quoted from a 2009 report of the Ministry of Environment and Forests titled ‘India’s Forest and Tree Cover: Contribution as a Carbon Sink’, which said that from “1995 to 2005, the carbon stocks stored in our forests and trees have increased from 6,245 million tonnes (mt) to 6,662 mt, registering an annual increment of 38 mt of carbon or 138 mt of CO2 equivalent”.
Justice Sundresh highlighted the protective role of forests against climate change. It referred to a 2022-2023 report of the Reserve Bank of India on the macroeconomic impact of climate change and changing patterns of rainfall. These factors, the judgment quoted the report, could cost the economy 2.8% of its GDP and depress the living standards of nearly half of its population by 2050.
“India could lose anywhere around 3% to 10% of its GDP annually by year 2100 due to climate change,” the judgment noted from the RBI document.
“The report of the Reserve Bank of India presents a very disturbing scenario. The report clearly suggests the enormous potential impact of climate change on the society, leading to serious job losses in every sector. Therefore, the adverse effect will be on the future of the nation as a whole, as against an identifiable group,” the judgment said.
“Man, being an enlightened species, is expected to act as a trustee of the earth. It is not his right to destroy the habitat of other species but his duty to protect them from further peril,” Justice Sundresh noted.
Centre asks FSSAI to probe claim of Nestle adding sugar to baby products
The Consumer Affairs Ministry on Friday said it has asked the food safety regulator FSSAI to investigate the composition of Nestle’s Cerelac baby cereals sold in India, amid a global report that claimed the company was adding higher sugar content in the product.
“We have written to the FSSAI to take cognizance of the report on Nestle’s baby product,” Consumer Affairs Secretary and the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) chief Nidhi Khare told PTI.
Asserting that high sugar in baby products raises serious concerns about the potential implications for the health and safety of children in our country, the Secretary said, “the health and wellbeing of our citizens, especially infants and young children, is of paramount importance, and any deviation from safety standards could lead to serious health concerns.” In light of these reports, Khare said, “the FSSAI has been requested to initiate an appropriate action into the practices of Nestle company regarding the composition of Nestle Cerelac baby cereals sold in India”.
The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has also taken note of the report and issued a notice to the FSSAI. According to findings by the Swiss NGO, Public Eye and International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN), Nestle sold baby products with higher sugar content in less developed South Asian countries including India, Africa and Latin American nations as compared to markets in Europe.
Meanwhile on Thursday, Nestle India had said it never compromises on compliance and it has reduced added sugar in baby food products in India by over 30 per cent depending on variants over the past five years.
“Reduction of added sugars is a priority for Nestle India. Over the past 5 years, we have already reduced added sugars up to 30 per cent, depending on the variant,” the company spokesperson had said.
Stressing that compliance is an essential characteristic of Nestle India, the spokesperson said, “We will never compromise on that. We also ensure that our products manufactured in India are in full and strict compliance with CODEX standards (a commission established by WHO and FAO) and local specifications (as required) pertaining to the requirements of all nutrients including added sugars.”
According to the report, Nestle’s wheat-based product, Cerelac for six-month-old babies is sold without any added sugars in the UK and Germany but 15 Cerelac products analysed from India contained 2.7 grams of added sugar per serving on average.
The sugar content was declared on the packaging in India, the report said. The highest sugar content in the product was 6 grams in Thailand. In the Philippines, sugar content was found to be 7.3 grams in five out of eight samples tested and the information was not even declared on the packaging, according to the report.
Arvind Kejriwal being denied his medicines in jail as part of a larger conspiracy: Atishi
“It is possibly the first time in independent India’s history that a person in judicial custody is being stopped from taking medicine,” AAP leader Atishi said on April 19, a day after ED claimed in court is eating foods high in sugar, including mangoes and sweets, every day, despite having Type 2 diabetes, in order to raise his blood sugar level.
“This is not a gangster or a terrorist, but a person who has been elected thrice by the people of Delhi as the Chief Minister,” Atishi said on April 19 Everyone is aware that Kejriwal has been suffering from diabetes for the past 30 years, she said, adding that the BJP-led Centre government and PM Modi is plotting something against the Delhi CM by not allowing him his medicines, insulin.
“Why are the Centre, Enforcement Directorate and Tihar [administration] opposing it? We heard of such things were done to inmates before Independence. This is a big conspiracy,” she said on Friday.
“Under which legal provision did the Tihar administration share [Kejriwal’s health-related information] with the Enforcement Directorate [ED]? The probe agency has only one job — to investigate money laundering. Did AAP mix cash in his rotis? Why were details shared with ED? Why did ED file these in court?” Atishi asked.
On Thursday, the ED claimed before a court that Kejriwal is eating high-sugar foods like mangoes and sweets every day despite having type-2 diabetes to create grounds for medical bail. Addressing a press conference, Atishi accused the ED of being a “subsidiary organisation of BJP”.
“It is a political tool of the BJP,” she alleged. Denying claims that Kejriwal was eating eggs during Navratras, the Delhi Cabinet minister said, “This is the BJP’s bundle of lies. Kejriwal had upma, uttapam and poha during Navratra.”
Google fires 28 employees as CEO Pichai warns against debating politics
Google has fired 28 employees after protests against the company and Amazon’s $1.2 billion Project Nimbus contract with the Israeli government amidst the country’s bombardment of Palestinians.
While the organisation ‘No Tech for Apartheid’ claimed that over two dozen workers were “indiscriminately” fired, a Google memo confirmed that 28 involved employees had been fired, reported tech outlet The Verge.
Around nine people were arrested by the police after hours of sit-ins at the two Google offices in New York and Sunnyvale. They livestreamed themselves being removed from the premises. “They took over office spaces, defaced our property, and physically impeded the work of other Googlers. Their behavior was unacceptable, extremely disruptive, and made coworkers feel threatened,” wrote Chris Rackow, Google’s head of global security, in the memo shared by The Verge.
However, No Tech for Apartheid previously disagreed with such allegations. “This excuse to avoid confronting us and our concerns directly, and attempt to justify its illegal, retaliatory firings, is a lie,” the organisation said in an earlier statement on Thursday. “Even the workers who were participating in a peaceful sit-in and refusing to leave did not damage property or threaten other workers. Instead they received an overwhelmingly positive response and shows of support.”
Google’s Rackow warned that other employees following the protesters’ actions could expect similar consequences, and that such behaviour violated multiple workplace policies. In a blog post on Thursday, chief Sundar Pichai advised employees to keep politics out of the workplace and said it was “too important a moment as a company” for them to be distracted.
“We have a culture of vibrant, open discussion that enables us to create amazing products and turn great ideas into action. That’s important to preserve. But ultimately we are a workplace and our policies and expectations are clear: this is a business, and not a place to act in a way that disrupts coworkers or makes them feel unsafe, to attempt to use the company as a personal platform, or to fight over disruptive issues or debate politics,” Pichai wrote.
No Tech for Apartheid held Google’s leadership responsible for the ongoing deaths in Palestine. “Sundar Pichai and Thomas Kurian are genocide profiteers. We cannot comprehend how these men are able to sleep at night while their tech has enabled 100,000 Palestinians killed, reported missing, or wounded in the last six months of Israel’s genocide — and counting,” said the organisation.
Poll roundup:
An All-India voter turnout of 60.3% was recorded by 7pm on April 19 in phase one of 2024 Lok Sabha elections covering 102 constituencies across 17 States and four Union Territories amidst sporadic incidents of violence in West Bengal and an IED blast in Chhattisgarh. Minor EVM glitches were reported at some booths in Tamil Nadu, Arunachal Pradesh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Assam. West Bengal recorded a turnout of 77% till 5 p.m. However, polling was marred by violence in the Cooch Behar seat. Both the TMC and the BJP clashed and lodged 80 and 39 complaints against each other respectively related to poll violence, voter intimidation, and assaults on poll agents, sources from both parties said.
Despite stringent security arrangements, violence marred voting for the first phase of the Lok Sabha elections in Inner Manipur constituency on April 19. Shooting by miscreants broke out at a polling station at Thamanpokpi under Moirang Assembly segment. Three people are reportedly injured, prompting authorities to swiftly reinforce security measures in the area. Vandalism has also been reported at a polling station under Thongju Assembly seat in Imphal East district. Around 12.6% of the over 15.44 lakh voters exercised their franchise for the two Lok Sabha seats in the ethnic violence-affected Manipur till 9 a.m. on Friday. Inner Manipur constituency recorded 13. 82% polling while the turnout in Outer Manipur is 11. 57% in the first two hours of voting.
A 32-year-old jawan of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) deployed on poll duty in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district was killed on April 19 when a shell of Under Barrel Grenade Launcher (UBGL) exploded accidentally, police said. The incident took place near Galgam village under Usoor police station limits when a team of security personnel was out on an area domination operation half a kilometer away from a polling booth, said an official. Bijapur district comes under the Bastar Lok Sabha constituency where voting is underway in the first phase of Lok Sabha elections.
In Brief:
Air India on April 19 said its flights to and from Tel Aviv will remain suspended till April 30 amid tensions in the Middle East. The airline operates four weekly flights between the national capital and the Israeli city. “Air India flights to and from Tel Aviv will remain suspended until 30th April 2024, in view of the emerging situation in the Middle East. We are continuously monitoring the situation,” an airline spokesperson said in a statement. The airline is offering one-time waiver on rescheduling and cancellation charges for passengers who have confirmed bookings for travel to and from Tel Aviv during this period.
A special court in Mumbai on April 19 granted bail to Yes Bank co-founder Rana Kapoor in the ₹466.51 crore bank fraud case, paving the way for him to walk out of jail after four years. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Kapoor in March 2020 in a money laundering case, and he has been booked in eight cases related to fraud at the bank. The banker has now secured bail in all the cases. Kapoor’s lawyer Rahul Agarwal said they were trying to complete the bail formalities to facilitate his release as early as possible. The court has granted bail to Kapoor in the CBI’s case against him and Avantha Group promoter Gautam Thapar for allegedly indulging in criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust, cheating and forgery for diversion of public money to the tune of ₹466.51 crore.
Evening Wrap will return tomorrow.
