UNEARTH- The Viewsletter |
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| From the Managing Trustee Desk Dear Readers, Welcome to the new issue of Unearth. This issue has a wide range of coverage with a focus on ethics and including aspects such as bankers realizing in the aftermath of the banking crisis about the real credit needs of people to some initial results from the air monitoring experiments we are conducting. I am extremely glad that we have been able to include a guest article from Pritha Chatterjee who has been an important contributor to the emerging Cities for People Alliance. The situation today demands that we seriously look at area and community based procesess for economic growth instead of following a mirage of an increased GDP led growth and distribution process. The fact finding in Himachal Pradesh points to a complete insensitivity among infrastructure developers to both the people and environment. Even judicial directions do not seem to matter to them. I am also happy to see a book review on an important issue of our concern, the transboundary rivers. Our new members emphasis on ethics of the self is an eyeopener for the young. Read on. |
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| Environics Trust this month |
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| Thermal Power Plants- Tracking cases in different High Courts
The work to track the status of cases in different High Courts in continuing. The High Courts are hearing the cases as directed by the Supreme Court with a mandate to monitor the working conditions in different power plants and ensure the guidelines ordered by the Supreme Court are implemented. A summary of affidavits filed in different High Courts is being prepared and cases in 12 courts are being tracked regularly. Efforts have also been made to contact the workers representatives in different plants to find the actual problems faced by the workers on the Job. |
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| Air Quality Monitoring
The Air quality monitoring devices are being placed at different locations to further identify any issues with the working of the devices. In an interesting study undertaken, two devices were placed in the house of ET employees, one inside the house and one outside the house. It was noticed the dust levels inside the houses were higher than the dust levels outside. The reason for this can be attributed to improper ventilation and excessive PM levels due to cooking and other activities. Efforts are on to connect these devices with a solar panel to ensure a steady power supply and making the devices completely wireless. More research is continuing and more studies are being designed and targeted. |
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| Cities for People Coalition
Cities for people is a coalition formed on the basis of dialogues which started last year among various organizations on coming together to think, share and build an understanding of how one can contribute collectively to make our human settlements more inclusive, just and environmentally sustainable. The last year was a particularly productive time with civil society actors engaged in different dialogues and collective processes in a number of events. Many organisations came together in 4 major consultations. |
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| AIBOC coalition People’s Parliament on Unity and Development
To bring together Trade Unions, Farmers, Traders, Students, Youths, Women and Bankers at Grassroot level to discuss what kind of holistic development is needed. It is a dichotomy that Banks are saying there is no credit off take and people are saying they are not getting credit. Environics Trust is the proposed member of the Coordinating committee to be formed within this coalition |
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| Field Visit: Bilaspur, Himachal Pradesh
The National Highways Authority of India assigned Kiratpur Ner Chowk Expressway Ltd (KNCEL) promoted by the IL&FS Transportation Networks Ltd (ITNL) on 16th March 2012 to undertake four laning of Kiratpur to Ner-Chowk section of NH21 from km.73200 to km 186500on Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer (DBFOT) basis in the states of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh. The project road starts from Kiratpur Bypass and ends at Ner Chowk Bypass. The existing length is approximately 113300 kms and the redesigned length is approximately 84380 kms. The project mainly covers Rupnagar district of Punjab and Mandi and Bilaspur Districts of Himachal Pradesh. |
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| HIGHLIGHTS | ||
| Situation of Informal Sector: Waste Workers by Baljeet The word unorganized was first used by Keith Hart and International Labour Organization (ILO) discussed it first time in 1972 in its Kenya convention where comprehensive discussion on unorganized sector which was held. Long before this, unorganized workers emerged in eighteenth century in England. |
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| T&C Apply: Between Change, Growth and Aspirations by Nishant Alag All these three are dynamic. The climate is changing, so is its terminology [common but differentiated responsibilities is now equity & common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities] ! Growth story is changing, so is the design to achieve it. |
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| Ethics in Water Management & Practices by Arun Kumar Singh Throughout the history of civilizations, water had been an ‘infinite’ resource, barring the last 75 years, when the process of rendering it to a ‘finite’ status accelerated … a process whose seeds were born during Renaissance. |
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| Creating Harassment free Public Spaces by Ananya Bhatia We live in a society where we grew up watching movies where it is too easy to get a girl by following her on a road, teasing her, getting in the same bus as her, going in the same park where she goes. A lot of people actually believe and practice that and the cases of assault are common in public spaces. |
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| Book Review: Indus Divided: India, Pakistan and the Indus Basin Dispute: David Haines by Arun Kumar Singh As the twenty-first century deepens, water is only going to get more important. Growth, pollution, climate change, these are all now intertwined in such complicated ways that water — its availability, its reliability, its price, its conservation, its distribution within a stratified society, and how it travels from point A to point B, not to mention point Z, — is increasingly at the forefront of political decision-making and political tussles everywhere. |
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| First step in the real World by Titli Mondal Just right after passing out from the university the word I used to hear was “welcome to the real world”. I used to think, where I was for so long? Isn’t this the real world? In our student life, people surrounding us are faculty, mentor, guide and so on. As I found myself in my university life is all about learning. If there is a mistake then mentors/ professors help you to correct that. It was always being like safeguard by other.In the university life most of the time we think of what will be next class, exam, we have to do something to change the society. After step out from that life, there are a lot of changes. Everyone will remind you that now you are in “real world”.What is this real world? There are lot of definition, but here all I am talking about our work life. There are full of rules, regulation, and ethics. You have to follow them. However, it is not same for all of us. Everyone has some belief in their own principles of doing work. Often time it has found our own principles get suppress under the work ethics.Aren’t we doing something wrong by suppressing ourselves? We stop ourselves by thinking that people will judge us? Yes, they do. People will blame you too. People will laugh, but not going to help to correct your mistake. But all we need to be stand by our own ethics or principles, then only we can face this “real world”. |
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| Guest Article – Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana – Distant Dream or Reality? by Pritha Chatterjee- Action Aid The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), introduced in June 2015, aims at “By the time the Nation completes 75 years of its Independence, every family will have a pucca house with water connection, toilet facilities, 24×7 electricity supply and access. |
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| NEWS | ||
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| EVENTS ATTENDED | ||
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| UPCOMING EVENTS | ||
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We welcome all suggestions and questions from our readers. A feedback from all will be much appreciated. In case there are any questions or clarification with regards to the content present in this issue, please email us at addresses below. Editorial Team: |
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