POSCO Judgment of National Green Tribunal - Briefing Note

On March 30, 2012, the National Green Tribunal held in Prafulla Samantra and Anr. vs Union of India and Ors. that the 31.1.2011 final order of the Environment Ministry - permitting the POSCO project to go ahead with certain conditions - should be suspended until a full review of the project can be undertaken (by specialists with fresh terms of reference). The NGT Bench consisted of Justice C.V. Ramulu, Judicial Member, and Dr. Devendra Kumar Agarwal, Expert Member.

The tribunal has observed that, “A close scrutiny of the entire scheme … reveals that a project of this magnitude particularly in partnership with a foreign country has been dealt with casually, without there being any comprehensive scientific data regarding the possible environmental impacts. No meticulous scientific study was made on each and every aspect of the matter leaving lingering and threatening environmental and ecological doubts un-answered.” (para 7, page 22)

It has also seriously questioned the appointment of Ms. Meena Gupta as the chairperson of the review committee which was set up by the MoEF in 2010. The judgement states that Ms. Gupta's appointment was "definitely hit by personal / official / departmental bias, in other words, she supported the decision made by her earlier. This is in gross violation of principles of natural justice." (para 6.9 page 22)

BJP's Double Speak on Waste to Energy Incinerators anti-environment, and anti-people‏

BJP's Double Speak on Waste to Energy Incinerators anti-environment, and anti-people Dioxins Factory Promoted by Congress Party 
New Delhi: The promise of waste-to-energy projects in its manifesto to sort out garbage problems by BJP is anti-environment, and anti-people. This promise reveals that both Congress and BJP are hand in glove in adopting the hazardous incinerator technology. ToxicsWatch Alliance (TWA) supports the hunger strike against the Okhla waste to energy incinerator by the residents. Delhi Chief Minister inaugurated the 20.9 MW plant despite bitter resistance of the residents, environmental groups and waste pickers. 
Senior BJP leader Vikay Kumar Malhotra too had supported the struggle against this heavily polluting plant both in writing and on TV. Now his party has revealed that it support the hazardous plant and not the citizens of Delhi. This double speak by BJP is condemnable.The callousness of both BJP and Congress towards the sad plight of residents of Okhla, Narela-Bawana and Ghazipur, environment and the livelihood of waste pickers due to hazardous waste to energy incinerators is unacceptable. 
Okhla waste to energy incinerator plant has faced opposition since 2005 due to its adverse public health consequences. The plant in question has violated every rule in the rule book. It is a matter of fact that such plants have consistently failed in India. The consent of the people of Okhla which is a ‘must’ before granting clearances and cumulative impact assessment was never taken. The people of Okhla never gave their consent for this hazardous project in their proximity. There is documentary evidence that the public hearing that was conducted was fake, it was conducted at Saket. 
The environmental clearance given to the project is also flawed as it has been amended repeatedly to increase the amount of waste treated and energy generated in an apparent effort to grab subsidies being offered by Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE). The cumulative impact assessment of the pre-existing biomedical waste incinerator and the new municipal waste incinerator has never been done. The emissions from both these units are already becoming part of body burden of residents of Okhla.

Andhra Pradesh Dalits and Adivasis marching towards achieving Statutory Status for SCP and TSP

-B.Karthik Navayan

SC, ST Sub-Plan Nidhula Saadhana Ikya Kaaryacharana Committee (United Action Committee to claim SC, ST Sub-Plan Funds) was formed under the leader ship of Sri Kaki Madhava Rao, Former Chief Secretary, Government of Andhra Pradesh as its chairman and Retired Justice K. Ramaswamy as adviser. Retired IAS Officers Sri B. Danam, Sri K.R. Venu Gopal, Sri T. Gopal Rao and Retired IPS Officers Sri Rushya Rao, Dr. D. T. Nayak, Dr. V. N. V. K. Sastri are some of the important persons as its members.
National Dalit Forum, Sakshi Human Rights Watch-AP and Center for Dalit Studies have come together to provide secretarial assistance to the committee. 

The Committee has brought together nearly 100 peoples organizations and NGOs under its fold. The core committee constituted a drafting committee to draft the bill to provide statutory status to SCP and TSP. The drafting committee consisted of Sri K. Madhava Rao, Sri B.Danam, Sri V.Nanda Gopal, Mr. R.Ravi Kumar. The Drafting committee met several times to articulate the bill. The salient features of the Bill are: 




1. The population equivalent share of the total plan in each year should be set apart before allotting funds to various departments and shall be voted along with the general budget of the state. 

2. The funds thus set apart for SCP and TSP shall be kept at the disposal of a statutory authority meant for SCs and STs separately. The authority is all powerful to design and finalise the programs and schemes to be undertaken with the SCP and TSP funds. The authority is also empowered to monitor the best utilization of schemes and programs. 

3. The funds under SC ST Special Component are non-lapsable and non-divertible. 

4. Penal provisions: Any functionary of the Government who is responsible to prepare the Special Component plan for SCs & STs, as a part of the preparation of the Annual Budget of the State willfully fails to do so; 

5. And any functionary of the Government who is responsible to approve and place annual Budget before the Legislative Assembly fails to earmark for the exclusive benefit of SCs and STs funds in proportion to the their population to the total population of the State; 

6. And any functionary of the Government who is responsible to prepare and implement schemes under SCSP and STP fails to do so; 

7. And any functionary of the Government who is responsible to release funds fails to do so in time; 

8. And any functionary of the Government who is responsible for diversion of SCSP and STP funds to other schemes; shall be deemed to have committed an offence under Section 4 of the SC/ST (PoA) Act.

Most of the junk foods contain very high levels of trans fats, salts and sugar : CSE

New Delhi: After the shocking disclosure of presence of toxins in widely consumed soft drinks, a study done by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) on junk food and nutrition has disclosed that most of the junk foods contain very high levels of trans fats, salts and sugar – which inevitably lead to severe ill health and diseases like obesity and diabetes.

Junk foods – all the stuff that most of us love to gorge on – have enough trans fats, salt and sugar to lead us to an early onset of diseases in the young. And what’s worse, neither the companies, nor the government is bothering to tell us what these foods contain, says a new Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) study which was released here on Friday.“We all know junk food is bad; we still eat it. But do we know how bad it is? Do we ever check what we are eating and whether what that packet of chips or Maggie has what it claims it has? Our new study, which looks at the nutritional value of these foods, is to make people aware of what these foods really contain and what they will do to our health”, says Sunita Narain, director general, CSE.

CSE, which is known for some truly ground-breaking studies on food and contamination, says this is the first comprehensive Indian study to have looked at nutritional claims made (or not made) by junk food makers and how they compare against our ‘allowed daily intake’. “And the findings are pretty damning,” says Chandra Bhushan, CSE’s deputy director general, who also heads the Pollution Monitoring Lab which did the study.

MANMOHAN SINGH, KUDANKULAM ANTI-NUCLEAR STRUGGLE AND THE POLITICS FOREIGN HAND

by-Asit Das
As I am writing this there has been a massive Police crack down on Anti-nuclear protesters at Kudankulam in Tamil nadu. More than six thousands police and paramilitary forces have been deployed. At Idinthakarai Village near the nuclear power plant 15, 000 people are protesting. 15 people including Dr. SP Uday Kumar and Pusparayan are into indefinite fast. More than 200 activists arrested. The latest update from the Kudankulam anti-nuclear struggle on 23^rd March 2012, 1.30 P.M. is. Between 1500 and 3000 protestors have been arrested in Jawahar Thidal, Tirunelveli, for attempting to march towards Idinthakarai today. 


Leading the march were prominent Tamil leaders including Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's Vaiko, Thanthai Periyar Dravida Kazhagam's Kolathur Mani, Naan Thamizhan's Seeman, Panruti Velmurugan, Com. Thiagu, and representatives of Viduthalai Chirutaikal Katchi (Dalit Panthers) and Pattali Makkal Katchi. In a dazzling display of Centre-State cooperation, Tamilnadu Police were ably assisted by army fatigues-clad Army Special Forces, to herd the protestors into waiting vans and onward to Rose Mahal, where they are currently detained. Rose Mahal is currently filled to capacity, and more vans are still coming in, said Jones Thomas Spartagus, one of the activists who is part of those arrested.

Recently, Manmohan Singh the Prime Minister of India, in a very derogatory mala fide intention and to malign the anti-nuclear movement in Kudankulam (Tamil Nadu), said in an interview that the people’s resistance to the Kudankulam nuclear power plant and people who are campaigning against GM foods, are supported by a foreign hand. Apart from the interview, Manmohan Singh’s servitude to national and international capital has made him resort to the worst kind of slander and repression on anti-nuclear struggle in Kudankulam, including the struggle against other nuclear plants all over India. One protestor was shot dead by Maharashtra police in Jaitapur last year. In Kudankulam, thugs of Manmohan Singh’s party (Congress) have violently attacked the activists of anti-nuclear struggle in Kudankulam.

With hundreds of thousands of farmers committing suicide, millions of hectares of land are forcibly grabbed; thousands are dying of hunger and disease. This accusation of ‘foreign hand’ is a cruel joke on the hapless, millions of whom are suffering state repression and their land, resources, livelihood and dignity are being snatched away. The bogey of foreign hand has been played by post-independent rulers to divert the rising discontent of the masses.

“Green signal for Koodankulam is a red signal for our lives”

People’s Movement against Nuclear Energy activists continue indefinite hunger strike even as police arrest 212 protesters

by-Jeemon Jacob 

Thiruvananthapuram: Tamil Nadu government started “operation Koodankulam “on Monday 19 March, arresting 203 protesters and blocking all entry points to the coastal villages surrounding the Nuclear power plant. Police arrested 185 men including parish priest Father Suseelan at Kottupuli village where they were protesting against the deployment of police forces. They were taken to Tirunelveli Armed Reserve Camp. Later Police arrested 18 men from Koodankulam on charges of staging protests and violating Section 144 of the Indian Penal Code.

Police started the crackdown on anti-nuclear plant protesters early on 19 March arresting nine people including People’s Movement against Nuclear Energy (PMANE) legal advisor Sivasubramanian and Rajalingam. They are being charged with sedition including Sections 121, 121A and 153A. They were taken to Tirunelveli. Around 4000 state police and 400 central police officials have been deployed in the area. Police have set up seven more police pickets around Koodankulam Nuclear plant and blocked entry points.

According to Dr SP Udaykumar , convener People’s Movement against Nuclear Energy, who is on a indefinite hunger strike along with Pusparayan, his associate at Idinthakarai, around 5000 people assembled at the St Lourdes Church ground since Monday. “We, eight men and seven women, are on an indefinite hunger strike. The green signal for Koodankulam is a red signal for our lives. We will continue our protest till we die,” said Udayakumar.

To beat the police blockade, protesters were seen using fishing boats to ferry people to the protest grounds. “We were able to bring our people to Idinthakarai On Monday. But this morning (Tuesday) onwards, the Coast Guard and Navy used helicopters for surveillance in the area,” said Udayakumar. Police have also intensified patrolling in the area and are waiting for orders from Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalitha to enter Idinthakarai. Additional Director General of Police S George, is camping in the area and overseeing the Koodankulam operation.

According to a senior Police official, the state government wanted a ‘silent clearance operation’ in Koodankulam. “We have requested media to vacate the premises and sealed all entry points. We will use force only as a last resort,” said the police official who wished to remain anonymous. According to sources, the Police have cut power supply to Idinthakarai and are planning to delink the water supply to the village.

“We are protesting peacefully. We will continue our protests till our demands are met,” said Pushparayan. According to him, they protesters want an immediate release of people arrested and the withdrawal of Tamil Nadu cabinet resolution. “We have been ditched by the Tamil Nadu government, they will pay for the betrayal and treachery,” Udayakumar told TEHELKA.

Udayakumar asked why the state government was not ready to conduct the safety drill around the 30 kilometer radius of the power plant which mandatory before commissioning a Nuclear plant. “The government is violating basic safety requirements before commissioning the plant. In such a situation ,we have no other option,” said Udayakumar. He warned of public health problems and food shortage at Idinthakarai and appealed to the people of Tamil Nadu to be aware of, “this assault on the Tamil community”.

“They [government] are preparing to load uranium fuel rods into the reactor without conducting safety or evacuation drills. This kind of Fascist development is taking our country to another round of New East India Companies and Neo-colonialism,” said Udayakumar. Dr V Suresh, National Secretary, PUCL, Tamil Nadu-Puducherry condemned the of police action by the Tamil Nadu State Government against peacefully demonstrators in Koodankulam.

“The Police action against Idinthakrai villagers resembles the Jalianwalabagh incident and raises concerns about the state government’s intention. This action comes immediately after the Sankarankovil by-elections.” said Dr Suresh. The PUCL has demanded an immediate and unconditional release of all arrested villagers and withdrawal of Police force from the area. (courtesy:Tehelka)

Obama appoints Indian Americans to key posts

Washington: US President Barack Obama has announced the appointment of two eminent Indian Americans - Paula Gangopadhyay and Sonny Ramaswamy -- to key posts in the administration. While Gangopadhyay has been nominated Member of the prestigious National Museum and Library Services Board, Ramaswamy has been appointed Director, National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) in US Department of Agriculture, the White House said, as it announced about half a dozen new nominations.    

"These dedicated individuals bring a wealth of experience and talent to their new roles and I am proud to have them serve in this administration. I look forward to working with them in the months and years to come," Obama said in a statement.Gangopadhyay is currently the Chief Learning Officer at the Henry Ford, where she is responsible for leadership, strategy, and education. She has held a variety of positions in education and arts policy, including Executive Director of the Plymouth Community Arts Council from 2006 to 2008; Curator of Education, Public Programs, Visitor Services and Volunteers at the Public Museum of Grand Rapids from 2002 to 2006; and Executive Director of the Great Lakes Center for Education, Research and Practice from 2000 to 2001.    

Ramaswamy is Dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences at Oregon State University and Director of the Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station. His appointment was welcomed by US Agriculture Secretary, Tom Vilsack.   "I welcome the President's intent to appoint Dr Ramaswamy, a man with a distinguished career as a scientist, professor and leader within higher education, and someone who will surely help to position NIFA as a modern and efficient service organisation that is closely in tune with the long-term vitality of the food and agricultural sciences." (PTI)

Koodankulam Alert

As you all are aware of the current situation that persists in Idinthaakarai and its suburbs. A daily update on the atrocities by the state with the help of its armed forces (Policemen) attacking and treating thousands of innocent mob gathered in a peaceful manner against the opening of the Nuclear plant is the need of the hour. Keeping that on mind HRD Alert has constructed a separate blog site that will facilitate you with all the current information’s pertaining to Koodankulam protest. Click on the link to have access to our daily updates on Koodankulam and do issue solidarity in your individual capacities. 

Idinthakarai Update

March 22, 2012

The situation here is still grim. There are some 10,000 people from coastal and interior villages. Most of them are women including pregnant women and nursing women. I myself saw many nursing women feeding their babied sweetened water as there was no milk coming to the village. More people are coming by boats and on foot as the access roads are all blocked by police. There is no bus service to this place. There is no sanitary complex and women bear the brunt of it. No public health official has ever come to help the people.

Some 15 of us have been on indefinite hunger strike and no medical doctor has ever come here to check our health. The Dinamalam newspaper has reported today that we have all been eating heartily and pretending to be fasting. If this anti-Tamil newspaper can prove that there is a trace of food in my or Pushparayan’s stomach, we are ready to leave this protest. Otherwise, will they stop publishing this stupid paper? We are fighting for a cause not prostituting our soul like the Dinamalam does.

On March 21, my mother had received a phone call from one advocate by the name T. Udayakumar and he claimed he was calling from the DGP office in Chennai. He asked my mother to ask me to leave the protest so that all the cases against me would be dropped and I would get whatever I ask for. My mother told him that I was not a man of that nature and ended the conversation. That evening the Superintendent of Police of Tirunelveli District called me on my mobile and asked me to surrender alone so that people would not be affected. I told him that I was all ready for that but the people here at Idinthakarai also wanted to get arrested along with me and they would not let me go alone. I proposed to the SP to send enough number of buses and two police officers so that there would not be any stampede or tussle and we all would board the buses peacefully and go wherever they wanted us to go. He would not accept that proposition and said in anger: “This is the last time I talk to you.” There ended our conversation.

That night the police officer who was on security duty at our SACCER Matriculation School outside Nagercoil town had received a phone call from the Kanyakumari District SP office to go away from the school. Then a group of vandals, obviously with the blessings of the police, had entered the school and destroyed it very badly. The compound wall was completely demolished and the gate damaged. They ransacked the school bus after tearing down the car shed’s iron shutters. They had entered the KG classrooms and destroyed all the small little chairs which my children were using to sit on. They had broken all the tables and chairs and I do not understand why they punished my little children like this. The vandals had entered our school library and destroyed all the 12 glass bookshelves and tables and threw away the books. My 250 children are all avid readers and have been using our library extensively. This reminds me of the burning of the Public Library at Jaffna a few years ago.

The governments and the police treat and speak of me as if I were Osama bin Laden and our people some mindless terrorists. We resent this inhuman and brutal treatment . Electricity, water, milk and other essentials have been cut for two days; people cannot go out of and come into Idinthakarai as there is brutal police control. We are surrounded by police and I truly feel like I am at Mullivaickal. We are a group of simple people who have been fighting nonviolently and democratically against an untested foreign reactor with all kinds of problems and hiccups. We have not done any harm to anybody or anybody’s property in our eight-month long struggle. The whole country is proud of our people.

The stalemate continues. There are protests happening all over the country and the state of Tamil Nadu. Whoever is farsighted enough to worry about the future of India’s “ordinary citizens,” our natural resources, the well-being of our progeny, the possibility of losing our freedom to the New Nuclear East India Companies and most importantly, the democratic fabric of our country support us. We thank them and you for standing with us. We are ready for any brutal police action but will not give up our nonviolent noncooperation campaign.

Trans-boundary River Basins in South Asia: Options for Conflict Resolution

A report by Gopal Siwakoti "Chintan"
South Asian trans-boundary issues are inextricably linked to regional geopolitics since the main trans-national river systems are circum-Himalayan and involve countries that are unequal in size and power and have been involved in wars in the last six decades. The main river systems, the Indus, the Ganges and the Brahmaputra are all connected to the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) of China. The Indus basin connects China, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India, while the Brahmaputra and the Ganga connect China, Bhutan, India, Nepal and Bangladesh. India has been involved in military conflict with China and Pakistan and water-related tensions with Pakistan and Bangladesh. India regards Nepal as its special sphere of influence and has very strong interests in Nepal's rivers.

India and China are in a phase of rapid economic expansion, resulting in increased use of water and hydropower. Both India and China have plans to step up inter-basin water transfers to meet their water demands and have accelerated their hydropower dam construction programmes. Both countries also economically and politically overshadow their smaller neighbors and countries downstream of these long and large river systems.

In all, India's trans-boundary riparian policies affect four countries - Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh - on three river systems - the Indus, the Ganga and the Brahmaputra-Mehgna. China's riparian policies affect nine countries to the south - Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam - on five river systems - the Indus, the Ganga, the Brahmaputra, the Salween and the Mekong. (Click for Full Report )

Invitation to participate in World Water Day

WORLD WATER DAY
22nd March 2012
10.30 am, in front of the Town Hall, Bangalore, India

To celebrate the natural character of water as commons by drowning the anti-water National Water Policy 2012 Protect the Rights of Mother Earth.
Drown the National water Policy that is anti people, undemocratic and pro-corporate.
Ban all forms of water privatization.
Uphold Right to Water of all life forms.
Protect all commons for the benefit of present and future generations.
Uphold water citizenship, water justice and water democracy
PROGRAM SCHEDULE

10.30 AM:         Introduction to the politics of Water Privatisation
10.45 AM:         Address by speakers;  

1.     B.T. Lalita Naik, Former Minister, Government of Karnataka
2.     Doreswamy, Freedom fighter
3.     M. Venkatswamy, State President, Samatha Sainika Dala
4.     Maralu Siddappa, Writer and Social Activist
5.     Banjagere Jayaprakash, Writer and Social Activist
6.     Nandini, Social Activist

11.45 AM:        Sharing by participants
12.00 AM:        Human chain around a mock well
12.15 AM:        Drowning of the National Water Policy 2012 in the mock well by Doreswamy and BT          Lalita Naik.

RSS opposes water privatisation push in National Water Policy

This is interesting indeed. The question is, are the BJP ruled states like Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Chhattisgarh following this?  Unfortunately no. In all these states water privatisation is being pushed strongly. It is also interesting to know that they are talking about pollution control in Ganga and Yamuna, they are not talking about the destruction of these rivers due to big dams and big hydro projects, for which Prof G D Agarwal is on fast. 

Draft National Water Policy-2012 Needs to be Reconsidered - RSS

RASHTRIYA SWAYAMSEVAK SANGH
AKHIL BHARATIYA PRATINIDHI SABHA
16-18 MARCH, 2012 NAGPUR
RESOLUTION -2 

Natural wealth of the nation is sacred heritage of all the living beings. Hence the Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha is of the considered opinion that our water resources, soil, air, minerals, cattle wealth, biodiversity and other such natural resources should not be treated as means of commercial profit. Our approach, policy and practices towards utilization and conservation of these resources should be based on the principle of our long sustained reciprocal coexistence of entire living universe, rather than being based on short term motive of private profits. We constitute 17 percent of the world population and are dependent upon 2.5 percent of the earth’s land mass and 4 percent of fresh water. In view of the above facts, Government’s initiative towards private monopoly and commercial profiteering in water which is one of the sacred elements among the “Panch-Mahabhootas”, is a matter of grave concern.

In the recently circulated draft National Water Policy – 2012 of the Central Government while describing water as the basis of life, has very cleverly incorporated the formulations and models of the World Bank and MNCs. This clearly manifests the evil designs of the Central Government. The proposals in the new draft on water policy regarding increase in water and electricity tariffs in the name of rationalizing consumption of water and also making it cost based, will only make water scarce for ordinary people and will pave the way for earning massive profits by the corporate engaged in water trade. 

As suggested by the World Bank, attempts at handing over the control of water distribution in the hands of private monopoly in the name of public-private partnership, indicates the intentions of handing over this vital basic necessity of life totally in the control of private ownership and to a large extent foreign multi-national corporations. Experiences of private monopoly of water across the world have not been satisfactory with respect to the quantity and quality of water supply, regularity of supplies and tariffs. By accepting water as a tradable commodity or as an economic good in the water policy, the Government is in fact supporting the logic of those international business consultants who view privatization of water as booming trade opportunity worth billions of dollars in Bharat and other developing countries.

CDM host nations ask U.N. for power to ban projects

By John McGarrity
Developing countries will next week ask the U.N. if they can withdraw  approvals they have given to U.N. emission reduction projects if evidence emerges that they harm the environment or breach human rights. On March 23, government officials from developing countries will ask the  U.N.’s climate secretariat for permission to ban Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects that have already been registered, a move that would in theory increase uncertainty for investors.
Under U.N. rules, developers of CDM projects must receive a letter of approval (LoA) from countries hosting the schemes before the U.N. can register them and award them carbon credits. But the rules do not allow government departments handing out the letters, known as designated national authorities (DNAs), to later withdraw their consent after the scheme has started, a situation some countries want rectified."DNAs are requesting for such a procedure to enable them to withdraw a (letter of approval) in case of non-compliance of a project’s sustainable development commitments," said Lindiwe Chauke, who is head of South Africa’s government agency responsible for approving CDM projects."There is no recourse for projects that fail to comply with the sustainable development commitments."

Water Options for India in a Changing Climate

World Water Day 2012 

On the eve of the World Water Day 2012, the South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers & People (SANDRP) is happy to publish its new report:Water Sector Options for India in a Changing Climate. The report highlights that for the poorest sections, also most vulnerable in the climate change context, the water, food, livelihood and energy security, closely linked with the environment security, is already getting severely affected in the changing climate. It is well known that water is the medium through which climate change impacts are most dominant. South Asia is considered possibly the most vulnerable region in terms of number of people that would be affected by climate change impacts, and within South Asia, India has the largest vulnerable population. The importance of understanding the Water Sector Options in such a situation cannot be underestimated. The report highlights the options for coping and mitigating climate change challenges in water sector in India.

This report tries to capture the relevant issues for Indian Water Sector in the context of changing climate. The 93+ix page report divided in 12 chapters (including on Rainfall, Himalayan Glaciers, Groundwater, Rivers, Floodplains, Wetlands and water bodies, Big Water Infrastructure, Agriculture, Urban water options and Positive local water adaptation cases). It includes a case study each on Organic Farming (by Shripad Dharmadhikary) and on Forest-Agriculture settings in Western Ghats (by Dr Latha Anantha and S Unnikrishnan).

A Burning Issue: The toxic tale of Delhi Waste‏

By: Gopal Krishna

Burning waste for energy? Sounds good? Environmentalists are questioning its efficacy in view of the nature of solid waste in India and the potential pollution this may cause. Recycling materials like organic matter, paper and plastic saves more energy than is produced in the incineration and gasification plants. Recycling and composting of waste costs much less and create millions of jobs, they say. 


January 2012. Toxic smoke and soot filled up all the houses in New Delhi's Sukhdev Vihar. The Okhla waste-to-energy incinerator had gone into action. Built barely 150 metres from residential areas, it has a bird sanctuary, a university and three hospitals within a radius of 10 kilometres. in Narela-Bawana in the national capital are miffed and worried. The idea of waste-to-energy plants based on a tried, tested and failed incineration technology in Delhi's Okhla, Timarpur, Gazipur and Narela-Bawana faces bitter opposition from residents, waste pickers and environ-mental groups. It is anti environment, anti-workers and anti-people, they say.

Every day, Delhi generates nearly 8,500 metric tonnes of waste. 


So the government came up with a plan to burn most of it, about 7350 MT and guess what, produce energy out of it. Three new incineration projects - the 2050 MT project at Okhla by Jindal, the 1000 MT project at Narela-Bawana by Ramky and the 1300 MT project at Ghazipur by GMR, are the Municipal corporation's answer to its waste load. The adverse public health, livelihood and environmental consequences are, of course, ignored.

To environmentalists, this is a distortion of MSW management as these hazardous incineration technologies disregard a Supreme Court order, scientific evidence and past experience both nationally and internationally. A contempt petition is pending in the court. Besides, there is a Writ Petition in the Delhi High Court against the large carbon trade project for the waste incineration based power plant at Okhla.

Multiculturalism” And Australia 's Great Divide

By Ghali Hassan

Countercurrents.org

While most Australians rightly believe that Australia is a multicultural nation, in reality multiculturalism is encouraging divisions, discrimination and racism. Australia needs an inclusive multicultural policy to dismantle “white” dominance and unite Australians.

Since the early 1970s, Australia has embraced multiculturalism and prides itself of being a multicultural nation. After abandoning the “white Australia ” policy, Australia has become one of the most culturally-diverse countries on the planet . However, multiculturalism, as a government policy, is promoted not because it is good, but because it serves the ideology of the ruling class, enforces white dominance and protects white privilege. Hence, Australia 's white Anglo-Saxon elites have an interest in investing and maintaining a marginalised “ethnic” or “other”.

Furthermore, there is a tendency among white Australian elites that Australia must remain a white Anglo-Saxon society controlled by a wealthy white ruling class. This is despite the fact that 44 per cent of Australians are born overseas, or have an overseas-born parent. Only whites (preferably Anglo-Saxons) are Australians and only whites have access to good jobs and justice. Multiculturalism is an anti-culture that identifies white Europeans as “Australians” and the rest as the “ethnic Australians” without identity. Ethnic Australians are told to “assimilate”, but cleverly divided, weakened and put in “their places”, in segregated communities.

BHEL Not Paying Its Own Workers

By Dave Fryett

Public Sector Undertaking Bharat Heavy Electrical Limited (BHEL) is 51 per cent owned by the government of India. According to India's state Press Information Bureau, BHEL has failed to pay the wages of Indian nationals working at the Kosti thermal power project in Sudan and at another worksite in the Central African Republic.

A reference from the State Government of Odisha was received regarding the non payment of assured wages and non-providence of proper food and shelter to workmen from Odisha who had been deployed to work in Power Plant construction in Sudan.

One more reference was received from the State Government of Odisha regarding the harassment of Oriya workers working in the Kosti Thermal Project, Kosti (Sudan). Another reference was received from the Odisha Government with respect to the grievances of workers at a Central Plant under construction in the Central African Republic. References regarding the exploitation of Migrant Labour of Odisha in South Africa and Lebanon have not been received.

The matter was taken up by the Ministry with the Indian Mission in Khartoum. They have reported on 18-04-2011 that out of 216 workers working with a construction company, Sudan, 198 were sent back by 31-12-2010 and 18 workers agreed to continue and were allowed to work at the site. Similarly, the Indian Mission at Khartoum intimated on 26-09-2011 that 68 workers from Odisha had been repatriated from Kosti Thermal Project, Sudan. Further, with the intervention of Indian Mission, Kinshasa, all the 23 workers from Odisha were repatriated from the Central African Republic.

Information as to who is responsible for this abuse is hard to come by, but the PSU's failure to fulfill its responsibilities to its employees is due in no part to insolvency. From the company's website:

How Many Violations of US Arms Laws Are Too Many?

By Franklin Lamb

Countercurrents.org

Beirut: On March 6, 2012, the US Congressional Research Service released a report to the US Congress concerning Restrictions on the use of American weapons by recipient countries. For those who have followed the subject there was not a whole lot new in the CRS study, yet it is instructive in identifying Israel once again as far and away the most egregious violator of virtually every provision of every US law which purports to regulate how American weapons are used.

According to one CRS researcher, requesting anonymity during a Skype conversation and subsequent memo: “An intern and I decided, almost for amusement, to count violations of US Arms Export Control laws by Israel between the date of ACEA enactment, 1976, through last month and we estimated more than 2.5 million violations if we applied the law given the legislative history and intent of Congress at the time of its passage. We based that figure on our estimation of each individual violation of the act as well as of the 1961 Foreign Assistance Act. It could be firing a US 155 mm artillery shell, various missiles, bombs, rockets and of course cluster munitions. For example, were Israel brought before a Court, the prosecutors would surely argue that each cluster booklet dropped on Lebanon in 2006 was a separate violation plus the two million estimated dropped during the 1982 invasion of Lebanon and during the 1978, 1993 and 1996 invasions. Add to this figure Israel’s records of violating US Arms export laws in Gaza, the West Bank and Syria and the true number is surely several million violations. Essentially all committed with impunity.”

In accordance with U.S. law, the U.S. Government is mandated to enforce strict conditions on the use against civilians, of weapons it transfers to foreign recipients. Violations of these conditions can lead to the suspension of deliveries or termination of contracts for such defense items, and even the cutting off of all aid to the violating country.

UK Channel 4 Videos On Sri Lanka: Background Is Essential

By Brian Senewiratne

Countercurrents.org

The Channel 4 News videos on the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka are about the most important contributions to apprise the world of what has gone on, and is still going on, behind the closed and censored doors of Sri Lanka.There are now two documentaries, Sri Lanka's Killing Fields released in June 2011, and Sri Lanka 's killing Fields. War Crimes Unpunished released in March 2012. They contain crucial evidence of war crimes and crimes against humanity, if not Genocide of the Tamils.

The world needs to see these, since all that comes out of Sri Lanka is what the Sri Lankan Government wants the world to believe. That is what a Totalitarian does – to shut down the Media, among other repressive measures. It is therefore essential that these dreadful atrocities be seen by as many people as possible.

There is, however, a problem with these Channel 4 videos. There is no background information which is so important to appreciate why these atrocities occurred. If this is not provided, then these videos are nothing but yet another ‘horror movie'. What has gone on in the war waged by the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) on the Tamil people (not just the Tamil Tigers), is much more than a horror story.

The dozen dvds I have recorded on the plight of the Tamil people has essential information on this. I do not expect people to wade through this mass of information, but the last of these, “ Sri Lanka , Genocide, Crimes against Humanity, Violation of International Law”, contains all that is needed. For those who want more information, this will be found in my “ Sri Lanka . Humanitarian Crisis in the Tamil areas. An Appeal to stop the slaughter and ensure Peace with Justice” which is in two volumes, an hour each. These are too long for the ‘average' viewer.

Afghanistan: The Children Of A Lesser God

By Roqayah Chamseddine

Frustratedarab.com

Staff Sgt Robert Bales, the American soldier allegedly behind the killing of 16 Afghan villagers in the sanctuary of their beds, most of them women and children, on March 11 is now on his way to the United States: 

“An American soldier suspected of shooting 16 civilians in Afghanistan on Sunday is being moved to a military base in Kansas, US officials say. Kuwait confirms the combatant suspected in the Afghan killings has left the country after a stopover. The soldier is expected to arrive at Fort Leavenworth on Friday afternoon, says his civilian attorney, John Henry Browne. According to Browne, his defendant could be tried at any major US garrison, but Afghanistan as an option is ruled out.”

There is little outrage in light of such a loathsome revelation and besides the theatrics which will surely envelope the trial there shall be little to no attention given to the victims, who will be again made to pay for their foreign dispositions. Their identities will once more numb the minds of millions.

Children Of A Lesser God

In Afghanistan the dead are made to die twice; first at the hands of a drove of “rogue” soldiers and later at the hands of those who see them as degenerates:

These rag-heads from Kandahar, these sand-niggers of South Asia, these camel-jockey’s and their offspring are inferior beings; they are the children of a lesser god. Let their corpses fill the streets and their impure blood soak the soles of our shoes, after-all what are they but video-game caricatures of the villains we dispose of with a single head-shot? Their first language is not English but instead an assortment of guttural verbal discharge, their attire is not Western and their mannerisms are brutish. They are unlike us and for this let us do away with them as we would any other foreign scourge, as we have done with those who came before them; another notch in our belt, another 100 points.

Staff Sgt Robert Bales, the sole accused in the massacre in Kandahar, Afghanistan, is now being bathed with talk of “combat stress symptoms — anxiety, depression, anger.” Despite the moistness of soil piled atop the graves filled with the bodies of scorched Afghan civilians the blood is being wiped away with premature concern for US Staff Sgt. Bales’ mental health. This story, we have heard before. These roles, they have been played before. And the indifferent reactions, we have witnessed before.

Dehumanization Of The Oppressed

The dehumanization of the people of Iraq and Afghanistan mirrors that of the Vietnamese, Japanese, Blacks and Native Americans. The names of the victims and the massacres have long been chronicled between the bloody pages of history; Emmett Till, Fred Toyosaburo Korematsu, the My Lai Massacre, Hiroshima and Nagasaki,Wounded Knee and Fallujah.

The assorted mechanisms of terror inflicted against the above mentioned populations, and a plethora of others, were always accompanied by perverse xenophobia, all of which was meant to animalize and degrade them; in order to maintain dominion over any populace there must be effective intimidation, be it physical intimidation carried out through lynchings or mental intimidation by way of media-approved rhetoric of debasement. When the casualties of war are parodied, mocked and their humanity defiled then their suffering will fall victim to the same fate.

The Outrage Of War

The blatant disregard of the latest victims of NATO and the United States of America’s decade-long imperialist adventure in Afghanistan accompanies the overall position which encompasses the war itself. Just as the casualties of war-crimes are evaded, the criminality of war is discounted.

But there shall be no transition away from this seemingly perpetual state of bloodshed until the entire scope of these wars becomes an outrage. Until the villages are rebuilt and the corpses buried with dignity. Until the chatter of Western ruling elites is replaced with the cries of citizen foot-soldiers. Until then, nothing shall change but the body count and the oft-ignored faces behind them.

Roqayah Chamseddine is a US based Lebanese-American journalist, commentator and international activist. She blogs at http://frustratedarab.com

Rogue Soldier? Rogue Superpower

By George Capaccio

Countercurrents.org

I’d like to begin this essay with a brief quote from that towering embodiment of peace and compassion, President Barack Obama. On Monday, March 12, when asked about the massacre of 16 Afghan civilians in a village in Kandahar province, the President remarked: "It appeared you had a lone gunman who acted on his own. In no way is this representative of the enormous sacrifices that our men and women have made in Afghanistan.”

The massacre may not be representative of our soldiers’ “enormous sacrifices,” but it certainly represents the unabated savagery of the U.S. military and the suffering it has inflicted on the people of Afghanistan and Iraq over the past decade. The accused killer, a U.S. Army staff sergeant who had suffered traumatic brain injury while deployed in Iraq, is said to have systematically gunned down entire families in cold blood. But these murders, says Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, should not “alter plans for a gradual, orderly withdrawal of American combat forces by the end of 2014.”

On March 14, in a Rose Garden rendezvous with British Prime Minister David Cameron, Obama reassured the nation and the world that the war on Afghanistan will continue despite last weekend’s killings and the justifiable outrage they provoked among the Afghan people. Sharing the President’s resolve, Cameron added, “We will not give up on this mission, because Afghanistan must never again be a safe haven for al Qaeda to launch attacks against us.”

How is a reasonably sane person supposed to make sense of the Prime Minister’s statement and his counterpart’s determination to carry on with the war? I would argue that both leaders, along with Leon Panetta and the rest of his burly boys in the Pentagon, are as brain damaged as the sergeant who went on a killing spree. The only real difference, as far as I can see, is that the sergeant held the gun, pulled the trigger, and saw the blood explode from his victims’ bodies. His overlords in Washington and London, safely removed from the battlefield, with their numbed minds encapsulated in high-flown rhetoric about ending the scourge of terrorism and keeping their respective nations secure, are carrying out a continuous, unending massacre whose scale vastly dwarfs the bloody deeds of the “lone gunmen.”

US Forces Raped Two Women In Kandahar Carnage

By Press TV 

The Afghan parliamentary mission investigating the recent massacre of 16 civilians by US forces in Afghanistan says two women were raped during the deadly incident, Press TV reports.

Two members of the fact-finding mission, Hamidzi Lali and Shakila Hashemi, told the general meeting of Afghanistan’s parliament on Saturday that the American troopers raped two Afghan women before starting the massacre.

They said between 15 to 20 US soldiers were involved in the carnage.This is while Washington claims that the 38-year-old Army Staff Sergeant Robert Bales, who has just arrived in the US, was the only American military personnel responsible for the massacre.

Earlier on Friday, Afghanistan’s President Hamid Karzai criticized the United States for not cooperating with the Afghan fact-finding team and said the killing of civilians by foreign forces in Afghanistan “has been going on for too long.”

On March 11, a group of US soldiers went from house to house in three villages in Kandahar’s Panjwaii district and gunned down Afghan civilians inside their homes, killing at least 16 people mostly women and children and injuring several others. Due to a recent spate of abusive, racist and xenophobic comments we are forced to revise our comment policy and has put all comments on moderation que.

Flood report paves way for compensation

By Annie Guest and staff

March 17, 2012 : The Queensland Floods Commission has released findings which could pave the way for legal action by the victims of last year's disaster. Its long-awaited report includes more than six million pages of evidence, 345 witnesses and 170 recommendations ranging from flood mapping to emergency responses and, of course, dam management.

Some of the most serious findings in the report relate to Brisbane's Wivenhoe Dam. It says the dam's manual was not properly followed on the weekend leading up to Brisbane's flood peak. That means the dam's operator SEQ Water and its owner - the State Government - may now be liable for compensation.

But the commissioner notes the manual was ambiguous, unclear and difficult to use - factors which should not be overlooked. The report also says the Crime and Misconduct Commission (CMC) should investigate the actions of three dam engineers over misleading reports and testimony about the flood event.

There is also a suggestion of collusion between two of the men. Premier Anna Bligh says the matter was referred to the CMC this morning. The finding that the dam's operating manual was breached will be the most welcome news to flood victims, insurers and class action lawyers.

Rod Hodgson from Maurice Blackburn Lawyers says the report shows at least some of the disaster was man-made. "This report provides support for a potential class action," he said."That potential class action is on behalf of householders, business owners and community grounds living downstream of Wivenhoe."

Mr Hodgson says the report confirms victims' suspicions. "Too much water was allowed to accumulate in Wivenhoe Dam and the strategy for water releases was botched," he said."This extraordinary report says that beyond any doubt that dam was not operated the way it should have been."

About 2,000 flood victims have signalled their interest in a potential class action against the dam's operators. Dennis Ward from the Fernvale Community Action Group says it has been a difficult time. We'd love to see someone come out and apologise for causing this damage and grief to everyone. Dennis Ward - Fernvale Community Action Group "It'd be great to see an apology for what happened," he said.

"I mean there is some acknowledgment there that it could've been managed better and we'd love to see someone come out and apologise for causing this damage and grief to everyone." But Mr Hodgson says there is much work to do before launching a lawsuit. "The investigations need to include how much difference to the flood level the proper operation of the dam would have made," he said.

"We sense that it would have made a significant difference, but we need to conduct independent hydrodynamic modelling." The inquiry did examine the question of how much less flooding there might have been if the manual was followed. But on this it is inconclusive. It says it is possible there would have been less flooding in Brisbane and Ipswich.

It pointed to a report by an independent engineer that found an optimised water release scenario might have reduced flooding between 40 centimetres and 90 centimetres in the suburbs of Brisbane. However, the inquiry noted it involved taking risks by embracing weather forecasts.

Australian flood inquiry faults dam operator

By KRISTEN GELINEAU - Associated Press

SYDNEY -- A review of the emergency response to last year's deadly floods in Australia concluded Friday that the operator of a major dam that controlled the release of water from a swollen river breached its own protocols during the height of the disaster.The floods that swept across Queensland state in late 2010 and early 2011 killed 35 people, damaged or destroyed 30,000 homes and businesses and left Brisbane, Australia's third-largest city, under water for days.

The Queensland Floods Commission of Inquiry was formed to investigate the way officials dealt with the crisis. Much of the criticism following the disaster fell on the actions of Seqwater, the state government-run water authority in charge of operating the Wivenhoe Dam, which controls the release of water from the Brisbane River. Critics questioned whether Seqwater's engineers improperly managed the flow of water from the dam, thereby worsening the inundation of Brisbane and the nearby city of Ipswich.

The investigation found that Seqwater did indeed breach the protocols listed in the dam's operating manual, and used the wrong water release strategy in the lead-up to the flooding in Brisbane. But Queensland Supreme Court of Appeal Judge Catherine Holmes, the inquiry's commissioner, acknowledged that the manual itself was "ambiguous, unclear and difficult to use, and was not based on the best, most current research and information."

The commission could not say whether the dam operator's actions made the flooding worse, though Holmes wrote in the 700-page report that had Seqwater followed protocols, "the possibility exists of at least some improvement in the flooding outcome for Brisbane and Ipswich."

The commission also recommended the state crime commission investigate three Seqwater engineers in charge of determining the water release strategy for the dam. The report questioned whether the engineers were truthful in their testimony to the commission about their actions during the disaster. Seqwater officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The finding opens up the possibility of a class action lawsuit against Seqwater, but Queensland Premier Anna Bligh cautioned against a rush to judge the water authority. "This does open the potential for legal action against Seqwater, but it does not of itself establish liability," Bligh told reporters in Brisbane.

The commission made 177 recommendations, including revisions to the dam operating manual, improved floodplain management plans and better public access to flood information. Bligh said the government would adopt all the recommendations. Overall, however, the inquiry found that the government response to the disaster was good.

"As to how the floods were managed, there is no doubt that they took a state more accustomed to drought by surprise," the commission's report said. "Generally, though, Queenslanders can be relieved that governments at all levels were able to provide a prompt, if not perfect, response, which compares favorably with the apparent paralysis of government agencies and breakdown in order apparent on the Gulf coast after Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans."

Evidence Qld dam engineers 'colluded'

March 16, 2012. Three Wivenhoe dam engineers could face criminal or misconduct charges in the wake of damning findings by the inquiry into Queensland's flood disaster. Commissioner Catherine Holmes found there was evidence the engineers had colluded to pen a misleading report about how they managed water releases from the dam before Brisbane and Ipswich flooded last year. Flood victims have long claimed the water releases were botched and the flooding was compounded as a direct result.

Advertisement: Story continues below

Justice Holmes said Queensland's corruption watchdog should investigate the men to determine if they deliberately misled her inquiry. The Crime and Misconduct Commission must assess whether the actions of John Tibaldi, Robert Ayre and Terry Malone warranted criminal or official misconduct charges, she said. Justice Holmes said it was not for the commission to say whether an offence had occurred.

But there was evidence the men had colluded to write a misleading March report - primarily written by Mr Tibaldi for dam operator Seqwater, with input from Mr Ayre and Mr Malone - about when they escalated water releases. Justice Holmes also found the engineers breached the dam's operating manual before the two cities and their surrounds flooded last January.

Lawyers say the findings have strengthened the case for a class action, on behalf of thousands of flood victims, against the government-owned Seqwater. The inquiry reconvened hearings in dramatic circumstances earlier this year, after media reports said it had failed to identify discrepancies in documents about the way water releases from the dam were handled.

In a damning assessment, Justice Holmes said: "The conclusion has been reached that Mr Tibaldi and Mr Ayre knew - and that Mr Malone had a basis for suspecting - that the March flood event report was misleading," Justice Holmes found. She said none of the men had pointed out discrepancies between earlier flood documents and the final March report, despite them having every opportunity to do so at the inquiry's initial hearings.

Critically, the engineers did not mention an early document Mr Malone wrote, which said the dam transitioned to a higher water release later than was claimed in the March report. Commissioner Holmes spoke of a "striking, unanimous and collective lapse of memory" about documents that painted a different picture from the March report.

"The inference was open that the concealment of the true nature of the March flood event report was a joint effort to which each was a party," she found. In their testimony to the reconvened hearings, the engineers denied colluding to create a fictitious report and said they did their best to protect urban areas.

Justice Holmes said flooding in Brisbane and Ipswich could have been reduced to some degree, if capacity in the dam had been freed up before the December deluge. But she said it simply wasn't possible to have forecast what was to come. "... to appreciate what the magnitude of the rain would be and that it would fall in the dam area would have required a more than human capacity of prediction," she found.

However, she said she was concerned about "the apparent inertia" of government when the possibility of drawing down the dam was raised. Labor's water minister at the time, Stephen Robertson, told the inquiry that he had raised the idea of pre-emptive dam releases months before the floods, but by the time he got a formal response the deluge had already begun.

In other findings, Justice Holmes said there was room for improvement in emergency response planning. But she noted the flood crisis was unprecedented and so widespread that no government could be expected to have the capacity to respond seamlessly, immediately and comprehensively.

She found Queensland's land-use planning regarding flood risk had been ad hoc, and flood risk assessment systems were lacking. Premier Anna Bligh and Liberal National Party leader Campbell Newman have both vowed to implement the inquiry's recommendations in full should they win the March 24 poll.

The report contained no adverse findings against the Bligh government, nor Mr Newman during his tenure as Brisbane lord mayor. But the threat of a massive class action against a government-owned authority could hurt Labor at the ballot box. Ms Bligh said Seqwater was insured, but its liability was yet to be established. Seqwater said it would not be commenting on the inquiry's report until it had properly considered it. (AAP)

Landmark report: Australian Flood Commission finds engineers guilty on many counts‏

THIS IS GOING TO BE A LANDMARK REPORT FOR A LONG TIME TO COME. THERE IS A LOT HERE FOR INDIA AND OTHER NATIONS TO LEARN.

An inquiry report released yesterday into the 2010 Australian floods finds that Dam Operator engineers breached protocol, cooked up report and risked a disaster. Read the news reports below for details. For the recommendations of the commission.

By Associated Press, Published: March 16

SYDNEY — A review of the emergency response to last year’s deadly floods in Australia concluded Friday that the operator of a major dam that controlled the release of water from a swollen river breached its own protocols during the height of the disaster.

The floods that swept across Queensland state in late 2010 and early 2011 killed 35 people, damaged or destroyed 30,000 homes and businesses and left Brisbane, Australia’s third-largest city, under water for days.

The Queensland Floods Commission of Inquiry was formed to investigate the way officials dealt with the crisis. Much of the criticism following the disaster fell on the actions of Seqwater, the state government-run water authority in charge of operating the Wivenhoe Dam, which controls the release of water from the Brisbane River. Critics questioned whether Seqwater’s engineers improperly managed the flow of water from the dam, thereby worsening the inundation of Brisbane and the nearby city of Ipswich.

The investigation found that Seqwater did indeed breach the protocols listed in the dam’s operating manual, and used the wrong water release strategy in the lead-up to the flooding in Brisbane. But Queensland Supreme Court of Appeal Judge Catherine Holmes, the inquiry’s commissioner, acknowledged that the manual itself was “ambiguous, unclear and difficult to use, and was not based on the best, most current research and information.”

The commission could not say whether the dam operator’s actions made the flooding worse, though Holmes wrote in the 700-page report that had Seqwater followed protocols, “the possibility exists of at least some improvement in the flooding outcome for Brisbane and Ipswich.”

The commission also recommended the state crime commission investigate three Seqwater engineers in charge of determining the water release strategy for the dam. The report questioned whether the engineers were truthful in their testimony to the commission about their actions during the disaster.

Seqwater officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The finding opens up the possibility of a class action lawsuit against Seqwater, but Queensland Premier Anna Bligh cautioned against a rush to judge the water authority.

“This does open the potential for legal action against Seqwater, but it does not of itself establish liability,” Bligh told reporters in Brisbane.

Attorney Rod Hodgson, whose law firm has held public meetings with flood victims to rally support for a class action, said he and his fellow lawyers will now work to determine exactly what impact Seqwater’s improper management of the dam had on flood levels.

“It’s crystal clear that the report lays blame at the feet of Seqwater for its operation of the dam,” Hodgson said.

The commission made 177 recommendations, including revisions to the dam operating manual, improved floodplain management plans and better public access to flood information. Bligh said the government would adopt all the recommendations.

Overall, however, the inquiry found that the government response to the disaster was good.

“As to how the floods were managed, there is no doubt that they took a state more accustomed to drought by surprise,” the commission’s report said. “Generally, though, Queenslanders can be relieved that governments at all levels were able to provide a prompt, if not perfect, response, which compares favorably with the apparent paralysis of government agencies and breakdown in order apparent on the Gulf coast after Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans.”

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Public Water Management Services Need "Committed Citizens"

-By Julio Godoy
BERLIN: The trend of privatisation and commercialisation of water services, which set in in the 1980s and continued throughout the 1990s, has come to a halt due to the process’ own failures, and has given rise to a return of those services into efficient public management, according to a new book.

Released on Mar. 11, "Remunicipalisation: Putting water back in public hands" was authored by several activists at the Amsterdam-based Transnational Institute (TNI) and the watchdog Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO) in cooperation with several non- governmental organisations.

However, in an interview with IPS, the authors of the book warned that the European Union’s management of the present sovereign debt crisis in several member states is putting pressure upon certain governments to again privatise their water services.

"The world economic crisis that broke out in 2007 has somehow changed the picture of remunicipalisation, because of the financial sector bail-out, which has triggered the sovereign debt crisis in Europe," Martin Pigeon, expert for public services at CEO, told IPS.

"Now EU institutions, which seem unable, or unwilling, to understand the specificities of the water sector, are pushing very strongly the governments in Greece, Portugal, Spain, and Italy to re-privatise their municipal water systems," Pigeon added. This policy is a clone of the outdated and delegitimised structural adjustment policies of the 1980s and 1990s, he said.

For this and other reasons, Pigeon said that the remunicipalisation trend still needs "committed and vigilant citizens" participating in the process to master the multiple challenges the public water management sector is facing now. The book reviews the experiences of four cities and one country around the world, which, during the past decade, have managed to recuperate water services from commercialisation and privatisation.