Achieving 33 Per Cent Green Cover Is Impossible For India – Jairam Ramesh

Are you an Indian “green enthusiast” eagerly awaiting the day when the Indian government will be successful in realizing its target of bringing 33 per cent of Indian ground under green cover or forest cover?

Well, in that case it is time you heaved a sigh of pain.

The Environment & Forests Minister Mr. Jairam Ramesh has been very candid in saying that the Indian government’s aim to achieve 33 per cent green cover for India is impossible. Reason? Well, mainly two factors are playing the spoil sport – the size of the population and the developmental issues.

Mr. Ramesh has said that instead of running after the elusive goal, it is better India focuses on retaining the 21 per cent forest cover that it enjoys at present.

Interestingly, Mr. Ramesh has also admitted that 40 per cent of that 21 per cent forest cover is open and degraded land, and is not exactly worthy of being called “forest”.

Mr. Ramesh’s acceptance of the harsh fact might have broken many of our hearts. But it is better we appreciate his honesty, and wish and encourage him that he manages to retain and nourish the 21 per cent forest cover enjoyed by our beautiful motherland.

Europe Is Considering A Nuclear-Free Future – A Welcome Thought

Will the recent tragedy in Japan, that has made the country face a possible nuclear disaster, eventually push European Union (EU) to go for a nuclear-free future?

Well, there seems to be a possibility, if a recent observation by EU Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger is anything to go by.

Shocked with what is happening in Japan, EU has decided to test the resistance level of its nuclear power stations, to judge whether there is any possibility of a nuclear disaster in case those power plants face a situation like what is now happening in Japan. It is in this context that Mr. Oettinger has said that EU should check whether it can stop depending on nuclear power, in the near future, to address its power needs.

It is a welcome thought, Mr. Oettinger. It will be really great if EU can go ahead with this plan. It is something that should be given serious considerations by every country in the world. And I suppose it is OK to part with nuclear energy even if we find that will create deficiencies in addressing power needs, and other requirements. It is OK to pay the moderate price that we are supposed to pay if we stop depending on nuclear power. But it is disastrous to pay the price that we will pay if the nuclear power develops problems. Let us not fail to learn a very crucial lesson that lies beneath the disaster that our Japanese friends are facing today.

What is ENGLISH?

E = Expressive
N = Necessary
G = Global Harmony Facilitator
L = Lovable
I = Internationally Understood
S = Sweet
H = Hearty

Fight Back, “The Land Of The Rising Sun”

A combined attack of a major earthquake and tsunami – for any other country it would have been a major blow
But the country in question is Japan, which is known for not letting any disaster make its morale low.

“The Land Of The Rising Sun”, Japan managed to stand up from the shambles of Hiroshima bombing
It is a strong-willed nation, for which fighting back a disaster with grit is not a new thing.

History bears the proof of the determination and courage that the Japanese community personifies
And there is hardly any doubt that the great country will overcome the present disaster with aplomb and ease.

The entire world’s sympathy, love and wishes are with you - our beloved Japanese friends, brothers and sisters
Fight back with your natural courage, by displaying for the umpteenth time the indomitable spirit of the Japanese mass.

Your ancestors faced Hiroshima bombing, and constructed a new Japan from the rubble of that devastation
Repeat that valour of your ancestors, and prove once again the resilience and buoyancy of your great nation.


(I wrote this poem on 14th March 2011 following the devastating Tsunami and earthquake in Japan that shook the world).

Pilots With Forged Certificates/Documents Should Be Charged With Attempt To Culpable Homicide

Recently a lady pilot of IndiGo was found to have forged her marksheets of DGCA Airline Transport Pilot Licence (ATPL) test, thereby getting a Commercial Pilot License (CPL) and eventually a job with a top commercial airline. In fact, there have been two more such cases that have come to light, wherein a person has got pilot’s job by furnishing forged certificates/documents.

And these three incidents are not isolated incidents. It is not very rare for us to come across news of such frauds, wherein incompetent people are found to have gathered CPL though unfair and illegal means.

I personally feel that such people should be charged with attempt to culpable homicide. They themselves know it pretty well that when they fly a commercial airline, they very much put the lives of the passengers in danger (apart from their own lives). And I do not feel that it is too much to demand that such elements are charged with attempt to culpable homicide. Such a strong charge is also likely to play an effective deterrent for the shameless people who indulge in such crimes.

I appeal to the concerned authorities (Directorate General of Civil Aviation, etc.) to have a serious thought on this issue.