BJP will sink like Titanic if Modi is commander: Subramanian Swamy mounts attack

Bengaluru: As Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot has granted permission to prosecute Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in the MUDA site allotment scam, senior advocates Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Kapil Sibal will arrive in Bengaluru on August 19, sources in the chief minister's office said on Sunday.

The two top Supreme Court lawyers will meet the Karnataka chief minister and may appear on his behalf in the special court for public representatives, the sources added.

Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge refused to name the lawyers but dropped hints that constitutional experts will be flown in to Bengaluru.

“We will tackle it. We have the best constitutional experts being flown in. We have a lot of people within the state who are helping the government with this and we will take it up,” Kharge told reporters here.

The chief minister is facing a legal hurdle after Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot granted permission on Saturday to prosecute him in the alleged alternative site scam in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority on a complaint given by three activists.

The alleged scam relates to the allotment of sites to Siddaramaiah's wife Parvathi in an upmarket area against the 'illegal acquisition' of her land measuring 3 acres, 16 guntas in Kesarur.

While the opposition BJP and its ally JD(S) have cried foul, the chief minister has refuted the charge saying it is baseless and malicious to defame him and destabilise the Congress government in the state.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah is all set to replace the incumbent Greg Barclay as the new chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC), according to media reports. 

The development comes amid a $US3 billion ($4.46 billion) dispute between the governing body and its major broadcast rights holder Star, which is seeking relief from the enormous deal it signed with the ICC in late 2022 for the rights to broadcast global cricket events into India from 2024 to 2027.

Star chiefs want to renegotiate the deal and reduce its value by up to half, potentially meaning the loss of millions of dollars from the budgets of major cricket countries over the next four years.

ICC directors have been served with a reduction notice from Star, a trigger for renegotiating the rights or possibly moving to “blend and extend” the deal on revised terms for a longer period.

Star’s winning bid for both TV and digital rights, of some $US3 billion over four years, was made on the understanding that it would on-sell a portion of the deal to ZeeTV, which in turn was in the process of a merger deal with Sony.

However with the ZeeTV-Sony merger collapsing, ZeeTV has likewise backed out of sub-licensing the ICC rights, leaving Star to foot the entire bill. The company’s discomfort with the cost of winning the rights was underlined by an unsuccessful request, earlier this year, to relocate the T20 World Cup from the USA and the Caribbean to India.

Barclay told ICC directors, including Cricket Australia's chair Mike Baird, that he has no intention of running for the post, for the third term during a video conference. His decision comes after being informed of Jay Shah's intentions to replace him in November. Shah has the backing of cricket boards from England and Australia, and hence, has the numbers to do be crowned the as the chief of the ICC.

ZeeTV and Star are fighting out the circumstances of their collapsed deal in the London Court of International Arbitration. At the same time, Star is in the process of being sold by Disney to the Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries, which owns the broadcaster Viacom18.

Jagmohan Dalmiya (1997 to 200) and Sharad Pawar (2010-2012) are the only two Indians who have held the position of ICC's chief in the past. Shah, who is also the son of India's home minister Amit Shah, will become the third to do so when he officially replaces Barclay in November.

"ICC chair Greg Barclay confirmed to the board that he will not stand for a third term and will step down from the post when his current tenure finishes at the end of November. Barclay was appointed as the independent ICC chair in November 2020, before being re-elected in 2022," an ICC spokesperson told The Age.

"Current directors are now required to put forward nominations for the next chair by 27 August 2024 and if there is more than one candidate, an election will be held with the term of the new chair commencing on 1 December 2024."

As per ICC rules, the chairman's election comprises of 16 votes and now a simple majority of nine votes is required (51%) for the winner. Earlier, to become the chairman, the incumbent needed to have two-third majority.

He enjoys a lot of goodwill with most of the 16 voting members. Currently, Shah has another one year left as the BCCI secretary before going on a mandatory cooling off period of three years from October, 2025.

As per the BCCI constitution approved by the Supreme Court, an office bearer can stay for six before he needs to go for a cooling off of three years. In all, a person can stay in office for a cumulative period of 18 years, -- nine in state association and nine in BCCI.

If Shah decides to move to ICC with a year of his secretaryship still left, he will have four years left in the BCCI.  At 35, he will become the youngest chairman in the history of ICC.

Over the past 15 years, Karnataka's forests have faced significant devastation, with 4,228 acres of forest land being diverted for mining activities. The undivided Ballari district has been the epicenter of this environmental crisis, accounting for a staggering 80% of the total forest loss.

Impact of Illegal Mining

Karnataka had already lost 2,200 acres of forest due to rampant illegal mining. The districts most affected by this illegal activity continued to suffer, with forest losses escalating over time. Between 2000 and 2011, the Supreme Court-ordered macro analysis by the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE) revealed that 8.9 square kilometers (2,199 acres) of forest were destroyed, with mining activities impacting a total of 43.4 square kilometers (10,724 acres) of land.

Legalized Mining

While stringent norms were introduced to curb illegal mining following the Supreme Court's intervention, legalized mining activities have paradoxically resulted in twice the destruction. Information obtained under the RTI Act shows that 60 mining projects were approved between 2010 and March 2024, with Ballari alone hosting 39 of these projects. Moreover, mining leases were extended or renewed for an additional 5,000 acres of forest, further exacerbating the situation.

Vanishing Wildlife and Degraded Land

The consequences of forest depletion are stark. Once thriving with biodiversity, the forests of Ballari and surrounding districts are now devoid of species like the Egyptian vulture, yellow-throated bulbul, white-backed vulture, and four-horned antelopes. The destruction of natural habitats due to mining has led to the extinction of these species in the region, highlighting the dire need for conservation efforts.

Health and Economic Consequences

The impact of mining is not limited to the environment alone; it has taken a toll on the people living in these areas as well. A study by the Hyderabad-based Cerana Foundation, commissioned by Samaja Parivartana Samudaya, revealed a "four-fold increase" in asthma prevalence due to air pollution from mining activities. The agricultural sector has also suffered, with annual income losses estimated at Rs 200 crore. Additionally, the carbon sequestration cost, resulting from iron ore mining's carbon emissions, stands at Rs 120 crore annually.

Environmental Cost of Iron Ore Mining

Iron ore mining is a significant contributor to carbon emissions, with an average of 25 kilograms of carbon dioxide emitted per tonne of iron ore produced. To offset the carbon emissions from iron ore mining in Sandur taluk alone, plantations would need to be established on 98,842 acres (400 square kilometers) of land. This would cost Rs 120 crore, effectively making the environment subsidize the iron ore industry.

Need for Conservation

Environmental activist S.R. Hiremath of Samaja Parivartana Samudaya has raised alarm bells about the ongoing destruction. He emphasized the need for adopting the principle of intergenerational equity, stressing that the mineral deposits in Ballari may only last for another 25-30 years at the current rate of extraction. This unsustainable approach raises questions about the rights of future generations to these resources and the forests that are rapidly disappearing.

A Wake-Up Call for Karnataka

As Karnataka continues to grapple with extreme weather events and the loss of lives due to climate change, there is an urgent need to reassess the balance between economic development and environmental conservation. With a budget of Rs 26,000 crore set aside for restoration, it is crucial for the government to halt further destruction and prioritize the preservation of the state's remaining forests. The time to act is now, before it is too late for both the environment and the people who depend on it.