Ban on plastic bags no solution, says Jairam Ramesh

September 24th, 2009 Ireland to double tax on stores' plastic bagsDUBLIN — Ireland was the first nation to tax plastic bags as a way to stop them littering the countryside. Now the Emerald Isle plans to double its levy to a punitive 44 euro cents (59 U.S.

August 31st, 2009 PANAJI - The central government would crack the whip on the Mormugao Port Trust (MPT) for causing large scale dust pollution in the port town of Vasco in south Goa, Minister of State for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh has said. Ramesh, who was in Goa to attend a public consultative session on the Coastal Regulatory Zone (CRZ), told reporters Sunday that he was appalled by the huge open dumps near the berthing jetties at MPT, a central government-run enterprise.

August 29th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Minister of State for Environment and Forests, Jairam Ramesh, said on Saturday that about 11 per cent of the annual greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) is being absorbed by the country's forests. According to the World Resources Institute, India's total GHG emissions stood at 1,853 million metric tons equivalent of carbon dioxide, about 4.9 percent of global emissions in 2005.

August 19th, 2009 CHENNAI - The central government will soon set up a national authority to enforce environmental laws, minister Jairam Ramesh said Wednesday. "At the state environment and forest ministers' meeting yesterday (Tuesday) in Delhi, there was a broad agreement on this aspect.

July 17th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Despite spending 17,000 crore rupees on river cleaning projects, Ganga and Yamuna were "no cleaner" now as they were two decades ago, the government has admitted in Lok Sabha. Responding to a Calling Attention Motion on checking pollution in rivers and lakes in India, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said: "I admit with full responsibility that Ganga and Yamuna are no cleaner than 20 years ago." Ramesh added that a "determined and renewed effort" was required to cleanse these major rivers.

July 15th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav, known for his opposition to the use of English, Wednesday asked union minister Jairam Ramesh to reply to his question in Hindi, saying this was "the Lok Sabha, not London". Mulayam Singh had raised a query during question hour for Ramesh, the minister of state for environment and forest, on the "indiscriminate felling of trees in Lucknow and Noida".

July 10th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Environment minister Jairam Ramesh has come under criticism from green activists for his remark that ban on plastic bags is not the way to clean up India's cities. Ramesh said in parliament Wednesday that the government would pursue a policy of encouraging bio-degradable plastic, arguing that replacing polythene bags with paper was not an eco-friendly solution as more trees would have to be cut to produce all that paper.

July 9th, 2009 HONG KONG - Plastic bag use in Hong Kong has dropped by 85 percent in the first two days since the introduction of a 6 US cents tax on every bag, a survey released Thursday showed. The number of plastic bags handed out in 18 supermarkets during a peak shopping hour before and after the introduction of the ban fell from 2,742 to 403, the environmental group Greeners Action said.

July 8th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Water security was a key area in the governments national action plan on climate change, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said Wednesday and described the drying up of natural lakes across the country as a matter of serious concern. The minister of state with independent charge of environment however said his ministry faced a problem of resources and suggested that the issue could be more aggressively addressed if the water resources ministry joined hands with him.

April 9th, 2009 NEW DELHI - A week before the Lok Sabha elections start, Congress strategist Jairam Ramesh has conceded it will be a 'tough fight' although he is optimistic that his party will win again. Ramesh said his party would contest around 440 seats out of 543 seats as against 417 in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections.

February 28th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Congress president Sonia Gandhi Saturday appointed former union minister Jairam Ramesh as the party's co-ordinator for the coming Lok Sabha elections. 'The Congress president has approved the appointment of Jairam Ramesh as co-ordinator for Lok Sabha elections-related affairs,' a statement released by Congress general secretary Janardan Dwivedi said.

February 26th, 2009 NEW DELHI - With the Delhi government imposing a ban on plastic bags in the capital, an NGO Wednesday demanded lifting of the ban and launched an awareness campaign to highlight the benefits of plastic. Plastic Bag Awareness Forum launched a campaign to create awareness among the users that plastic bags are not harmful.

February 26th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Union Minister of State for Commerce, Industry and Power Jairam Ramesh resigned from the council of ministers Wednesday to concentrate on the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Ramesh, who is a Rajya Sabha member from the Congress, told IANS: 'Yes, I have resigned as a minister.' Asked about the reasons, he said: 'To concentrate on campaigning yaar (friend).' Ramesh added: 'I have resigned with the full consent to serve my party to help in the ensuing elections.

February 26th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Union Minister of State for Commerce, Industry and Power Jairam Ramesh resigned from the council of ministers Wednesday to concentrate on the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Ramesh, who is a Rajya Sabha member from the Congress, told IANS: 'Yes, I have resigned as a minister.' Asked about the reasons, he said: 'To concentrate on campaigning yaar (friend).'

February 10th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Delhi High Court Wednesday asked the state government to respond to an industry forum's plea for withdrawal of complete ban on plastic carrybags in the capital. The All India Plastic Industry Association (AIPA) in its petition termed the notification was 'unjust' as the court last year asked the government only to increase the minimum permissible thickness of plastic bags from 20 microns to 40 microns - to make it more costly and discourage indiscriminate use - and not completely ban it.