NGT - GS questions based on daily current affairs

ANSWER: NGT

Explanation:

• The National Green Tribunal imposed an interim nationwide ban on use of glass-coated ‘manja’ for flying kites as the sharp string poses a danger to humans, animals and birds.
• A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Swatanter Kumar passed the order after noting that ‘manja’, string coated with glass and metal powder and used for flying kites, poses a threat to the environment.
• The green panel said that the ban order would apply on nylon, Chinese and cotton manja coated with glass.
• It directed Manja Association of India to submit report to Central Pollution Control Board on harmful effects of kite strings.
• November 2015 order of the Allahabad High Court banned the use of Chinese manja in entire Uttar Pradesh.
• Also ‘manja’ posed a huge threat when it came into contact with live overhead electric wires, leading to grid failure.
• Due to ‘manja’ being coated with glass, metals and other sharp material, these strings act as good conductors of electricity, increasing the probability of detached manja strings stuck in power lines, electrocuting kite flyers and passers-by coming into contact with these strings.
• PETA also said that minor children were engaged by the cottage industry for the manufacture of ‘manja’ which caused respiratory problems as they inhaled harmful substances which were extremely detrimental to their health.

ANSWER: Black-necked crane

Explanation:

• The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has suspended the Union Environment Ministry’s clearance for the Tawang hydro power project granted in 2012.
• The clearance, the court noted, didn’t consider the impact of the hydro project on the habitat of the black-necked crane, a species that breeds on the Tibetan plateau and migrates to Tawang for the winter. The bird, most commonly found in China, is legally protected in Bhutan and India and is considered sacred to certain Buddhist traditions.
• The black-necked crane is rated as ‘vulnerable’ in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) list of endangered species and is listed in India’s Wildlife Act as a Schedule 1 species, which gives animals and birds the highest legal protection.
• Other species that are found in the region include the red panda, the snow leopard and the Arunachal macaque Macaca munzala, a recently-described primate species in the area.
• The project is planned on the Nyamjang Chhu river and is the largest of 13 hydro power projects to be built in the Tawang basin. With the NGT’s order, project developers will need to revisit their environmental clearance process.

ANSWER: Only 1

Explanation:
- National Green Tribunal (NGT) became operational with Justice Lokeshwar Singh as first Chairman in 2010.
- Currently it is chaired by Justice Swatanter Kumar since 2012.
- NGT was established by National Green Tribunal Act 2010.
- The five places of sitting of Tribunal are at Delhi, Bhopal, Pune, Kolkata and Chennai.