Friday, May 9, 2014

The Election Commission of India and its rendezvous with Elections 2014

9052014
Manu Sharma,
New Delhi” May 10,2014, The stone thrower and the intended victim are both party to the incident as one of them is surely the true victim for reasons best known to them and erring in the public eye. The offender might use the media to highlight himself as the victim in the public eye and the punisher to stand in prejudiced controversy or vice versa. The truth is they both gain something by coming into the limelight.
The same holds true for both EC and its actions against its political offenders in the public eye. The more it involves itself in taking action against them, the more it holds itself to fall victim to unwarranted uncalled for controversies sadly none of them of its making  or liking hence endangering itself to end up as the sole victim in the public eye, with both the offender and the victim garnering political gains in the  melee.
Has the respect and admiration of ECI taken a severe beating because of the overabundance of avowal against it by leading politicians becoming acerbic across party lines of late? The question here is the Honorable Election Commission of India being used for political gains or electorate mileage by the all and mighty political bigwigs for their own vested interests? Can it come out unscathed maintaining its sheen of character and reliability out of all the recent political humdrum? Does it need to take drastic steps against offenders to pass the public’s ‘Agni Pariksha’ to maintain its reverential image?
I do remember my civics lesson in junior school when The Election Commission of India was inculcated in our psyche as the most powerful and dignified entity of all, safe guarding the dignity and morality of our democracy by holding free and fair elections in our country with infinite stupendous powers and immunity over anything to everything during elections. We truly believed and still believe and conjecture both in awe and admiration of its  upholding the true spirit of our democracy alongside the four pillars of our constitution the Executive (Government), Legislature (Parliament & State Assemblies, etc), Judiciary (Supreme Court, High Court & Other Judicial centers) and of course our stalwart Media.
It seems the Political fraternity is reaping hay in blaming each other and using the lenience, moderation and high ethics of the honorable EC for their own political gains, they mistakenly are taking its silence as precursory to general weakness, which I consider to be completely off beam on their part. One can say that they are using the Media too in this game of controversies to catch the public eye but Media has to do what it knows best and that is ‘Report’ without being prejudicially biast. These political games are taking its toll by tarnishing the ECI’s image in the public eye.
The EC has to stand out by taking tough decisions and correct actions to safeguard itself and the spirit of democracy which we all hold so true in our mindsets and heart.  Any blot on its sheen would surely damage its image in the eyes of a billion odd people. Conceivably, for the first time in the history of Lok Sabha elections, politicians have challenged the commission to act against them. This audacity also displays many politicians completely and blatantly disregarding ECI dictates. It’s no secret that The ECI can take drastic action against all its offenders but there might be other reasons for its mild attitude towards such political abuse. The election of 2014 has a gigantic outlook and its periphery of duties, responsibilities and demography are just too  mammoth in proportions to be managed properly and effectively by it in order to conduct fair and free elections in the country. Even though EC is unsparing in its efforts, resources and temperament and fully concentrating all its energies in giving the above to the people of India. Though given all  its powers and vigilance the EC cannot be expected to look into trifling affairs or to find needles in the haystack as controversies, blame games, false reporting and complaints  run a havoc and are galore in catching the public eye through the media during election time and needless to say this happens every time during elections. In such a huge game of election its fair enough and understandable that small matters end up big and many tend go unreported but those which are of serious nature should not be left lacking strict action.
It is astonishing that the ECI’s Model Code of Conduct has bought about many leaders under its net for violations in the ongoing polls. The list includes the names of the high and mighty political bigwigs like Narendra Modi, Parkash Singh Badal, Mulayam Singh Yadav, Sharad Pawar, Beni Prasad Verma etc. However, no one has faced any stern action so far. In most of the cases, the commission has let them go free with only a warning and this is what is actually acting as a stye in the public’s eye and many of the political juggernauts who want to use it as a weapon of sorts against their opponents. This ostensible game of hypocrisy and leniency to reasons known best to EC is somehow earning it a bad name. Now EC is in a quandary because strict vehement action against a populist leader is subject to public ire and of posing a grave danger to the security of the nation. Even though such violators of ECI model code of conduct do needs an exemplary scapegoat but of what stature or proportion is the million-dollar question? Let us consider Mr. Modi’s direct challenge to EC in holding a rally in Varanasi, which the EC had imposed a ban upon. What action should EC take? EC can and should thwart the rally by holding a limited curfew and deploying any number of paramilitary or military forces to snub the rally and maybe holding Mr. Modi in safe judicial custody for a day or two until the elections are over. However, a stricter action like cancellation of his candidature or a lawful punishment would not go down well with the public as he is being considered the prime ministerial candidate by a large section of the public. It is actually also prime duty of the EC to safeguard the candidates from any harm least of all from itself.
Clarity and transparency of EC’s actions also matter. For example, ECI in April barred BJP’s Amit Shah and SP’s Azam Khan from UP public rallies. But within a week of its decision, its poll panel revoked only Shah’s ban and not Azam Khan’s leaving the gates open for further controversy and mudslinging by a section of the public in favor of Azam Khan, even though EC was right in taking necessary action to avoid a piquant law and order situation in the sensitive region.
There are other instances where strict disciplinary action is sought after by the public as a onetime exemplary measure for keeping the EC’s Model Code of Conduct intact with all veneration. Listed below are some examples where EC has acted quite leniently and could have made example of its use of limitless powers to gain back its prestige in the eyes of all its critics:
Recently in May  HP State BJP president Satpal Singh Satti, complained to EC in the assembly segment ahead of polling for Hamirpur Lok Sabha seat accusing State Industries Minister Mukesh Agnihotri representing the Haroli constituency of flexing money, muscle power and affecting the working of the police to benefit his party’s prospects in elections. Though, EC only increased the security forces but still it could have gone a step further by taking some other action to maintain its image.
In another instance many political parties ended up  taking jibes at each other at the cost of EC’ s leniency to catch the public eye through the media. Like the JD(U) President Sharad Yadav criticizing  Mr. Modi for questioning the Election Commission. With TMC also  following suite with its bag full of woes against Mr. Mr. Modi to the ECI. TMC complained to EC against Mr. Modi for violating poll code by  seeking votes in the name of religion as In Asansole. TMC also brought forth  Mr. Modi’s  accusing the EC of acting impartially in the wake of BJP’s complaints of booth rigging in West Bengal, Bihar and western Uttar Pradesh and daring it to take action against him though his  party later claimed it to be nothing more than a mere suggestion from him. TMC also complaint to EC against live telecast of speeches of course once again its missile aimed at BJP.
The The Congress claim of the Gujarat Police trying to “hush up” the case registered against Narendra Modi in an FIR on April 30 for poll code violation and urged the Election Commission to transfer the case to an agency outside the state. The Faizabad scenario where EC sought report on Mr. Modi’s speech where he invoked Lord Ram from the district authorities. The UP attorney journals confusion against EC for favoring BJP. AAP complaint to EC regarding Mr. Modi’s marital status and the Congress backing it up. Massive cash seizures by EC show the involvement of Black Money in Polls.. The tussle, bustle and hustle between BJP’ Smriti Irani and Congress Priyanka Vadra’s PA in Amethi. The EC rejecting AAP booth capturing and massive rigging complaint in Amethi including that of Rahul Gandhi visiting poll booths. The Army Chief naming controversy. The after 10 Pm canvassing by candidate’s clearance to Madras HC by EC. The Election Commission letting off former Jharkhand Chief Minister Babulal Marandi with a “warning” for support of pastors and bishops of various churches in Dumka  to support him and his party in the Lok Sabha elections. These are cases, which the Media has highlighted, and I bet there are more such incidents, which has escaped the Media’s attention and can be successfully used by ECI to set exemplary punishment for future election activities. The malignment of each other during political rallies and in speeches by the various leaders belonging to various political parties has broken a record of sorts during the current election.
Well The Election Commission of India certainly has to set an example by punishing some of the offenders to showcase and safeguard its integrity as a powerful institution in front of the electorate of India that it can chew more than it can bite and anyone flouting its rules and MCC is out for a hard time.

Note:
Dear Sagarji,
Please find attached the article for your kind perusal and record.
Thanks and Warm Regards,
Manu Sharma@outlook.com


 

VICTORYDAY PARADE ON MOSCOW’S RED SQUARE 2014

9052014

FULL VIDEO:  parade on Moscow’s Red Square 2014 


 

Nehru Memorial Museum and Library  Events for the Week 12th May to 16th May, 2014

9052014


Monday, 12th May

Seminar


‘Reproduced Sound:

Perception, Reception and Sensibility—The case of Indian art music’

Prof. R. Nandakumar,
NMML.
3.00 pm, Seminar Room, Library Building







Tuesday, 13th May

Weekly Seminar

 

‘Forest, Livelihood, Development:
A comparative study of the experience of two “Progressive” Laws, Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas (PESA) and Forest Rights Act (FRA)’
Dr. Kamal Nayan Choubey,
NMML.
3.00 pm, Seminar Room, Library Building



 




Thursday, 15th May

Public Lecture (‘Science, Society and Nature’ series)


‘Wildlife in Our Backyards and how India Might Show the Way’
Dr. Vidya Athreya,
Wildlife Conservation Society India,
Pune.

3.00 pm, Seminar Room, Library Building




 




Friday, 16th May

Public Lecture (‘Science, Society and Nature’ series)

 

‘Rising Himalayas and Struggling High Altitude Life:
Human wildlife interactions in the mountains’
Dr. Tsewang Namgail,
Snow Leopard Conservancy India Trust.
3.00 pm, Seminar Room, Library Building



 





All are welcome.
Those wishing to have their names added to the email list may please email us at nmmldirector@gmail.com


 

Arnab Goswami FIXED Narindra Modi’s Interview

9052014

May09, 2014

There was nothing new and all Q&A were related to Low Grade Politics
indulged in by politicians and Narendra Modi himself in the lead.
Gujarat is World’s Biggest Scam State. Angadia, Hawala, Ponzy,
Moneylender, Chit Fund Capital of the World.

Only good thing is that all the Nonsense of Modi is available in one interview.

He avoided ‘Gross Failure of Gujarat in all Critical Development Issues’.

He pretended ignorance about the Cases against Maya Kodnani who
resigned as Minister on March27, 2009 over seven years after the riots
and murders and later convicted and sentenced to 28 years in jail.

He has started meeting PRESS who is likely to be Exposing Every Detail
of Modi Scams, Riots, Communal Speeches, etc etc in an attempt to
influence them.

Something he managed to Avoid and Evade on development and social
issues will be in focus – he shall face Worst of Media either way if
he wins over 200 seats or less than 125.

Every single wrong he has done will be exposed.

10 Biggest TRAGEDIES Of Gujarat Indian Voters Must Know

1.]  Very Large Companies control Business, Trade and Infrastructure
in Gujarat and Gujarat has Sold Out to Corporate:  Ambani, Adani,
ESSAR, Tata, WIPRO and many more run businesses of Rs.10,00,000 crores
in which people of Gujarat has no EQUITY and 62m People of Gujarat
have no Share in Natural Resources of Gujarat.

2.]  Tax Collection in Gujarat is just 11% of GDP against 63.3% tax
rate and India rax collection rate of 17.7%. Thus there is massive
leak of taxes CORRUPTION.

3.]  He said Gujaratis are expert businessmen born traders with
history of our 5000 years (same thing he said in Delhi – BJP is party
of traders) and with Foreign Technology collaboration India-EU/USA can
dominate the world – also told them Gujarat has 14,000 MW of power
generation capacity when actual was 6400 MW around 2004 etc – actually
then there were severe power shortages and Industry operated 5 days in
a week and working hours were staggered. The impression was clearly he
is Liar, Incompetent and Immature.

4.]  Nanavati Commission clearly stated two things first program was
planned from Ahmadabad to send batches of 2200 every alternate day in
Sabarmati express and none of the SEWAKS had valid ticket or
reservation – this itself points to the fact that large number SEWAKS
left Ahmadabad Apprehending Clashes – travelling without ticket was
therefore – when 2200 Unreserved young workers in unreserved coaches
were travelling for two days there are possibilities of Clashes at
every station. Why was DNA tests not carried out on victims points to
the fact that non SEWAK families of men women and children were
engulfed in fire?  Out of 59 Causalities 27 were women, 21 men and 10
Children. Women rarely travel alone in very long distance train –
obviously Innocent Families were trapped in communal clash.

5.  CAG reported this year that Gujarat has cheaply acquired 1.08
million hectares of Farmers land for Corporate cheaply and 6 million
hectares is operated by BJP RSS cadre for grazing etc disguised as
water harvesting etc.

    This is Clearly a Conspiracy to acquire 40% to 50% land area of Gujarat.

6.  Gujarat has completely FAILED to develop Water Resources in the
state. NWDT strictly regulated entitlement of Gujarat at 10,000 cusecs
but Gujarat designed 40,000 cusec system. It could have connected UKAI
dam to Narmada Canal. Dam itself has not been built. Then Gujarat
diverted 3 maf of water or 33% for drinking purpose through pipelines
and also built Sufalam Sujalam project drawing over 1 maf of water and
around 1 maf of water is diverted for Sabarmati River Front. Instead
of 9 MAF just 4 maf is left for release in Narmada Canal network. So
instead of 4000 cusec water available Capacity of Canal is 40,000
cusecs.

7.  Healthcare in Gujarat had failed 50% Children are Malnourished
even as Central government provided Subsidies 35 Kg Wheat & Rice to
Gujarat population.  Gujarat EXPORT milk than Feed Own Population.

8.  Education in Gujarat is SUBSTANDARD – 95% students are taught in
Gujarati medium and practically learn nothing. IN FACT GUJARAT SPEND
JUST 0.4% OF SGDP ON HEATH & EDUCATION.

9. Food Production in Gujarat is just 3% of India, Farmers in Gujarat
get Rs.40 per kg for Groundnut Kernels that are retailed for Rs.200
per kg. Similarly Gujarat farmer get Rs.80 for Spices that retail for
Rs.450 to Rs.480 per kg in cities.

10.  Gujarat signed 51000 MoUs with foreign investors worth $1500m but
nothing materialized. MSMEs are shutting down, Workers are Paid Low
Wages, Hired for short Contracts and deprived of Provident Fund.

Ravinder Singh, National General Secretary.
Sabka Bharat Mission 2019
Y-77, Hauz Khas, New Delhi -110016
Ph: 9650421857, 9718280435
Sabkabharatmission2019@gmail.com


 

SCAM is Systematic, Poison Seed, 5 Fingers in Ghee – Head in Kadai

9052014
 
 
 
 
Ravinder Singh
To Ajit Jhaamitabhth@yahoo.comAnand Ganesh and 366 More…
 
 
 May 8 at 8:30 PM
SCAM is Systematic, Poison Seed, 5 Fingers in Ghee – Head in Kadai
May08, 2014
All Scam are Systematic and Institutionalized and MEGA Scams are Multi
Layered Scams. It is malicious to pin point honest Prime Minister when
as given in this EXPOSURE Banking & Finance Persons holding Chairman &
Secretary rank in Finance and other government departments were
directors and advisors involved in MCX Scam.
Shareholders & Supporting Banks & FII
[ICICI, IL&FS, Kotak groups, Bank of Baroda , Bank of India , Canara
Bank , Corporation Bank , Fidelity International, HDFC Bank , Merrill
Lynch, National Stock Exchange, NABARD, State Bank of India , State
Bank of Hyderabad, State Bank of Indore, State Bank of Saurashtra,
State Bank of Patiala, State Bank of Travancore, State Bank of Mysore,
State Bank of Bikaner & Jaipur, SBI Life Insurance Co Ltd. and Union
Bank of India.]
Bureaucrats have all Five (Actually Ten) Fingers in Ghee when in
Service and on retirement their head is in Ghee. They serve top
Companies in the countries.
Poison Seeds – Scams are like Poison Seed that gradually matures over
time or like Cobra Eggs hatching to full size takes over a decade.
MCX Scam Directors, Promoters & Approvers
1. Seeds of MCX Scam was planted when GOI let Family managed companies
to take over 50%+ equity in Companies and Ejected retail investors.
99.99% Equity holding by FTIL [BSE: 526881] in Listed Company is
UNPRECEDENTED SCAM.
http://www.google.com/finance?q=NSE%3AFINANTECH&ei=0Y5rU8imFcPEkAX85IDYDA
2.  SEBI Chairman GN Bajpai was also Economic Advisor to Atal Bihari
Vajpayee. He was responsible for Ejecting Retail investors from
Companies – $1 Trillion Scam in itself. FTIL was worth Rs.13,800
crores.
Held Critical Positions UTI, LIC and Jindal Vijay Nagar Steel. UTI
Scam is public knowledge – Jindal Steel Scam was discovered by this
author.
Two identical Jindal Steel Companies were promoted one was trading at
Rs.80 and other at Rs.8 per share.
3.  Dr. S. Narayan was similarly advisor to Vajpayee – Finance,
Economic, Petroleum, Oil & Gas and Industry.
Oil & Gas Blocks allocation happened under his Guidance that is
World’s Biggest Scam – CAG reported RIL drilling in ONGC and GSPC
blocks. 25+65 Oil & Gas blocks were allocated to companies who have no
technology, equipment and INTENTION to Efficiently Develop Oil & Gas
reserves.
4.  P.G. Kakodkar was Chairman of SBI. 5. N. Vaghul Chairman of ICICI
Funding MCX fake trades was easy when Chairman of biggest banks are
directors of MCX or its promoter.
6.  Kiran Karnik & 7. Ashish S. Dalal – Are obviously not fool enough
to not SEE Fake Trades.
Ravinder Singh, National General Secretary.
Sabka Bharat Mission 2019
Y-77, Hauz Khas, New Delhi -110016
Ph: 9650421857, 9718280435
Sabkabharatmission2019@gmail.com
Financial Technologies group
FTIL – EXECUTIVE  Jignesh Shah, Chairman and Managing Director
Dewang Neralla, Executive Director
NON EXECUTIVE  P. G. Kakodkar, Director, C. Subramaniam, Director
Ravi K. Sheth, Director, Ashish S. Dalal, Director
ADVISORY Board N. Vaghul (Chairman of ICICI Bank), Dr. S. Narayan
(Former Economic Advisor to PM), G. N. Bajpai (Former SEBI Chairman)
K. Karnik (Former President of NASSCOM)
 


 

Four activists in Mahan were arrested and put in jail

9052014
Brikesh Singh, Greenpeace India
To Me
 
May 8 at 7:12 PM
Hi Naresh,

At 12.05 hrs this morning, four activists in Mahan were arrested and put in jail. Akshay Gupta, Vinit Gupta, Bechan Lal Shah and Vijay Shankar Singh, were neither told what their crime is not where they were being taken. They now await trial.
All because they chose to stand up against the company that wants to chop down over 5,00,000 trees and displace thousands of villagers in Mahan. Essar, the lead partner in this company, has made several attempts to gag support for Mahan’s forests in the past. But it hasn’t worked.
Treating those four activists as criminals is like treating all of us who stand for forests as criminals. We can’t let this happen. Let’s tell the company that support for forests will not be stifled.
Ask Essar to commit to oppose the arrest of activists for protesting peacefully. 
 
Showing the company that support for Mahan’s forests spreads beyond the villages, will help make them cautious of their reputation.  They need to know that there are lakhs of us who know of their intention and they can’t continue with their slimy ways.
After hours of their arrest, we finally found out that they’ve been booked under four charges including robbery. Robbery? Yeah, we know how ridiculous these charges are. But that’s not all. One of our activists reports that he was beaten up by the police when he refused to sign a confession.
Earlier this week, people in Mahan prevented company officials from demarcating trees in the forest. And now four of them are under arrest. The movement to protect Mahan’s forests continues. Let’s show this to the company who wants to destroy it.
Thanks,
Brikesh_email_pic.png
Brikesh Singh
Greenpeace India


 

WEC India Energy News – NTPC GroupWEC India Energy News – India Group

9052014
Today at 10:23 AM

WEC India Energy Portal

One Stop Energy Resource Center
Energy Portal

The menu for Global Scenarios has been enabled.  Comparison of Scenarios of IEA, EIA and WEC is presented for Primary Energy Consumption, Electricity Generation and Co2 Emissions.

  1. Tata Power gains after Supreme Court nod to lay network
    The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal filed by BEST in which it sought to restrain the company from laying its network to provide power supply to consumers in its license area.
  2. Adani, GVK, Lanco seek to cut stake in Australian coal mines
    Plan is to reduce debt and get financial and technical partners on board
  3. South Mumbai power supply: SC nod for Tata Power to lay network
    BEST’s resistance to consumers’ willingness to switchover to Tata Power was earlier rejected by both MERC and ATE before BEST moved the SC
  4. Won’t close any coal cases till July 7: CBI to Supreme Court
    The case will be heard in the court of Chief Justice R M Lodha on July 8
  5. India has 54 of world’s largest, most powerful public companies
    Chinese firms bag top three spots on Forbes’ annual list
  6. Adani’s Oz coal mine gets okay
    Says plans to start coal exports from Carmichael Coal Mine by 2016-17
  7. Haryana targets to cut power distribution losses
    The state govt had set a target to reduce line losses to 58.40% in domestic rural sector
  8. Oil and Natural Gas Corp to create post of Director
    Non-E&P business is projected to give 30 per cent of the company’s revenue by 2030 and the company feels this needs senior management attention and drive.
  9. Coalgate: SC directs CBI, ED to file status report by July 7
    SC asks CVC to scrutinise files in all cases in which CBI has concluded probe
  10. Tata Power appoints Ashok S Sethi as Executive Director
    Sethi was Chief-Corporate Operations Management and Executive Director of Maithon Power Limited, a subsidiary of Tata Power.
  11. Adani wins Australia state nod for $15 billion coal project
    The coal and rail project now goes to Australia’s environment minister for a final decision
  12. India home to 54 of world’s largest, most powerful public companies
    The Forbes ‘Global 2000′ is a comprehensive list of the world’s largest, most powerful public companies, as measured by revenues, profits, assets and market value.
  13. Toshiba eyes Alstom’s power grid business: report
    Toshiba will offer to buy Alstom’s power-grid business from GE, if the US firm completes its $17 billion bid
  14. Oil and Natural Gas Corp to spend $1.1 billion on drilling to revive Mumbai High fields
    ONGC plans to drill a record 130 wells at its prime Mumbai High oil and gas fields in a bid to rejuvenate the ageing reservoir in the Arabian Sea.
  15. Coal imports see first dip in three months in April
    India’s coal imports fell 6 percent in April from a year ago to 15.2 million tonnes, the first dip in three months, as power and steel producers used up stocks piled up in previous months, according to provisional data from research firm OreTeam.
  16. Oil and Natural Gas Corp’s Mozambique gas field holds 50-70 trillion cubic feet of recoverable reserves: Report
    ONGC giant gas field in Mozambique holds 50 to 70 Tcf of recoverable reserves, 43% more than the minimum estimated resources, says a report.
  17. NTPC can cut power to Delhi distributor if not paid: SC
    The court ordered BSES to pay state-run NTPC the Rs700 crore it is owed by 31 May
  18. Reliance Industries seeks joint tech studies to resolve gas dispute with Oil and Natural Gas Corporation
    Sources said Dinesh K Sarraf had briefed the company board on March 24 about the likelihood of RIL drawing gas from ONGC’s G-4 and KG-DWN-98/2 blocks.
  19. Odisha drops corpus fund plan for rebuilding power infra after disasters
    State government had initially planned to raise fund from power distribution companies
  20. Tarapur Atomic Power Station generated 28 pct of India’s atomic power in 2013-14
    The total nuclear power generated in the country in the year under review was 35,333 MUs.
For more information Contact – WEC India Secretariat, C/o NTPC Limited, 7th Floor, Core-6, SCOPE Complex, New Delhi-110 003, India
Email: info@wecindia.in, Phone: 011-2436 3719, Fax: 011-2436 9530, Website: http://www.wecindia.in


If you find the content useful, may we request you to kindly share “Energy News” with people you know.


 

Dear Naresh, Food Tank has hand-picked 18 books for our 2014 summer reading

9052014
 
 Dear Naresh,
Food Tank has hand-picked 18 books for our 2014 summer reading list that educate, inspire, and inform us—and make us look forward to cooking, eating, and sharing what we’ve learned.
They highlight sustainable agriculture and farming practices around the world and they give us ideas about how to eat healthier, safer, and more fairly produce food.
 
[PLEASE SHARE THIS LIST BY CLICKING HERE]
 
From Ava Chin’s Eating Wildly, a journey into urban foraging, to The Arcadia Mobile Market Seasonal Cookbook, which incorporates inexpensive staple foods with locally-grown and seasonal produce to create healthy and nutritious meals, they are all interesting, intriguing, and definitely worth a read this summer.
 
These books and reports teach us where our food comes from, how farming can both influence and mitigate climate change, and what we need to do to change our eating habits so that we can have can have a hand in alleviating hunger, obesity, and poverty in our communities and across the globe.
 
Here are Food Tank’s 18 summer “must reads” for your tablet or bookshelf:
 
Agri-culture: Reconnecting People, Land and Nature
by Jules Pretty

This book takes an in-depth look at the issues enveloped in the agriculture and food systems. Pretty emphasizes changing behaviors and reforming policies in order for an agricultural revolution to take place. He draws on stories of successful agricultural transformation in both developing and industrialized countries, calling on the next agricultural revolution.
 
Cooperative Farming: Frameworks for Farming Together
by Faith Gilbert

Gilbert designed this 54-page guidebook through interviews with 42 start-up and established collaborative farm projects across North America. She gathered input from 18 professionals and advisors, and 50 publications in cooperative development, farm business, finance, land access and more. This book highlights processes that make collaborations effective and function in order to provide mutual satisfaction and benefits.
 
Don’t Cook the Planet: Deliciously Saving the Planet One Meal at a Time
by Emily Abrams

An 18 year old activist from Massachusetts, Abrams new cookbook features 70 recipes shared by celebrity and all-star chefs including, actor, producer and eco-activist Chevy Chase, MasterChef judge and acclaimed chef, Graham Elliot, and Stephanie Izard, Top Chef Star and executive chef at Girl & the Goat. This cookbook offers recipes and tips on how to minimize your carbon footprint. Abrams hope to impact her generation through this cookbook featuring positive food choices. 
 
Eating Wildly
by Ava Chin

Follow Chin in this touching and informative memoir as she forages for food in New York City. Chin is an “urban forager” on the quest for eating better, eating healthier, and more sustainably, regardless of location. She takes the reader on an emotional journey- finding solace in parks and backyards where she connects with rare and delicious edible plants. Her experiences in nature enliven taste buds and stir emotions.
 
Fields of Hope and Power
by Frances Moore Lappe and Anna Lappe
 
Fields of Hope and Power is a chapter from the upcoming Navdanya book on agroecological movements, living democracy, and the limits of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and industrial agriculture. This chapter takes an in-depth look at food scarcity and how agriculture and climate affect this issue. The Lappes investigate how the farmers at Navdanya have contributed to setting up the largest direct marketing fair trade organic network in India.
 
Foods for Health: Choose and Use the Very Best Foods for Your Family and Our Planet
by Barton Seaver and P.K Newby

Seaver and Newby have created a science-based guide to healthy eating for the whole family which features tips, food pairings, and sample menus. The authors take the reader on a culinary tour of 148 foods which have high nutritional value and the least environmental impact. This book teaches readers how to prepare healthy food and meals while making the best choice for their body and the planet.
 
Food Systems Failure: The Global Food Crisis and the Future of Agriculture
by Christopher Rosin, Paul Stock, and Hugh Campbell

The authors provide a critical assessment of the global food system during heightened food crisis and feeding a growing population. This book explores contraindications in policy and practice that hinder solutions to the food crisis. Case studies expose neoliberal policies involved with the production end of the food system which provides insight to the current challenges for feeding the world. Rosin, Stock, and Campbell provide alternative strategies to create a more just and moral food system.
 
Full Planet, Empty Plates: The New Geopolitics of Food Scarcity
by Lester R. Brown

Brown exposes the planet’s volatile food system with eroding soils, rising temperatures, and countries competing for land and water resources. He writes, “food is the new oil.” Political up rise and food scarcity are concerning issues, which Brown addresses and presents solutions to.
 
Grabbing Power: The New Struggles for Land, Food and Democracy in Northern Honduras
by Tanya M. Kerssen
 
This book explores the history of agribusiness and land conflicts in Northern Honduras. In the Aguan Valley, Honduran peasants battle large palm oil producers and fight for democratization of land, food, and political power. Kerssen shows how peasants in crime and drug laden communities are leading a strong and inspiring movement, with no signs of backing down.
 
In the Garden: A Botanically Illustrated Gardening Book
by Sandra Lynn McPeake
 
Great for the coffee or kitchen table, this book includes basic growing information and detailed images of vegetable growth cycles from seedlings to the inside of veggies. McPeake provides gardening tips, supplies growers will need, and how to keep a gardening journal. Learn to share and grow with this illustrated guide.
 
Local: The New Face of Food and Farming in America
by Douglas Gayeton

A guide to more than 200 agriculture terms explained by experts in the field and complemented by stunning visuals, this book explores rebuilding local food movements. Gayeton traveled the U.S. taking photos and learning from today’s top sustainability practitioners to create this reference book.
 
Savor: Mindful Eating for Life
by Thich Nhat Hanh and Lilian Cheung

This book will make you stop and think about your eating habits and patterns. Buddhist monk, Hanh, and nutritional expert, Dr. Cheung discuss how to become more aware and mindful of our bodies, drawing special attention to how we eat. This book explores the physical, emotional, psychological, and environmental factors which control our weight.
 
Sustainable Diets and Biodiversity
by Barbara Burlingame and Sandro Dernini 

This publication, by the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), investigates the link between sustainable diets and biodiversity. It addresses the relationship between agriculture, health, environment, and food industries- indicating the most sustainable diets have low environmental impacts. This text can be used as a reference for policy, research, and action. 
 
Sustainable Revolution: Permaculture in Ecovillages, Urban Farms, and Communities Worldwide
by Juliana Birnbaum and Louis Fox
 
This book is a collection of profiles, interviews, and essays which feature 60 innovative community based projects around the globe in diverse climates. Birnbaum and Fox visited communities all around the world looking for ecological design systems. From urban gardeners to native seed-saving collectives to ecovillage developments the common thread that weaves these thriving communities together is permaculture systems.
 
The Arcadia Mobile Market Seasonal Cookbook
by JuJu Harris
 
This cookbook incorporates Women Infants and Children (WIC) staples along with seasonal produce to create easy and delicious recipes. Harris, Arcadia Culinary Educator and Mobile Market Outreach Coordinator, wanted to create healthy and nutritious recipes around WIC provisions. What started out as a simple compilation of recipes has turned into a successful business venture, Harris plans to offer a Spanish version later this year.
 
The Ecological Hoofprint: The Global Burden of Industrial Livestock
by Tony Weis
 
Weis discusses the “meatification” of human diets and the adverse impact it has on the earth and human health. Weis believes the conversion of grain and oilseed into meat is inefficient in a world striving to provide a basic diet to those chronically hungry. He explains why the growth and industrialization of livestock production is a central part of industrial capitalist agriculture.
 
The Third Plate: Field Notes on the Future of Food
by Dan Barber (Coming Soon!)

This book explores Barber’s vision for a new future of American eating. After a decade of research on farming communities throughout the world, Barber concludes America’s food needs a radical transformation to ensure the future of our health, food, and land. From his restaurant’s kitchen to farmers’ fields, Barber’s experiences lead him to propose a “third plate”- a new pattern of eating rooted in cooking with and celebrating the whole farm.
 
We the Eaters
by Ellen Gustafson (Coming Soon!)

Gustafson explores how eaters and consumers can transform the global food system by changing what is on their dinner plates. The book investigates the global industrial food system using the classic American dinner as a template and provides actionable solutions to start ripple effects of change. The book’s manifesto is: If we change dinner, we change the world
What books are currently inspiring you…? Please send me an emailand let me know!
 
 
All The Best,
 

Danielle Nierenberg
President, Food Tank
foodtank.com
Please connect with us on Facebook,  Twitter, and Pinterest
 
   
 Food Tank’s Summer Reading List 
  
 Food Tank has hand-picked 18 books that educate, inspire, and inform us—and make us look forward to cooking, eating, and sharing what we’ve learned. Read more… 
 
 
   
 

The Smart Gardener Takes the Guesswork Out of Gardening

 
  
 The Smart Gardener uses technology to help gardeners plan, plant, and harvest their gardens. Read more… 
 
 
   
 The Surprising Food that will Save the World 
  
 Insects are eaten all over the world and can be both nutritious and delicious. Read more… 
 
 
   
 

10 Baltimore Urban Agriculture Projects You Should Know About

 
  
 Urban agriculture supports healthy eating, local food production, and green industry in Baltimore. Read more… 
 
 
   
 

The Case for Connection: Urban Farming Takes Root in Upper West Chicago

 
  
 Once vacant plots of land have undergone a dramatic transformation–and so has the neighborhood of East Garfield Park in Chicago, IL. Read more… 
 
 


 

“Thoughtful Leadership Lecture and Interactive session”

9052014
 “Thoughtful Leadership Lecture” by world renowned tennis coach Mr. Adrian Rattenbury, Founder & President, RPT Tennis, Spain(2)
rajpal.singh@ficci.com CIN: U99999DL1956NPL002635 Rajpal Singh Director and Head Youth Affairs & Sports, Skills Development (International) & Postal Reforms & Labour and Employement May 5, 2014 Dear Sir / Madam, FICCI is pl
May 5 at 11:48 AM
rajpal.singh@ficci.com
To Me
Today at 11:29 AM

Rajpal Singh
Director and Head
Youth Affairs & Sports, Skills Development (International) &
Postal Reforms & Labour and Employement
May 9, 2014
Dear Sir / Madam,
FICCI is pleased to invite you for the “Thoughtful Leadership Lecture and Interactive session” on Corporate Athlete Goal in Sports by world renowned tennis coach Mr. Adrian Rattenbury, Founder & President, RPT Tennis, SpainThis programme is being organized in collaboration with RPT Tennis, Spain and Games Unlimited. Details are as follows:
When and Where:
Monday, May 12, 2014, 2.45 pm
Conference Room- 2nd floor, Federation House,
FICCI, Tansen Marg
New Delhi – 110001
Program:
2:45 p.m. Welcome Remarks by FICCI.
2:50 p.m. Lecture by Mr. Adrian Rattenbury, Founder & President, RPT Tennis, Spain
3:55 p.m. Vote of Thanks
4:00 p.m.  Tea & Coffee

Competitiveness, climate, security Finn’s priorities Ministry of Finance release Finnish road map of EU presidency. Finland i...