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50K wild species meet needs of billions worldwide: Report

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Billions of people, in developed and developing nations, benefit daily from the use of wild species for food, energy, materials, medicine, recreation, inspiration and many other vital contributions to human well-being.

The accelerating global biodiversity crisis, with a million species of plants and animals facing extinction, threatens these contributions to people.

A new report by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) on Friday offered insights, analysis and tools to establish more sustainable use of wild species of plants, animals, fungi and algae around the world.

Sustainable use is when biodiversity and ecosystem functioning are maintained while contributing to human wellbeing.

The IPBES Assessment Report on the Sustainable Use of Wild Species is the result of four years of work by 85 leading experts from the natural and social sciences, and holders of indigenous and local knowledge, as well as 200 contributing authors, drawing on more than 6,200 sources.

The summary of the report was approved this week by representatives of the 139 member states of IPBES in Bonn in Germany.

“With about 50,000 wild species used through different practices, including more than 10,000 wild species harvested directly for human food, rural people in developing countries are most at risk from unsustainable use, with lack of complementary alternatives often forcing them to further exploit wild species already at risk,” said Jean-Marc Fromentin (France), who co-chaired the assessment with Marla R. Emery (USA/Norway) and John Donaldson (South Africa).

“Seventy per cent of the world’s poor are directly dependent on wild species. One in five people rely on wild plants, algae and fungi for their food and income; 2.4 billion rely on fuel wood for cooking and about 90 per cent of the 120 million people working in capture fisheries are supported by small-scale fishing,” said Emery.

“But the regular use of wild species is extremely important not only in the Global South. From the fish that we eat, to medicines, cosmetics, decoration and recreation, wild species’ use is much more prevalent than most people realise.”

The use of wild species is an important source of income for millions of people worldwide.

Wild tree species account for two thirds of global industrial roundwood; trade in wild plants, algae and fungi is a billion-dollar industry; and even non-extractive uses of wild species are big business.

Tourism, based on observing wild species, is one of the main reasons that, prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, protected areas globally received eight billion visitors and generated $600 billion every year.

The report identifies five broad categories of ‘practices’ in the use of wild species: fishing; gathering; logging; terrestrial animal harvesting (including hunting); and non-extractive practices, such as observing.

For each practice, it then examines specific auses’ such as for food and feed; materials; medicine, energy; recreation; ceremony; learning and decoration –providing a detailed analysis of the trends in each, over the past 20 years.

In most cases, use of wild species has increased, but sustainability of use has varied, such as in gathering for medicine and logging for materials and energy.

Speaking specifically about fishing as an example, Fromentin said: “Recent global estimates confirm that about 34 per cent of marine wild fish stocks are overfished and 66 per cent are fished within biologically sustainable levels — but within this global picture there are significant local and contextual variations.

“Countries with robust fisheries management have seen stocks increasing in abundance. The Atlantic bluefin tuna population, for instance, has been rebuilt and is now fished within sustainable levels.

“For countries and regions with low intensity fisheries management measures, however, the status of stocks is often poorly known, but generally believed to be below the abundance that would maximise sustainable food production.

“Many small-scale fisheries are unsustainable or only partially sustainable, especially in Africa for both inland and marine fisheries, and in Asia, Latin America and Europe for coastal fisheries.”

Illegal use and illegal trade in wild species are also addressed in the report — as this occurs across all of the practices and often leads to unsustainable use.

The authors find that illegal trade in wild species represents the third largest class of all illegal trade — with estimated annual values of up to $199 billion.

Timber and fish make up the largest volumes and value of illegal trade in wild species.

Business

Wagh Bakri Director Parag Desai, Injured In Attack By Stray Dogs, Dies Due To Brain Haemorrhage At 49

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Parag Desai, executive director at Gujarat Tea Processors and Packers, which is known for its brand Wagh Bakri passed away on October 22, a week after he was injured in an accident.

Desai was admitted to Shelby Hospital on October 15 after he slipped outside his residence trying to fight street dogs that attacked him. He suffered severe head injuries during the fall that led to brain haemorrhage.

A security guard informed the family member of the incident after which he was rushed to the hospital. After a day of observation at Shelby Hospital, Desai was moved to Zydus Hospital for a surgical procedure.

However, he passed away on Sunday due to brain haemorrhage.

Gujarat Congress Chief and Rajya Sabha Member Shaktisinh Gohil offered his condolences through a social media post. He said, “Very sad news coming in. Parag Desai, Director and owner Wagh Bakri Tea passed away. He had a brain haemorrhage following a fall. May his soul rest in peace. My condolences to the entire Wagh Bakri family across India.”

He was the son of Rasesh Desai, the Managing Director of the Wagh Bakri Tea Group. Desai is survived by his wife and daughter Vidisha and Parisha.

Deasi who led the Group’s transformation into Tea lounges and e-commerce has completed his MBA from Long Island University in the US. He was an expert tea taster and evaluator and through his career has spearheaded the sales, marketing and export department for the group.

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Business

Adani Group Reacts To Allegations Against Mahua Moitra; Reiterates Groups Working To Harm Company

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Adani Group in a statement on Monday in a statement talking about a complaint against Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra resinstates that there are some groups and individuals working against the company to tarnish its reputation.

The statement comes after Supreme Court lawyer Jai Anant Dehadrai filed a complaint with the CBI in the form of a sworn affidavit on Sunday against MP Mahua Moitra and Darshan Hiranandani, CEO of Hiranandani group for targeting Adani Group through parliamentary questions.

The complaint by Jain Anant Dehadrai further states that Moitra received bribes and undue favours from Hiranandani.

The company in its official statement reiterated that there are groups working against the company. The company said,”This development corroborates our statement of 9 October, 2023 that some groups and individuals have been working overtime to harm our name, goodwill and market standing. In this particular case, the lawyers complaint reveals that this arrangement to besmirch the reputation and interests of the Adani Group and our Chairman Mr. Gautam Adani has been in place since 2018.”

Nishikant Dubey Demands an inquiry

Post the complaint Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Nishikant Dubey wrote a letter to Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Union Minister of State (MoS) IT Rajeev Chandra Shekhar making “cash for query” allegations against Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra and demanding an inquiry committee against her.

This comes a day after Dubey wrote a letter to the Lok Sabha Speaker over the same matter, demanding the formation of an enquiry committee against the TMC MP. He has also sought Moitra’s suspension from the House.

Hiranandani denies allegations

However, Hiranandani group has denied the allegation. A spokesperson from the Hiranandani Group said, “We have always been in the business of business and not in the business of politics. Our group has always worked with the government in the interest of the nation and will continue doing so.

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National

UP: CCTV Footage Shows Drunk Rail Staffer Busy On Video Call, Places Bag On MEMU Throttle Causing Collision At Mathura Platform; 5 Suspended

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UP: A joint report in the Tuesday Mathura train incident, in which an electric multiple unit (EMU) train broke the buffer dead end and entered platform number 2, has found that the staffer was watching his mobile phone while handling the train and was mildly drunk, sources have said.

The report, according to the sources, while narrating the prima facie reason of the incident, said that according to the Crew Voice & Video Recording System (CVVRS), after the train arrived at the platform, a staffer named Sachin entered the DTC cab (engine) while watching his mobile phone.

It said that while carelessly putting his bag on the throttle of the engine, he again got busy on his mobile.

Drunk Employee Puts Bag On Train’s Throttle

The throttle, due to the pressure of the bag, went into forward position and let the EMU move towards the platform. “It broke the dead end of the platform and half of the coach climbed onto the elevated portion of platform number 2, leading to breakdown of OHE (overhead wire).” The report also said that a breathalyzer test conducted on Sachin showed a reading of 47 mg/100 ml which is considered to be mildly drunk.

“He has been sent for a medical test in which his blood sample will be taken to find out the exact level of alcohol consumption,” a source from the Agra Railway Division, said.

Divisional Railway Manager Tej Prakash Agrawal has suspended five persons including Sachin in connection with the incident. Of the other four, Harbhajan Singh, Brajesh Kumar, and Kuljeet are technical staff and Govid Hari Sharma is a loco pilot.

“We have suspended five persons and further detailed investigation is on,” Agarwal said.

In one of its observations, the joint report said that generally technicians receive the DTC cab (engine) key, however, in this case, the technician sent Sachin to receive the key.

Details On The Incident

Giving the brief history of the incident, the report said that the train arrived at Mathura station at 10.49 pm. After the loco pilot got relieved from his duty and came out of the cab, Sachin entered the cab to take the keys. Within a minute of his entering the cab, it started moving, broke the dead end and half of its portion climbed onto the platform.

Sachin in a written statement said that as per the instruction of his duty in-charge, he asked for the key of the cab from the loco pilot who told him that it was inside the cab.

According to his statement, when he entered the cab and put his bag inside there, the train started moving on its own. He said that he got scared and by the time he applied the emergency brake, it had entered the platform.

He said that he informed his in-charge about it and when he tried to find out the reason why the train started moving, he found that the throttle was in forward position and key was also in position.

Blame Game Over Collision

In his statement, he blamed the loco pilot for keeping the train functions in “switched on” position. However, the loco pilot in his statement said that he had handed over the key to Sachin before the latter entered the cab.

The joint report has mentioned Sachin as ETL staff whereas in his statement, Sachin has mentioned his designation as helper.

The EMU starts from Delhi and covers various local stations before terminating in Mathura. The platform number 2 starts from the train’s terminating point where a buffer dead end has been created.

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