Say NO to GMO – already being banned in developing countries

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Dear friends across India,

A flood of genetically modified crops will soon sweep India if Environment Minister Moily gets his way. A public outcry stopped Monsanto’s GM brinjal, and if we act now, we can get Moily sacked and save India’s fields and health. Sign now to challenge Rahul Gandhi to show decisive leadership and kick out Moily:

SIGN HERE

A flood of genetically modified crops will soon sweep across India if the Environment Minister gets his way. Minister Moily is meant to protect India’s fields and forests, not mollify Monsanto, and its up to us to ensure he does!

We’ve done it before! Citizens concerned about health and farmers furious about corporate bullying stopped Monsanto’s GM brinjal. But now Moily has convened a committee that could give the green light to 120 types of transgenic crops. Moily has already made many enemies by agreeing destructive forest and coal projects, so if we act now, we can get him sacked.

With elections looming, Rahul Gandhi is under real pressure to show voters strong leadership and ditch this minister for Monsanto. Let’s act fast, before Moily says yes to experimental crops that put us all at risk. Sign now, and share widely, when 50,000 people are on board, we’ll take the message straight to Gandhi:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/india_moily_loc/?bCghRab&v=36086

Moily, who was given the post of Minister of the Environment in addition to his job as Minister for Oil, has already shown he can’t be trusted to protect the environment because he’s too busy trying to bend over backwards for businesses. In an unprecedented green sellout, he cleared projects worth over 150,000 crore in his first month on the job as part of his push for “creative destruction.” Now he’s under fire for boosting profits at Reliance Industries by hiking gas prices.

Monsanto may be on the back foot in India, but it hasn’t given up. Moily wants to use his position to make sure that GM companies like Monsanto can sink their teeth into India. Some argue that genetic modification holds great promise for increased agricultural efficiency, but so far the gains are just corporate PR hype. The dangers of cross-contamination and higher costs for poor farmers on the other hand are all too real.

Moily wants to move fast, hoping that fields can be planted with genetically modified crops this kharif season. So we need to move even faster. Join the call now and share widely:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/india_moily_loc/?bCghRab&v=36086

Avaaz members are winning battles worldwide to protect our food supply. After over a million of us took action to halt a Monsanto GM factory in Argentina, the government rejected their environmental impact assessment and halted construction. Now let’s come together to protect India’s farmers.

With hope and determination,

Meredith, Alex, Emilie, David, Mais and the rest of the Avaaz team

PS – Many Avaaz campaigns are started by members of our community! Start yours now and win on any issue – local, national or global: http://www.avaaz.org/en/petition/start_a_petition/?ps

More information:

Moily Madness in India (Huffington Post)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chaitanya-kumar/moily-madness-in-india_b_4617329.html

Jayanthi Natarajan line reversed, Moily and Pawar will ask SC to allow GM trials (Indian Express)
http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/jayanthi-natarajan-line-reversed-moily-and-pawar-will-ask-sc-t…

MoEF revives committee to consider proposals on GM crops (Indian Express)
http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/moef-revives-committee-to-consider-proposals-on-…

Veerappa Moily bats for Reliance Industries’ Mukesh Ambani over taint ordered by Arvind Kejriwal (The Financial Express)
http://www.financialexpress.com/news/veerappa-moily-bats-for-reliance-industries-mukesh-ambani-over-…

Toxic heavy metals in lipsticks threaten health of women and unborn babies

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Toxic chemical and heavy metal content exists in almost all commercial cosmetic products. You’d have to go to a health

food store and purchase the good, clean stuff at a higher price maybe. Still, even there, reading the labels and knowing what to avoid is worth it if you use underarm deodorants, cosmetic potions and lotions, as well as scalp and skin care products.

According to the evidence from independent researchers and lab analysts, the price of enhancing beauty with most commercial cosmetics goes beyond dollars and cents. The cosmetic pay-later plan involves risking one’s health and the health of one’s unborn baby.

Actually, abstaining from cosmetics during pregnancy may be easier for many than giving up smoking or alcohol completely. Of course, all manner of avoiding heavy metals and chemical toxins should be part of the lifestyle of expectant mothers.

Finding up to 300 contaminants in umbilical cord blood indicates that the mother inadvertently passes on these toxins to the fetus. Avoiding as much heavy metal and additive chemical toxins as possible can reward you a safe birth with a healthy baby whose growth continues in health.

Click Here to read this scary report from Natural News

A website in service of consumers

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Power to Consumer: A website in service of consumers
As consumers we are all empowered and protected by the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 against unscrupulous traders, companies and service providers. But the legal complexities involved in seeking one’s right can be intimidating sometimes. At times like this, a channel that provides online and easy legal advise can be of great support.
I am proud to present to you an online initiative dedicated solely to help you resolve your consumer related issues or disputes. All you need to do is log on to the website: www.powertoconsumer.in and submit your complaint. I will review your complaint, and provide you with a legal solution, at the earliest. A solution basis which you can respond or challenge the company [for which I will help you draft your complaint even]. That is not all. I also have other sections on my website that will help you understand the process of filing a complaint, a complaint generator toolthat will help you generate your complaint in a prescribe format, and more. I also write a blog in which I pen down my thoughts and opinions on day to day matters that can affect you as a consumer.
A single line about me: I am a practising Consumer Rights Advocate with over 23 years of experience in fighting Consumer related cases. This initiative is my quest in providing service to the society in the best possible way. I look forward to your support.
Don’t forget. Please visit my website www.powertoconsumer.in today and submit your query. Remember, no complaint that relates to your right as a consumer is trivial.
Best Regards,
Shivesh Kumar Sinha
Owner, Power to Consumer

 

India’s cows producing ‘toxic’ milk

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Cows in India are producing contaminated milk because they are allowed to eat garbage in the street, lawyers state

India’s neglected holy cows are producing toxic and contaminated milk because they eat garbage while wandering the streets unsupervised, according to lawyers for one of India’s top milk-producing states.

The claim was made in India’s Supreme Court where judges ordered all of India’s states to impose life imprisonment sentences for those convicted of contaminating milk.

Justice K.S Radhakrishnan said he was so concerned about the scale of adulteration that he had not taken milk in his coffee for two years.

Click Here for the full story

Avoiding your dentist can save your life

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The American Dental Association continues to maintain that mercury fillings and root canals are safe dental procedures, in spite of the overwhelming evidence against these practices. Routine high speed drilling saves dentists time, but also unwittingly destroys teeth, requiring root canals to save them.

The fluoride treatments and fluoridated toothpaste recommended to “protect” teeth, actually harm teeth and health. The fact that a nutrient dense, high fat soluble vitamin diet can prevent cavities and avoid the need for orthodontia is unknown for most individuals.

The majority of Americans have no idea how dangerous modern dentistry really is. Dentists aren’t bad people, but their training, similar to that received by allopathic physicians, is largely incorrect and health damaging to patient

Click Here for the full article

Do Medicines expire ?

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Most of what is known about drug expiration dates comes from a study conducted by the Food and Drug Administration at the request of the military. With a large and expensive stockpile of drugs, the military faced tossing out and replacing its drugs every few years. What they found from the study is 90% of more than 100 drugs, both prescription and over-the-counter, were perfectly good to use even 15 years after the expiration date.

So the expiration date doesn’t really indicate a point at which the medication is no longer effective or has become unsafe to use. Medical authorities state expired drugs are safe to take, even those that expired years ago. A rare exception to this may be tetracycline, but the report on this is controversial among researchers. It’s true the effectiveness of a drug may decrease over time, but much of the original potency still remains even a decade after the expiration date. Excluding nitroglycerin, insulin, and liquid antibiotics, most medications are as long-lasting as the ones tested by the military. Placing a medication in a cool place, such as a refrigerator, will help a drug remain potent for many years.

Click Here to read more

Civic Action Toolkit

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Recently, We, the People has come out with a very interesting Civic Action Toolkit which explains the following to the layman in the context of making him a daily citizen. It is an attempt to simplify the steps which equip us with tools to make the system work and how to reclaim our space as citizens :

  1. Identify the Issue
  2. Identify the Legal background
  3. Who are the authorities related to the issue at hand
  4. Gathering maximum information related to the issue
  5. How to approach when the laws and rules do not address the problem
  6. Public Action
  7. RTI Formats

Click Here for the Civic Action Toolkit

We, the People is a network of organisations and individuals. We facilitate exploration, understanding and action for being active and responsible citizens through events and in-depth training programmes. Our programmes are offered in schools, slums, skyscrapers — anywhere that citizens of this nation live, learn and work. 

For more information, please contact:
Rama Shyam +91- 9320191300

info@we-the-people.in

www.we-the-people.in

www.facebook.com/WeThePeople

Courtesy : Jeby Patel

Phasing out of old currency notes

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How do I know if the rupee note I have is pre-2005?

These notes can be very easily identified. Check the back (reverse) side of the currency note. All the post-2005 notes have the year of issue printed in the middle of the bottom row. The pre-2005 notes do not have this feature.

Which denomination of notes will be affected?

The phasing out is not restricted to any particular denomination of notes. The pre-2005 notes of all denominations will be phased out by the central bank after 31 March. So all notes, from Rs 5 to Rs 1,000 will be taken out of circulation.

What should I do if I have such notes?

Where and by when can I exchange these notes?

What happens if I am not able to meet the deadline?

Can a shopkeeper or bank refuse to take a pre-2005 note?

What if the notes I take for exchanging at the bank turn out to be fakes?

Click Here to read the full article in Economic Times

Click Here to read the RBI Circular