Human-animal conflict leaps up in India

In Assam state, development and habitat loss are forcing wildlife into urban areas.

Rapid-rescue teams in Assam capture wild animals that have strayed into human settlements [Nupur/IFAW-WTI]

Guwahati, India - Each time the sepia-coloured snake hisses, Pronita Kashyap says, "Aastik, Aastik, Aastik" - a prayer to the Hindu serpent goddess and her son. Sweaty and jittery, she explains, "It is said that snakes kill by fate and tigers by chase". When the snake coils and recoils at the corner of a squat toilet, Kashyap sprinkles smashed garlic and sprays a disinfectant on the floor, hoping to drive the half-metre-long intruder from her home. Stick in hand, she calls the state animal zoo - but there's no response. About half an hour later, the snake slithers out through the window into the garden. Kashyap keeps watching until the weeds and reeds stop quivering. As forest cover shrinks in India's northeastern state of Assam, sightings of wild animals have become increasingly common. According to the National Crime Records Bureau, 290 people were killed by animals in Assam from 2009-11 - second only to Maharashtra state. Human-animal conflict is widespread in rural areas in Asia and Africa, but habitat loss and development in places like Assam have put more people in urban areas at risk. In the past few years, reports have abounded of pythons entering bathrooms and bedrooms, sambar deers running through courtyards, clouded leopards sneaking into backyards at night and carrying off livestock or pets. Pangolins, jungle cats, civet cats, foxes and wild boars repeatedly stray onto the lanes and bylanes of Guwahati, the capital. Monkeys running amok in kitchens is a routine occurrence in hillside areas. Outside of the city, elephants, tigers, one-horned rhinos and gaur, the Indian bison, are occasionally spotted. These human-animal encounters often result in panic, fracas and bloodshed. Shrinking habitat As man encroaches on wilderness, the wild strays into urban settlements. This is not an overnight development, says Jayanta Sarma, an environmental consultant. The Assam state zoo has rescued 324 animals from in and around Guwahati, the capital, from April 2012 to March 2013 [Sashanka/IFAW-WTI] Assam's population swelled from 14 million in 1971 to 31 million in 2011. Frenzied urbanisation gobbled up 30 percent of the state's forestland. Nationally, Assam has the most forestland under encroachment. "There has been a prolonged conflict between so-called development and conservation of wildlife," explains Sarma. The line between urban, rural and jungle is becoming blurry in Assam, a tropical biodiversity hotspot. Illegal deforestation, logging, earth-cutting and extension of residential settlements and croplands into reserved forests and hillocks have reduced the natural habitat of animals, forcing animals to wander around in search of food. When stray wild animals devour domestic ones, there is no compensation for owners. When vengeful crowds slay feral animals, there is no punishment, encouraging such killings, adds Sarma. Rescue teams Between April 2012 and March 2013, the Assam state zoo has rescued 324 animals from in and around Guwahati, the capital, according to Dr M L Smith, a forest veterinary officer. Of these, 54 died, 45 were exhibited at zoos and 225 were released in protected areas. The zoo has no specific rescue team, and the officials, animal-keeper and veterinary doctors respond to distress calls. Many animals die during rescue attempts or from being trapped in wells; one leopard died from an overdose of tranquiliser. Irate locals have killed many straying animals with rocks, axes or bamboo poles. In March 2012, mobs butchered two leopards - one in Kamrup and the other in Dibrugarh district - and feasted on their meat. In January, the state government announced the deployment of rapid-rescue teams in 15 districts. "None of the teams are operational," says Anjan Talukdar, a veterinarian at IFAW-WTI, Center for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation, based in Kaziranga. He says media - particularly television channels - provoke the crowds and cause a nuisance. "At least 1,000 people gather out of curiosity and it hampers the rescue operation," he explains. The IFAW-WTI centre has five mobile teams and has rescued more than 3,306 animals in the last 10 years in Assam and released 1,854, according to Rathin Barman, the coordinator of the centre. It receives an average of 30 calls a month and during monsoon season about 200. No winner in this tussle Feverish urbanisation has muddled the food chain and positioned man in the path of animals' migration routes, says Rajib Rudra Tariang, a professor of zoology at Digboi College. "Now there is more collision and people have become volatile," he explains. The close encounters have left residents of Assam wary. A muddy road leads to Mridula Borah's house, perched on the foothills of Durga Sarobar in Guwahati. A few years ago, the hill was covered with dense forests, but now it is a haphazard patchwork of ranch-style houses, clusters of trees and large egg-shaped rocks. "We regularly hear the roar of leopards at night, and there is a strong musky smell," Borah says. Once the street was full of stray dogs, but now there are none. The community has started keeping pets indoors after many were killed. Borah's two-year-old cocker spaniel, Olive, was taken one night. In the morning, Borah found dried blood and leopard pawmarks on the soft, red soil. This story has been written under the aegis of the CSE Media Fellowships.

BP sues US government over contract ban

Company says ban unfairly includes 21 of its subsidiaries that were not linked to fatal Deepwater Horizon blast in 2010.

BP agreed to pay a record $4.5bn last November to settle criminal charges arising from the case [File: EPA]

British energy giant BP is suing the US government for banning it from federal contracts after the deadly 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, documents showed. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) last year barred BP from competing for new federal contracts following the catastrophic accident three years ago, which left 11 people dead and sent millions of barrels of oil churning into the Gulf. The EPA decision, citing BP's "lack of business integrity," came after BP agreed to pay a record $4.5bn last November to settle criminal charges arising from the case. The lawsuit filed this week by BP in federal court in Texas has challenged the EPA ban, arguing it surpassed the agency's authority and constituted an abuse of power. "EPA's decision to suspend did not address the overwhelming evidence and record of BP's present responsibility as a government contractor and leaseholder," the lawsuit documents stated. It "did not attempt to explain how or why immediate suspension was necessary to protect the public interest, as federal law requires". BP argued that the company has already been punished for the oil spill and faces "irreparable harm" if the bans are not lifted. 'Abuse of EPA's discretion' The British energy giant has paid several billion dollars in various settlements since the disaster. It labelled the EPA's action "punitive, arbitrary, capricious, and an abuse of EPA's discretion". Around 4.9 million barrels of oil gushed into the Gulf over a three-month period following the April 2010 explosion aboard the offshore rig, devastating the region's environment and economy. BP has resolved thousands of lawsuits linked to the disaster out of court, including the record $4.5bn deal with the US government to settle criminal charges, and a $7.8bn settlement with people and businesses affected by the spill. BP spent more than $14bn on the response and cleanup and paid another $10bn to businesses, individuals and local governments that did not join the class action lawsuit. It remains on the hook for billions in additional damages, including the cost of environmental rehabilitation. A civil trial which got under way in Louisiana earlier this year could result in BP having to pay billions of dollars in environmental fines if the Justice Department proves that gross negligence led to the accident.

Brazil makes $60 billion bid to halt currency slide

Brazil's central bank says it will launch a $60 billion program to support the real.

HONG KONG (CNNMoney)

Brazil's central bank said Friday it will launch a $60 billion program to halt a slide in its currency, which has fallen in recent days to its lowest level since 2008.

The series of currency swaps and loans, worth $3 billion per week, will be carried out on a regular schedule for the remainder of the calendar year.

The bank, which previously announced a smaller intervention, said in a statement that it reserves the right to perform additional operations if appropriate.
The move comes as talk of tighter U.S. monetary policy has seen some investors pull out of emerging markets in recent months.
The Fed has bought some $3 trillion worth of assets since it launched quantitative easing in 2008. Much of that money has found its way into stocks in developing economies as investors ventured into more risky assets.
Related story: Fed provokes run for the hills ... in China and India
With investors now pulling out, currencies in countries like India and Indonesia have touched fresh lows in recent days. Brazil's currency, the real, had been trading at around 2.00 against the dollar as recently as April, but now stands at 2.44.
The sudden decline in the real's value raises the prospect of further inflation, which is already racing above an annual rate of 6% -- and perilously close to the government's 6.5% target ceiling.
Adding to worries, the country's Bovespa index has been among the world's worst performers, losing more than 15% of its value since January. The implosion of parts of Brazilian entrepreneur Eike Batista's industrial group has contributed to the stock market slide.
Related story: BRIC markets left in the dust
The bid to stem the real's decline is likely to give policymakers in Brazil a nasty case of whiplash.
Not long ago, some Brazilian politicians were accusing wealthier countries of waging a currency war as low interest rates sent investors to emerging markets in search of higher returns, pushing their currencies up and making life more difficult for exporters.
But those concerns have been replaced by worries about a flight of capital. Brazil's economy has cooled off from a torrid pace in the past few years as domestic consumption has not made up for the decline in demand for natural resources. The International Monetary Fund has cut its outlook for Brazilian growth this year to 2.5%, down from 3.0% in April.
The government, meanwhile, has ramped up infrastructure spending as Brazil prepares to host the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games.
That hasn't been enough to offset the impact of the slowdown in commodity prices and is putting a strain on the government's finances.

Yahoo beats Google in traffic for first time since 2011 ,In the longstanding battle of Yahoo vs. Google, score one for the underdog.

Yahoo beats Google in traffic for first time since 2011

Marissa Mayer has said she wants the company to focus on consumers' "daily habits" in order to make products that will become a part of users' routines.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

In the longstanding battle of Yahoo vs. Google, score one for the underdog.

For the first time in more than two years, Yahoo sites were the most visited in the country in July, according to a monthly report from comScore, which tracks unique visitors to U.S. properties across the Web.

With 196.6 million visitors to 192.3 million who visited Google properties, Yahoo (YHOO, Fortune 500) bested its competitor, which has long held onto the top spot, for the first time since May 2011. Yahoo's unique visitors were up by roughly 20% compared to July of last year, when it came in third behind Google and Microsoft (MSFT, Fortune 500), according to comScore.
July's no. 1 spot is a notable win for Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer, who has made a number of changes since taking over the troubled company last July. Yahoo did not respond to a request for comment.
The comScore report is inclusive of desktop traffic only. A more comprehensive report is due out next week. Though Google typically beats Yahoo handily in mobile traffic, Mayer has noted that Yahoo has seen a recent uptick in mobile.
Since Mayer took the reins, the Sunnyvale, Calif.-based company has acquired more than a dozen start-ups, most notably Tumblr, and revamped a number of the sites.
Related: Study: Smarter, richer people use Google
Traffic for Tumblr -- which was the web's 28th most popular U.S. property in July, according to the report -- did not directly contribute to Yahoo's visitor tally, said Andrew Lipsman, comScore's vice president of industry analysis.
In an earnings call last month, Mayer noted that Yahoo page views were rising after more than a year of declines, citing recently refreshed versions of Yahoo mail, weather, sports, news and Tumblr, both on desktop and mobile.
The revamped Yahoo mail app for tablets, for instance, brought a 120% increase in daily active Yahoo mail users, according to the company.
Mayer has repeatedly said that she wants the company to focus on consumers' "daily habits" in order to make products that will become a part of users' routines.
Yahoo's stock was down slightly Wednesday, but is up more than 80% from a year ago.

Apple Ban Overturned By Obama Administration

The White House move marks the first time since 1987 that a US administration has vetoed a product ban ordered by the trade panel.

The White House has stepped into a patent war between Apple and Samsung by vetoing a ban on imports of iPads and iPhones in the US.

The US International Trade Commission (ITC) in June banned the import or sale of the iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPad 3G and iPad 2 3G distributed by AT&T Inc, saying the devices infringed a patent owned by the South Korean electronics giant.
But US Trade Representative Michael Froman vetoed the ban, saying his decision was in part based on its "effect on competitive conditions in the US economy and the effect on US consumers".
The decision marks a setback for the South Korean electronics company. However, Mr Froman said Samsung could continue to pursue its case through the courts.

The decision, dealing a blow to Samsung, was welcomed by Apple

It is the first time since 1987 that a US administration has vetoed a product ban ordered by the trade panel.
Samsung said it was "disappointed" at the lifting of the ban.
"The ITC's decision correctly recognised that Samsung has been negotiating in good faith and that Apple remains unwilling to take a licence," it said in a statement.
Apple welcomed the news and applauded the administration "for standing up for innovation".
It added: "Samsung was wrong to abuse the patent system in this way."

US Trade Representative Michael Froman

The Apple products targeted by the ITC ban are more than a year old, though some models such as the iPhone 4 remain solid sellers.
Apple sells more than 100 million iPhones annually, but it does not break down sales by models.
Apple and Samsung have been waging a global patent war since 2010, filing multiple lawsuits against each other over the design and functionality of their devices.
Apple argues Samsung's Android phones copy vital iPhone features. Samsung is fighting back with its own complaints.
Last year, a federal court ruled that Samsung owed Apple $1bn in damages for infringing on non-essential Apple patents.
But the judge refused to impose an import ban on Samsung phones and later struck $450m from the verdict, saying the jurors miscalculated.
The case is set for a rematch in an appeals court.
Samsung is the world's largest maker of smartphones. Analysts estimate it outsold Apple nearly two to one in the first three months of the year.
However, Apple's smartphone business is more profitable.