Latest news with #FGG
Time of India
4 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Telangana govt urged to impose total ban on single-use plastics
1 2 Hyderabad: The Forum for Good Governance (FGG) has urged the state govt to impose a total ban on single-use plastics (SUP), citing severe environmental damage and health risks. In a detailed representation, FGG highlighted the widespread littering of plastic carry bags, plates and other disposable items, which choke drains, pollute water bodies, endanger wildlife and compromise soil and groundwater quality. Drawing attention to successful bans in Karnataka and Maharashtra, the forum stressed that enforcement of existing rules was ineffective and called for comprehensive action. FGG president Padmanabha Reddy said, "Even with the slightest rain, the roads get flooded, leading to traffic chaos, particularly in metropolitan cities such as Hyderabad, besides damaging property and sometimes claiming human life. Domesticated animals consuming leftover food and other waste thrown in plastic bags die a painful death. Burning of plastics leads to the emission of highly toxic gases, particularly dioxins and furans. " He added, "In Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016, less than 50 micron thickness carry bags were banned, but it is impossible to control and regulate the manufacturing and use of such plastic carry bags as public are not in a position to know the exact thickness." FGG said the National Green Tribunal (NGT) upheld the legal validity of the total ban on plastics imposed by Karnataka. The plastic industry filed an appeal against the NGT order before the SC, which refused to stay the NGT order, he said. "The govt of Karnataka has taken into account the environmental concern and protection of public interest, which is of much greater cause than the economic interest sought by the manufacturers of single-use plastic items. Telangana should follow the footsteps of Karnataka," he said.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Carla Walker Act: Bill to fund cold-case tech introduced in U.S. Senate
The Brief "The Carla Walker Act," aims to boost funding for advanced DNA analysis in cold case investigations. Co-authored by Sen. John Cornyn, the bill would support advanced technology to close previously unsolvable cold cases. The bill has been introduced in the U.S. Senate and has companion legislation in the House, but has not yet passed. WASHINGTON, D.C. - A bill co-authored by Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) would increase funding for advanced DNA analysis with the hope of helping to solve cold cases. The Carla Walker Act, introduced to the U.S. Senate on Thursday, is named for a 17-year-old Fort Worth native who was killed in 1974, but whose case went unsolved for more than four decades due to a lack of analysis technology. According to Cornyn's office, the bill, coauthored by Peter Welch (D-Vermont), would use current federal funding to support advanced technology called forensic genetic genealogy (FGG) DNA analysis. The goal of the funding is to help solve previously unsolvable cold cases like Walker's. According to the release, the advanced FGG technology that would be funded by the bill enables investigators to build family trees leading back to cold case suspects. Traditional technology examines far fewer DNA profiles than is possible through FGG, the release says. The backstory Walker went missing 46 years before her case was solved. The 17-year-old was abducted from a bowling alley in Fort Worth after going to a Valentine's Day dance with her boyfriend. Three days after her disappearance, Walker's body was found in a drainage ditch 30 minutes away from Forth Worth. While officials were able to find DNA evidence on her body, a lack of forensic technology prevented them from finding a suspect. Nearly half a century later, investigators in 2020 were able to find and match the DNA found on Walker to Glen McCurley, who was 77 at the time of his arrest. McCurley had been a minor suspect in the 1976 crime, but investigators could not find compelling enough evidence to connect him to the offense. McCurley later confessed to the murder and received a sentence of life in prison. Why you should care Walker's case was eventually solved with FGG analysis, but only after most of her remains passed away without ever learning what happened to the murdered 17-year-old. If passed, Cornyn's bill aims to bring swifter justice for cold-case victims and answers for their loved ones. What they're saying "Fort Worth native Carla Walker was abducted in a bowling alley and tragically murdered in 1974, but it took more than four decades and the advent of forensic genetic genealogy DNA analysis for her killer to be identified and brought to justice," said Cornyn. "I am proud to have authored this legislation, which would make this cutting-edge DNA testing technology more widely available to law enforcement so they can better identify and prosecute offenders, solve cold cases, and bring closure to victims' families." "Advancements in forensic DNA technology have revolutionized our ability to combat crime. In Vermont, detectives were able to use forensic genetic genealogy analysis to help provide answers to a family who thought they might never come. We've also seen how this technology can be a powerful tool in giving those wrongly accused a chance to clear their names," said coauthor Welch. "Our bipartisan bill will help investigators across the country harness the incredible power of FGG technology to crack cold cases and deliver justice to countless victims and families, and I'm thankful for Senator Cornyn's leadership on it." What's next The bill has yet to be passed by the U.S. Senate. U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-Texas) is leading companion legislation in the House of Representatives. The Source Information in this article came from the office of U.S. Sen. John Cornyn and previous Fox 4 reporting.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Cornyn, Welch introduce the Carla Walker Act to help solve cold cases
May 22—WASHINGTON U.S. Senators John Cornyn (R-TX) and Peter Welch (D-VT) on Thursday introduced the Carla Walker Act, which would dedicate existing federal grant funds to support forensic genetic genealogy (FGG) DNA analysis and help solve previously unsolvable cold cases. The bill is named for Carla Walker, a Fort Worth native whose murderer was finally identified 46 years after her death with the help of this advanced technology. "Fort Worth native Carla Walker was abducted in a bowling alley and tragically murdered in 1974, but it took more than four decades and the advent of forensic genetic genealogy DNA analysis for her killer to be identified and brought to justice," said Sen. Cornyn. "I am proud to have authored this legislation, which would make this cutting-edge DNA testing technology more widely available to law enforcement so they can better identify and prosecute offenders, solve cold cases, and bring closure to victims' families." "Advancements in forensic DNA technology have revolutionized our ability to combat crime. In Vermont, detectives were able to use forensic genetic genealogy analysis to help provide answers to a family who thought they might never come. We've also seen how this technology can be a powerful tool in giving those wrongly accused a chance to clear their names," said Sen. Welch. "Our bipartisan bill will help investigators across the country harness the incredible power of FGG technology to crack cold cases and deliver justice to countless victims and families, and I'm thankful for Senator Cornyn's leadership on it." U.S. Congressman Wesley Hunt (TX-38) is leading companion legislation in the House of Representatives. Background: Typically, when a suspect's identity is unknown, a crime laboratory uploads the genetic material recovered from a crime scene into the FBI's national database to search for DNA matches between the forensic sample and any known offenders. While this traditional form of forensic DNA profiling only examines 13-20 Short tandem repeat (STR) DNA markers, forensic genetic genealogy (FGG) technology examines over half a million Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) that span the entirety of the human genome. It does so by cross-referencing shared blocks of SNP markers to identify relatives of the genetic profile by uncovering shared blocks of DNA. This enables criminal investigators to build family trees that ultimately help determine the sample's identity and solve cases. Carla Walker was abducted from a bowling alley parking lot in Fort Worth, Texas, on February 17, 1974. Her body was found three days later in a drainage ditch 30 minutes south of Fort Worth. The Fort Worth Police Department was able to collect a few forensic samples and clothing items from the crime scene, but law enforcement could not solve the murder due to limited forensic technology at the time. Carla's brother, Jim Walker, never stopped searching for answers and nearly 50 years later, FGG DNA analysis was conducted on the last remaining DNA on a piece of Walker's clothing, which led to a successful DNA match with the McCurley family and ultimately identified Glen McCurley, Jr. as the killer, who confessed in 2021 and died in prison on July 14, 2023. Sen. Cornyn's Carla Walker Act would create a pilot program to make this cutting-edge FGG DNA analysis more widely available to investigative agencies to: — Aid in resolving previously unsolvable cold cases; — Assist in the identification of criminals; — Seek justice for previously unidentified victims; — Help exonerate wrongly accused suspects; — And bring closure for the victims' loved ones.
The Hindu
21-05-2025
- General
- The Hindu
Hussain Sagar clean up integral to Musi rejuvenation: Forum for Good Governance
Forum for Good Governance (FGG), a civil society organisation, sent a letter to the Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy suggesting that the cleaning of Hussain Sagar lake be made an integral part of the rejuvenation of Musi river. Tracing through the failed projects towards cleaning of the lake, the letter said, 'Any attempt to clean the Musi river without cleaning up Hussain Sagar will not give the desired results'. The letter noted that Buddha Purnima, a project with an estimated cost of ₹20 crore involved the removal of floating material such as water hyacinth and plastic waste which was also abandoned without much success. Another estimate of ₹500 crore was prepared for dredging the sediment from the lake bed, but the project did not take off as there was no plan on how to dispose of the toxic sediment. Built originally as a drinking water source, the lake has been neglected over the years, and became polluted with the entry of untreated sewerage and industrial effluents through drains such as Banjara nala, Picket nala, Balkapur nala and Kukatpally nala. The first three nalas carry sewage while the Kukatpally nala carries toxic chemical effluents from the Balanagar industrial area before it drains into the Hussain Sagar. The Hussain Sagar Lake and Catchment Area Improvement Project (HCIP) was taken up by the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority in 2006 with a loan of ₹310 crore from the Japan International Co-operative Agency (JICA) and state government's grant of ₹60 crore, totalling to ₹370 crore. The envisaged goals were to improve the lake's water quality, maintain water balance round the year, removing nutrient rich sediments from the lake bed, , improving the overall environment of the lake and surroundings for biodiversity enrichment, and increasing the potential of eco-tourism. The project aimed to be completed by 2013, did not achieve any of the standard objectives though all the allocated funds had been spent. 'Good amount of money was spent for study tours of our officers to Japan and other European countries, and experts from Japan to advise our officials costed a lot,' the letter alleged. Though Kukatpally nala diversion was taken up with an estimated cost of ₹50 crore, the money was spent without much result. The nala is still flowing into the Hussain Sagar lake. In the past 20 years, despite spending over ₹500 crore to clean up the Hussain Sagar, corruption, no action and lack of proper planning has affected the project the commitment of the Chief Minister to improve and rejuvenate the Musi river, the letter by FGG signed by President M. Padmanabha Reddy said work for the Musi and Hussain Sagar project should start simultaneously for the best results.
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Yahoo
DNA technology could help identify remains found in Knoxville after nearly 40 years
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — After nearly four decades, DNA profiling and forensic genetic genealogy may help investigators find the name of a man found in a South Knoxville quarry. According to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, on September 21, 1985, a man's remains were discovered in a rock quarry in South Knoxville. It was estimated the man had been dead for a week. The case profile said the man's hair and eye color were unknown. What is NamUs? How a federal database helps solve East TN missing persons cases The man was estimated to be around 5'9″ tall and between the ages of 27 and 34 years old. A spokesperson for the Knox County Regional Forensic Center explained that the man was found wearing a 'Gooding Million Dollar Midway' shirt, and its possible that he may have been associated with the fair because it would have been in town around the time frame. The case was first investigated by Dr. William Bass the spokesperson explained. Bass is known around the world for his research because of his research on the decomposition of human bodies. In 1971, he came to the University of Tennessee and was on the medical examiner's staff, and his work ultimately led the university's Forensic Anthropology Facility, which many may know as the 'body farm.'. Multi-year rehabilitation of Bullhead Trail to cause weekday closures through November In 2017, the Knox County Regional Forensic Center took jurisdiction of the case. In many unidentified remains cases, officials will release a photos of a facial composite of what the person was believed to have looked like when they were alive, but in this case, the forensic center spokesperson said that was not possible because they did not receive the man's jaw from the University of Tennessee. Years later, the case may be one step closer to being solved. Recently, the Knox County Regional Forensic Center submitted the case for Forensic Genetic Genealogy (FGG) through Othram, a Texas-based laboratory, after it was fully funded through grant funds. Othram specializes in DNA sequencing for FGG, which creates new leads for law enforcement by searching for potential relatives of a person based on DNA profiling. Lonely Bones: Stories of the Forgotten Dead One of the concerns when discussing older cases involving DNA is if the DNA sample's age may make it more difficult for an accurate profile to be developed. Earlier this month, the director of case management at Othram, Michael Vogen, explained to 6 News that while there are challenges, they have developed different techniques to help sort out the 'noise,' degradation and contamination to develop a profile similar to would be developed through a current day DNA test that involves filling a tube with saliva. In fact, Othram has had success in helping solve cases as old as the 1850s, he explained. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
