Dhruv Gupta

[Masoud Pezeshkian @drpezeshkian]

To the people of the United States of America

[Dalai Lama @DalaiLama]

MESSAGE

I wholeheartedly endorse the powerful appeal for peace made by the Holy Father, Pope Leo, during his Palm Sunday Mass. His call for the laying down of arms and the renunciation of violence resonated profoundly with me, as it speaks to the very essence of what all major religions teach.

Indeed, whether we look to Christianity, Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism, Judaism or any of the world's great spiritual traditions, the message is fundamentally the same: love, compassion, tolerance, and self-discipline. Violence finds no true home in any of these teachings. History has shown us time and again that violence only begets more violence and is never a lasting foundation for peace.

An enduring resolution to conflict, including the ones we see in the Middle East or between Russia and Ukraine, must be rooted in dialogue, diplomacy and mutual respect — approached with the understanding that, at the deepest level, we are all brothers and sisters.

I urge for and pray that the violence and conflicts may soon come to an end.

DALAI LAMA

31 March 2026

[Pervin Sanghvi 🌏 @pervinsanghvi]

This campaign is being waged on behalf of all Mumbaikars. The seas are warming, and Mumbai is heating up. This will lead to more storms and cyclones. Without the mangroves, it will have no coastal guardians left! Please speak up before it's too late!

[Aaditya Thackeray @AUThackeray]

Stopped the work today by our local office bearers.
This indiscriminate hacking of mangroves cannot be allowed!

Our city has hit 40 deg in March and the Government wants to convert our state into a desert.

[Save Mumbai Mangroves @MumbaiMangroves]

The cutting of mangroves For #MumbaiCoastalRoad begun at Charkop sector 8 today. BMC officials on site could not show permissions when confronted. Will show you the video in a bit.

Here is what is actually missing before a single tree can legally fall. 🧵

[The Better India @thebetterindia]

At 88, when most people slow down, Inderjit Singh Sidhu steps out with a broom.

Every morning at 6 am, the former IPS officer—once a Deputy Inspector General—walks the streets of Chandigarh, picking up litter with his own hands.Not because it’s his job.

Not because anyone asked him to. But because he couldn’t stand watching his city lose its dignity.

After retirement, Sidhu complained to the authorities. When nothing changed, he chose action.Armed with a bag, he began cleaning alone.

People laughed. Some called him “crazy.” He kept going.

Slowly, something shifted. Neighbours joined in. Family members stepped out.

A solo act of conscience became a community movement.

Chandigarh’s “City Beautiful” found one of its quietest, strongest guardians.“There is no shame in cleaning.
Cleanliness is next to godliness,” Sidhu says simply.

This Republic Day, India honoured him with the Padma Shri in the Unsung Heroes category.

A reminder that ranks retire, uniforms come off, but purpose doesn’t.

#RepublicDay #PadmaShri #Chandigarh

[Anish Gawande @anishgawande]

I’ve written to Forest Minister @NaikSpeaks ji to immediately halt illegal evictions of Adivasi padas inside Sanjay Gandhi National Park without FRA verification.

If demolitions continue, we will be forced to intensify protests and pursue legal remedies. This must stop now.

[Anish Gawande @anishgawande]

On Republic Day, 10 Adivasi padas inside Sanjay Gandhi National Park are being demolished without a survey, without verification, without justice.

These are original Adivasi inhabitants, living here before SGNP was even notified. They are not encroachers.

And yet:

• Homes are being demolished from 27 January
• Electricity has been cut
• BEST buses stopped, with 50+ children out of school
• 25,000 Adivasis across Goregaon and Dahisar are at risk
• Families are being pushed into SRA buildings they never asked for

You cannot uproot forest-dwelling communities and call it development. You cannot erase people and wave the Constitution. Republic Day means nothing if Adivasi lives don’t count.

[Amrita Bhattacharjee @amrita_02]

@CMOMaharashtra Request immediate action. It's shocking to see that when India is celebrating the Republic Day ,Government Officials of Maharashtra are telling the #Adivasi Community of Sanjay Gandhi National Park, Mumbai that their houses will be demolished tomorrow !

[Dhruv Gupta @dhruvgupta]

Happy #RepublicDay. A strong Republic needs a healthy land. Air is toxic. Soil is poisoned. Water is depleting. Forests are vanishing. I petition @PMOIndia @moefcc to #HealIndia. Learn more at https://t.co/Ffoxumt50V

[Dhruv Gupta @dhruvgupta]

I thought SM Shetty school was a secular school. @BuntsSm @SMSHETTY_ISJC @powaiinfo

[Dhruv Gupta @dhruvgupta]

I refuse to accept that India's richest municipality cannot provide clean air, water & dignity. My vote in the 2026 #BMCElection depends on the #CitizensManifesto at https://t.co/72F0xRi5Tb

Will you adopt our 10 demands? @AUThackeray @mieknathshinde @VarshaEGaikwad

[Dhruv Gupta @dhruvgupta]

Yes, seeds are our bio-cultural heritage.

#beejswaraj

[Indian Seed Sovereignty Alliance @BeejSwaraj]

🇮🇳 URGENT APPEAL: Do not sign India’s Seed Sovereignty away at #GB11

To the Honourable Indian Delegation at FAO/ITPGRFA,

We write to you as Bharat Beej Swaraj Manch, representing over 100 seed committees across 18 Indian states, and the millions of farmers who are the custodians of this country's biodiversity.

We are closely monitoring the text on the table in Peru today. The "Chair’s Compromise Proposal" is not a compromise; it is a capitulation.

As the custodians of India's biological wealth, we urge you to REJECT this proposal immediately for three critical reasons:

1️⃣ The "Blank Check" Trap (Procedural Suicide)
The proposal asks India to adopt a revised SMTA (Para 1a) today, while leaving the Payment Rates (Para 1b) and Scope of Expansion (Para 1d) to be decided years later.
👉 The Risk: No sovereign nation signs a binding commercial contract without knowing the price. Accepting this would be a diplomatic failure, binding India to rules that corporate lobbyists will write after we have already signed.

2️⃣ Violation of National Laws (Legal Risk)
Agreeing to a mandatory expansion of the Multilateral System (MLS) to all crops (Para 1c) directly conflicts with India's Biological Diversity Act, 2002 and the PPVFR Act, 2001.
👉 The Risk: You are being asked to bypass Parliament and sign away the sovereign rights over India’s genetic assets. This will dismantle our national Access and Benefit-Sharing (ABS) framework.

3️⃣ Legitimizing Digital Biopiracy (DSI)
The proposal fails to secure upfront safeguards for Digital Sequence Information (DSI).
👉 The Risk: Global corporations will not need our physical seeds; they will "download" our genetic traits, patent them, and sell them back to us. India will become a permanent net importer of its own genetic heritage.

🇮🇳 OUR STAND:
India must lead the Global South, not surrender to it.

🛑 NO adoption of the SMTA without the full package (including payment rates).
🛑 NO expansion of the MLS without a robust framework to tax/track DSI.

The eyes of Indian farmers are on Peru. Do not return with a signed surrender.

Jai Hind. 🇮🇳

Bharat Beej Swaraj Manch
Alliance of 100+ Seed Committees across 18 states
🔗 https://t.co/wruvUEid31
🔗 https://t.co/fa4xRYOYT3

@ChouhanShivraj @AgriGoI @sunilarchak @PMOIndia @MEAIndia

@kentnnadozie @FAODG @PlantTreaty @FAO @MichaelFakhri @FAOPERU

@oxfamnovib @SwedBio @FIANista @frontline_india

#SeedTreaty #SeedSovereignty #BBSM #FarmersRights #StopBiopiracy

[Dhruv Gupta @dhruvgupta]

@BeejSwaraj Vote NO at #GB11
@FAODG @planttreaty @FAOPeru @PMOIndia @ChouhanShivraj @AgriGoI @kentnnadozie @MichaelFakhri

[Dhruv Gupta @dhruvgupta]

@kentnnadozie @MichaelFakhri @agriculturaperu @presidenciaperu @oxfamnovib @SwedBio @FIANista

[Dhruv Gupta @dhruvgupta]

India must vote NO at #GB11. The MLS/DSI package threatens Farmers’ Rights, lacks transparency & puts India’s seed sovereignty at risk. As signatories, we call for rejection. Full letter: https://t.co/3cyl2ZKHUK
@AgriGoI @PMOIndia @ChouhanShivraj @FAOPeru
@planttreaty

[Indian Seed Sovereignty Alliance @BeejSwaraj]

290 organisations from 52 countries are calling on the FAO, the ITPGRFA Secretariat, and national governments to REJECT the proposed MLS/DSI amendments at #GB11 in Lima.

This is one of the strongest global civil society mobilisations ever assembled on seeds, farmers’ rights, biodiversity, and sovereignty. Across continents and cultures, the message is clear and unified:

🌍 Why 290 organisations are calling for a NO VOTE

The current draft package:

• fails to prohibit patents and other IPRs on MLS-shared genetic resources, components, derivative varieties, and derived information — including DSI — with no strict, verifiable enforcement to prevent this misuse
• seeks expansion to ALL PGRFA and DSI-sharing before any safeguards, transparency, or accountability systems are in place
• has no SMTA transparency (no disclosure of who takes what plant genetic resources)
• has no binding benefit-sharing (companies can profit without paying provider countries or farmers)
• has no FPIC (Free, Prior & Informed Consent) for farmers & Indigenous peoples
• allows biopiracy through DSI
• inserts new confidentiality clauses protecting commercial secrecy
• undermines national sovereignty over genetic resources
• omits protections for Farmers’ Rights (Article 9)
• was advanced without consensus
• and is heavily shaped by corporate influence

This is not a reform.
This is a setback — one that weakens rights, strengthens corporate capture, and denies basic transparency.

🌾 What the Global South and Global Civil Society Demand
1. Strict, verifiable enforcement to prohibit IPRs
No patents on MLS-shared seeds, traits, derivatives, or DNA information — including DSI — with strong oversight to prevent misuse.

2. No expansion to ALL PGRFA or DSI inclusion
Not until transparency, benefit-sharing mechanisms, and safeguards are real.
Not until patent-prohibition and IPR safeguards are secured and enforceable.

3. Full SMTA transparency
Publish ALL transfers — providers, recipients, accession numbers, research outcomes — as required under the Treaty.

4. Legally binding monetary benefit-sharing
Not voluntary. Not symbolic. Every commercial use must contribute.

5. FPIC for farmers & Indigenous peoples
No use or commercialisation of seeds or genetic sequences without explicit consent.

6. A NEW, fair, inclusive global process
With farmers, Indigenous communities, and civil society — not just breeders and corporate observers.

🇮🇳 India's Role is Critical
As a major biodiversity provider nation, India must:
• vote NO at #GB11
• defend national sovereignty over India’s plant genetic resources
• uphold Farmers’ Rights under Article 9
• ensure the Seeds Bill protects the right to save/use/exchange/sell seed
• oppose DSI access without binding global benefit-sharing
• stand with the Global South against corporate capture

📜 Full global letter & signatories:
https://t.co/AV2znEZYGW

We call on the following leaders to act:
@FAODG
@planttreaty
@kentnnadozie
@MichaelFakhri
@PMOIndia
@ChouhanShivraj
@AgriGoI
@oxfamnovib
@SwedBio
@FIANista
@FAOPeru

Seeds are our bio-cultural living heritage — not corporate property. Seeds are life. Seeds are freedom.

Stand with farmers, seed keepers, Indigenous communities, and biodiversity defenders.

Reject the MLS/DSI amendments at #GB11.

#SeedSovereignty #FarmersRights #NoBiopiracy #Biodiversity #FoodSovereignty

[Tax The Top India @TaxTheTopIndia]

"Our vision of a new India is for the state to assume responsibility to provision quality healthcare, education, food, pension, clean water & housing, free or in affordable ways for all.. this would demand a public resolve to expand taxation of the super-rich." Harsh Mander

[sarah @sahouraxo]

“The Israeli army is one of the most criminal armies in the world.”

—Chris Sidoti, UN human rights expert

[Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib @RepRashida]

The Gaza Ministry of Health released a 649-page document with the name of every identified Palestinian killed in Gaza.

The first 14 pages alone are babies under the age of one.

This is not self-defense. This is genocide.

[Bernie Sanders @BernieSanders]

We must have the guts to talk about the greed of the people on top — people who want to move factories to China, shut down union drives, and pass massive tax breaks for the rich.