KC (M) chairperson Jose K Mani
Kottayam : Kerala Congress (M) chairperson Jose K Mani said it was a matter of serious concern that the list submitted by the state govt to Centre on the ecologically sensitive areas (ESA) includes agricultural land in 25 villages across nine districts. The list submitted to Centre identifies 8,590.69 sq km across 98 villages as ESA, he said, adding that available figures made clear this included agricultural land. He noted that Oommen V Oommen Committee, appointed by the state govt in 2014, had recommended an ESA extent of only 8,484.05 sq km across 123 villages based on an inspection by a five-member panel of officials from the panchayat, forest, revenue, agriculture and survey departments — of which 7,596.67 sq km was forest and 887.38 sq km forest plantation. Mani said the discrepancy between the 2014 figure and the one submitted in Sept 2026 needed urgent explanation from govt and demanded that both the forest extent identified by the 2014 committee and the village-wise break-up of the current list be made public.
He said Kerala Congress (M) had raised the issue in Pathanamthitta after 35 of the 60-day draft notification period had lapsed without political intervention but added that no substantive political discussion or policy decision followed, which he said worsened the crisis. With the ESA affecting 36 assembly constituencies and 15 Lok Sabha constituencies — including those of five ministers and the chief whip — he said UDF leadership had failed to take a clear political stand. Mani said a special assembly session should have been convened before Sept 25 to pass a resolution asserting that residential and agricultural land outside existing reserve forest should not be included in the ESA, and to communicate this formally to Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change. He cited Karnataka legislative assembly’s special session on Sept 21 which passed such a resolution and said Keralam’s delay should not be allowed to affect the land rights and livelihoods of an estimated 23 lakh people across 123 ESA villages.