A P Anil Kumar, revenue minister, Keralam
Govt has announced financial assistance of Rs 10,000 each for affected families and business establishments, and the process of identifying eligible beneficiaries is being completed, he said. He alleged that the forest department had incorrectly estimated the forest area in the 123 ESA villages at 9,107 sqkm. The actual area was only 8,483.05 sqkm, Mani told reporters in Thrissur, according to the findings of the Oommen V Oommen committee. If this is not corrected, the forest department may resort to indiscriminate eviction of people to showcase an additional 60,000 hectares of land as forests,” Mani said.
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Anil Kumar also said compensation for flood victims will be disbursed from Saturday. Include only villages inside reserve forest areas : Mani Kerala Congress (M) chairman Jose K Mani said govt should ensure that the final proposal in ESA was confined to villages located inside reserve forest areas. KC(M) district president Unnikrishnan Eacharath said areas such as Athirappilly in Thrissur were also facing issues related to the ESA notification.
Assistance will be distributed from Saturday to those families and establishments whose damage assessment has already been completed, with govt aiming to ensure people receive the assistance as quickly and transparently as possible, he added. “Govt should urgently intervene to correct this and intimate the Centre. He demanded that the govt conduct surveys with the participation of local residents to identify genuine ESA land. Mani also called for steps to delist the Western Ghats from the list of Global Heritage Sites. Download the TOI App.
The minister said govt has decided to reduce the ESA limit to 8,590 sqkm across 98 villages. Of these, 52,000 complaints have been settled, including as part of govt’s 100-day action programme, while the remaining 48,000 will be resolved by Oct 10, he said.
Detailed discussions have been held on the matter, including with chief minister, and all necessary measures will be taken to completely exclude residential areas from the ESA, he said. On the digital survey, the minister said steps have been taken to resolve complaints in a time-bound manner. Kottayam/Thrissur: The state govt’s stance on ecologically sensitive area (ESA) limits is clear and there is no basis for concern in the matter, revenue minister A P Anil Kumar said in Pathanamthitta on Thursday.