Eco zone: residents organise mass protest
The Hindu
Demand to exclude inhabited areas in Amboori, Kallikkad from ESZ
Several hundred residents of Amboori and Kallikkad grama panchayats participated in a mass protest organised in front of the Forest headquarters here on Tuesday against the draft notification to declare an eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) around the Neyyar wildlife sanctuary.
Former Leader of the Opposition Ramesh Chennithala, who inaugurated the demonstration, said the notification issued by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), if implemented, would drive out numerous families who settled in the region many decades ago. He demanded that human-inhabited and agricultural areas be excluded from the ESZ.
Presiding over the agitation, Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] district secretary Anavoor Nagappan said the State government would stand by the farming community under any circumstance. He added the government would adopt necessary steps to urge the Centre to confine the proposed zone to uninhabited areas.
BJP district president V.V. Rajesh urged the Forest department to submit a detailed report to the MoEFCC highlighting the need for excluding inhabited areas from the zone.
Amboori grama panchayat president Valsala Raju, Kallikkad grama panchayat president Pantha Sreekumar, district panchayat member Ansajitha Ressal and Amboori ESZ Action Council general convener Jacob Cheerumvelil addressed the protesters.
Almaya Munnettam (Lay People to the Fore), group in the Ernakulam-Angamaly Archdiocese of the Syro-Malabar Church opposed to the synod-recommended Mass, rejected a circular issued by Major Archbishop Raphael Thattil and apostolic administrator Bosco Puthur on June 9 to implement the unified Mass in the archdiocese from July 3.
Pakistan coach Gary Kirsten stated that “not so great decision making” contributed to his side’s defeat to India in the Group-A T20 World Cup clash here on Sunday. The batting unit came apart in the chase, after being well placed at 72 for two. With 48 runs needed from eight overs, Pakistan found a way to panic and lose. “Maybe not so great decision making,” Kirsten said at the post-match press conference, when asked to explain the loss.