Only large encroachments in the Western Ghats being removed: Khandre
The Hindu
Environment Minister Eshwar Khandre focuses on removing large encroachments in Western Ghats post-2015, preserving biodiversity and livelihoods.
Environment Minister Eshwar Khandre has said that only large encroachments made in the Western Ghats region and those made after 2015 are being removed. This comes in the backdrop of uproar over small and marginal farmers getting eviction notices on a charge of encroachment, particularly in Malnad and the coastal regions.
The Minister said some people in these parts were opposing forest encroachment removal and were spreading unnecessary misinformation. “The government is not evicting the poor. Instead, it is focusing on removing large encroachments and those made after 2015,” he said.
The Minister added that the landslide in Shirur in Uttara Kannada district, which claimed 11 lives, and the landslide in Wayanad, Kerala, which resulted in the deaths of more than 300 people, should serve as a warning.
He said the preservation of the Western Ghats, which is the source of rivers and a biodiversity hotspot, is the collective responsibility of all.
He said any encroachments made after 2015 must be removed without exception. In this regard, he sent a note to the Additional Chief Secretary on August 6 instructing the removal of illegal resorts, homestays, farms, and housing projects that have been constructed by encroaching upon forest areas in the Western Ghats and other regions after 2015.
He also instructed forest officers not to disturb those who have encroached on forest land (including patta land) for livelihood purposes and whose encroachments are less than three acres before 2015, and if their applications under the Forest Rights Act are still pending, the concerned land or house should not be removed.
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