Tuesday, Jul 08, 2003
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Kerala
By Our Special Correspondent
Rejecting the Opposition demand for a judicial inquiry into the auction and transfers in his department, the Minister said prima facie, there was no case in the Opposition leader's allegation that bamboo worth Rs. 18 crores had been sold for Rs. 98 lakhs. Mr. Sudhakaran was replying to the debate on the demand for grants for Forest, which the House later passed. The bamboo in question was originally allocated to the Grasim Industries, Mavoor, which could not use it following the closure of the factory. He said he was willing to resign if the Opposition leader proved the charge that he had met the people who purchased the bamboo at a Bangalore hotel. The Minister said he had not misled the House regarding the number of transfers in the Forest Department. It was not proper for him to tell the reasons for the shifting of the Forest Secretary, in the House. Such transfers were common during the LDF rule also. If the Opposition was praising the Forest Secretary, that itself should be a reason for introspection by the Secretary. Mr. Sudhakaran said the Government would soon clarify its policy towards sandal oil factories. Denying allegations against the continued functioning of some sandalwood units, the Minister said it was not the Forest Department that should decide on the closure of sandal oil units. It was a matter coming under the purview of local self-governments and the Directorate of Factories and Boilers. The Forest Department's role was confined to issuing Non-Objection Certificates (NOCs), he said. Mr. Sudhakaran maintained that the High Court had indicated in a verdict that even NOCs were not needed for the units to function. The Government had filed a review petition. He said there was no dichotomy in the attitude of the Government towards sandal oil units. It had refused to recognise the extraction of sandal oil as trade while the previous Government had done so. Now, the Opposition was speaking in a different tone. The Minister said the cases relating to theft of sandal oil and other items, which formed evidence in forest cases, kept at department facilities at Olavakkode and Taliparamba, would be handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation. The Cabinet had taken the decision and orders would be issued in a few days. The transfer was decided because the police had failed to detect the case and not vice-versa, he said. He said the Government proposed to set up a sandal oil factory at Marayur in the cooperative sector. It proposed to amend Section 4 of the Preservation of Trees Act to remove restrictions on cutting of trees on individual holdings. He said the Opposition had made no allegations regarding plundering of forests during the debate. This showed that the department was functioning well. He said that 1.38 lakh hectares of forests were being protected with the participation of 307 people's committees. Eco-development committees were functioning efficiently. The department had sought clearance for an integrated catchment conservation project for protection of wetlands. Village forests would be developed in every village with the participation of Kudumbasree units. Cultivation of medicinal plants was being undertaken under the Kerala Forestry Project. A zoological park would be set up at Puthur and a bird-watching centre at Purakkad to study threats to avifauna. A centre for protection of butterflies would be opened at Vazhachal. The Centre's assistance had been sought for protection of grasslands at Mathikettan and other areas as a park, he said. Fresh rules on management of elephants and cattle would be framed to prevent cruelty against elephants. Preventing units will be set up at airports and seaports to check smuggling of genetic material, he said.
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