: Minister for Forests K. Raju said here on Sunday that State faced severe water scarcity though it had the highest number of rivers in the country.
He said the government would take all efforts to conserve and protect all rivers of the State.
Mr. Raju was addressing the gathering at Punalur, near here, after inaugurating the State-level World Environment Day celebrations organised by the Forest Department on Sunday.
He said the water level in most rivers in the State was dropping at an alarming rate, giving rise to fears whether many of these rivers would soon go arid.
The Minister said unauthorised sand-mining and pollution were the main killers of rivers.
He said the Forest Department would soon launch a programme with thrust on reviving natural ecology of rivers.
The Minister said all forms of encroachment into the forests would be prevented. Unauthorised human intervention had proved fatal to forests and wild animals, he said.
The culprits involved in the gunning down of a wild elephant at Wayanad would soon be nabbed, he said.
Under the Social Forestry programme, 60 lakh saplings would be distributed this year through educational institutions, Mr. Raju said.
The function was presided over by the Punalur municipal chairman M.A. Rajagopal. The gathering was welcomed by the Chief of the Forest Force B.S. Corrie.
N.K. Premachandran, MP; district panchayat president K. Jagadamma; Principal Chief Conservators of Forests S.C. Joshi and G. Harikumar were among those who spoke on the occasion.
