In a bid to ensure protection for the biodiversity-rich Munnar as well as the Kurinjimala sanctuary there from encroachers, Communist Party of India (CPI) State executive committee member and environmentalist P. Prasad has moved the National Green Tribunal (NGT), South Zone, seeking immediate removal of all illegal constructions in the area.
Accepting the petition, the NGT issued a notice to the State government, seeking a detailed report on the matter on Thursday.
Talking to The Hindu , Mr. Prasad said he had moved the NGT on the basis of a decision taken by the CPI State executive to that effect.
According to him, the critical environmental problems of the Kanan Devan Hills (KDH), commonly known as Munnar, are deforestation and soil erosion, both leading to the drying of the water resources, occurrences of flash floods, declining in the yield of food and cash crops, and scarcity of minor forest products.
Intensive human pressure, along with indiscriminate cutting of trees for commercial purposes had led to loss of soil and destruction of forest cover, he said.
Unauthorised construction of multi-storey buildings in the name of tourism by private individuals, allegedly supported by the local politicians and government officials in and around Munnar, was adversely affecting the ecology of the region, he said.
Victimisation
‘‘The encroachment removal drives that have been initiated invariably results in strong backlash, hampering eviction. The protests against the eviction have been so strong that even officers who diligently do their work have been victimised and transferred from their posts within no time,’’ the petition said.
Mr. Prasad said the notified forest areas had not been recorded properly in the land records maintained by the Revenue Department and continued to be shown as non-forest area, giving an opportunity for unauthorised allotment by treating it as non-forest land in violation of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, besides encouraging further encroachment.
Bogus Pattayam
The Revenue Department had issued several “false possession certificates and bogus pattayam (title deed)” allowing large-scale encroachment of shola forests at the KDH land in Munnar. There were also pattayams issued in respect of forest land that have been obtained without the mandatory approval of the Central government, he alleged.
The petition further states that ``the State government, after taking into account the report submitted by Nivedita P. Haran, Additional Chief Secretary, (G.O.[MS] No. 69/2015/RD) has unequivocally stated that the illegal encroachments, constructions in violation of building bylaws, with unrestricted area and height, construction spilling into puromboke land, and hill-side quarrying are causing depletion of forest areas.’’
He called upon the NGT to direct the government and the concerned authorities to enforce all the environment laws so that the activities being carried out in Munnar are stopped at the earliest.
