Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): More than 5,000 tribal people from Kosmi village in Budhni set out on a march to Bhopal on Thursday against the demolition of their houses and the destruction of farmland by the officials of the forest department.
The protesters plan to halt overnight at Konajhir. To deal with the situation, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan held a meeting at the CM House on Thursday night. BJP state president Hemant Khandelwal participated in the meeting.
Additional chief secretary to the chief minister Neeraj Mandloi and principal secretary of the forest department Raghavendra Singh took part in the discussion.
Forest Department officials presented evidence, including Google imagery, to show that the tribal residents had encroached upon the forestland.
According to the officials, they uprooted saplings of teak and began to cultivate the land.
They further said the families, whose houses the department had demolished, had permanent houses in Singhpur.
They said the department had acted against the tribal people after repeated warnings. They said that the officials halted the operation after a phone call from the union minister.
According to sources, Chouhan said during the meeting that the department should have taken the local MLA into confidence before demolishing tribal people's houses.
He said such action sent a negative message about the government and the BJP among tribal communities. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav directed officials to find a solution to the issue.
Sources said the Forest Development Corporation suspended its ongoing anti-encroachment drive for the time being. The government plans to hold discussions with the tribal protesters marching towards Bhopal.
The government also initiated efforts to hold talks with them before they reach the state capital.
