Bhopal: Urbanites intervention inside forest to be restricted around city

BHOPAL: The district forest office has sent the proposal to notify 357.780 hectares of land as reserve forest to its head office on National Green Tribunal (NGT) instructions. This proposal will then be sent to the state government for final notification.

This land is one of the prime properties in the state capital located in Chandanpura and Mendora village. Most of the people owning property in this area belong to influential class therefore all eyes are now set on the development related to notification of the land as forest reserve.

Environmentalist Rashid Noor had complained about human intervention in this part of the forest area that is home to about 18 tigers. ìThere have been blatant violations of the Forest Act in the area. Movement of over one and a half dozen tigers has been reported in this area yet construction activities have gone unabated and unchecked, said Rashid Noor.

After complaints that fell to deaf ears, Rashid approached the National Green Tribunal citing tiger movement in the area besides presence of large numbers of trees in the area that makes it fit to be declared as a reserve forest.

Rashid said that the NGT and union Ministry of Environment and Forest has termed this area as ëDeemed Forestí, despite that the state forest department is hesitant in issuing notification.

After a long battle at the NGT, the green body on February 6, 2020 instructed for mapping and notifying areas around Kerwa and Kaliasot as forest reserves. It was after this that the forest department formed a committee to decide on the issue (of including this land in forest area). Since then the issue was stuck in red tape.

Forest dept to clear all projects

Once the area is notified as forest land, no new construction would be allowed even on private land, without clearance from the forest department. Moreover, permission for new construction would not be easy besides owners of big plots could not develop colonies there. ††