High Court asks Centre to file affidavit on ESAs

A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court on Friday directed the Central government to file an affidavit stating whether encroached forestland had been excluded from ecologically sensitive areas in the modified proposal made by the State government in the wake of the submission of the Kasturirangan committee report. The Bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Thottathil B. Radhakrishnan and Justice Anu Sivaraman

issued the directive on a writ petition filed by Lal Kurian of Muvattupuzha. According to him, the Kasturirangan committee report submitted in 2012 had demarcated 123 villages in the State as environmentally sensitive areas. In order to circumvent the Kasturirangan committee recommendations, the Kerala State Biodiversity Board had given a modified proposal to the Centre in the name of protecting the marginal farmers. In fact, the committee had banned developmental activities in the ESAs.

However, in the modified proposal of the government only forestland in the possession of the Forest Department had been classified as ESA. It had removed around 3,200 square kilometres of forestland occupied by planters on lease and encroached from the ESA.

The modified proposal had been made with a mala fide intention to divert the forestland to private individuals for mining and construction of resorts in the ESA areas. The report had been prepared and submitted overlooking the objections and also the sketches prepared by the Forest Department. If this encroached forestland was allowed to be used for mining and other purpose, it would damage the environment and lead to water shortage and drought.

The petitioner said the survey conducted for preparing the modified report was illegal as the sketches used for it was forged one. In fact, the Kasturirangan committee did not impact any major adverse effects on farming activities on the ESA lands.

High Court