The Hindu Business Line : Central nod for forestland to Sabarimala

Announcing this at a press conference in the city on Monday, the Kerala Tourism and Devaswom Minister, Mr K.C. Venugopal, said the Supreme Court would have to approve the release of forestland. The Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB), the agency that is going to use the land, will seek the Supreme Court's approval. The State Government will support TDB's petition before the Supreme Court, he added.

Besides compensation to the Kerala Forest Department for land being released from the Periyar Tiger Reserve, an equal amount of land will be obtained for compensatory afforestation programmes, Mr Venugopal said. The Centre has made it clear that no more land from the reserve will be diverted for Sabarimala's development, he added.

The release of forestland will provide a boost to the development of Sabarimala, he said. It will also help launch various activities connected with the Pamba Action Plan, he said. All development initiatives at Sabarimala will be carried out as per eco-friendly norms contained in the master plan prepared for the region, the Minister added.

Meanwhile, a meeting of all officials involved in the development of Sabarimala was held in the city today in the presence of Mr T.K.A. Nair, Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister. A decision was taken at the meeting that all Sabarimala development projects scheduled for this year would be completed in a time-bound manner, Mr Venugopal said. A committee headed by the State Chief Secretary will monitor the progress of these development projects every two weeks.

Parking facilities and other basic amenities for pilgrims visiting Sabarimala will be provided at three centres — Nilackal, Pamba and Marakoottam — this year itself. Work on these projects will be completed by November, he added.

The Forest Development Authority's permission will be sought to put up permanent constructions at Nilackal, the Minister said. Earlier this year, the State Government had decided to hand over 110 hectares of land owned by the State Farming Corporation of Kerala at Nilackal to the TDB for developing various facilities for Sabarimala pilgrims.

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