The State Government will convene a second all-party meeting to discuss latest developments revolving around the Kasturirangan panel report on Western Ghats ecology.

This will take place after an expert appointed by the State Government reverts back from its 16 separate sittings along the foothills between November 26 and December 5.

CHOSEN LOCATIONS

Places for the sittings will have been chosen by local MPs and MLAs, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy told newspersons here on Wednesday.

The proposed all-party meeting will deliberate the issue based on feedback from this committee, and seek to arrive at a consensus for being conveyed to the Centre.

The Chief Minister said that there was a subtle distinction between ‘ecologically fragile land’ and ‘ecologically sensitive land.’

REMOTE SENSING

These are governed by provisions of separate laws administered by individual ministries.

The Kasturirangan panel appears to have relied heavily on the remote sensing technique while marking out the 123 villages where a series of ban orders would apply.

This may have led it to wrongly identify entire villages for purposes of the ban, the Chief Minister said. Even the panel has since admitted that this could likely be the case.

The Chief Minister cited the example of reserve rubber plantations abutting reserve forest areas, which might have led the panel to mark out the entire areas as forests.

OFFICIALS WARNED

He cited the case of three or four villages in Kottayam district which would straight away count themselves out from the list. More such may have been marked out by mistake.

Meanwhile, the Chief Minister warned strict action against officials who seek to enforce the Kasturirangan prescriptions without Government concurrence.

He has already received complaints with respect to residents having been denied delivery of services that they used to enjoy until now.

These instances will be viewed seriously and the responsible officials taken to task, the Chief Minister added.

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