Mangrove research centre planned

Ignatius Pereira

Thiruvananthapuram

The Hindu, January 8, 2007

The Fisheries Department has taken the initiative to start a Mangrove Eco-system Research and Demonstration Centre at Ayiramthengu, near here.

An ad hoc proposal will be submitted to the State Government soon. If the project materialises, it reportedly will become the first mangrove research centre in the country.

The 50-acre mangrove forest owned by the department at Ayiramthengu is an environmental hot spot. Many species of animals feed and breed here. The forest provides a glimpse of how the mangroves function as a habitat for many marine species, a safe haven for otters and a favourite destination of migratory birds. While the demand to conserve mangrove forests to protect the environment has been raised for years, it was after the tsunami in December 2004 that the need for mangrove-protected waterfronts as a dependable defence against the waves gathered serious momentum.

The fact that mangrove forests enhance the fish wealth also began to get recognition.

Mangroves are also a traditional social link with coastal human communities dependent on the sea for their livelihood.

They preserve wildlife and provide precious food for livestock. Yet no serious efforts have been made to protect them.

The Ayiramthengu mangrove forest was also threatened with extinction. In 1996, the Fisheries Department stepped in with a programme to preserve it.

The success of the programme has now prompted the department to put forth the proposal to start a mangrove research centre. The department will provide the facilities for research.

M.K. Prasad, chairman and executive director, Information Kerala Mission, and an authority on mangroves, says Ayiramthengu is an ideal location for research on mangroves and the Fisheries Department is the best agency to promote it.

Dr. Prasad says that with the mangrove forests in the State disappearing by the day, a research centre can work wonders in augmenting mangrove forests.

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Eco groups seek action against encroachers

PALAKKAD
The Hindu, January 3, 2007
Environmental organisations here have demanded the State Government to take immediate steps to evict encroachers from Anthimahakalankadu vested forest in Ottapalam forest range, one of the main watershed areas of the Bharathapuzha.

In a statement here on Tuesday, the Bharathapuzha Samrakshana Samithi (protection association) general secretary Indanur Gopi said the Government, in a counter affidavit filed before a Division Bench of the Kerala High Court on a public interest petition, had said that the area would be protected under the ecologically fragile land Act, 2006.

The association filed the petition in 2004. The court recorded the assurance of the Government on November 25, 2006 and disposed it of.

As part of the implementation of the court order, the forest area was surveyed and 2.9 hectares of forest land found encroached, the statement said.

Anthimahakalankadu, an ecological hotspot spanning 190 hectares, were taken over from an erstwhile landlord under the Kerala Private Forests (Vesting and Assignment) Act, 1971. It was notified as vested forest item no. 74 in 1974.

On survey, it was found that some of the land was encroached. In various cases, the courts ordered restoring of 40 hectares of the forest to private parties. These areas were taken over by the Forest Department under the Kerala Forest (Vesting and Management of Ecologically Sensitive Lands) Ordinance of 2000.

Charge against officials

Janajagratha, in a separate statement here, alleged that some forest officials seemed to have connived with the encroachers.

Janajagratha secretary P.S. Panikkar said the authorities should demolish the building on encroached forest. The Kerala Forest Act, 1961, said that if there was encroachment, including construction of shed or any other structures, these should be demolished. The Forest Department should register cases against the offenders and produce them before the court. But in this case, no action was taken.

The forest officials here said that they had filed cases against an engineer, two supervisors and a worker and arrested them for encroaching upon forest land and constructing structures. A case was filed against them in the Ottapalam magistrate court, where the accused were produced on December 23.

 

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Efforts to settle tribal land issue this year: Rajendran

T Ramavarman
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM
The Hindu, January 1, 2007 
The Left Democratic Front (LDF) Government was hopeful of an early Central sanction for distribution of forest land to tribal people in the State. "If all goes well, the Government will be able to settle the long-pending tribal land issue this year itself," Revenue Minister K.P. Rajendran said.

Talking to The Hindu here, Mr. Rajendran said the hearings on the State Government's appeal for that sanction were progressing on a positive note before the `Empowered Committee' on forest land appointed by the Supreme Court.

The Centre informed the committee that it did not have any objection in transferring the forest land to the Kerala Government for distribution among tribal people without remitting the Net Present Value (NPV). "So we hope the hearings will conclude on a positive note within next couple of months," he said. As per the earlier plan, the State would have to remit Rs.577 crore as NPV to the Centre to get 7,693 hectares of forestland for distribution among the tribal people.

The Centre had earlier agreed to waive this condition during the early days of the previous United Democratic Front Government. However, the Centre had to reverse its stand following the filing of some petitions before the Empowered Committee.

Mr. Rajendran said as per the data collected jointly by the departments of Tribal Welfare and Revenue there were about 32,131 tribal people in the State who had less than one acre.

Among them, about 9,500 families were staying in settlement colonies, each owning four cents. The Government was making efforts on a war footing to give title deeds and possession certificates to all of them. The figures available with the departments indicated that 22,052 tribal families were landless. The permission of the Centre was being sought to distribute one acre of forest land to each of these families, as agreed by the Government led by A.K. Antony, the Minister clarified.

Aralam issue

Mr. Rajendran said the Government would adhere to the stand that only half of the 7,000 acres from the Aralam farm in Kannur district could be distributed among the tribal people. The other half would remain as the farm.

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