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Change in Forest Policy Soon: Central Team
The five-member central team led by T K
A Nair, principal secretary to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, promised the
state government for a change in the Centre’s forest policy within a month.
During the team’s meeting with the chief minister, Arjun Munda, the latter
reportedly minced no words to tell the central officials that the forest
policy of the Centre was a major hurdle for implementing developmental
schemes in those villages which were surrounded by forests. This was not
only hampering development in the remote rural areas, but also thwarting
growth of industrialization in the state. Naxalites usually take refuge in
the dense forests where there is an absence of good roads and are almost
inaccessible for the police and administration.
Whenever the state has attempted to construct roads in these areas, the
forest Act has come as a major deterrent. One such example is Sonwa forests
in the Chakradharpur division of Chaibasa district which was densely
surrounded by forests and today has become a haven for Naxalities. When the
construction of the roads in the area started, the forest department refused
to give clearance to the state government. The forest department had also
ordered removal of tubewells falling in the forest area.
The team also assured Munda that a one-year extension would be given to
central scheme by which any charitable institution could be opened within a
radius of a hectare of forest land with the permission of local forest
officers.
Source: Hindustan Times.
Update on NREGP in the state of Jharkhand
More than 28 thousand schemes have been
included under NREGP implemented in 20 districts of Jharkhand state
comprising 4115 panchayats. Till date 13 lakh poor have been registered for
the programme. Registration of one lakh of them has been rejected on the
ground of non- fulfillment of the criteria. 11 lakh have been issued the job
cards.32471 villages have been covered under this programme. The government
is planning to appoint a commissioner of NEGP and the block level PRO and
redressal cell at the panchayat level to meet the grievances of the poor.
(Source: Prabhat Khabar
28th April 2006)
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