Arun Singh
ET Report
Jammu, Oct 14: Giving damn to the set norms for transferring the alternate land for Compensatory Afforestation purposes, the State Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority in 136 cases diverted 303.80 hectares of forest land for non-forest purposes without obtaining certificate from the concerned Deputy Commissioners.
Sources told Early Times that the Jammu and Kashmir (conservation) Act 1997 envisages that all efforts should be made to identify equivalent non-forest area for Compensatory Afforestation.
"The Act further reads that in case of non-availability of non-forest land for Compensatory Afforestation has to be accepted only on the certificate from the Deputy Commissioner of the concerned District/ Divisional Commissioner," they said.
Showing thumb the rules books, the State Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority in 136 cases, diverted 303.80 hectares of forest land for non-forest purposes without following completing the modalities.
"However, against these cases, in which hundreds of hectares of forest land was diverted, the Compensatory Afforestation amounts were received from the user departments/agencies, but neither alternate non-forest land was identified by the Territorial Divisions TDs, nor certificate of non-availability of non forest land was obtained from the District Administration which indicated that stress had not been laid for ensuring transfer of alternate land for Compensatory Afforestation purposes," they alleged.
The non serious approach of State Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority can be gauged from the fact that it did not realize Rs 13.40 crore as Net Present Value, Compensatory Afforestation in 90 sanctions including Sindh (11), Lidder (11), Anantang (13) Langate (10), Kehmil (18) Shopian (5) Kamraj (8) Tangmarg (2) and Budgam (12) 2006-2013 relating to diversion of 123.93 hectares of land for non forest purpose. |
