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The Print
a day ago
- Politics
- The Print
Over 1.73 lakh ha forest land diverted for infra projects from 2014 to 2024: Govt
The highest diversion of forest land during this period was for mining and quarrying activities, which were allowed to use 40,096.17 hectares. Responding to a question in the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Environment Kirti Vardhan Singh said that 1,73,984.3 hectares of forest land were approved for various non-forestry purposes between April 1, 2014, and March 31, 2024, under the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, now amended and renamed as Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980. New Delhi, Jul 21 (PTI) Over 1.73 lakh hectares of forest land have been approved for diversion for non-forestry purposes across India from 2014 to 2024, with mining and hydropower projects emerging as the leading contributors, the environment ministry informed Parliament on Monday. These included a wide range of extractive activities that continue to remain one of the biggest drivers of forest clearance across mineral-rich regions, especially in central and eastern India. Hydropower and irrigation projects together accounted for the second-highest diversion, with 40,138.31 hectares of forest land approved for such purposes. These include large and small dams, canals, reservoirs and associated infrastructure. The information was provided in response to a question by Congress MP Sukhdeo Bhagat, who referred to the 2023 State of India's Environment Report by think tank Centre for Science and Environment. The report claimed that forest clearances for infrastructure and industrial projects increased by more than 150 per cent between 2014 and 2023. According to the government data, linear infrastructure projects such as road construction and power transmission lines were also among the top contributors. Forest land diverted for road development amounted to 30,605.69 hectares, while transmission lines used up 17,232.69 hectares. Defence projects involving security infrastructure and border-related development works accounted for 14,968.14 hectares of diverted forest land. The category listed as 'Others', which includes miscellaneous or unclassified uses not covered in standard categories, accounted for 9,669.85 hectares. Railway projects were sanctioned 7,998.65 hectares of forest land, making it another significant sector of diversion, particularly for expansion and electrification works. Projects involving the conversion of forest villages into revenue villages, a longstanding demand under the Forest Rights Act and other policies, used 3,250 hectares of land. Thermal power projects were approved on 2,644.02 hectares of forest land, while rehabilitation and resettlement schemes received clearance on 1,580.55 hectares. Projects related to drinking water supply, including pipeline networks and treatment plants, accounted for 1,282.21 hectares. Optical fibre cable laying, which generally involves underground or shallow surface work along road or railway alignments, led to the diversion of 437.63 hectares. Pipeline projects were approved on 543.57 hectares, while industry-related clearances, including those for industrial estates or standalone units, covered 405.82 hectares. Wind power installations accounted for 346.84 hectares, and village electrification initiatives used 551.13 hectares of forest land. Dispensaries and hospitals were allocated 113.31 hectares, and educational institutions, including schools and colleges, were constructed on 83.46 hectares of forest land. Substations took up 76.14 ha of forest land, solar power 1.57 ha, encroachments regularised under certain policies 9.63 ha, and communication posts 6.54 ha. A marginal amount of land (0.11 ha) was approved for rainwater harvesting structures, and 0.59 hectares was used for telecommunication lines. The minister said the process of forest land diversion is continuous and permitted only in 'unavoidable circumstances' with adequate mitigation measures. PTI GVS RHL This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
Time of India
a day ago
- General
- Time of India
Govt claims 1.73 lakh hectares forest land diverted for infra projects from 2014 to 2024
Over the past decade, India has diverted 1.73 lakh hectares of forest land for non-forestry purposes, primarily driven by mining, quarrying, hydropower, and irrigation projects. Linear infrastructure projects like road construction and power transmission lines also significantly contributed to this diversion. The government maintains that such diversions occur only under unavoidable circumstances, with necessary mitigation measures in place. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Over 1.73 lakh hectares of forest land have been approved for diversion for non-forestry purposes across India from 2014 to 2024, with mining and hydropower projects emerging as the leading contributors, the environment ministry informed Parliament on to a question in the Lok Sabha , Minister of State for Environment Kirti Vardhan Singh said that 1,73,984.3 hectares of forest land were approved for various non-forestry purposes between April 1, 2014, and March 31, 2024, under the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, now amended and renamed as Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, highest diversion of forest land during this period was for mining and quarrying activities, which were allowed to use 40,096.17 included a wide range of extractive activities that continue to remain one of the biggest drivers of forest clearance across mineral-rich regions, especially in central and eastern and irrigation projects together accounted for the second-highest diversion, with 40,138.31 hectares of forest land approved for such purposes. These include large and small dams, canals, reservoirs and associated to the government data, linear infrastructure projects such as road construction and power transmission lines were also among the top land diverted for road development amounted to 30,605.69 hectares, while transmission lines used up 17,232.69 information was provided in response to a question by Congress MP Sukhdeo Bhagat, who referred to the 2023 State of India's Environment Report by think tank Centre for Science and report claimed that forest clearances for infrastructure and industrial projects increased by more than 150 per cent between 2014 and projects involving security infrastructure and border-related development works accounted for 14,968.14 hectares of diverted forest category listed as "Others", which includes miscellaneous or unclassified uses not covered in standard categories, accounted for 9,669.85 hectares. Railway projects were sanctioned 7,998.65 hectares of forest land, making it another significant sector of diversion, particularly for expansion and electrification involving the conversion of forest villages into revenue villages, a longstanding demand under the Forest Rights Act and other policies, used 3,250 hectares of power projects were approved on 2,644.02 hectares of forest land, while rehabilitation and resettlement schemes received clearance on 1,580.55 related to drinking water supply, including pipeline networks and treatment plants, accounted for 1,282.21 fibre cable laying, which generally involves underground or shallow surface work along road or railway alignments, led to the diversion of 437.63 projects were approved on 543.57 hectares, while industry-related clearances, including those for industrial estates or standalone units, covered 405.82 power installations accounted for 346.84 hectares, and village electrification initiatives used 551.13 hectares of forest and hospitals were allocated 113.31 hectares, and educational institutions, including schools and colleges, were constructed on 83.46 hectares of forest took up 76.14 ha of forest land, solar power 1.57 ha, encroachments regularised under certain policies 9.63 ha, and communication posts 6.54 ha.A marginal amount of land (0.11 ha) was approved for rainwater harvesting structures, and 0.59 hectares was used for telecommunication minister said the process of forest land diversion is continuous and permitted only in "unavoidable circumstances" with adequate mitigation measures.
The Hindu
3 days ago
- General
- The Hindu
Nobody owns house, property or land in this village recorded as ‘proposed forest' in Shivamogga
For several years, the residents of Karimane, a village in Hosanagar taluk of Shivamogga district, have been fighting for the rights over the houses, sites, and land they have been in possession of. Applications seeking permission to build houses on the sites allotted under the Ashraya housing scheme, grant of land under Section 94C of the Karnataka Land Revenue Act for the construction of houses, and regularisation of 'bagair hukum' cultivation have all remained pending over the decades. GP office too As over 185 acres in survey number 106 of Karimane have been identified as 'proposed forest' or Soochitha Aranya in Kannada, the villagers have not been able to get rights over their properties. In fact, even the office of the Karimane Gram Panchayat exists on the land identified as proposed forest. The bus stand, anganwadi, school, and the road that passes through the village all come under the same category of land. Devamma Gopal, president of the panchayat, is among those fighting for the rights over the land. She has no khata issued for her house in the village. Also, the Forest Department has not honoured people seeking land as per the Forest Rights Act. Long fight 'This is a strange case. We have not been allowed to build houses because it is forestland. However, the applications submitted under the Forest Rights Act are also pending. We have been fighting against this injustice for long,' said S.M. Harish, a resident of the village. A majority of the residents in the village are those displaced following the construction of dams for hydel power projects in the district. Of them, 86 families were allotted sites in the village in 1991-92. They got khatas for the sites. However, the next year, the entire area was marked as 'proposed forest'. Since then, none of the beneficiaries have got permission to build houses on the sites. Ms. Gopal told The Hindu that every time the panchayat held a grama sabha, a meeting with the villagers, people raised the same issue. 'As many as 43 families, including mine, are waiting for the grant under Section 94C,' she said. The issue has become a stumbling block to even granting land for the burial ground in the village. Following repeated demands and protests by the villagers, MLA for Tirthahalli Araga Jnanendra and Deputy Commissioner Gurudatta Hegade visited the village. When The Hindu contacted Mr. Hegade, the officer said he was aware of the issue. 'The land has been recorded as forest. Once the land is recorded as forestland, it cannot be taken back,' he said. Opportunity to review He said that following a recent Supreme Court direction, there was an opportunity to review the deemed forests. 'Considering the old satellite maps, we can restore the status of the land. The State government is expected to launch a mobile-based application for this process. We have assured the villagers of resolving the problem,' he added.
The Hindu
5 days ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Citizen groups release open letter condemning ‘colonial conservation' model in Nagarahole
Several citizen groups came together to release an open letter in front of the Wildlife Conservation Society office in Bengaluru expressing concern regarding the ongoing tensions inside the Nagarahole Tiger Reserve. The letter expressed solidarity with the 52 families of Karadikallu who have been demanding the recognition of their forest rights. The signees of the letter condemned 'the historical violence and threats the communities continue to face in the name of conservation.' They termed the actions of the Forest Department 'deliberate attempts to deny the communities their rights'. 'Anti-people and anti-environment' On June 18, 2025, around 250 Forest Department officials, with the police personnel and armed special tiger task force members, demolished six makeshift huts of the Jenukuruba tribal families in Karadikallu. This was following the re-entry of the tribals into the forests of Nagarahole Tiger Reserve in May 2025 'to reclaim their ancestral land'. The Jenukurubas have been in a long-drawn dispute with the Forest Department officials who, according to them, have repeatedly rejected their claims under the Forest Rights Act. 'Underlying these actions is a model of conservation witnessed in Nagarahole over the past decades, touted nationally and globally as a 'successful model', led by organisations like Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and prominent conservationists Ullas Karanth, Krithi Karanth, late K.M. Chinappa, that is viciously anti-people and anti-environment,' read the letter, which alleged that the model has turned Nagarahole into a militarised conflict zone. 'Fact-finding missions and widespread documentation on media and social media highlight that 'forest conservation' in forests like Nagarahole has come to mean violence, militarisation, persecutional AI-based, and digital surveillance, forced evictions, displacement and deprivation for the tribal and other vulnerable forest communities who have lived and nurtured the forests for centuries,' it further said. 'Criminalising natives' The letter said that several portions of the forest have been replaced by timber plantations, and eco-tourism has been popularised to allow entry of tourists and resorts into the forests, while denying tribals their customary rights. It also noted that the conservation model criminalises local forest communities by terming them 'encroachers'. 'It has been widely documented that what is termed by the WCS and the Forest Department as 'voluntary relocations' is anything but that... while conservationists like Chinnappa seek to minimise human interference in the forest to restore biodiversity, the latest science shows that lands managed by indigenous communities tend to be the most biodiverse, more than areas managed under 'wildlife reserves' or 'protected areas',' it said. The letter has been signed by the representatives of Community Network Against Protected Areas, Fridays For Future, All India Students' Association Karnataka, and Peoples' Union for Civil Liberties, among others.
New Indian Express
5 days ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Himachal seeks urgent Central aid as rain-triggered disasters cause Rs 883 crore loss, 109 deaths
CHANDIGARH: Amid torrential rains during the ongoing monsoon season in Himachal Pradesh, the state has witnessed large-scale devastation with 32 flash floods, 22 cloudbursts, and 18 landslides reported so far. The total loss has touched Rs 883.15 crore, and the death toll stands at 109. In response, the state government has sought a special relief package from the Union Government to support the rehabilitation of families who have lost their homes, agricultural land, and livelihoods. Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, while speaking to the media, said that the state government would soon announce a special relief package for the disaster-affected families after due consultation within the Cabinet. He said that the state has limited resources and cannot compensate for the damages without liberal assistance from the Union Government. 'Therefore, the State has sought a special relief package from the Union Government to support the rehabilitation of the families, who have lost their homes, agricultural land and livelihood. Monsoon has just begun and there is a long remaining span of the season. So we must remain vigilant throughout its course,' he said. He added that discussions were also held with Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda, who has assured to consider all the demands sympathetically made by the state. He said, 'We do not want any credit and the state government was ready to meet with anyone under his leadership for the welfare of disaster-hit people.' Sukhu stated that during his recent visit to New Delhi, he took up several key issues with Union Ministers, including a request to allow the allotment of five bighas of land under the Forest Rights Act (FRA) to rehabilitate the affected families suitably. He also urged Union Home Minister Amit Shah to visit the disaster-affected areas to personally assess the situation. 'The Union Home Minister has assured him to visit the affected areas shortly,' he said.
