Munnar: In an effort to allay the fears of people living in the area marked for the controversial Neelakurinji reserve near Munnar in Idukki district, revenue minster E Chandrasekharan on Monday said settlers, who have legal documents to prove their claim over the land in the reserve, will not be evicted.
The minister was talking to the media during his visit to Munnar as part of a fact-finding delegation. Chandrasekharan and forest and power ministers are in Munnar to hold talks with all stakeholders, including elected representatives, as part of the government’s move to redraw boundaries of the reserve. The ministers will visit the reserve and inspect the area.
The CPM-led LDF government's plan to set up the sanctuary had created a controversy as several settlers were living under the fear that they may lose their land if the reserve is set up there. Following this, the government decided to conduct a scientific study on the sanctuary and redraw its boundaries.
Neelakurinji is a purplish blue flower which blooms only once in 12 years in Munnar region and the blossoming attracts a large number of tourists and nature enthusiasts from the state and outside. However, unscientific construction of resorts by land mafia has endangered the blooming of Neelakurinji. The land mafia has even turned the kurinji reserves at Vattavada and Kottakamboor into large orchards of Eucalyptus grandis.
The present controversy surrounding the reserve began when the revenue additional chief secretary P H Kurian said that when the boundaries of the reserve are redrawn, it is likely that the total areal of the reserve may shrink by at least 1200 hectares.
After holding a meeting at the Munnar guest house on Monday morning, Chandrasekharan said the settlement procedure has to be completed to ward off people's concerns. The 'Neelakurinji Sanctuary' is proposed in a 3,200 hectare land in Munnar, which is part of biodiversity hotspot of Western Ghats.
Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan had earlier entrusted Kurian with the task of carrying out the study on the status of populated areas, institutions and religious centers that fall within the territory of the proposed sanctuary.
He was also asked to submit recommendations on fixing the boundaries for evacuating people to set up the sanctuary, the notification for which was issued by the then LDF government in 2006. However, nothing came of the project due to resistance from the local people.
Detailed talks with the MP, MLAs, revenue additional chief secretary and other revenue officials will be held Tuesday. The government is hoping to reach a consensus after discussions with all stakeholders.
Meanwhile, power minister MM Mani said the group of ministers would visit all areas, including Kottakamboor, where LDF-backed MP Joice George and his family had land title deeds of 20 acres which were canceled recently. The ministers appealed to the people that the officials should be allowed to complete their task of conducting the study.
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