Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala cabinet on Tuesday has decided to fix the area of proposed Neelakurinji sanctuary in Munnar to a minimum of 3200 hectares. An IAS official will be appointed as settlement officer who will deal with disputes regarding title deeds in the area falling under the sanctuary.
The Kerala Promotion of Tree Growth in Non-forest Areas Act will be amended to ban planting of acacia, eucalyptus and grandis trees in the Kurinji sanctuary. Companies and agencies will no longer be given revenue land on lease to plant trees.
Survey of forest land and ‘pattayam’ land in the sanctuary will be completed using drone by June. Forest department will afterwards mark the areas separately.
The district collector will prepare a plan to uproot all the acacia, eucalyptus and grandis trees in Anchunadu area comprising Vattavada, Kottakambur, Kanthallur, Marayur and Keezhanthur villages within six months. The land owner should himself cut these trees wherever they are present. If the owner refuses to do so, the collector will have the authority to remove the trees.
The sanctuary was aimed at protecting its biodiversity especially the 'Neelakurinji', a purplish blue flower which blooms only once in 12 years in Munnar. Though the LDF government in 2006 had declared the proposed sanctuary, no further progress was made on it due to various reasons including dispute over the boundary and areas to be included in the sanctuary.
The present government entrusted revenue secretary P H Kurien with the task of carrying out a study on the status of populated areas, institutions and places of worship that fall within the territory of the proposed sanctuary.
The Congress-led UDF had asked the government not to redraw boundaries of the sanctuary.
(With inputs from PTI)
