The MlAs of Himachal Pradesh on Friday discussed a wide ranging issues with Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh ahead of the Budget Session of the Assembly to thrash out modalities for their solution.
The chief minister asked the Health department to think over relaxing the norms pertaining to the population criteria for setting up Primary Health Centre or Community Health Centre as per the peculiar geographical conditions of the particular areas of the state. At present the population criteria for setting up PHC is 30 thousand and that for CHC is between 80 thousand to one lakh.
The deliberations came when Singh was presiding over the second day of the MlA priority meeting with the MlAs from Kangra, lahaul & Spiti and Kinnaur.
Reacting to views expressed by some MlAs that their development works were getting hindered due to Forest Rights Act (FRA), the Chief Minister said that 13 specific developmental activities could be carried out in forest area to the extent of one hectare. He said that the forest land could be diverted for the clearance of development projects up-to one hectare and the concerned Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) would have the power to do so.
Under FRA, the few out of thirteen linked development activities are construction of schools buildings, roads, irrigation canal, Aanganwadis, dispensary or hospital, fair price shops, rain water harvesting
structures, Skill-up-gradation or vocational training centers, Community centers, tanks, other minor
water bodies etc.
Even in the meeting held on Thursday, the MlA’s complained that maximum development works were being delayed due to forest clearance and the project cost escalates with passage of time.
It was also revealed in the meeting by senior officers of the state government that Himachal was the only state in the country where all forest rights of the people were settled.