To review the progress of pending cases related forest land in all the districts Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat convened a meeting with departments through video conferencing at Secretariat on Thursday. CM directed to complete immediately all the cases where mutation of compensatory land will be done through the Forest Department.
Cases where NVP needed to be submitted must be submitted immediately. DMs should monitor it personally. Development projects should not be delayed on account of forest land issues. DMs should ensure that proper proposals of forest land transfer to be sent by the departments. Due to small clerical errors developmental projects are delayed unnecessarily, CM Rawat stressed.
On the compulsion to give double land in place of forest land to be given for roads and other developmental projects, a joint committee to be constituted comprising Revenue, Justice and forest departments which will give recommendations considering all the perspectives of rules and laws. In case of PMGSY like centrally funded schemes, double compensation to be requested for the forestation in degraded forest in place of providing double land area. Nodal officers for forest land transfer to be asked to set up some regional centers in Kumaun and Garhwal regions to prepare maps in cases of various forest land transfer. These centers might be opened at ATI Nainital, Kumaun University and other higher educational institutes.
Secretary Power Radhika Jha disclosed that 17 villages, which are falling in forest areas, could not be electrified so she has asked the nodal officer to send a proposal for special permission.
CEO, PMGSY/Uttarakhadn Rural Road Agency Dr Raghav langer said that 310 proposal for the forest land transfer have been made so far. In which 164 proposals have been approved in principle and 146 proposals yet to get approval. 28 out 164 approved proposals have been approved on paper and 114 are unde process of mutation. 12 proposals are below the area of one hectare so does require mutation. 66 proposals have been sent for official approval. As per the district wise In Pithorgarh 46, bageshwar 23, Chamoli 33, Rudraprayag 12, Uttarkashi 31, Champawat 27, Almora 54, Tehri 21, Pauri 26, Dehradun 20 and Haridwar 01.