Bhubaneswar, Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) has approved diversion of 1,524.17 hectares of forest land for construction of irrigation project in Nayagarh district of Odisha, officials said on Tuesday.
In a statement, the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said the state government has been waiting for approval from the Center for the last 30 years.
Once the Brutanga project is completed, 23,000 hectares of land can be provided with irrigation facilities, he said.
"On the basis of the compliance report provided by the State Government... final approval of the Central Government under Section 2 of the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980 is hereby granted for non-forest use of 1,524, 17 hectares of forest land for construction of Brutanga irrigation project," read a letter released on Monday by Deputy Inspector General of Forests Dheeraj Mittal.
As per the conditions set by the MoEF for approval, the legal status of the diverted forest land will remain unchanged.
The state government will have to ensure that compensatory afforestation is carried out on 1,524.17 hectares of non-forest land already transferred and mutated in favor of the state Forest Department, he said.
The state government will also have to ensure that compensatory afforestation on non-forest land of equal extent to the diverted forest land is carried out within two years from the date of issuance of the diversion order, he added.
At least 1,000 plants per hectare will be planted on non-forest land and if it is not possible to plant so many saplings in the area, the rest will be planted in other forests, according to the approval letter.
Further, the state government has been asked to ensure appropriate mitigation measures to minimize the likely adverse impact of the project on forests and wildlife in and around the command area by implementing impact study on wildlife management. .
Additionally, the MoEF has asked the state to establish at least three anti-poaching and predation camps at strategic locations and deploy adequate number of forest personnel.
You will also need to build at least two watch towers at strategic locations and delegate an adequate number of forestry personnel.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi discussed the issue with Union Environment and Forest Minister Bhupender Yadav during his recent visit to New Delhi, the CMO statement said.
In a statement, the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said the state government has been waiting for approval from the Center for the last 30 years.
Once the Brutanga project is completed, 23,000 hectares of land can be provided with irrigation facilities, he said.
"On the basis of the compliance report provided by the State Government... final approval of the Central Government under Section 2 of the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980 is hereby granted for non-forest use of 1,524, 17 hectares of forest land for construction of Brutanga irrigation project," read a letter released on Monday by Deputy Inspector General of Forests Dheeraj Mittal.
As per the conditions set by the MoEF for approval, the legal status of the diverted forest land will remain unchanged.
The state government will have to ensure that compensatory afforestation is carried out on 1,524.17 hectares of non-forest land already transferred and mutated in favor of the state Forest Department, he said.
The state government will also have to ensure that compensatory afforestation on non-forest land of equal extent to the diverted forest land is carried out within two years from the date of issuance of the diversion order, he added.
At least 1,000 plants per hectare will be planted on non-forest land and if it is not possible to plant so many saplings in the area, the rest will be planted in other forests, according to the approval letter.
Further, the state government has been asked to ensure appropriate mitigation measures to minimize the likely adverse impact of the project on forests and wildlife in and around the command area by implementing impact study on wildlife management. .
Additionally, the MoEF has asked the state to establish at least three anti-poaching and predation camps at strategic locations and deploy adequate number of forest personnel.
You will also need to build at least two watch towers at strategic locations and delegate an adequate number of forestry personnel.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi discussed the issue with Union Environment and Forest Minister Bhupender Yadav during his recent visit to New Delhi, the CMO statement said.