The State government is studying the pros and cons of the K. Kasturirangan panel report on the Western Ghats and it will submit an opinion to the Union government only after eliciting the views of the stakeholders, Minister for Higher Education R.V. Deshpande has said.
Mr. Deshpande, who is a member of the Cabinet panel on the report, was in Khanapur on Tuesday to hear grievances of residents of villages proposed to be declared as Ecologically Sensitive Areas. The village residents opposed the report saying it threatened their livelihood.
As per the report, 61 villages falling in 17 gram panchayats in the district, 59 of which were in Khanapur taluk and one in Belagavi taluk, proposed to be declared as ESAs. All the 17 gram panchayats have adopted resolutions opposing implementation of the report.
Khanapur MLA Arvind Patil demanded that the government reject the report. He said the villagers had been harassed by Forest Department officials. They had lost faith in the department, he said.
Others who also opposed implementation of the report included former MLAs Prahlad Remani, Digamber Patil, Vasantrao Patil, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee member Rafique Khanapuri and various other organisations. However, Mr. Deshpande, who acknowledged that the residents of Khanapur taluk were opposed to the report, maintained that the government had come forward to elicit views of the people before sending its report to the Centre. Secretary of the Forest Department Saibaba highlighted features of the report.
Excise Minister and district in-charge Satish L. Jarkiholi, Mahamtesh Koujalgi, MLC, and Deputy Commissioner N. Jayaram were present.
