New Delhi: Expressing concerns over the alleged use of forest land by a private company in Odisha, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed the state authorities to inquire into the issue.
A bench comprising Justice SP Wangadi and expert member Nagin Nanda has directed Keonjhar District Collector, Divisional Forest Officer and member secretary of the State Pollution Control Board to conduct a joint inspection in the Kisam forest at Bayapandadhar village in the district.
The bench has also directed the inspection team to take necessary actions if the allegations are found true.
The green body’s directions come in the wake of a petition filed activist Niranjan Pradhan.
The petitioner alleged that M/s Monte Carlo has fraudulently grabbed forest land, which was entitled to local tribal community members under the Forest Rights Act, for camp office, concrete mix plant, bitumen hot mix asphalt and stone crusher. He further said that the land titled under Forest Rights Act cannot be transferred to any other person or company and in this case the same has been grabbed unlawfully.
The petitioner has also alleged that no action has been taken by the state respondents like District Collector, DFO and Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in this regard. The petitioner pleaded before the tribunal to restrain the private company from using land in question and restoring the land to its original status.