Express News Service
CHANDIGARH: As the monsoon session of Parliament started on Thursday, it is expected that the Joint Parliamentary Committee examining the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill 2023 submit its report and the new bill might be tabled. A group of people held peaceful demonstrations at the Aravallis in Delhi, Gurugram, Jawai area in the Pali district of Southern Rajasthan and Shaheed Smarak in Jaipur demanding the government to scrap this bill in its current form as they allege that bulk of Aravallis can potentially be sold, diverted, cleared, and exploited without any regulatory oversight, if the new amendment bill is passed.
“It is estimated that around 39,063 hectares of forests are under the sacred groves across India protected and managed as forests by local communities even though they are not currently notified as forests. The sacred forest of Mangar Bani in Haryana is recorded as ‘gair mumkin pahad’ and is awaiting recognition as a forest by Haryana. FCA Amendment Bill will decimate such lands across the 690km Aravalli range spread over four states and the rest of India,” said Neelam Ahluwalia, Founder Member of the Aravalli Bachao Citizens Movement.
Aravallis are a lifeline for millions of people living along the foothills of India’s oldest mountain range. According to a recent study by Central University of Rajasthan, Ajmer on assessment of land use dynamics of the Aravalli range, over a period of 44 years, forests in the Aravallis reduced by 7.6 percent a whopping 5772.7km of forest cover has already gone.“The desert is advancing towards Eastern Rajasthan, Haryana and National Capital Region. Experts attribute desertification to destruction of the Aravalli hills and loss of forests and green cover,” said Mahi, a student.
CHANDIGARH: As the monsoon session of Parliament started on Thursday, it is expected that the Joint Parliamentary Committee examining the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill 2023 submit its report and the new bill might be tabled. A group of people held peaceful demonstrations at the Aravallis in Delhi, Gurugram, Jawai area in the Pali district of Southern Rajasthan and Shaheed Smarak in Jaipur demanding the government to scrap this bill in its current form as they allege that bulk of Aravallis can potentially be sold, diverted, cleared, and exploited without any regulatory oversight, if the new amendment bill is passed.
“It is estimated that around 39,063 hectares of forests are under the sacred groves across India protected and managed as forests by local communities even though they are not currently notified as forests. The sacred forest of Mangar Bani in Haryana is recorded as ‘gair mumkin pahad’ and is awaiting recognition as a forest by Haryana. FCA Amendment Bill will decimate such lands across the 690km Aravalli range spread over four states and the rest of India,” said Neelam Ahluwalia, Founder Member of the Aravalli Bachao Citizens Movement.
Aravallis are a lifeline for millions of people living along the foothills of India’s oldest mountain range. According to a recent study by Central University of Rajasthan, Ajmer on assessment of land use dynamics of the Aravalli range, over a period of 44 years, forests in the Aravallis reduced by 7.6 percent a whopping 5772.7km of forest cover has already gone.“The desert is advancing towards Eastern Rajasthan, Haryana and National Capital Region. Experts attribute desertification to destruction of the Aravalli hills and loss of forests and green cover,” said Mahi, a student.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });
