Kerala Will Keep Inhabited Areas Out of ESA Notification, Says Forest Minister
Kerala Forest Minister Shibu Baby John says inhabited areas will be excluded from the final Ecologically Sensitive Area notification, asking planters not to spread fears.
Kerala's Forest Minister, Shibu Baby John, has said the state government will stand by its position of keeping all inhabited areas out of the final Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA) notification. He was speaking at the inauguration of the 87th annual general body meeting of the Association of Planters of Kerala.
The Minister asked planters and other stakeholders not to spread fears over the notification, stressing that the government's stance on excluding inhabited areas remains firm. His remarks come amid continuing concern in Kerala's plantation belt over how the final ESA notification could affect land use and farming activity.
The Association of Planters of Kerala represents growers across the state's plantation sector, a key part of its rural economy. The annual general body meeting serves as a platform for the industry to raise issues with the government.
By reiterating the exclusion of inhabited areas, the Minister sought to reassure the planter community that their settlements and cultivated land would not be brought under the ESA regime in its final form.