Chure degradation upsets President
President Ram Baran Yadav has expressed concern over the ongoing massive degradation of natural resources along the Chure range in the country.
During an informal meeting held with representatives of the Nepal Forum of Environmental Journalists (NEFEJ) on Sunday, President Yadav said the Chure range is bearing the brunt of a massive deforestation and illegal extraction of natural resources like boulders, stones and soil in recent days.
Besides rapid deforestation, illegal logging and unchecked extraction of other resources, the Chure and inner Tarai districts are experiencing an environmental degradation due to the pressure of migration from the mid-hills in recent years.
“Environment conservation has always been neglected due to the centralised politics,” he said. According to Yadav, the President’s Chure Conservation Programme launched by the government in 2010 is a scheme of national importance aimed at restoring the flora and fauna in the east-west belt to the north of the country’s plains.
“When I was a child, the forest near my district in Janakpur was dense. But the situation has changed drastically down the years. The state of Chure and inner Tarai is so alarming that it might turn into a desert in the next three decades if we fail to implement effective conservation programmes,” President Yadav added.
Media representatives also expressed their concern over the slow pace of implementation of the programme approved by the government to protect the geologically young and fragile Chure or ‘Siwalik’ range that spans 33 districts from Mechi in the east to Mahakali in the west, covering 13 percent of the country’s total area. The government has earmarked about Rs 460 million for the programme. NEFEJ President Laxman Mainali said forests and its resources have always been exploited.
Roads thru forest: Team seeks action
KATHMANDU: A probe and monitoring team led by Bajra Kishor Yadav, director general of the Department of Forests, has directed the government to take necessary action against culprits involved in road construction through the forest areas without the authorities’ permission. It asked on Sunday to halt such works in Kanchanpur and Dadeldhura districts in the Far-western region.
The probe team also directed the central and regional authorities to take action against those who permitted Aloe Vera farming in the Sahid Smriti Community Forest and a leasehold forest inside the Ganesh Community Forest. In the wake of rapid deforestation along the Chure range in Kanchanpur and Dadeldhura districts, a probe team carried out field visits in the affected areas and held consultations with various partners including representatives of community forest user groups, timber entrepreneurs, media, political bodies and civil society.
Posted on: 2012-01-23 09:51
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All of them discussed the issue. The result was the same...and we have committed to continue discussions on the issue till midnight.
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