The State government's decision to amend Land Assignment Rules for granting of title deeds for up to four acres and remove restrictions on transfer of the assigned land has raised 
apprehension among environmentalists, stating that it will have serious ramifications and abet 
land encroachment.
Though the government says that the amendment is being bought in the ''interest of the 
farmers  in Idukki,'' it is alleged to help land and resort mafia. It is alleged that once the 
amendment is brought in, it would only help in legalising the illegal land transactions.  The new 
amendment could have a larger impact on the recent Kasturirangan and Gadgil reports, the 
environmentalists allege.The cabinet has proposed to do away with the amendments brought 
to the rules 5(A) and 8(1) of the Kerala Land Assignment Rules 1964 in 2005 and 2009. The 
amendments annulled are the one pertaining to possession of land, which was limited to one 
acre and the time stipulation of minimum 25 years for sale of land. With these annulments, 
title-deeds can now be given for land holdings up to 4 acres and sale of land made possible 
before reaching 25 years of possession, if the seller has an occupied house in that land.
Official sources said that the change of rules could only lead to unauthorised constructions, 
unauthorised quarries, large-scale felling of trees and illegal road construction. The 
government's reversal can only aid all the forces that causes destruction, they alleged. It is 
learned that some of the high ranking officials in the revenue department was against the 
scrapping of the rules.


Source: The New Indian Express
http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/203067/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/25-12-2013#page/1/1

Green seeks speedy implementation of Gadgil report

A group of about 30 environmental groups from the state on Friday submitted a memorandum to Governor Nikhil Kumar, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and Opposition leader V S Achuthanandan for the the speedy implementation of the recommendations of the Madhav Gadgil report on the Western Ghats.

In the memorandum, they said there was great concern with respect to the fast deterioration of the Western Ghats and its profound adverse impact on the very existence of the people of the state.

After submitting the memorandum, environmentalists A Achuthan, Thayyat Balan and T Shobheendran said that Chandy had given an assurance that a meeting of those who support and oppose the Gadgil report will be convened within a month. ''The Chief Minister said that the environmentalists, farmer's organisations and quarry owners will be called in a single platform to discuss the report,'' Achuthan said.

Source: The New Indian Express

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/180117/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/02-11-2013#page/3/1