New Delhi, Dec 1: A parliamentary panel on Wednesday asked the environment ministry to respond on the issue of lack of human resources in state forest departments and said this is one of the very crucial reasons for inability to deal with forest fires. The 349th report on ‘Status of Forests in India’, submitted by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Science and Technology, Environment, Forests and Climate Change in Parliament, said that the ministry did not reply to this important aspect of its observation.
The committee notes that the ministry has not responded to its observation regarding lack of human resources in the forest department of states. The ministry should not ignore this important aspect and submit the action taken on the recommendation of the committee, the panel headed by Congress MP Jairam Ramesh said. According to the report, the committee feels that lack of human resources in state forest departments is one of the very crucial reasons in its inability to deal with the forest fires affecting large stretches of the forests.
Therefore, the committee is of the view that forest departments of state governments should look into this aspect very seriously and fill the vacancies after completing the due procedures and approval of competent authorities, the report said. The Central Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change should monitor this important aspect for tackling the forest fire effectively, it said. The committee observed that on its recommendation of undertaking field survey to determine or identify total area or land available in the country for afforestation, the environment ministry has merely stated that it has noted the observation of the panel.
The committee recommends that the ministry should furnish its response to the above recommendation of the committee and intimate the action taken in the matter, it said. It also recommended that necessary action in this regard should be taken at the earliest so that field survey can provide necessary data to state governments to chalk out necessary strategies for taking up afforestation activities in their respective states. The panel also observed that the requirement of toilets for people in the Corbett Tiger Reserve area must be given priority.
The genuine demands of the local people at the Corbett Tiger Reserve must be looked into administratively by local authorities, it recommended, noting that the ministry had given its response in the matter with reference to the Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve instead of the Corbett Tiger Reserve. The requirement of toilets for the people of the area must be given priority. Further, necessary action also needs to be taken for providing a proper garbage disposal and solid waste management system, the panel said. The committee observes that although the recommendation of the committee had been made in context of the Corbett Tiger Reserve, the ministry has furnished its response with reference to the Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve. The committee recommends that the Ministry of Environment should furnish its response in the correct context, it said.
The panel said that the ministry merely noted its observation to make all out efforts to protect and conserve forests, wildlife as well as invaluable biodiversity and seek the cooperation of all state and Union Territory governments and other stakeholders to see that the country does not lag behind in this monumental task. The committee recommends that the Ministry should furnish its response to the above recommendation of the committee, it said.
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