Nitin Sethi reports in Sunday Times of India on March 10, 2013 that the Chhattisgarh government fudged records, concealed facts, changed policy and altered decisions while the union environment ministry overlooked all such illegalities to open up 1,899 hectares for mining in Hasdeo Arand, one of the best patches of forests.
It is strange that when a tug of war was going on between forest department and the mining department of Chhattisgarh, the State Government claimed that the patch containing the coal blocks at Parsa East and Kante Basan in Sarguja District was rarely visited by elephant herd and maintained that the forest patch had no particular wild life species of value and accordingly had recommended the case to the union environment ministry for handing over the forest patch to the miners for getting forest clearance. It is reported that the region’s Divisional Forest Officer, on a site visit held just four days before this recommendation, noted that the area had not just elephants but also other protected species such as bear, wild boar, cheetah, barking deer, Sāmbhar and leopards.
Such reporting and recommendations contrary to each other resorted to under political or bureaucratic pressure are a common development in Chhattisgarh during the last few years. If a probe is ordered and the same is taken up in right earnest many skeletons would emerge out of State Secretariat’s cupboard.
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