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| HP rationalises timber policy |
| Baldev S Chauhan / New Delhi/ Shimla Oct 15, 2009, 00:35 IST |
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Deodar and other giant pine trees, which were being supplied under an archaic law for Rs 2 per tree to villagers in Himachal Pradesh, will now be distributed for at least 30 per cent of the market rate of Rs 1 lakh per tree, according to a new law.
The state cabinet passed the new tree distribution (TD) rights law here late Monday after the state High Court intervened in the matter questioning the obsolete TD rights law passed way back in 1872.
The rationalised new law will help save thousands of green deodar and pine trees from axing, a spokesman of the state government said.
Now villagers will not be allotted standing trees in forests. Instead, they will be provided timber for building houses or for carrying out major repairs from the nearest state forest corporation depot.
The forest corporation looks after the state forests and clears fallen and dead trees from time to time.Each rural household will be provided only three cubic metres of converted timber only once in 30 years and once in 15 years for carrying out major repairs at 30 per cent of the market rate.
But BPL families will have to pay only 10 per cent of the market rate.The market price of a fully mature towering doedar tree ranges from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1.5 lakh.
A variety of 165,890 green trees worth over Rs 550 crore were given to right holders from 2002 to 2006 at a throwaway price of Rs 2 per tree.The new law also says timber will only be provided if the forests in the vicinity of the village are thick enough and there is scope for thinning of some trees for promoting regeneration of the forest.
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