Panel likely to monitor implementation of Kasturirangan report

The Environment Ministry will soon constitute a high-level committee to monitor the implementation of the controversial K Kasturirangan panel report on Western Ghats in a time-bound manner.
The decision was taken days after the ministry gave its "in principle" approval to the report prepared by the 10-member high level working group (HLWG) headed by Kasturirangan.
"A high-level committee of the MoEF will be set up to monitor the implementation of the recommendations of the HLWG in a time bound manner," according to a ministry note.
Sources said that the draft notification regarding the implementation of the Kasturirangan panel report is ready and will be sent to the law ministry for vetting.

"The draft notification on implementation of the report is ready. It will be sent to the law ministry soon for vetting. It will be put on public domain to invite comments from all stakeholders," a source said.
The HLWG was constituted to examine the detailed Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP) report prepared under eminent ecologist Madhav Gadgil's leadership.

"As a follow up to the "in principle" acceptance of the HLWG report, relevant steps would be initiated to operationalise the recommendations of the HLWG," the ministry note said.
It went on to add, "A draft notification declaring the identified region of the Western Ghats as an 'Ecologically Sensitive Area' along the lines accepted by the ministry would be issued and put up on the website of the ministry for inputs of stakeholders."

The ministry had accepted all the major recommendations made by the HLWG particularly with respect to financial arrangements to incentivise green growth in Western Ghats.
However, Gadgil has hit out at the Environment ministry for ignoring the report prepared by him and said the "narrow focus" of the Kasturirangan Committee on forested areas under government control is "totally inadequate and inappropriate".
The ministry has given approval to the report which has recommended prohibition on development activities only in 60,000 sq km ecologically sensitive area spread over six states -- Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.