Representational Image | Photo: Mathrubhumi
Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala government has mooted a proposal before the National Board of Wildlife (NBWL) to denotify three inhabited areas namely Thattekad Bird Sanctuary, Pampa Valley and Angel Valley from the list of wildlife sanctuaries.
The decision in the regard was taken in a state wildlife board meeting chaired by the chief minister. The meeting concluded that these areas do not come under the forest sector.
There are around 300 constructions in the Thattekad Bird Sanctuary. In the Pampa Valley and Angel Valley settlements of Periyar Tiger Reserve, there are government institutions in addition to houses.
The Periyar Tiger Reserve was established in 1978, while the Thattekad Bird Sanctuary was set up in 1983. The decision to denotify the sanctuaries was taken in the wake of rising complaints in this regard.
Apparently, the proposal will be considered by the NBWL and an expert committee will be appointed to inspect the area and submit a report.
If the settlements are denotified, then an equivalent area of forest land will have to be added to the sanctuary from another area. A new notification is required to be issued for the purpose.
Meanwhile, the decision is likely to prolong for one or two years as the inspection and other procedures are time consuming in nature.
The board meeting was attended by Minister AK Saseendran, Sebastian Kulathunkal MLA, forest department head Bennichan Thomas, chief wildlife warden Ganga Singh among others.
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