The Hindu : Karnataka News : Row over lease of forest land set to take a curious turn

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Sep 22, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka

Row over lease of forest land set to take a curious turn

By Our Staff Correspondent

MADIKERI, SEPT. 21. The issue of lease of 5,000 acres of forest land to four rubber plantations in Kodagu during the British rule here is poised to take a curious turn with the visit of the Central Empowered Committee to three plantations in the Madikeri Forest Division of Kodagu on Tuesday.

Litigation

The visit of the committee follows a public interest litigation (PIL) in the Supreme Court by a member of a non-governmental organisation here.

The petition urged the court that such leased forest land in Kodagu and other parts of the Western Ghats should be reverted back to the Forest Department since the Forest Conservation Act, 1980, and a Supreme Court order (in WP 202) defined cultivation of tea, coffee, spices, rubber and palm as non-forestry activities.

Violation

The petitioner said felling trees without an approved working plan on such leased land amounted to the violation of the apex court's order.

In the light of these developments, non-forestry activity such as rubber cultivation on the forest land in Karnataka should stop as they violated the Supreme Court order.

Such land should be recovered and the Forest Department directed to protect the land under it from encroachment.

Steps for recovery of lease rent and dues from the plantations should be taken.

The money collected should be utilised for consolidation of the recovered forest land, the PIL said.

Questions

The committee asked the owners of these rubber plantations, the Forest Department and the non-governmental organisation several questions with regard to the lease of forest land for rubber cultivation in Kodagu in relation to the public interest litigation.

It sought to know if the forest land leased for rubber cultivation was de-reserved as per the law.

The committee also sought details such as by whom, when and on what basis the mutation entries were made in the revenue records, showing the land under rubber cultivation as non-forest land (as redeemed sagu land). This corroborates the theory that some plantations had alienated the leased land in contravention of the rules.

Loans

One of the three rubber plantations in the Madikeri Forest Division had borrowed huge loans from a bank in Kerala and owing to non-payment, the property was auctioned by the Debt Recovery Tribunal of Kerala a few months ago.

Lease period

The committee sought details regarding the lease period - if it was for 999 years or 99 years. The Forest Department had claimed that amendment to the lease agreement was made in the 1940s during which the 999-year lease was amended to 99 years.

According to sources, the lease period for 999 years is still valid.

The committee did not get answer to a question on which authority of the State Government or the department collected or received the lease rent. Because no one had collected the lease rent.

Criticised

The State Accountant General's office criticised the authorities concerned for non-recovery of lease rent from the four plantations two years ago.

Rent revised

The committee sought to know if the competent authority had revised the lease rent to be paid by the rubber companies. The Forest Department had revised the lease rent to be paid from time to time unilaterally, but failed to collect it.

Timber value

The committee sought details on how much money was paid towards the timber value by the rubber companies which removed trees from the land leased to them.

The committee sought details of transit passes last issued for the timer felled in the rubber plantations.

Encroachment

It sought details on the encroachment of land by some plantations.

The committee asked for a copy of the order of October 10, 1980 by the Deputy Commissioner of Kodagu regarding the entries made in respect of leased areas in the revenue records.

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