Panels' meet on tribal issue today

By Our Special Correspondent

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, OCT. 10. The Cabinet on Wednesday cleared various Bills to be introduced during the Assembly session beginning Friday.

The Chief Minister, Mr. A. K. Antony, told presspersons after a Cabinet meeting that a Bill to replace all the lapsed Ordinances would be brought during the session.

Replying to questions, the Chief Minister said the Bill to replace the Kerala Forest (Vesting and Management of Ecologically Fragile Lands) Ordinance would be among the Bills proposed to be introduced during the session. There would not be any change in the provisions. However, the Government was not having a closed mind on demands for change from various quarters. If changes were necessary, that would be considered during the debate.

Mr. Antony said the Bills approved by the Cabinet included one to revert the control of the Pariyaram medical college to the cooperative society that was in control of the college before the Government takeover. Another Bill is for debt relief in the agriculture sector, another for effecting restrictions on sand- mining and a third on infrastructure development. A series of legislations are proposed covering the labour front.

Tribal issues

The Chief Minister said the Cabinet Committee and the official committee working on the problems of tribals would meet here on Thursday. The Government proposed to address issues related to land, employment, housing and health facilities for tribals. The Central Government's clearance would be sought for release of land from the Aralam Farm and vested forests to the tribals.

On the Government directive issued to the Thiruvananthapuram City Corporation to remove the ``refugee camps'' set up by the tribals in front of the Secretariat as part of their agitation, Mr. Antony said the directive was the result of over-zealousness by the Secretary (Urban Development). The Secretary had acted on the Cabinet decision to disallow such modes of agitation without consulting either him or the Minister concerned. The Government proposed to carry out its decision only when it deemed fit. However, no action was proposed against the Secretary as his bona fides were not in question. In future, the officials should better be consulting the Ministers in such matters.

He said that in finding land for the tribals, the Government was trying to improve on what had been provided for under the Act passed by the House in 1999.

He reiterated that the University College in Thiruvananthapuram could not be allowed to be a centre for fomenting trouble. The Government was not against anyone's right to demonstrate. However, every demonstration used to pass through the road in front of the college. If someone threw stones from inside the campus, there would be trouble. This could not be allowed to continue, he said.

Asked about the delay in the Vigilance inquiry into the leakage of Cabinet notes, Mr. Antony said the Government did not dictate how the inquiry should proceed once it had been ordered. However, the Vigilance police could be directed to expedite the probe.

He said the Government was concerned about the Afghan war as it might affect the Malayalis in the Gulf countries. The people wished the end of the war. ``The earlier the war ended, the better,'' he added.

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Section  : Southern States
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