Eco Report: Meet Monday amidst LDF boycott

An all-party meeting convened by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy to finalise the state’s stand on the Kasturirangan panel report on Western Ghats will be held here on Monday evening, even as the LDF is sticking to its decision to boycott the meeting.

An all-party meeting convened by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy to finalise the state’s stand on the Kasturirangan panel report on Western Ghats will be held here on Monday evening, even as the LDF is sticking to its decision to boycott the meeting.

LDF convener Vaikom Viswan said that the LDF allies will give their stand separately. The front will boycott the meeting, Viswan said. ‘’The LDF as such will not be giving a stand in writing, but the allies will be doing so,’’ he said.

The meeting is scheduled to be held at CM’s conference hall at 5 p.m., Chandy’s office said on Sunday.

The Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) had approved the recommendations submitted by the panel led by K Kasturirangan on the protection and conservation of the ecologically fragile Western Ghats.

In fact, it had favoured this set of recommendations over those of the Gadgil Committee. Chandy had said last week that some of the recommendations of the Kasthurirangan committee too were harsh and objectionable to the state.

Kerala submitted its preliminary opinion on the report to the MoEF earlier, but a final decision will be conveyed only after the all-party meeting where a consensus is expected to be arrived at.

The LDF had last week announced its decision to stay away the meeting as part of its boycott of the Chief Minister in connection with the solar panel scam.

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