SHIVAMOGGA: Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai blamed the previous governments for the delay in the rehabilitation of Sharavathi project evacuees, and assured that he will meet the Union Forest Minister Bhupender Yadav seeking to clear the hurdles of the evacuees, who have been waiting for over 60 years.
Addressing a meeting with the evacuees in Thirthahalli on Sunday, Bommai said that the state has been reaping the benefits of electricity due to the sacrifices made by Sharavathi project evacuees. “Nobody should forget their sacrifices. The farmers sacrificed their fertile lands and relocated. But, I am surprised and pained that even after 60 years, successive governments have failed to address their issues even though they had plenty of opportunities,” he said.
Clarifying that he is not indulging in politics over the issue, Bommai said that the project was initiated before the introduction of the Conservation of Forests Act. “The then state government could have conducted a survey and allotted land to the evacuees. The government missed the opportunity. The Union government, before 1978, had asked the state governments to identify the reserve forests. The then state government had the opportunity to allot the land and declare the rest of the land as a reserved forest,” he said.
He also rued that a second opportunity was also lost. “From 1978-80, there was another opportunity for a resurvey of forest land. The then government could have allotted the land for the evacuees, but justice was not delivered,” he said.
But Bommai reiterated that approval from the central government is mandatory in this case, as the Conservation of Forests Act comes is a central act. “Our government has started the process to allot land to the evacuees. The survey has already started, and will be completed in December. A delegation led by former Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa has already met the Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav. He has asked the delegation to visit him after the survey is done. I will
also visit him once the survey is completed,” he said.