THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Even as the revenue department has courted a controversy over the order it issued which facilitated the widespread illegal felling of trees from pattayam land, the forest department is on a mission to give permission to sawmills which had been operational in the state till 2002, but closed down later due to various issues, to start operations after a gap of close to two decades.
The state government order ((P)No.2/2021/F&WLD) published in an extraordinary gazette on February 12 this year, the forest department has allowed sawmills or wood-based industrial units which had been operational under the licence issued by the local self-government institutions or the same issued by the department of factories and boilers, or small-scale industries registration certificate issued by the industries department, on or before October 30, 2002, but have not obtained the forest department licence till date can apply for the licence within six months of the issuance of the gazette notification.
Based on the notification, 141 sawmills and wood-based units falling in ten categories have applied for renewing the licence or obtaining the forest department permit to start operations. And four of them were granted permission to start operations while the other applications are in the stage of scrutiny. The officer in charge of granting the licence should take a decision within 90 days from the date of receipt of the application after holding inspection.
As per the order, sawmills, small-scale wood industries, units for manufacturing products such as match splints, match box, pencil slates and photo frames; wood-based industrial units using all types of wood for manufacturing products such as packing case, blockboard and tea chest; rubberwood-based units for manufacturing products such as packing case, blockboard and tea chest; wood-based units using all types of wood for manufacturing products such as veneer, plywood and particle board which use round log as the raw material; industrial units using exclusively rubberwood for manufacturing products such as furniture, veneer, plywood and particle board; units using exclusively imported wood; institutions which impart training in wood processing and carpentry; and industrial units processing coconut palm and/or palmyra wood are now eligible to apply for the forest department licence.
The Supreme Court in its order dated October 30, 2002 (in WP(C)No. 202 of 1995) had, inter alia, directed all states and Union Territories not to permit any unlicensed sawmills, veneer and plywood industry to operate. The states and UTs were also directed to close down all such unlicensed units forthwith. It also directed them that no relaxation of rules for granting licence without previous concurrence of the Central Empowered Committee shall be granted. Following this, a majority of the sawmills and wood-based units in the state lost their operational permits.
Commenting on this, a senior forest officer said it's a policy decision to give the forest department licence to sawmills and wood-based units operational on or before October 30, 2002. He refused to comment further on this.
What else gazette says
No authorised officer shall grant licence to sawmills and other wood-based industrial units within a radius of of five kilometres from the boundary of any notified forest or protected areas owned by the government, except for those sawmills and other wood-based units which were established and running on or before October 30, 2002
The applicant shall not be a person convicted of any offence punishable under the Kerala Forest Act, 1961 (4 of 1962) or the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 (Central Act 53 of 1972) or any other enactment relating to protection of environment or conservation of biological diversity or the rules