CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government on Monday blamed successive governments for failing to resolve the land rights issue in Megamalai when the area was declared a reserved forest and later brought under the Srivilliputhur-Megamalai Tiger Reserve, leading to the current eviction drive and protests by long-time residents.
Replying to a discussion on the protests by the people against the eviction/removal of encroachments from the forest area of Megamalai, Minister CTR Nirmal Kumar said the present action was being carried out in compliance with the Supreme Court order issued on May 29.
He said the matter was scheduled to come up before the Supreme Court on Wednesday and that the government would submit a detailed report after the hearing. He assured the House that the government was also working towards a permanent solution while protecting the legal interests of those affected.
Stating that 168 petitions had been filed during the inquiry conducted by the Forest Settlement Officer following the 1978 draft notification proposing to declare the area as a reserved forest,
Nirmal Kumar said petitions were examined, and orders were passed, some of which were subsequently challenged before courts. The minister said that if the eligible applicants had been given appropriate relief or their claims had been considered, the protests and current tension could have been avoided.
He also pointed out that the people had been agitating over the issue for more than 15 years and that several cases had been pending at different stages of litigation. He said that the cases, including one filed in 2017 and subsequent proceedings before the Supreme Court, had not been properly handled by the governments in the past.
