Tree panels, BMCs inactive across Kerala

Even as completely different organisations and authorities departments are coming ahead to have fun the World Environment Day by planting bushes on June 5, no consideration is being given to present life to 2 necessary our bodies that may do loads to protect the setting.

Biodiversity administration committees (BMCs) and tree committees in most civic our bodies across the State are at the moment inactive and impotent. Although they don’t have direct powers to take motion towards anybody for harming the setting, they will do loads to assist preserve the setting by bringing the culprits to ebook. “I am sad to say that BMCs in all panchayats and municipalities in Palakkad district are thoroughly inactive,” mentioned Babu Bonaventure, district coordinator of the Biodiversity Board.

When BMCs are supposed to watch the biodiversity within the respective panchayats and municipalities, the tree committees below Social Forestry Department headed by respective civic physique chiefs must accord sanction if a tree in a public place must be reduce down. But the tree committees have seldom made an intervention every time bushes had been felled within the identify of growth lately.

“We have a lot of people, including committees and departments, to plant trees. But there’s none to resist and take action when people cut down trees in public place. The failure of tree committees and BMCs is egregious and blatant,” mentioned Boban Mattumantha, environmental activist.

Although dozens of bushes had been reduce down lately in Palakkad by completely different folks, together with authorities departments, hardly any case was registered. Police too take a comfortable stand that they’d register a case provided that the criticism is made by the division or one who has the possession of the tree.

“That’s the biggest problem we face. In several cases, police refused to take case. We saw how police evaded responsibility even when we made a hue and cry over the felling of a tree at Palakkad Junction Railway Station,” mentioned Mr. Boban.

According to him, reviving the tree committees and BMCs will go a good distance to make sure conservation of bushes. Civic physique chiefs who head the committees are displaying little curiosity largely due to their affiliations to political events. “We raised over a dozen complaints against various cases of tree felling in recent years, but only one case was registered,” Mr. Boban mentioned.