Centre yet to reply on Tml Bengal tiger issue, says minister

The Imphal Free Press

IMPHAL, Mar 5: The state department of forests and wildlife has issued a notice over the presence of a Bengal tiger in the jungles of Tamenglong district and the matter has been put up before the Centre for taking of necessary precautions.

This was the reply of the state minister in charge of environment and forest Th Debendra to the cut motion raised by various members from both ruling and Opposition benches during the demand discussion in the House this afternoon.

The particular motion was raised by MLA Awangbow of Tamei AC this afternoon in the House. Th Debendra in reply mentioned that the concerned officials of the state forest department and the district administrator of Tamenglong district had already sent their men to Bhalok where one of the Bengal tigers was claimed to be killed by villagers when the tiger started attacking domestic animals in the village last year, and further, from the narrations of the villagers it was confirmed that there was another Bengal tiger in the same jungle.

As a matter of fact, the state government had already intimated the Centre to take necessary steps to prevent any attacks on humans and domestic animals and also for the preservation of the tiger. The state government was waiting for a reply from the Centre on the issue, he explained.

Th Debendra also admitted that there was gradual decrease of revenue from the forest products in the state since the past many years due to the imposition of ban on lifting of timber by the Supreme Court.

He said a state like Manipur which had 67 percent of the total area covered by forests could not achieve proper revenue and there were reports of many illegal transportations of timber.

Lack of manpower and serious law and order problem in the state had led to the department`s failure, but with adoption of working plans to improve the mobilisation by planting commercial value trees and scientific management of the forests things could improve.

Apart from this the state government had also already taken up action plans for the development of existing wildlife sancturies in the state with funds from the Centre.

Clarifying on the queries made by the ruling MLA N Mangi of CPI, the forest and environment minister said the state government had already started taking various measures for restoring ecological balance in the state by implementing various afforestation schemes, besides steps to save the only fresh water lake at Loktak by initiating afforestation in the catchment areas and constructing obligatory dams in various main rivers to prevent siltation in Loktak lake.

The motion of token cut were raised jointly by the Opposition MLAs led by O Joy, Dr. Ng Bijoy, Dr. I Ibohalbi and RK Anand on the failure of the forest department to generate income and was withdrawn following the clarification by the concerned minister

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