Chikkamagaluru: Forest department issues notice to clear unauthorized resorts, homestays
Chikkamagaluru: In the wake of Wayanad landslides, State government has ordered for the clearing of encroachments in the ecologically sensitive areas along the Western Ghats and Malenadu on Tuesday. Following this, the forest department has cleared encroachments in cases that has been already settled at the courts and the department is gearing up for more clearance.
Forest department has also issued clearance notices to unauthorized resorts and home-stays which are situated in ecologically sensitive areas and forest land. Based on the orders of the Minister for Forest and Ecology Eshwar Khandre's orders, District Forest Officer (DFO) Ramesh Babu has issued notices to more than 25 home-stays and resorts in Chikkamagaluru sub division and has demanded them to submit the revenue and other related documents authorizing their construction.
Along with unauthorized resorts and homestays, Forest department has also decided to clear residential layouts and plantations in encroached forest land. The department has also asked the unauthorized establishments, including estates and plantations, in Chikkamagaluru notified forest lands to immediately submit their revenue documents.
Malenadu region of Chikkamagaluru, nestled amidst the Western Ghats mountain range, attract thousands of tourist everyday which fuel the ever growing tourism industry in the coffee-land. Home-stays and resorts have come in almost all remote regions of the district to provide basic amenities to the visitors. Amidst all the authorized tourist establishments, many unpermitted resorts and home-stays also function, adding to the ever increasing nature-tourism menace. Environmentalists have repeatedly raised alarm against such tourist abodes. Wayanad and Ankola landslides have added impetus to the state's anti-encroachment drive in Western Ghats, a globally recognized biological hotspot.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
