Kerala stadium stumped by MoEF notice -Governance Now

Kerala stadium stumped by MoEF notice

Show cause notice served to cricket body over felling of mangroves

Neha Sethi | December 21, 2010

The Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) is the latest to have been served a notice by the ministry of environment and forests (MoEF). In a show cause notice issued on Tuesday, the KCA has allegedly been held responsible for illegal felling of mangroves. The notice states that illegal constructions have been carried out by KCA by destroying mangroves in coastal regulation zone-I area at Pambaimoola near Edakochi of Ernakulam District, Kerala.

The MoEF had sought a report from the ministry's Bangalore office after it was informed of illegal constructions by KCA resulting in destruction of mangroves. The order states that a site visit report has indicated that KCA have acquired the site for construction of international cricket stadium.

The Kerala State Coastal Zone Management Authority (KSCZMA) has also issued a notice to the KCA directing them to stop all construction activities. An FIR has also been registered on September 17, 2010 for forest offence.

The report states that KCA has violated the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) notification, 1991 by land reclamation, bunding, disturbing the natural course of seawater, destruction of mangroves, construction, developmental activities.

The chairman of the KSCZMA has been told to submit an action taken report to the MoEF within fifteen days from the receipt of the order.

The site has backwater systems and a map of the coastal zone management plan (CZMP) of Kerala shows the area as filtration ponds, the report states. Though there are no mangroves shown in the CZMP of the site but the report based on photographic evidence mentions that till September 3, 2010 there were mangroves at the site and these mangroves were removed by September 22, 2010.

The notice also says that the mangroves appear to have been removed to a large extent by the KCA which is in violation of CRZ notification and the site is a important bird area.

The KCA have contended that the said site is within municipal corporation and falls in Coastal Regulation Zone-II and the area did not have mangroves.

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