Environmental Activists from Madhya Pradesh have decided to hold a National Environment Parliament to protect the forests of Buxwaha and lakhs of trees to be felled under the Ken–Betwa river linking project. Moreover, the precious cave paintings in the Chhatarpur district are in danger as well.
The meet is to be held in the capital city of Madhya Pradesh reported News 18.
Jadav Payeng from Assam popularly known as the forest man of India is going to be one of the key speakers along with Narmada Bachao Andolan founder Medha Patkar, environment activist Amit Bhatnagar and others.
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At a press conference held on Friday, Sharad Singh Kumre of the Save Environment Campaign said, “the date for the environmental parliament will be announced soon.”
The Times of India reported that massive protests are continuing in the Buxwah town of Chattarpur district as a diamond project is proposed in the area.
This project will result in the felling of over 2.5 lakh trees. Cases have been registered both in the High Court as well as the NGT.
Paryavaran Bachao Abhiyan convener Shahrad Sigh Kumre said on Friday, “Besides drawing a strategy for saving over 25 lakh trees which are facing the axe in the Ken-Betwa river link and the Buxwaha diamond project in the Chhatarpur district, we will be keeping a session aside for political figures so that their stand could be clarified on the environmental issues.”
“Besides saving the greenery, we will be devising a strategy for safeguarding the stone age culture and rock paintings that exist in the forests of Buxwaha. Around 382-hectare area of the forest in Bundelkhand region is being leased out to an Aditya Birla group company for excavation of diamonds,” he added.
Kumre also asserted the need for a revision of the developmental policies in alliance with environmental hazards. “The mass destruction of forests is planned even though the area falls under an arid zone part of Bundelkhand,” he said.
Environmental enthusiasts are claiming that governments are not looking for a shift to the use of technology for diamonds in that particular area as diamonds could be produced artificially and there is no need to clear out such a vast flourishing forest in order to make them.
Anand Patel, one of the volunteers working in the field of environment protection asserted that even if afforestation is carried out in some other area it won’t be enough to replace a big natural flourishing forest such as Buxwaha.
Environment activists and volunteers are gathering in Bhopal for this National Environment Parliament from different parts of the country to raise awareness on other environmental issues along with the aforementioned immediate concerns.
Environmental activist and advocate Pushpraj Sharma said that “the event will highlight the issues which include the encroachment on the Bada talaab or the Upper Lake of Bhopal, the forest of Dumna in Jabalpur among others.”
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