In 3 years, Gujarat Government allotted 2K hectares of forest land to giant industries

Gandhinagar : In the last three years, the BJP government in Gujarat has reportedly given about 2,000 hectares of forest land to companies for commercial uses, according to the opposition Congress party in the state  legislative assembly. Arjun Modhwadia, a Congress lawmaker from Porbandar, said that the BJP has used this conversion to provide preferential treatment to a select few.

Arjun Modhwadia, Congress MLA from Porbandar said, “537 hectares of forest land was provided to 220 units in 2020-21, 533.” This was in response to budget requests made by the Gujarat state parliament on Tuesday by the department of environment and forest management.In 2021-22, 96 units were given 48 hectares of forest land, and in 2022-23, 74 units were given 318 hectares. As a result, about 2,000 acres of forest were turned into commercial property in only three years.

“They (the BJP administration) provided preferential treatment to certain individuals. In order for a giant company to generate 300 megawatts of electricity, the government granted them forest land. Though they never constructed the power station, the corporation did own the property on which the steel mill now sits, and they dumped toxic slag on it. According to Modhwadia, the government “regularised that land given to the industry” after an alert citizen petitioned the Gujarat High Court.

“Moreover, the Gujarat government provided forest land in Surat (Hazira) and the land which was obtained in return had a negligible value compared to the forest land that was provided and that land was converted for commercial use at a jet speed,” Modhwadia said.