Shimla: Revenue and Horticulture Minister, Jagat Singh Negi today here presided over a meeting with the senior officers of various departments to deliberate on framing a clear and balanced policy regarding encroachment on forest land, in accordance with the directions of the Supreme Court of India.
The Minister said that the present state government was committed to uphold the principles of a welfare state while fully complying with the directions of the Supreme Court. He said that the proposed policy would aim to strike a fair balance between protecting forest land and safeguarding the interests of the people.
It was decided in the meeting to constitute a Sub-Committee under the chairmanship of the Additional Secretary (Revenue) Anil Chauhan, with officers from the Forest and Law Departments as members. The Sub-Committee has been directed to carefully examine the Supreme Court’s guidelines and submit a draft policy within one week.
Additional Chief Secretary Kamlesh Kumar Pant, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Head of Forest Force) Sanjay Sood, Additional Secretary (Revenue) Balwan Chand, Additional Secretary (Revenue) Sunil Verma, Joint Secretary (Law) Dr. Vivek Jyoti and other senior officers of the Revenue, Forest and Law Departments were present in the meeting.
