Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: Town and Country Planning Minister Vishwajit Rane has said that the TCP Board has taken a decision to protect all private forests and wildlife sanctuaries in Goa based on letters received from the Forest Department.
Rane stated that all survey numbers of private lands falling within private forests, including those that were earlier removed from the private forest category, will be protected.
He added that an affidavit has already been filed before the Supreme Court on the matter.
The minister further noted that there is a stay by the Supreme Court on the removal of private forests, making it the responsibility of the state government, the Forest Department, and the Town and Country Planning Department to ensure their protection.
He said the government intends to create a “double-layer protection” mechanism through coordinated action by the Forest and TCP departments to safeguard private forests and the state’s wildlife sanctuaries.
