Cong questions MP govt over tree felling in Singrauli, stages walkout from assembly

Bhopal, Dec 5 (PTI) Congress MLAs on Friday staged a walkout from the Madhya Pradesh assembly, accusing the state government of indulging in widespread felling of trees in Singrauli district, and said it was depriving the local tribals of their rights for the benefit of capitalists.

Rejecting the allegation, the government said that everything in Singrauli district is being done as per the rules, leading to a heated exchange between the ruling party and the Opposition.

Dissatisfied with the government's response, Congress members raised slogans and walked out of the House.

Congress MLAs Vikrant Bhuria and Jaivardhan Singh raised the issue through a call attention motion, claiming that six lakh trees are being chopped in the forests of Singrauli district.

Calling the tree felling activity as illegal, Bhuria said, "If all the cutting of trees is being done with permission, why is there a situation of protest?" He also asked the government to clarify the situation regarding the exclusion of eight villages in the district from the notified area.

Bhuria alleged that widespread deforestation is being carried out in the name of handing over three coal mines to the Adani Group.

Trees are being cut in Singrauli and being planted in Sagar and Shivpuri, which is completely unreasonable, he alleged.

Trees are being cut from the land of the tribals in Singrauli. The tribals will be affected by the destruction of the forest. Where will they get oxygen from? The government is being unfair to the tribals, the Congress legislator added.

The government is not following the Forest Act and other rules for all these activities, he said.

Rejecting the Opposition's allegations, Minister of State for Forests Dilip Ahirwar said the trees are being cut as per the rules and that the same number of trees are being planted elsewhere.

He said, "The same amount of land that is being taken away is also being made available." Ahirwar said, "All the rules of the state government or the Centre are being followed in Singrauli. There is no violation of rules." Meanwhile, Leader of the Opposition Umang Singhar questioned minister Ahirwar, pointing out that in response to a question asked in the Lok Sabha in 2023, the government had stated that Singrauli is covered by the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (PESA Act), while Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya is claiming the opposite.

He accused Vijayvargiya of providing false information in the House and asked the government to clarify the situation.

When minister Ahirwar failed to provide a satisfactory answer, Vijayvargiya retorted that Ahirwar is a first-time MLA, but he has given a very correct answer.

He claimed that the PESA Act has never been in effect in Singrauli because the population of tribals there is low.

Even after this, opposition members continued to question the government about when and how Singrauli was excluded from the PESA Act.

Assembly Speaker Narendra Singh Tomar told the protesting members that the forest minister would meet the Leader of the Opposition separately to answer all questions.

A heated debate ensued between the ruling and the Opposition parties on the issue, after which all Congress members walked out of the House. PTI BNS MAS NP