State govt gives nod for diversion of reserve forest land for road projects in Pune
The diversion was mainly proposed for district and state highway construction or extension purposes. The conditions for the approval included compensatory afforestation, alternative land transfer to the forest department, and also obtaining necessary wildlife permission from the competent authority if required, said officials.
Deepak Pawar, assistant conservator of forest, Pune division, said,'I have not received the order copy yet. We will share more details after checking the details mentioned in the order copy.'
As per the GR, the Maharashtra government in 2023 received proposals from the additional principal chief conservator of forests and nodal officer, Maharashtra state. These proposals included diversion of reserve forest land for road repair, widening and even construction work. The government has provided an in-principle approval earlier, and after careful consideration of the proposal and compliance report, the state government has issued the final approval for diversion of reserve forest land under Section 2 of Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980.
The GR, along with 29 conditions, also mentioned that the legal status of the land will remain unchanged, and forest land will be handed over only after the required non-forest land for the project is handed over to the user agency.
The other significant conditions include: compensatory afforestation shall be taken up by the forest department at the cost of the user agency. The forest department is also directed to charge the Net Present Value (NPV) for the 0.09 ha.
Forest land is to be diverted under this proposal from the user agency. The conditions also mentioned that the user agency shall obtain wildlife clearance, if required.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Indian Express
6 days ago
- Indian Express
Protest seeking disbursementof grants: Oppn leaders join teachers at protest site in Azad MaidanOppn leaders join teachers at protest site in Azad Maidan
Hundreds of teachers from various unaided schools from across Maharashtra are protesting at Mumbai's Azad Maidan for the past few days, demanding immediate disbursement of grants promised by the state government in 2024. According to protesting teachers, a Government Resolution (GR) was issued on October 14, 2024 which stated that the fourth phase of government grant approved for over 5,000 private unaided schools in the state will be issued following such a decision made during the legislative assembly session taking place around that time. However, even after ten months, the government is yet to make any financial provision for this, leading to widespread anger among teachers. Sanjay Daware from Kayam Vinaanudanit Shala Kruti Samiti, which is one of the teachers' organisations participating in the ongoing protest, said, 'The amount goes up to Rs 1,160 crore. Even as the government assured release of this grant in 2024, there is no development thereafter.' As per information shared by Daware, currently there are 5,844 partially aided private schools in the state. These include 820 primary, 1,984 secondary, and 3,040 higher secondary schools. A total of 8,602 primary teachers, 24,028 secondary teachers, and 16,932 higher secondary teachers and non-teaching staff are employed in these schools. All these schools were initially approved on the principle that they will always remain unaided, meaning there will be no government grants. In 2009, the word 'always' was removed by the government, following a massive protest by teachers. Furthermore, it was decided to make them partially aided, based on the evaluation of these schools. Accordingly, in 2014, such evaluations were held, and partial grants were approved for these schools in phases to be disbursed at regular intervals. Daware said that three phases of such granting are completed successfully, and a fourth one was finalised in October 2024. 'But it remains on paper, forcing us to agitate in protest,' he said. Various political leaders from the opposition are now coming out in their support of protesting teachers. Congress MLC Satej Patil raised the issue in the legislative council of over 10,000 teachers sitting in protest at Azad Maidan for demand of grants assured by the state government and demanded that the chief minister should call them for discussion. While responding to Patil, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis hit back at Congress-NCP and Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government for not helping teachers in the past and now playing politics over it. Fadnavis also announced that Minister Girish Mahajan has been coordinating with the teachers' association and the government will hold a meeting with them. 'All these schools were started on the condition of being permanently non-aided, but Congress-NCP government later removed the word permanently non-aided. During my first government between 2014-2019 we gave the first phase of grant. After 2019, the MVA government was there but that government did not give a single rupee to them and now leaders from the opposition are playing politics and it's not good. State government has assured them of the next phase of grant but there are some issues, and we will hold a meeting with teachers,' said Fadnavis. Earlier, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and Nationalist Congress Party (SP) president Sharad Pawar on Wednesday extended support to the protests by teachers at Azad Maidan by visiting the protest site. On Tuesday night, NCP (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar spent a night at Azad Maidan along with protesting teachers. 'I have come to promise you today what we had promised when we were in power. We will not sit still until we give you what you deserve. We always say, 'Father is God, Mother is God, Guru is God.' But the rulers only want to listen to what Delhiites say, as they are their Guru. That is why injustice is being done by them. In Maharashtra, the slaves of Delhi have taken the vow to crush the sons of the land and the Marathi people. Let us unite and teach them such a lesson that they will not be left to falter,' said Thackeray. He further added, 'Remember that we were and are with you, and we will come again.' He took a dig at Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for his 'Mi Punha Yein' (I will come back again).' Pawar said that while the teachers' responsibility is to extend education to students, it is the government's responsibility to ensure right to live with pride. 'We always worked with this attitude. I was told that the minister was coming to meet you and solve the problem. But since you are still sitting here, that means the issue has not been solved. I feel that those who have the responsibility to create the future generation should not face the trouble of fighting for their own rights,' said Pawar.
The Hindu
07-07-2025
- The Hindu
Primary education should be in mother tongue, says RSS
Primary education should be given in mother tongue, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) said on Monday (July 7, 2025), amid a raging controversy over the three-language policy. The statement comes amid a roll-back in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. 'All the Indian languages are national languages. This has been the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's stated position for a long time now. In each State, people speak their own language, they insist that primary education should be given in that language. I think, this is a well-established fact for some time now,' Sunil Ambekar, RSS Akhil Bharatiya Prachar Pramukh, said in New Delhi. The statement assumes significance in the background of the protests against the three-language policy. In Maharashtra, the State government had to scrap the two orders implementing the introduction of the third language in primary education. Several civil society members and Opposition parties termed it an effort to 'impose Hindi'. In a protest held in Mumbai on Monday (July 7, 2025), academics called it the RSS agenda of 'Hindi, Hindu, Hindustan'. 'The BJP is trying to further this agenda of the RSS. Our insistence is on Marathi language, on the complete withdrawal of the three-language policy in primary education in State Board schools,' Deepak Pawar of the Marathi Abhyas Kendra said on Monday. Reacting to the statement by the RSS, Maharashtra Minister and BJP leader Ashish Shelar told The Hindu, 'There is no doubt about the Sangh statement. Even the BJP believes that primary education should take place in mother tongue. The NEP [National Education Policy] has given prerogative to each State with respect to the three-language policy. Accordingly, the Maharashtra government had taken its decision, which stands cancelled now.'
The Hindu
05-07-2025
- The Hindu
Why is Maharashtra debating over Hindi?
The story so far: The linguistic debate in Maharashtra continues days after the Maharashtra government withdrew two orders introducing Hindi as the third language in primary education across Marathi and English medium State Board schools. The government has appointed a committee under renowned economist Dr. Narendra Jadhav to study the three-language policy. What is the language debate in Maharashtra? On April 16, the Maharashtra government issued an order making Hindi mandatory as the third language in all English and Marathi medium schools of the State Board in Maharashtra. The government said that it was as per the provisions of the National Education Policy (NEP), 2020. 'At present, two languages are being taught from Grade 1 to Grade 4 in all the English and Marathi medium schools in the State. As per the State Education Framework, 2024, Hindi will be mandatory as the third language in all the English and Marathi medium schools from Grade 1 to Grade 5,' the order stated. Till now, third language was introduced only in Grade 5 in English and Marathi medium State Board schools. The other medium schools already have a three-language policy in primary education. What was the reaction? There was widespread opposition to the government's decision on two grounds — first, that a third language should not be imposed in primary school from Grade 1 to Grade 5. The second ground was about the imposition of Hindi. Regional linguistic groups, academics, civil society members, and prominent literary figures raised their voice against the move which was dubbed as an effort to 'force Hindi', and a move towards 'cultural hegemony'. The Maharashtra government's own language committee wrote to the government seeking its immediate revocation. Experts argued that the NEP, 2020 focussed on R1 and R2, which is the mother-tongue, and an additional second language for primary education. They said that children should not be burdened with learning three languages in primary school. 'Why should there be an imposition of Hindi? This is a concerted effort for cultural hegemony. This is in line with the RSS' plan of 'Hindi, Hindu, Hindustan'. In Maharashtra, the Marathi manoos will stand for his linguistic, cultural identity. This is a historic moment since the movement for the reorganisation of States on linguistic basis. The entire State has stood against the government's imposition of Hindi,' Deepak Pawar of Marathi Abhyas Kendra said. How did the government respond? After a severe backlash, Maharashtra education minister Dada Bhuse promised to revise the government resolution (GR). 'Hindi will not be mandatory,' he announced. On June 17, the government revised the GR, making Hindi a 'general' third language in schools. It stated that the students had the option to learn any other Indian language as the third language, but that it was mandatory for at least 20 students to come together to make the demand. 'The government will make a teacher available or will make provision for online learning if at least 20 students come together to learn any other Indian language apart from Hindi,' the revised GR stated. Also read:Language of unity: On Maharashtra and the issue of Hindi However, this drew further backlash as academics and regional linguistic political parties called it an effort to impose Hindi through the backdoor. 'The whole exercise of the meeting of the steering committee was carried out in secrecy by the government. The language committee of the government itself was never consulted on the move. The decision is illogical. It has no scientific backing by educationists, child psychologists. It has been taken without any consultation with the stakeholders and experts. At a time when the Marathi culture and language is not being respected by its own government, this is an assault on the linguistic identity of the State,' said Laxmikant Deshmukh, head of Maharashtra's language committee. What about political realignments? The issue provided a fillip to Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, which counts 'Marathi asmita' or linguistic chauvinism as its core ideology. 'We are Hindus, not Hindis,' he said. It paved the path for the reunification of the Thackeray cousins after two decades. Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray joined hands against the government's move, even holding a joint rally. Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar too openly expressed his displeasure with the government's decision and said that Hindi should not be imposed till Grade 4. This has led to an unease within the Mahayuti with Eknath Shinde not wanting to be seen as standing against the cause. In the face of upcoming local body elections, the language debate has led to changed political dynamics. What is the way ahead? The government has announced the scrapping of the two controversial GRs issued on April 16 and June 17. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced the formation of a committee under Dr. Narendra Jadhav to look into the three-language policy, and said the government will accept his report. Academics have raised questions on Dr. Jadhav's expertise in school education, and have demanded the scrapping of the committee as well as the decision to impose the three-language policy in primary education. Opposition parties have said the government should scrap the three-language policy altogether. 'We will not accept the three-language policy,' Sanjay Raut, Shiv Sena UBT leader, said.
