CPI to oppose C'garh sanction for felling 8,000 trees

Jagdalpur, Oct 3: Senior CPI leader Chitranjan Bakshi said he suspected that sanctioning of felling of 8,000 teak trees by the Chhattisgarh Government will lead to a major scam.

Talking to UNI here, Mr Bakshi alleged that state Forest minister Brijmohan Agrawal had proposed to fell the trees valued at Rs 50,000 crore as part of a conspiracy similar to the 1994 Malik-Madbaja scandal in which trees on private land were allowed to be felled.

He informed that Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil would go through the issue of acquisition of cultivated lands for big industries in Bastar.

The CPI leader said the party would openly oppose the plan.

Replying to a question. Mr Bakshi said Mr Patil had recently assured to Lahanddiguda area's sarpanchs in New Delhi to look into the acquisition of agricultural land in Bastar for big Industries like TATA and ESSAR.

UNI