Cases have to be filed under relevant provisions of the Forest Conservation Act against the Stone Plus company for its ‘pillage of reserve forest’ in Cheemalapadu notified reserve forest block in the catchment area of the Kalyanalova reservoir, said V.S. Krishna, A.P. and TS Coordination Committee member of the Human Rights Forum (HRF).
He was addressing a dharna by local farmers and adivasis who have for three days been blocking the transportation of granite slabs by the company near the reservoir in Ravikamatham mandal of Visakhapatnam district on Monday.
The 195 granite blocks quarried by the Stone Plus company were seized by the Forest department on May 1.
He said the Visakhapatnam Divisional Forest Officer in a letter on March 16 to the Director, Mines and Geology, urged “to cancel the mining lease granted erroneously in favour of Stone Plus since the lease area falls in…