Times of India: Ahmedabad: Friday, 19 Jan 2024.
The Gujarat high court on Thursday issued notices to the authorities concerned after salt pan workers from Santalpur in the Little Rann of Kutch (LRK) complained they are not being allowed salt farming in the region despite being issued the agariya pothi, licence for salt farming, in 2008.
Justice V D Nanavati has sought a reply from the forest authorities and the Patan district collector by Jan 29 and asked the state government to positively consider the matter and not to turn away any salt pan worker if they hold a valid agariya pothi.
The petitioners’ counsel, Anand Yagnik, submitted that the forest officials have been denying salt cultivation in Santalpur region only, whereas nearly 3,800 families associated with the same activity in other regions within the wild ass sanctuary of the LRK Kharagoda, Dhrangadhra, Zinzuwada, Halwad and Maliya are being allowed to cultivate salt.
He raised the contention that the salt pan workers of Santalpur region are being discriminated against by the authorities. It was contended that the petitioners were given agariya pothi on the recommendation of a high-level committee after a detailed survey. Though the area was declared a wildlife sanctuary, 3,800 families could cultivate salt each on a tract of up to 10 acres. Despite the declaration of the area as a sanctuary, the rights of those using the land have not been recognized yet even after more than 45 years since the notification.
Moreover, it was also contended that despite a multi-fold increase in the area of salt pans in the LRK, the wild ass population also improved from a meagre 362 in 1969 to 4,451 in 2014 and 6,082 in 2020. This shows that salt production activities have not affected wildlife in this area.
The Gujarat high court on Thursday issued notices to the authorities concerned after salt pan workers from Santalpur in the Little Rann of Kutch (LRK) complained they are not being allowed salt farming in the region despite being issued the agariya pothi, licence for salt farming, in 2008.
Justice V D Nanavati has sought a reply from the forest authorities and the Patan district collector by Jan 29 and asked the state government to positively consider the matter and not to turn away any salt pan worker if they hold a valid agariya pothi.
The petitioners’ counsel, Anand Yagnik, submitted that the forest officials have been denying salt cultivation in Santalpur region only, whereas nearly 3,800 families associated with the same activity in other regions within the wild ass sanctuary of the LRK Kharagoda, Dhrangadhra, Zinzuwada, Halwad and Maliya are being allowed to cultivate salt.
He raised the contention that the salt pan workers of Santalpur region are being discriminated against by the authorities. It was contended that the petitioners were given agariya pothi on the recommendation of a high-level committee after a detailed survey. Though the area was declared a wildlife sanctuary, 3,800 families could cultivate salt each on a tract of up to 10 acres. Despite the declaration of the area as a sanctuary, the rights of those using the land have not been recognized yet even after more than 45 years since the notification.
Moreover, it was also contended that despite a multi-fold increase in the area of salt pans in the LRK, the wild ass population also improved from a meagre 362 in 1969 to 4,451 in 2014 and 6,082 in 2020. This shows that salt production activities have not affected wildlife in this area.
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