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Afforestation push

New scheme, old proposal

THE Union environment and forests ministry has come up with a new scheme for compensatory afforestation in case of forest land being diverted for non-forest use. Under the scheme the user will identify a piece of land, develop a forest and transfer it to the forest department. Called the Green Credit Scheme, it has got administrative approval and has been sent to the Supreme Court for its clearance.
Under the Forest Conservation Act, 1980, if an industrial project requires diversion of forest land, the user has to pay for compensatory afforestation. Since 2000, the matter related to compensatory afforestation is in the Supreme Court, when a petition on non-utilization of compensatory afforestation fund was admitted. Following the apex court

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