TECHNICALPERMISSION FOR RIGHT OVER TREES;

Madikeri October 13, 2006

The government has given technical nod for the owners to enjoy right over trees.

The decision was arrived at a high level meeting held at Bangalore yesterday to review the problems faced by people of Kodagu.

Former minister M.C.Nanaiah went hammer and tong against the forest department which was opposing the demand for right over the tree. He stated that the Supreme court order to which the forest department was hanging on to shall not apply to Kodagu region. District in charge minister Ramachandra Gowda, who presided over the meeting, declared that the government will approve the demand by land owners and the orders would be passed in the next cabinet session. Ramachandra Gowda directed the forest and revenue officials to prepare a proposal in this regard.

Member of the Parliament Sadananda Gowda and other elected representatives took active part in the meeting in the presence of forest minister and revenue officials.

The minister also announced that the Greater Cauvery project to unite the three reserve forests was cancelled as majority of the representatives are against it. The project formed by the erstwhile government will hamper the movements and activities of the people, he observed.

The meeting also decided to release rupees five crores from the forest department to implement measures to stop elephant herds from entering town and villages. The forest department is advised to grow fodder inside the forests and fence the regions vulnerable to attack from pachyderms.

Other major problems like issue of Jamma land; regularization of encroachments and shifting of Tribes from the forest was also discussed. These will be attended to, assured Ramachandra Gowda.

HOUSE GUTTED WITH A WOMAN;

A HOUSE WIFE, Chomi died due to burn injuries yesterday in a bizarre incident reported from Chennagi near Siddapur.

Chomi’s cloths caught fire while cooking and it spread to her hut situated in the forest border yesterday. She fell unconscious as the fire began to rage.

Neighbors rushed to the spot and pulled her out. Receiving serious burn injuries, Chomi breathed her last on the way to hospital.

Police have registered a case.

R.K.LAXMAN SHARES HIS VIEWS;

The recipient of Magsaysay, padmabhushana and other prestigious awards, cartoonist R.K.Laxman was in town with his wife Kamala on a holiday. He was briefly interviewed by this correspondent at Mahindra Holiday resorts.

Laxman proudly says that he was a self made cartoonist. He either went to any art school or did anyone inspire him. He began to draw from the age of ten. He proudly says that he is attached to Times of India since fifty four years.

Laxman is a silent observer. He draws inspiration from day to day life of a common man and projects it through his strokes. Are you happy with the profession?, Laxman was asked. Of course yes. I wanted to be a professional cartoonist, and I have become one, he says. He began contributing pictures to his novelist brother R.K.Narayan’s stories being published in newspapers and magazines in the beginning.

Did any of his cartoons create controvercy? Lots of them, says Laxman. And one cartoon dragged him to court. He wrote a cartoon in which men folk were found burning busses and cars. A small boy was burning a scooter. The elders ask him, what kind of a Ram Bhakta are you? You are burning a scooter, which is so small.

This angered a section of the society and sued him. Well I was declared not guilty, he recalled.

Laxman says that he takes minimum six hours to draw a cartoon after giving it a serious thought.

Asked about his impression about Kodagu, he described it as a beautiful place.However he said that he could not enjoy the stay this time on two counts. One is the continuous rainfall and the other is bad roads. The roads are pretty bad and you find it very difficult to travel, he said. “ I like Kodagu as it was before” he said.

He was accompanied by his wife Kamala, who is a childrens story writer. Her stories on Tennali Rama were made into a movie for Door darshan.