Thiruvananthapuram: Minister for electricity and environment Sunny Joseph said that the state govt is firmly committed to exclude inhabited areas, farmlands and plantations from the ecologically sensitive area (ESA) boundary.He said govt is also moving ahead after carefully examining and understanding the demands and suggestions raised by elected representatives and various organisations, with the aim of protecting the interests of the people of the state, especially farmers, and appealed for everyone’s support and cooperation.The state will submit a special request to the Union ministry of environment and forests seeking adequate revisions to the seventh draft notification issued on July 26, 2026, so that inhabited areas, farmland, and plantations can be fully left out. “In this regard, govt has initiated follow-up steps based on a comprehensive departmental report prepared with the recommendation that 33 villages be completely excluded from the ESA,” he added.A high-level meeting chaired by chief minister V D Satheesan and attended by ministers and senior officials discussed Kerala’s objections to the ESA. “Citing its limited land area, extensive forest cover, high population density and existing environmental laws, the state sought the complete exclusion of residential areas, agricultural land and plantations,” Joseph said.The minister added that govt remains fully committed to convincing the central committee about Kerala’s special circumstances and securing favourable decisions.“In view of the strong public protests and sentiments against the Kasturirangan report, which had proposed declaring 13,108 square kilometres across 123 villages in Kerala as ESA, efforts and measures to remove residential zones, agricultural land, and plantations from the ESA limits had already begun during the tenure of the Oommen Chandy govt,” he said.Following this, the Oommen V Oommen committee, formed for the purpose, conducted a study in the 123 villages, after which Keralam submitted its recommendations and demands to the Union ministry of environment and forests, he said.“Subsequently, in the draft notification issued by the ministry on March 10, 2014, under section 733(E), the ESA extent in Keralam was reduced from 13,108 square kilometres to 9,993.7 square kilometres. Of this, 9,107 square kilometres were proposed as forest land and 886.7 square kilometres as non-forest land. The notification also specifically referred to Kerala’s studies and proposals seeking the complete exclusion of inhabited areas and farmland from the ESA,” Joseph added.The same position was repeated by the Centre in the later republished draft notifications, including five subsequent notifications. Meanwhile, although the number of villages rose from 123 to 131 due to the bifurcation of some of the original villages, the total area of 9,993.7 square kilometres remained unchanged, he added.Later, the state submitted another proposal to the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests to redefine the state’s ESA area as 8,590.69 sq km across 98 villages, he said. When the Centre sought additional details, the state also provided spatial files and other supporting information. However, the proposed changes were not accepted in the seventh draft notification issued on July 27, 2026.
