UDF panel holds sitting on Nelliampathy issue

The UDF subcommittee constituted to study various aspects of the Nelliampathy issue, with A N Rajan Babu as the new convenor, held a sitting for evidence and opinion collection here on Friday and veered around the view that court verdicts are of paramount importance in the issue and both ecological as well as farmers concerns have to be addressed.
 The committee will hold another sitting here on September 5.
 “The opinion of all concerned including the report presented by a team of UDF MLAs who had visited Nelliampathy will be taken into account.
 If necessary,the UDF sub-committee will pay another visit to Nelliampathy region,”Rajan Babu said, briefing the media after the sitting.

 Panel members Dr Varghese George, K R Aravindakshan, N Shamsudeen MLA, Palakkad DCC president Balachandran and Government Chief Whip P C George,who is also a member of the panel,were present.
 Rajan Babu discounted doubts that the report of the panel will be torn asunder with pulls and pressures from vested interests.
 “Everyone will come to know that the panel report was based on impartial facts and assessment,once it is out.
It will be comprehensive,” he said.
 “It will definitely help the government to fine tune a policy on Nelliampathy estates,” he hoped.
 The convenor kept away from all dicey queries and insisted that the panel was keen on undertaking a really good job.
 The sitting of the panel was noted as it was the first one after the exit of Congress senior leader and spokesman M M Hassan from its convenorship and also for the benign silence kept by P C George while meeting the media.
 “The panel findings,even when related to Nelliampathy, will have a definite bearing across the state, especially the hilly tracts of Idukki and Wayanad.
The report will be a pointer to the s t a t e , ” said K R Aravindakshan,CMP state secretary.
 Karshaka Congress representatives led by state president Lal Varghese Kalpakavadi,and those representing Infarm and smallscale farmers presented their case before the panel on Friday.