Political parties demand alternative land for tribals

Coimbatore: Members of political parties and activists petitioned the forest department on Friday, demanding alternative land parcels for inmates of Kallar and Sarkarpathi tribal settlements in the Anamalai tiger reserve, who were affected by landslide last year.
While residents of Kallar settlement want land at Theppakulamedu, those of Sarkarpathi want to stay at the old labour colony, said V S Paramasivam, president of the Tamil Nadu tribal people welfare association. “When the residents attempted to construct straw huts, officials prevented them and accommodate them in the quarters of tea estate workers in Thaimudi. Twenty families are residing in six houses for the last one year,” he said. TNN