Kerala's Coastal Zone Plan Nears Approval

Kerala is set to submit its draft Coastal Zone Management Plan (CZMP) to the union ministry. This draft has received approval from the state and aims to reclassify certain panchayats to a less restrictive zone. Approval could grant the state additional relaxations in various areas.

Kerala is on the verge of submitting its draft Coastal Zone Management Plan (CZMP) to the union ministry of forests, environment, and climate change, according to a statement from the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) on Wednesday.

A meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan concluded with the agreement to push forward the draft, which the Kerala Coastal Management Authority has already approved. The draft was formulated following the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification of 2019 issued by the Centre.

The state has recommended converting 175 village panchayats with urban traits from CRZ III to the less restrictive CRZ II. So far, 66 have received approval from the Centre. Kerala plans to request the reclassification of the remaining 109 panchayats. The draft CZMP's approval could also bring relaxations for mangrove forests and pokkali rice fields, alongside reducing the non-development zone in the islands from 50 meters to 20 meters, pending Integrated Island Management Plan clearance.

(With inputs from agencies.)