Kozhikode: Former Opposition leader and senior Congress MLA Ramesh Chennithala on Tuesday said the State Government has cheated the farmers on the buffer zone issue. "The government has taken an anti-farmer stand on this issue from the beginning," he said.

Demanding the withdrawal of the report on the satellite survey of the Eco-sensitive zones around the wild life sanctuaries, he said the document was riddled with errors.
"The forest minister is not clear about submitting the report to the Supreme Court. He makes one statement in the morning, only to retract it in the evening. The Chief Minister should clarify on this matter. The concerns of the Church on the issue should be taken seriously," he said.

He asked the government to shed the false pride and protect the interests of the farmers.
Govt erred, says Thalassery Bishop
Thalassery Archdiocese Archbishop Mar Joseph Pamplani said the state government has erred in the buffer zone issue.

He said he doubted whether the LDF-government was thinking of leaving people in the lurch.

"The report should have been prepared considering the peculiarities of each place and the concerns of the people there. The map has been published ignoring the demands put forward by the farmers completely. This is highly objectionable," he said.

"I don't know who Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan was referring to when he said that some people have ulterior motives. In case if someone engages in some evil deeds, the Chief Minister is the person who should bring them to justice," he added.