The state government has formed a committee last week to look into the controversial issue of hill clearing in Penang, reported Free Malaysia Today (FMT).
Known as the Hill Land Working Committee, its members will consist of all five district officers in the state and representatives of two local authorities, along with the heads of the Planning & Development Department, Lands & Mines Department, as well as Town & Country Planning Department.
Moreover, the body will hold a meeting today to discuss hill land activity on Penang Hill and Relau, and to manage all works being carried out on important areas, said Committee Chairman Farizan Darus, who is also the State Secretary.
“The committee will report all matters and recommendations to the State Land Committee, which is headed by Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng,” he added.
Notably, the state government quickly formed the Hill Land Working Committee after a front-page report in The Star showed that there are many barren patches on the Penang Hill ranges due to indiscriminate farming.
The report said the damage done to the hills is comparable to those seen at Cameron Highlands in Pahang two years ago.
Aside from the aerial photographs showing the destruction wrought by reckless farming, other photos in the report also revealed construction work being done between 180m and 450m on the hill range. There is also a possibility that these developments were not approved by Penang’s state government.
Image: Sourced from Free Malaysia Today
Mangalesri Chandrasekaran, Editor at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact her about this or other stories email mangales@propertyguru.com.my
