Incorrect classification of forest land led to short recovery of Rs. 58.64 crore from MPSEZ:CAG

Ahmedabad

The comptroller & Auditor General of India(CAG) in it’s latest audit report of the Gujarat Government functioning observed that the Incorrect classification of forest land led to short recovery of net present value(NPV) of Rs.58.64 crore from the Adani group’s Mundra Port and Special Economic Zone Limited(MPSEZ) to the state government.

The CAG noted that, “The classification of forests given in the ‘Forest Types of India’, document the coastal belt of Mundra including the diverted forest land falls under Eco-Class II-Littoral and swamp Forests. Therefore, diverted forests land should have been classified as Eco-Class II, for which NPV was of Rs.7.30 lakh per hector. Thus, the incorrect classification of forest land under Eco-Class-IV instead of Eco-Clas-II resulted in short recovery of NPV of Rs.58.64 crore from MPSEZ.’’

DeshGujarat