Manish Tewari writes to Om Birla over forest bill sent to joint panel

Congress MP Manish Tewari wrote to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Thursday over the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill, 2023, being sent to a joint committee and demanded that it be examined by the standing committee.

Tewari's letter to Birla comes a day after senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh lodged a protest with Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar over the bill being sent to a joint committee and demanded that it be examined by the standing committee, headed by Ramesh.

Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav introduced the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill, 2023, in Lok Sabha on Wednesday. The Bill was then sent to a joint committee of both the Houses for discussion.

The Bill seeks to bring clarity to the country's forest conservation law and exempt certain categories of land from its purview to fast-track strategic and security-related projects of national importance.

In his letter to Birla, Tewari raised the issue of the "unusual manner" in which the Forest (Conservation