Kerala will press for more relaxation in CRZ, says state CM Vijayan

The Kerala government on Monday said it would continue adopting strong measures to secure further relaxation in the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) from the Centre, in line with the state's interests. The central government has approved the draft Coastal Management Plan prepared and submitted by the state to obtain relaxation in the regulation limit for the construction activities on the sea and backwater coasts, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told the state assembly. An official announcement in this regard is expected soon, and with this, the state would get related benefits, he said. The CM was replying to a calling attention motion by P Nandakumar on the CRZ issue in the House. In 2019, the union government had issued a notification to allow further relaxation in the Coastal Management Act, and the state appointed a three-member expert panel to study these concessions to make them completely beneficial to the state, he said. On the basis of the committee's report, detailed ...