2,000 resorts, homes at risk of legal strife

2,000 resorts, homes at risk of legal strife

Almost 2,000 resorts and private houses in national forest reserves nationwide are at risk of legal action if their owners fail to produce valid land ownership documents, the Royal Forest Department has warned.

Inspections of the owners' right to use the land is expected to be completed within 60 days, department chief Chonlatid Suraswadi said yesterday, adding officials have already run checks on 476 of them.

"We expect to finish the inspections and act against any wrongdoers by the end of November," he said.

According to the department's latest survey, a total of 1,958 resorts and houses in national forest reserves are located across four regions -- 1,025 in the North, 229 in the Central Plains, 400 in the Northeast and 304 in the South.

Mr Chonlatid said the department has taken legal action against 94 owners as they could not present valid land ownership documents. Their resorts are located in ecologically sensitive areas, including watersheds which are essential sources of water, he said.

According to the department, of the 94 resorts and private homes, 26 are in Chiang Mai, three in Chiang Rai, one in Nan, 12 in Nakhon Sawan, 10 in Phetchabun, 14 in Saraburi, two in Loei, two in Khon Kaen, 12 in Ratchaburi, one in Phetchaburi, one in Phangnga and 10 in Rayong.

The department yesterday said it has managed to reclaim 103,124 rai of forest land from encroachers nationwide. The cost of damage from the encroachment is estimated at 9.2 billion baht.

Meanwhile, authorities yesterday finished the demolition of 19 allegedly illegal resorts on Phu Thap Boek, a well-known scenic mountain in Phetchabun province, said Lom Kao district chief Chanchai Sonsichai, who led a team of 220 officials to clear the areas.

Their work, which started on Aug 19, had gone smoothly without resistance from locals, he said.

The government plans to use the Phu Thap Boek operation as a model for demolishing other resorts in areas where forest land has been encroached upon. The 19 resorts are just the first batch, Mr Chanchai said.

Hundreds of villagers earlier this month petitioned Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to halt the demolition work and set up a joint panel to deal with allegations of illegal buildings on the mountain, originally reserved for the resettlement of Hmong hilltribe people.

However, some highlanders were accused of leasing the land to outsiders who built resorts.

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