Hotahoti issue

In the back drop of Hotahoti reserve forest issue that some individuals were allegedly using the land for various kinds of plantation, the Oting villagers have also appealed the department of forest to issue permit to landless farmers of Oting village in Shengphan reserved forest for cultivation.
Oting villagers, in a statement issued here, said the present Shengphan reserved forest was sold to then government in 1929 by the public of Wakching (Aokeang), Pongkong and Oting villages. However, on realizing that there was a vast cultivable area within the government acquired land, the Oting villagers had requested the government to exchange the Oting juhm land with some portion of the government acquired land for cultivation purpose for the past 40 years, but all efforts were to no avail.
The Oting villagers, on the other hand, have termed the Hotahoti issue as “new policy” adopted by the department of forest, Government of Nagaland.