A Government appointed panel has recommended a number of measures to reach out to 56 tribal villages in the Naxal-hit Saranda forest area in Jharkhand.

The team appointed by Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh to study the implementation of various ministry programmes in the district suggested short term and medium term interventions to reach out to the 7000 tribal households with population of 36,500.

Short term interventions should be completed before six months while the medium term ones are to be completed before two years.

The report prepared by the nine-member team comprising officials from Rural Development Ministry, World Bank and Jharkhand Government said ; Ministry is keen on implementing a focused development plan called Saranda Action Plan (SAP) in Saranda forest through the Jharkhand Government as the tribal inhabitants have been victims of long years of official apathy and isolation from the development process due to presence of Maoists.

According to the report, the area has 25 per cent of the known iron ore deposits in the country and the reserves are exploited by more than 12 mining companies with 50 mines.

The Union Government's Saranda Action Plan (SAP) proposes to implement various ambitious programmes including distribution of solar lamps, bicycles, transistors and musical instruments to all the families living in the forests.