Kuala lumpur: The Kelantan government has assured that any forest reserve areas degazetted for development or exploration will be replaced to maintain the state's forest reserve coverage. Deputy Menteri Besar Datuk Dr Mohamed Fadzli Hassan confirmed this commitment, addressing concerns over the degazetted Temangan Forest Reserve in Machang due to granite mining.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the issue stems from a 2009 approval granted to a company for granite mining within the Temangan Forest Reserve. Fadzli explained that the area was recently degazetted to facilitate the earlier approval. He further stated that he had consulted the Kelantan State Forestry Department to verify the replacement status of the forest reserve. The department assured that any cancelled forest reserve would be substituted with another area.

In related developments, Datuk Wan Roslan Wan Hamat, Chairman of the State Education, Higher Education, Green Technology, Digital and Innovation Committee, announced a new international Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) pathway for tahfiz students. The state government will sponsor 10 tahfiz students to pursue a Diploma in Aircraft Maintenance Mechanical Engineering at Dongyang Mirae University in South Korea. These students are anticipated to start their three-year program in September, with each receiving a RM130,000 scholarship and free accommodation from the university.

Wan Roslan emphasized that the program aims to equip tahfiz graduates with professional skills aligned with industry and labor market demands. This initiative followed a Kelantan delegation's visit to South Korea, focusing on expanding international education and skills training opportunities. Subsequently, the Kelantan Islamic Foundation signed a memorandum of understanding with Dongyang Mirae University and the Korea Aviation Academy to enhance cooperation in education and technical training for aircraft maintenance.