He said the state government formed the committee last week to oversee all works being carried out on hills in the state and other related matters.

“Matters such as hill land activity on Penang Hill and Relau will be discussed in the meeting,” he said in a statement, in response to a front-page report in The Star which said that indiscriminate farming had led to widespread bald patches on the Penang Hill range.

Farizan said the committee will comprise the heads of the Lands and Mines Department, Town and Country Planning Department, and Planning and Development Department, all five district officers, and representatives of the two local authorities.

“The committee will report all matters and recommendations to the State Land Committee,” he added. The state land committee is chaired by the Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng.

The Star report was accompanied by an aerial photograph of farming terraces cut into the hillsides. The report compared the excess clearing as comparable to those discovered two years ago in Cameron Highlands, Pahang.

Other aerial photographs showed construction work, ostensibly without permit, taking place at elevations of between 180m and 450m on the hill range. Residents have brought up their concerns about illegal structures being erected and of soil erosion.