Delineation of elephant corridors in KNZTR, creation of eco sensitive zones discussed

June 23 Nine elephant corridors are being identified for Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve (KNZTR). A meeting was held at the office chamber of Veterinary and Animal Husbandry Minister, Atul Bora at Janata Bhavan in which Environment and Forest Minister Parimal Suklabaidya, Health and Family Welfare Minister, Keshab Mahanta, Commissioner and Secretary, Environment and Forest, Gyanendra Dev Tripathi, PCCF (Wildlife) Amit Sahai, Chief Wildlife Warden, MK Yadava and other officials took part.

The meeting decided to constitute a committee headed by a chairman to make an on-the-spot verification of the areas for delineation of nine animal corridors in the UNESCO world heritage site. Ministers Atul Bora and Keshab Mahanta in whose constituencies the identified elephant corridors fall will help and assist the team in conducting the field survey.

The committee after making assessment will place its interim report after 15 days and the final report within a fortnight. The meeting discussed threadbare about the proposed nine identified elephant corridors as well as creation of eco sensitive zones in KNZTR to provide safe passage to the pachyderms and to ward off man-elephant conflicts. The new additional areas of the park together with reserved forests will come under a single integrated entity.

In April, 2019, acting on an application by animal activist Rohit Choudhury, the Supreme Court had “restrained” all mining activities along the southern boundary of KNPTR and in the entire catchment area of rivers/streams and rivulets originating in Karbi Anglong hill ranges and flowing into the park. “No new construction shall be permitted on private lands which form part of the nine identified animal corridors,” the order stated.

It may be mentioned here that the Environment and Forest department had submitted an affidavit to the apex court on the nine identified elephant corridors with geo coordinates. The Supreme Court had asked the department to issue notification of the identified corridors.