Satkosia ESZ Row: Govt Calls Key Meet With CEC

FACING flak for alleged deviation in the draft proposal of the eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) around Satkosia Tiger Reserve, the Odisha government has called a crucial meeting of all stakeholders to deliberate on the issue before finalising the notification of the plan.

- EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Bhubaneswar

Sources said, the high-level meeting scheduled to be held on July 1 will be chaired by chief secretary Manoj Ahuja in the presence of chairman of the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) Siddhanta Das.

The CEC, constituted by the Supreme Court, had recently sought a response from the state government on what it termed as 'gross violation' of apex court's directives concerning the ESZ around Satkosia.

The CEC had raised concern over major changes in the draft ESZ notification by the Forest, Environment and Climate Change (EF&CC) department. The committee flagged that some of these modifications appeared to be aimed at promoting tourism at the cost of ecological safeguards.