No headway in creation of ESZ around Similipal

More than 50 unauthorised stone crusher units and over 100 illegal quarries are reportedly operating between Thakurmunda on the foothills of Similipal and Bangiriposhi in Mayurbhanj district

- POST NEWS NETWORK

Uncertainty continues over the proposal to declare areas surrounding the Similipal National Park in Mayurbhanj district as an eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) despite repeated efforts by the Forest department to move the process forward under provisions of the Environment Protection Act, 1986.

Although the Baripada forest division had submitted a proposal to declare an area of 0-5 km radius around the protected forest as a restricted zone, it remains stalled due to a lack of response from the state government. Sources said the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) has directed the state government to clarify details regarding the buffer zone of the Similipal sanctuary, but no formal communication has yet been made.