No tampering, sanctity of Satkosia, Debrigarh to be kept intact: Govt to CEC

THE wildlife wing of Odisha government on Thursday submitted to the Supreme Court-monitored Central Empowered Committee (CEC) that it has dropped the contentious tourism and infrastructure plans in two key protected areas (PAs) of the state.

- SUDARSAN MAHARANA @ Bhubaneswar

In its compliance report filed with the CEC, the wildlife wing assured that the draft eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) plan for Satkosia Tiger Reserve will be submitted in line with the guidelines of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC).

It also conveyed that the request for proposal (RFP) to select consultant to prepare the detailed project report (DPR) for development of Debridgarh Wildlife Sanctuary has been cancelled.

The report informed that the draft ESZ for Satkosia is still under consideration of the government. It was under scrutiny for leaving two segments of the tiger reserve with zero ESZ boundaries.