Notify Saranda sanctuary, top court tells Jharkhand

The Supreme Court on Thursday directed the Jharkhand government to notify the Saranda Wildlife Sanctuary across an area of over 31,000 hectares of forest land, while simultaneously reaffirming its earlier ruling that no mining shall be permitted within one kilometre of any national park or wildlife sanctuary’s boundary.

- AbrahamThomas [e-mail]

A bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Bhushan R Gavai and justice K Vinod Chandran said the notification must be issued within three months, covering 31,468.25 hectares of pristine forest — home to some of the world’s finest Sal trees and a rich array of wildlife — in West Singhbhum district. It clarified that essential public infrastructure like schools, dispensaries, and road and rail lines would remain protected, and directed the state to publicise this fact to allay fears among tribal and forest-dwelling communities.

The order makes Saranda the first sanctuary in India to be notified on the direction of the Supreme Court. The bench relied on a 1968 Bihar government notification declaring the area as Saranda Game Sanctuary under the then Bihar Forest,

THE SC EXCLUDED SIX FOREST COMPARTMENTS FROM SARANDA’S LIMITS FOR MINING, BUT MADE IT CLEAR THAT NO MINING ACTIVITY CAN TAKE PLACE WITHIN THE 1KM ECO-SENSITIVE ZONE AROUND IT

Hunting, Shooting and Fishing Rules, 1958.