GUWAHATI, AUG 29:
The Assam Congress on Saturday organised ‘padayatras’ across the state to protest the proposed reduction of the Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ) around Kaziranga National Park.
Congress leaders and workers participated in protests in several districts, including Sonitpur, Lakhimpur, Hailakandi, Karimganj, Tinsukia, Karbi Anglong and Golaghat.
The protesters marched through the streets of district headquarters, raising slogans against the government and demanding withdrawal of the proposal to reduce the ESZ.
In Guwahati, Leader of Opposition in the state assembly Wazed Ali Choudhury, former MP Ripun Bora, state women’s wing president Mira Borthakur and other party leaders took part in the protest.
Police prevented the protesters from leaving the Congress office in the Dispur area, following which party workers attempted to breach the barricades and march onto the streets.
Choudhury said the protests would continue until the government reverses its decision.
“We will not allow the BJP-led government to damage Kaziranga National Park, which is our pride. We will not relent till the decision is reversed,” he said.
Bora and Borthakur said the Congress would take up the issue across the state and create awareness among people.
They accused Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma of compromising the interests of the national park to benefit large corporate entities.
The controversy over Kaziranga’s ESZ stems from the Assam government’s plan to send a proposal to the Centre to reduce the buffer zone around the UNESCO World Heritage Site from the default 10 km to 1-3 km.
Commercial activities in an ESZ are either prohibited, regulated or permitted under prescribed norms, depending on the nature of the activity.
Opposition parties and activists have alleged that the proposed reduction would facilitate commercial mining and tourism around Kaziranga and the adjoining Karbi Anglong hills, which are also an elephant corridor.
Environmentalists have warned that a narrower buffer zone could increase human-animal conflict and threaten the biodiversity of the World Heritage Site.
Sarma, however, has defended the proposal, saying the reduction is aimed at protecting the interests and livelihoods of villagers living within the ESZ. (Source: PTI)
