Different issues, mostly land transfer for development works, were discussed in the meeting of the State Wildlife Advisory Board on the weekend. Wildlife activists are unhappy with this because the real issues pertaining to wildlife were not discussed in the meet. About 50 leopard deaths have been recorded in the State this year but this issue was not discussed. In view of this activists have said that the name of this board should be changed to the State land transfer advisory board.
During the meeting, Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna directed the formation of a core committee for establishment of eco-sensitive zones in the State. He stressed on the need for achieving balance between developmental and wildlife conservation works.
Bahuguna scheduled the next meet for May 15 so that pending proposals could be cleared without delay.
A total of 36 cases pertaining to power projects, motor roads and quarrying for minor minerals were discussed in the meeting and most of them were approved in the board meeting.
Former vice-chairman of the Forest and Environment Advisory Committee, Anil Baluni said that the issues discussed in the meeting question the very validity of the board. “At a time when more than 50 leopard deaths have been reported in Uttarakhand in the past couple of months, this issue was not even discussed in the meeting which focused mainly on facilitating land transfers for construction works. The wildlife board has lost its sanctity and should be dissolved. The so called wildlife experts on the board need to introspect on the purpose of their post,” he said.
People for Animals, Uttarakhand member secretary Gauri Maulekhi strongly objected to what the PFA terms the misuse of the State Wildlife Advisory Board which should be renamed the State land transfer advisory board. “The alarming number of leopard deaths which are highest in the country. Issues like drafting a policy for wildlife protection and measures for preventing forest fires were not even discussed in the meeting of the board. The forest land transfer applicants also attended this meeting in large number which is surprising because such applicants are not allowed to attend the meeting of the National Wildlife Advisory Board. With applicants attending the meeting in Dehradun, one cannot expect decisions to be taken without bias,” she added.