Raising objections against Punjab Government’s eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) proposal around Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary, the UT Administration has requested the MoEF to constitute ESZ authority to look into the development in the area.
The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) had recently asked the UT Administration to submit objections against Punjab’s ESZ proposal.
A senior official of the UT Administration said that the Administration has urged the Ministry to constitute an eco sensitive zone authority to oversee the ESZ development.
We have urged the Ministry that the authority may have the participation of UT Administration, Punjab Government, Haryana Government and also, officials from MoEF.
Since the Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary is surrounded by Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh and all three governments have prepared separate ESZ proposals for their respective jurisdictions, a joint authority to oversee and preserve the ESZ area is required in case of this sanctuary, said the official.
The Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary spreads over an area of 26 sq km. According to the UT official, the catchment area around the Sanctuary is around 36 running kilometers. Around 10 percent of the perimeter of Sanctuary abuts the city and the major part is along neighboring states of Punjab and Haryana.
The official added, “While the Punjab Government has proposed no such ESZ authority in their proposal, the UT Administration has proposed this in its proposal and has also raised objections on Punjab’s ESZ proposal over the same issue.”
Besides, the UT Administration has urged the Ministry to not accept the 100 meters ESZ radius proposed by Punjab. The UT Administration has written to the MoEF that the 100 meters radius of ESZ proposed by Punjab is an effective measure and the radius of the ESZ should be around 1 km.
In its proposal, the UT Administration has proposed an area ranging from 2 km to 2.75 km as ESZ around the Sanctuary while Punjab Government has reduced the radius of the ESZ to 100 meters.
Notably, the Administration and Punjab Government had submitted their ESZ proposal for the Sanctuary to MoEF during last year. The third stakeholder—Haryana Government is yet to send its ESZ proposal to the Ministry.
Punjab Government had proposed that the lal dora and municipal land will be excluded from the proposed 100 meters radius of ESZ area. On the other hand, the UT Administration has suggested that this area has to come under the ESZ to regulate the construction activities around the Sanctuary.
The Administration has demanded that area of Kansal village, which falls under SAS Nagar district, should be included in the ESZ proposed around the Sanctuary. Also, the Administration has raised issue of height restrictions of buildings in Nayagaon and Kansal. In UT’s draft, low-density and low-rise buildings are proposed in the area falling in the ESZ.
Notably, the Tata Housing Company is planning to come up with Tata Camelot Housing project in Kansal, which, at present, is tangled in litigations.
In April this year, the UT Administration had also shot off a letter to MoEF urging it to not accept the ESZ proposal of Punjab Government without its consent.
After the notification by MoEF, an ESZ management plan will be prepared for the implementation of recommendations made in the
proposal by stakeholders before inviting objections from the public.