Taking serious cognisance of Haryana Government’s non-seriousness regarding creation of eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) around Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary, the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) on Wednesday directed the State Government to prepare the ESZ proposal and submit it to the Ministry at the earliest.
During a joint meeting of UT Administration, Haryana Government and Punjab Government held under the top brass of MoEF in New Delhi, the Ministry asked Haryana Government to prepare the proposal for creation of eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) around Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary.
The UT Administration and Punjab Government had submitted the ESZ proposal to the Ministry during last year while Haryana Government is yet to submit its proposal. The Ministry has further directed Haryana Government to hold a joint meeting with UT Administration and Punjab Government to prepare Haryana’s ESZ draft. “As Punjab and UT Administration has already submitted their ESZ proposal, Haryana Government has been asked to conduct a joint meeting with both the Governments before making their ESZ proposal,” said Santosh Kumar, UT Chief Wildlife Warden.
The Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary spreads over an area of 26 sq km. According to the UT officials, the catchment area around the Sanctuary is around 36 running kilometers. Out of the total area of catchment, about 2 km falls under the jurisdiction of UT Administration and rest falls under the jurisdiction of the neighbouring States of Punjab and Haryana. In its draft, the UT Administration has proposed an area ranging from 2 km to 2.75 km as the ESZ around the Sanctuary. low-density and low-rise buildings are proposed in the area falling in the ESZ. “No mining or hazardous industry should be permitted in the ESZ.
No expansion of the road outside the Sanctuary should be permitted, No deep bore well should be dug for commercial/large scale users. And, all existing water bodes and indigenous floral and faunal diversity within the zone should be protected,” proposes UT Administration’s ESZ draft. On the other hand, Punjab Government had reduced the radius of the ESZ to 100 meters in its proposal sent to the Ministry.