Fresh allegations against top Assam officer, NGT stops road work in Barak Bhuban Sanctuary

Earlier this year, the environment ministry had held that Yadava’s decision to allow a commando battalion camp on forest land in Hailakandi district was in violation of forest conservation laws.

“Considering the allegations made, by way of interim measure, we provide that unless and until there is sanction from the Central Government as required under Section 2 of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, no construction shall be permitted within the Barak Bhuban Wildlife Sanctuary during the pendency of the present original application,” the NGT order said.

The order was passed by a bench of judicial member Justice B Amit Sthalekar and expert member Arun Kumar Verma on September 20. The bench has sought counter-affidavits from the Assam Government, the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, and Yadava within four weeks.

The NGT noted that the plea before it was regarding the construction of a road within the Barak Bhuban Wildlife Sanctuary without approval from the Central Government as mandated by the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam. “It is also alleged that the illegal construction is still ongoing and creating an environmental hazard in the said Wildlife Sanctuary,” the order said.

Besides seeking to stop all “illegal constructions”, including that of a road to Bhuban Hill within the sanctuary, the plea sought a site inspection to assess the damage done to the 15 hectares of forest land in the sanctuary. It said that prior approvals under forest protection laws were necessary irrespective of whether the forest department will have full control of the road.

The issue also prompted Assam-based activist Rohit Choudhury to send a complaint to the environment ministry stating that the construction of the road to Bhuban Hill involved extensive hill-cutting, earthwork and clearing of vegetation from the wildlife sanctuary.

“The all-weather road itself is complete with milestones and road-signs erected by the PWD (public works department), cement concrete side-drains, paver-block surface, and fenders at the road-bends,” stated the complaint addressed to Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav and the Assam chief secretary.

Yadava is already under a cloud for permitting construction on forest land in two different cases in Hailakandi and Sibasagar district. The NGT’s principal bench is examining the Hailakandi matter involving the construction of a police commando battalion on 11 hectares of forest land.

The environment ministry’s regional office in Shillong had found the construction in violation of forest conservation laws and issued a showcause notice to Yadava, seeking a response on why they should not proceed against him for the offence.

In the Sibasagar district matter, the NGT’s eastern bench in August sought to know what action the Centre had taken against Yadava for permitting the use of 28 hectares of land in the Geleky forest for another commando camp.