Last year a site inspection report of the proposed Teesta IV dam by four members of the Standing Committee of the National Board for Wildlife pointed out violations in several hydroelectric projects in various stages of implementation within the Supreme Court mandated 10-km eco-sensitive zone around Sikkim’s national parks and wildlife sanctuaries. The report said that the projects have not sought and obtained the mandatory clearance of the Standing Committee of the National Board for Wildlife.
The four-member committee was witness to the ongoing construction of two such projects — Dik Chu and Teesta III — which fall within the eco-sensitive zone of Khangchendzonga National Park and Fambonglho Wildlife Sanctuary. It also submitted a host of recommendations. Now the newly constituted standing committee of the National Board for Wildlife will hear over 100 proposals in a meeting on August 12 and 13 and wildlife experts are hoping that critical reports such as the one on the Teesta and its recommendations will be carefully considered.
A former member of the Wildlife Board said that the government has only notified the standing committee without announcing a new National Board for Wildlife and this was not legal. The standing committee could not exist on its own without a new Board, he pointed out. The new committee has two members from Gujarat and one expert from the Indian Institute of Science, contrary to the number of NGOs and experts mandated by law. The 10-member committee chaired by the Environment Minister has a tall task of deciding critical projects concerning protected areas in the country.
In the past the Board has stood up to violations of wildlife habitats and ensured that there is some rule of law. This time round there are real fears that the slew of pending projects which will be taken up after a year almost, will be rushed through.
