HT Correspondent
JORHAT, Sept 19: The Jorhat Press Club adopted a resolution at its annual general meeting on Tuesday to oppose Vedanta owned Cairn Oil and Gas’ proposal for oil and gas exploration drilling on 4.49 hectares at the eco sensitive Hollongapar Gibbon Sanctuary in Assam.
The opposition comes in wake of the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change granting approval in principle to divert forest land at the eco- sensitive zone of the sanctuary to carry out exploratory oil drilling activities at the sanctuary named after the only ape found in India.
President of the Jorhat Press Club Ashok Baruah, who presided over the meeting, said that they would send a memorandum to the Prime Minister, opposing the move as the Gibbon sanctuary would destroy the whole eco system of the place. The proposal was placed by former president of Jorhat Press Club Niranjan Mahanta.
Mahanta further proposed that the Jorhat Press Club should call for removal of the railway track which goes through the sanctuary disturbing the wildlife and trains sometimes even mowing down elephants on the track. He proposed that the NF Railways should take steps to lay a new track avoiding the sanctuary.
The matter was also raised in the last session of the state legislative assembly in August this year by the leader of the Opposition Devabrata Saikia.
State forest and wildlife minister Chandra Mohan Patowary replying to the query said that after examining the matter the State Board of Wildlife had approved the proposal of oil exploration around 13 kms from the sanctuary and had forwarded to the Union ministry of forest, environment and climate change.
The Forest Advisory Committee of the Union ministry of forest environment and climate change in-principle nod, also known as Stage-I clearance, comes on the back of a recommendation for project approval by Assam’s principal chief conservator of forests and chief wildlife warden.
In its meeting held on August 27, the panel noted that the chief wildlife warden, Assam, and the regional office of the Union environment ministry had recommended clearance for the project.
Jorhat Lok Sabha MP Gaurav Gogoi had also written to the Ministry to reconsider the approval given the potential environmental impact of the proposal.
Apart from India’s only ape species, the endangered Hoolock Gibbon, the 21 sq kms sanctuary houses six other primate species, a variety of butterflies and insects and forms an elephant corridor to the Dissoi Valley reserve forest.
