A Correspondent
Bokakhat: Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday announced that the government plans to rationally reduce the 10-kilometre Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ) around Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve to 1 kilometre to facilitate developmental activities in the region. He also spoke about several development initiatives proposed for Bokakhat.
On Friday evening, while returning from Jorhat after inspecting the flood-affected areas of Upper Assam, the Chief Minister held discussions with party workers and local residents at the Public Works Department Inspection Bungalow in Bokakhat on various issues concerning Bokakhat and Kaziranga.
During the interaction, the Chief Minister said that Bokakhat has several development-related issues and that the government is trying to resolve them. He discussed the construction of the Bokakhat stadium, improvement of the town’s infrastructure and several other important issues.
Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma said that the discussion was only preliminary and stated, “I will come to Bokakhat once again. Thereafter, I will review all these issues in greater detail and move forward with a proper plan.”
According to Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma, efforts will be made to resolve the issue of the ecosensitive zone surrounding Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve. The ESZ has long created obstacles to developmental activities in Bokakhat and adjoining areas.
He said, “At present, the Eco-Sensitive Zone extends by default up to 10 kilometres because no formal departmental notification has been issued so far. I will ensure that within the next two months, we can send a proposal to the Centre on this matter. Under the new notification, the Eco-Sensitive Zone will be reduced to 1 kilometre, which will remove many of the existing restrictions in Bokakhat.
The Chief Minister also mentioned that we have already resolved several of our problems. Several proposals have been denotified or finalised. If the Eco-Sensitive Zone is properly identified and reduced from 10 kilometres to 1 kilometre, we will be able to carry out various developmental activities in the area more easily. We will also be able to finalise the proposals that we had earlier taken up for Kaziranga.”
Referring to several major projects being undertaken over the past three to four years, the Chief Minister said that work on the Kaziranga Elevated Corridor, Guwahati Ring Road and tunnel, as well as the four-lane highway from Baihata Chariali to Tezpur, has already begun.
Once completed, the four-lane road from Baihata Chariali to Tezpur will become an access-controlled express highway, he said. Bypasses will be constructed around all the major towns along the route, and 11 flyovers will also be built. The Central Government will spend around Rs 9,000 crore on the project.
He further said that after the project’s completion, a separate highway would be developed from Guwahati to Siliguri. The government is also working to cut the travel time between Guwahati and Dibrugarh by two hours.
“We will only work during these five years,” the Chief Minister said.
Meanwhile, during a separate interaction with the citizens of Bokakhat, the Chief Minister said that the government would try to resolve the ten major problems highlighted by the people of Bokakhat. He also informed the people of Bokakhat that compensation for land acquired for the four-lane highway would be increased in accordance with the latest notification.
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