Supreme Court: Forests and wildlife won’t exist if animal-human conflict not resolved

Demarcation of Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary

Staff Reporter

Guwahati: While hearing of a case concerning the demarcation of the boundary of the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary, the Supreme Court observed that forests and wildlife will not exist if the conflict between animals and humans is not resolved.

During the hearing, Justice BR Gavai observed, “Balance has to be struck, which takes care of the rights of the stakeholders. Animal-human conflict poses danger to the very existence of forests and wildlife. We cannot take a lopsided view.”

A case has been going on in the Supreme Court regarding the alteration of the boundary of the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary by the state government. The court said that the state government’s proposal regarding the alteration in the boundary of the sanctuary has to be cleared by the National Board of Wildlife and also undergo the scrutiny of the apex court.

Senior advocate Nalin Kohli, representing the state government, informed the court that the government has constituted a special committee chaired by the Chief Secretary (Forests) to survey and suggest alterations in the boundaries of the sanctuary to protect the rights of wildlife as well as human inhabitants.

The court directed the state government to include the Chief Wildlife Warden and the Field Director of Pobitora Sanctuary as members of the special committee.

The government proposed to exclude small areas of the sanctuary and include a larger area so that the growing rhino population gets enough space and that the indigenous people living within the boundary of the sanctuary also get settlement.

This move by the state government was challenged by an activist, Rohit Choudhury, by filing a writ petition before the Supreme Court. On March 13, 2024, the court issued a stay order on the government’s move after conducting a hearing on the matter.

The proposal by the state government says that the notification issued regarding the demarcation was not placed before the state cabinet and was also issued without the approval of the then Chief Minister. The forest department had no jurisdiction over the government khas land, which was indicated as a part of the wildlife sanctuary in its 1998 notification. The rights of the people in villages within the sanctuary, including those residing there before the issue of the notification, were not settled, and most of them belonged to deprived and marginalized communities. So, the present government withdrew the notification.

It is mentioned in the petition that, due to the non-demarcation of the sanctuary’s boundary, the Khas land is still inherited by people and does not come under the forest department’s jurisdiction. As a result, the movement of the rhinos is restricted within a limited area. During the time of floods, which occur on an annual basis, the rhinos are forced to seek shelter in the neighbouring villages, and conflicts with humans take place at this time.

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