Wayanad, June 24 (UNI) Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday clarified that he wrote letters to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Buffer Zone issue.
Sharing a copy of the letter on social media, soon after the attack on his office here by the activists of Student Federation of India (SFI), he said he wrote letters to the PM and the CM seeking their attention to the plight of the local communities of Wayanad whose livelihoods will be adversely affected by the recent Supreme Court order on the maintenance of Eco-Sensitive Zones (ESZ) around national parks and wildlife sanctuaries.
He said “I request the Union government to address these concerns in the larger public interest and reiterate our shared commitment to balancing conservation goals with our people’s legitimate developmental needs.”
The State & the Union Governments can help by requesting dilution of a minimum width of an ESZ to the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) and the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC). The Supreme Court judgment considers recommendations made by the CEC & the MoEF&CC, he added.
Saying that the SC order has led to widespread protests around Wayanad parliamentary constituency, he said local communities, still reeling under the impact of the Covid pandemic have
expressed grave concerns regarding the implications of this judgment on
their lives and livelihoods.
The ESZ Guidelines also regulate several activities, including, the change of
agriculture systems, protection of hill slopes, and erection of electrical
cables.
The judgement states that no permanent structure shall be permitted to come up for whatsoever purpose within the ESZ.
As one of the most densely populated regions in the Western Ghats, such restrictions hamper the ability of local communities to improve their standard of living.
The judgement provides for the dilution of the minimum width of the ESZ in
‘overwhelming’ public interest and allows the State government to approach
the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) and the Ministry of Environment,
Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&C©) regarding the same, and states that the recommendations of the CEC and MoEF&CC would be considered by the Supreme Court, the letter said.
UN
