The planned reintroduction of rhinos in Corbett and Rajaji national parks should be undertaken in a time bound manner. Further, the national highway 72-A is of great importance for Uttarakhand. According top priority to it, there should be no delay in official formalities for granting necessary approvals. Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat said this while chairing the 15th meeting of the State wildlife advisory board here on Monday.
The CM stressed that decisions taken in a meeting should be executed in a time bound manner. The action should not be limited to letters but should be output based. He further said that an integrated approach should be adopted for development of Chaurasi Kutia in Rajaji tiger reserve. It should include wildlife, spirituality, culture and other aspects. Further, the renovation of the Gartang Gulley trail in Gangotri national park should be undertaken while conserving its original form. Rawat also said that the conversion of Tongia villages into revenue villages in reserved forest areas, renewal and denotification of places on forest lands after relocation of villages from protected areas should be undertaken without delay.
It was decided in the meeting that proposals for construction of various roads through the Gangotri national park, important from the national security perspective should be sent for approval to the national wildlife board. Similarly, proposals for forest land transfer for construction of Saung dam project and expansion of Dehradun airport will also be sent to the national wildlife board for permission. Officials informed in the meeting that a proposal has been received for a study by the Wildlife Institute of India to ascertain the tiger and elephant carrying capacity of Corbett and Rajaji tiger reserves. Further, the site suitability report for reintroduction of the rhino has also been received.
Forest and wildlife minister Harak Singh Rawat, chief secretary Utpal Kumar Singh, additional chief secretary Om Prakash, principal chief conservator of forests Jai Raj and others were also present in the meeting
