Opposing the proposed 135-km- long eco-sensitive zone along the Bhagirathi river from Gangotri to Uttarkashi in the Garhwal region, Uttarakhand chief minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank has urged the Centre to scrap the proposal in the interest of the local people.
The proposed sensitive zone should be scrapped, as the move will affect nearly 200 hotels and inns and 400,000 people who earn their livelihood from tourism, Nishank said in a letter to environment minister Jayanthi Natarajan.
Nishank said, “Uttarakhand is a small state, with 67 per cent of land covered by forests, and due to tough forest laws, the state government is facing problems in carrying out developmental activities.”
He said the Union government should reconsider the matter. The chief minister said Uttarakhand was the only state in the country that had the responsibility of conservation of 67 per cent forest region.
In such a case, the Centre should extend help by giving additional grants. Nishank said the state government would oppose all such moves.