SRINAGAR: The Ladakh State Board for Wildlife (SBWL) has rejected a sub-committee report on the proposed final boundaries of three protected areas, directing that the rights and claims of local communities be settled through public hearings within two months.
The decision was taken at the 16th meeting of the newly constituted SBWL, chaired by Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena on Saturday.
The three protected areas are the Hemis National Park, High Altitude Cold Desert (Changthang) Wildlife Sanctuary and Karakoram (Nubra-Shyok) Wildlife Sanctuary.
During deliberations on the proposed final notification, the Board noted that the preliminary notification issued by the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir Government in 1987 had not accurately reflected the boundaries on the ground.
Saxena said the statutory procedure under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, for settling the rights of individuals and communities living within the proposed protected areas had not been undertaken by the sub-committee.
According to the Board, the boundary exercise had instead been conducted through a table-top exercise without following the prescribed legal process. Saxena said this made the exercise inconsistent with the Act, inequitable for affected communities and vulnerable to legal challenges.
The Board also noted that local communities had raised concerns over the inclusion of long-established settlements and habitations in the protected areas. Residents have maintained that such settlements existed for a considerable period and were outside the sanctuary areas, but the sub-committee had included them in its report.
The Board further observed that several areas covered by the report had strategic significance and that defence and national security considerations had not been adequately incorporated into the exercise.
Saxena also pointed out that international boundaries shown on Survey of India maps had not been used as a reference while determining the proposed limits of the protected areas.
Following the discrepancies, the Board decided to set aside the sub-committee report and directed the designated Deputy Commissioners/Settlement Officers to resume public hearings and complete the settlement proceedings within two months.
Saxena urged residents to submit their claims, land titles and claims concerning traditional rights, including those relating to pasture lands, to enable the administration to determine the boundaries after considering the interests of affected communities.
The Board said completing the settlement process would provide greater clarity and certainty regarding the bona fide rights of local communities while establishing a clearer framework for wildlife conservation and development activities.
The SBWL also ratified 23 projects and forwarded them to the Standing Committee of the National Board of Wildlife, Government of India, for clearance.
The projects include power transmission infrastructure in strategically important border areas, defence infrastructure and other essential projects in the Karakoram and Changthang regions.
