Prior permission of Wildlife National Board needed for altering areas of Assam’s Pobitora Sanctuary: Supreme Court orders inclusion of Chief Wildlife Warden and Field Director in Committee
Justices B. R. Gavai & Sandeep Mehta [24-04-2024]

Read Order: IN RE : v. T.N. GODAVARMAN THIRUMULPAD [SC- Writ Petition(s)(Civil) No(s). 202/1995]

Tulip Kanth

New Delhi, April 30, 2024: In a case involving the settlement rights of villagers with regard to the alteration of the areas of the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary, the Supreme Court has held that such alterations can’t be done without permission of the National Board for Wildlife.

The Counsel for the State of Assam submitted that there were certain issues with regard to the boundaries of the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary and the settlement of rights of the villagers, including the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes and marginalized communities residing within the notified boundaries of the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary before 1998.

It was also submitted that the inhabitants in the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary areas and the villages in the fringe areas should be treated as active partners in the settlement process and not as adversaries.

The State, through an affidavit, indicated that a Cabinet meeting was held with an aim to protect the rights of the villagers and to ensure that the same were appropriately addressed and resolved. A Committee of officials had also been constituted.

It was submitted from the applicant’s side that except a bald statement that the rights of the villagers residing in the Pobitora Wild Life Sanctuary area were not settled, no material had been placed on record to substantiate the said stand.

Prima facie, from the perusal of the map, it appeared to the Division Bench of Justice B. R. Gavai and Justice Sandeep Mehta that the State proposed to delete a smaller area from the Wild Life Sanctuary and include a much larger area so as to account for the lands of the settlers and also address the issue of the growing population of the rhinoceros.

“We find that even if the State proposes to alter the areas of the Pobitora Wild Life Sanctuary, the same cannot be done without prior permission of the National Board for Wild Life (NBWL)”, it held.

The Bench found that no prejudice would be caused to anyone if the Committee did the exercise as proposed in the affidavit. In any case, the Bench opined that the same will always be subject to the final decision by NBWL and a scrutiny by this Court.

On the issue of non-representation of the wild life wing of the Forest Department in the Committee, the Bench found that in addition to the Members of the Committee as proposed, it would be appropriate to include the Chief Wild Life Warden of the State of Assam and also the Field Director of the Pobitora Wild Life Sanctuary as Members of the said Committee so that the concerns with regard to the wild life are also addressed by the said Members.

The applications have now been listed on 23.10.2024.