PANAJI
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Tuesday said the State government has not yet received the Central Empowered Committee’s (CEC) report recommending a 468.60 sq km Goa Tiger Reserve in two phases.
Speaking to the media, Sawant said the government will comment only after the report is officially submitted and properly reviewed. “We have not received the CEC report. Once it comes, we will study it, and only then can I speak about its implementation. As of now, I cannot comment,” the CM said.
He added that the Advocate General has been asked to examine the issue in detail. “I will comment later,” he said.
According to the CEC’s proposal, the first phase involves declaring existing protected areas ” Netravali Wildlife Sanctuary, Cotigao Wildlife Sanctuary, and parts of Bhagwan Mahaveer Wildlife Sanctuary and National Park ” as part of the Tiger Reserve.
Notably, the committee has kept Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary, which has about 612 households, for the second phase. It has also recommended issuing the Tiger Reserve notification within three months of the Supreme Court’s order.
The CEC suggested that protected areas directly adjoining the core of Karnataka’s Kali Tiger Reserve, and with fewer households ” Netravali (50 households) and Cotigao (41 households) ” be taken up in the first phase.
Similarly, areas next to the buffer zone of the Kali reserve, and having very few households ” northern Bhagwan Mahaveer Wildlife Sanctuary (9 households) and Bhagwan Mahaveer National Park (2 households) ” have been identified as the least disruptive options for the proposed buffer zone.
However, the committee has said that areas with dense habitation, such as the southern part of Bhagwan Mahaveer Wildlife Sanctuary (about 560 households) and Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary (around 612 households), should not be included in the first phase.
