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No action yet on KNP management plan

By Staff reporter

GUWAHATI, July 12 - The Kaziranga National Park (KNP) authorities have not initiated any action for preparing a management plan of the National Park after 2012-13. The need to prepare this plan was highlighted by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India in its report on the National Park in 2014 (Performance Audit of Kaziranga National Park � Issues and Challenges Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, Government of Assam Report No. 3 of 2014,), which was placed in Assam Assembly on March 31, 2015. This has come to the light from the replies of the KNP authorities to the RTI queries made by RTI activist-cum-environmental activist Rohit Choudhury. Significantly, the information was provided to Choudhury only after his filing the second appeal with the State Information Commission.

The CAG has said in its report {page no.11 (7.5)}, �Audit scrutiny of the management plan, however, revealed that there existed a provision for mid-term review of the plan which was in line with the Guide issued by the WII (Wildlife Institute of India). However, the park authorities did not revisit the management plan, mid-term, in accordance with the changing needs. This besides rendering the management plan partially redundant resulted in a disconnect between the management plan vis-�-vis the actual plans of operation.�

On page no.11 (7.6) the CAG report has stated, �Further, the park authorities are yet to commence the preparation of the management plan for subsequent period beyond 2012-13 even though almost two years have elapsed after the original plan period had expired. As prescribed in the Guide to management planning issued by the WII, the time line prescribed for preparation of a plan till approved by the Government is 18 months. Thus, even if the park authorities commence the work of preparation of the subsequent plan now, it would at least take till first part of 2016 to put the plan in operation. This would mean that the activities of the park during the intervening years 2013-14 to 2015-16 would continue on ad-hoc basis as a disparate silo without any linkage with the long term perspective plans of the NP.�

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