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Amid the row over the Assam government's proposed 1-3 km Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ) around Kaziranga National Park, State Agriculture and Irrigation Minister Pijush Hazarika has questioned the critics' consistency on the park's ESZ, citing a timeline of 2015 protests to withdraw the zone to allege political inconsistency among those now opposing the move.
Taking to X on Wednesday, Hazarika said the government is proposing a "scientifically assessed, site-specific ESZ of around 1-3 km, instead of mechanically applying a blanket 10-km zone." He cited past protests during the Congress-led government in Assam for "scrapping ESZ" after the process for preparing the proposal relating to the Eco-Sensitive Zone around Kaziranga began in 2015. "THE KAZIRANGA ESZ HYPOCRISY: LET THE 2015 TIMELINE SPEAK. There is a very simple question that needs to be asked today: What exactly was the position of those who are now opposing the proposed 1-3 km ESZ around Kaziranga? Because the history of 2015 tells a very different story," he said. He said that on April 6, 2015, the process for preparing the proposal relating to the ESZ around Kaziranga started, followed by the process of public hearings. This was followed by a protest led by Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) against the proposed ESZ and the issue of eviction of local residents on 31 May, 2015, and their demands included protecting local residents from eviction and securing land rights. On June 18, 2015, he said hundreds of protesters took to the streets and blocked the National Highway during a public hearing on the ESZ proposal. "Among their demands was the withdrawal of the Eco-Sensitive Zone from Kaziranga, along with stopping evictions and protecting the rights of local residents," he said. He outlined the intense protests that took place during June of 2015 to demand the withdrawl of the ESZ and "an end to harassment of local residents in its name." "Several organisations--including AASU, KMSS and other local groups--opposed the draft ESZ proposal and demanded that it be scrapped," he said. He further said that Raijor Dal chief Akhil Gogoi, who was the KMSS president, also participated in the protest during that time to demand the withdrawal. "The message from the agitation was unmistakable: They were not demanding a smaller ESZ. They were demanding the ESZ proposal itself be withdrawn," he said. Hazarika accused opposition groups of reversing their 2015 position in 2026, calling the shift in stance politically motivated rather than rooted in conservation principles. "The Assam Government is now proposing a scientifically assessed, site-specific ESZ of around 1-3 km, instead of mechanically applying a blanket 10-km zone. And suddenly, the same political ecosystem is outraged. Suddenly, the ESZ must not be 'reduced'. Suddenly, those who once demanded its complete withdrawal are presenting themselves as the uncompromising defenders of the ESZ. This is where the hypocrisy becomes impossible to hide," he said. He questioned what caused the change during this time. "Kaziranga? No. The need for conservation? No. The political convenience? Absolutely," he asked. "If the ESZ was unacceptable when the BJP was not in power, but becomes sacred when the BJP Government proposes a scientifically determined 1-3 km zone, then this was never really about environmental principles. It was about politics," he added. He clarified his stance that the Kaziranga ecosystem deserves to be legally protected. "Kaziranga must be protected. Its forests, wildlife corridors and biodiversity deserve the strongest possible scientific and legal protection. But conservation cannot become an excuse for rewriting history. And politics cannot be allowed to turn yesterday's "scrap the ESZ" into today's "save the ESZ" without anyone asking questions. The people of Assam deserve consistency," he said. "Don't lecture Assam on conservation after conveniently forgetting your own position. The records remember--even when some people don't," he said. This comes amid mounting tensions over the proposed alteration of Kaziranga's default 10 km ESZ. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has also clarified that Kaziranga National Park's area remains unchanged. "The 10-km zone lies outside the Park boundary, and its proposed rationalisation follows demands from local communities to safeguard their livelihoods," he said. The Eco-Sensitive Zone is calculated from the end boundary of the national park, he posted on X, adding that a 10 km ESZ hinders the development of indigenous communities. (ANI)
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