Kishtwar National Park awaits demarcation from last 28 years Rehabilitation of 40, 000 population main stumbling blocks

Greater Kashmir

SYED AMJAD SHAH

Jammu, May 1: It may sound strange but it is true that the area of National Park at Kishtwar, notified way back in the year 19 82, is yet to be demarcated as all over these years the government has failed to report on final determination of right and equitation of land.

The main stumbling block in carrying out the demarcation is the issue of rehabilitation of the population living in the notified area whose number has swelled to over 40, thousand over these years.

Initially, 400 Sq km area was proclaimed as National Park in the year 1981 under a government order with the objective to protect and conserve the rich range of wild life species found in the area. The forest tracts spread along North of the mountainous Kishtwar Township are home to Kashmiri Stag, Musk Deer, Snow Leopard, Marhhor and Ibex.

But over all these years the authorities at the helm of affairs have failed to check on the human interference in the park area, the first condition considered globally as imperative in the case of protected areas. The official figures show that over 40 thousand population is presently living along the length and breadth of the notified area.

Highly placed officials in the wild life department told Greater Kashmir that till date not even a single order was issued by the authorities for the rehabilitation of the population living in the park area, leaving the national park and endangered species of wild animals to the mercy of God.

“It would be almost impossible to rehabilitee the uprooted families to a new place as there is no such plan with the government,” officials in the wild life department told Greater Kashmir huge population, that to in absence of a comprehensive plan adding that the people would also not be ready to leave the forest area in which they have been living since centuries.

“The government of India has included Kishtwar National Park among the 13 snow leopard reserves of the country and out of the four snow leopard reserves of the state, this (Kishtwar national park) park is the only representative of the Himalayan zone,” sources said, adding that “though the it was declared as a National Park, in the year 1981 vide government order number FST/20 of 1981, all the norms being observed at such protected areas are being thrown to the wind. The sources said that so far three notifications were issued since the area was declared as national park, but every time the area limits of the park was different.

Sources said that while in the notification orders issued from the office of deputy commissioner in the year 1982 and 1988 mentions the area of the park as 400 Sq kms , another order issued by the same office in the year 1999terms the area as 425 Sq kms. However, when the government invited the objections from the public in the year 2003, a fresh order was issued reducing the notified are of the park to just 179.80 Sq kms, sources added.