The state government on Friday proposed a buffer zone of up to 1 km around wildlife sanctuaries (WLS) and national parks (NP) in the state.

PANJIM: The Goa government after partially objecting to Prof Madhav Gadgil committee report on the Western Ghats, Thursday claimed it will have no money in its treasury to pay salaries if all recommendations in the report are accepted.

“I was saying the other day that if we had to accept all the recommendations of Prof Gadgil committee report, then we will have no money to pay for salaries, even the salaries of Judges,” Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar told the House on the concluding day of the Budget Session of the State Legislative Assembly Thursday.

In a significant development, the UT Administration today agreed to reduce the stretch of the eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) around the Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary to less than 2.5 km.

The UT has to declare and submit the report on the ESZ to the Ministry of Environment and Forests before May 15. Today, in the meeting chaired by UT Administrator Shivraj V Patil, the UT officials discussed as to in how much area around the sanctuary developmental activities should be prohibited. Initially, the officials were of the view that the developmental activities in the 3-km area around the sanctuary should be regulated, but today the officials agreed to declare less than 2.5-km area as the eco-sensitive zone.

The new planning approach will see changes to wind farm developments

In an important development which may have severe implications on the mining industry, the Union ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) said that as the state government has not responded with

PANJIM: The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests told the Supreme Court that “it had no choice” but to consider the area within 10 km of all national parks and wildlife sanctuaries in Goa, as ecologically sensitive zones, thus bringing a majority of mining leases in the State within the zone.

In an affidavit filed in the SC, the MoEF argues that they have been forced by the non-cooperative attitude of the State government despite it pursuing the matter, and wants the Apex court to ask the government to comply.

The UT Administration has finally given its nod to the eco-sensitive zone around Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary. The decision was taken at a meeting of officials chaired by UT Adviser KK Sharma. The decision was hanging fire for the past two years following differences between various departments.

Recently, the Ministry of Environment and Forests had extended the deadline from February 15 to May 15 as the UT Administration failed to declare the eco-sensitive zone on time.

The Goa government will inform the Centre of its stand on the critical matter of buffer zones of wildlife sanctuaries and parks by Monday, a crucial step that will allow the Ministry of Environment

The authorities of the Similipal Tiger Reserve (STR) have started the process to undertake an annual sign survey of wild animals in the national park in Mayurbhanj district from Monday.

Comptroller and Auditor General of India has pointed to granting of mining leases by Jammu and Kashmir government in protected areas in contravention of Supreme Court orders.