Assam Congress president Gaurav Gogoi led a protest in Kohora against the proposal to reduce Kaziranga’s Eco-Sensitive Zone from 10 km to 1 km
Guwahati: The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC), led by state Congress president Gaurav Gogoi, staged a protest in Kohora on August 17 against the Assam government’s proposal to reduce the Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ) around Kaziranga National Park from 10 km to 1 km.
Several senior Congress leaders joined the demonstration, opposing the proposed reduction and arguing that weakening the existing safeguards could affect wildlife conservation and the ecological security of Kaziranga and its surrounding areas.
The Congress demanded that the Assam government withdraw the proposal and retain adequate environmental safeguards around Kaziranga, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Gogoi was joined by Congress leaders Meera Borthakur, former MLA Durlav Chamua, Shivamoni Bora, Pranati Phukan and Satyabrata Kalita, among others.
In a social media post, the party described Kaziranga as one of Assam’s most valuable natural assets and argued that conservation should take precedence over commercial interests. “Stop selling Kaziranga to your corporate friends,” the Congress said while criticising the proposed reduction of the ESZ.
The protest comes amid growing political opposition to the proposed change in the protected zone. The APCC maintained that any decision on the ESZ must consider the long-term interests of wildlife, the environment and communities surrounding the national park.
The Congress urged the state government to reconsider the proposal and ensure that ecological protection remains central to decisions concerning Kaziranga.
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