Assam: Illegal residents in Kaziranga National Park asked to evict within 10 days

Kaziranga National Park (KNP) recently issued a notice to the people living inside the wildlife reserve to vacate the land within ten days.

The order was passed following the increasing number of man-animal conflict.

The Gauhati High Court had asked the authorities and district administration of Golaghat, Nagaon and Santipur to submit a report by November 23.

According to the High Court order, “In the instant case, any rigid and technical view would only harm and endanger the wildlife of the KNP. The jurisdiction of this Court under article 226 of the Constitution is quite wide. The petitioners who have approached this Court have no right over the land and their claims have been adjudicated. The fact that the final notification in respect of the third and fifth additions is not issued is not a ground for the petitioners to overstay on the land when their claims are adjudicated."

"There is also (a) provision under the Land Acquisition Act that in urgent situation the possession of land is taken and later on the adjudication of compensation procedures are followed. In that view of the matter even if the final notification is not issued since the claims of the persons of third and fifth additions are adjudicated they cannot claim the right to stay in the land. If the Court, as argued by the petitioners, takes a technical view it would only endanger the wildlife in the KNP and there would be unabated acts of poaching. Hence keeping in view the interests of the KNP, which is a World Heritage Site, we are not inclined to accept the contention of the petitioners," the order stated.