 |
| Deopahar forest |
Sept. 9: A tea estate belonging to Numaligarh Refinery Limited is creeping into Deopahar reserve forest, cutting down valuable trees to make room for an ancillary industry.
Packed with sam, bahat, bhelew, bhozgrti, amul, sarpagandha, mezankari, hatidhekia, ani, ghardha koroi, bonsuri and panmiolo trees, the woods, covering 133.44 hectares, were declared a reserve forest on August 19, 1999.
Alarmed by the rapid encroachment by neighbouring tea gardens, environmentalist Apurba Ballabh Goswami and nature lovers submitted a memorandum recently to the Union minister for environment and forest, Jairam Ramesh, urging him to protect the flora and fauna of Deopahar. Following the memorandum, a joint survey was conducted by the Golaghat district administration, the forest department and the Numaligarh tea estate authorities.
A source said the Numaligarh Refinery Limited was trying to establish an ancillary industry at Deopahar after clearing the jungle.
As reports of the ancillary industry began doing the rounds, environments began urging the refinery to withdraw its proposal to set up the plant at Deopahar.
“Urgent steps need to be taken to save the reserve forest or else it will be wiped out silently,” Goswami said.
What upsets environmentalists most is that industrialist are planning to cut down trees when the forest has the potential to be turned into a tourist hub.
Stone inscriptions belonging to the pre-Ahom era lie strewn across the forest — historians believe they are from the 7th to 9th century AD.
There is a Shiv temple, now in ruins.
Near Deopahar hillock is a famous fort called Rajgarh.
Another one, called Lakhowgarh, is just a furlong away. Environmentalists feel that it will take just a little imagination and work to turn this forest reserve into a tourism jackpot.
RIPUNJOY DAS | |
| Deopahar forest |
Sept. 9: A tea estate belonging to Numaligarh Refinery Limited is creeping into Deopahar reserve forest, cutting down valuable trees to make room for an ancillary industry.
Packed with sam, bahat, bhelew, bhozgrti, amul, sarpagandha, mezankari, hatidhekia, ani, ghardha koroi, bonsuri and panmiolo trees, the woods, covering 133.44 hectares, were declared a reserve forest on August 19, 1999.
Alarmed by the rapid encroachment by neighbouring tea gardens, environmentalist Apurba Ballabh Goswami and nature lovers submitted a memorandum recently to the Union minister for environment and forest, Jairam Ramesh, urging him to protect the flora and fauna of Deopahar. Following the memorandum, a joint survey was conducted by the Golaghat district administration, the forest department and the Numaligarh tea estate authorities.
A source said the Numaligarh Refinery Limited was trying to establish an ancillary industry at Deopahar after clearing the jungle.
As reports of the ancillary industry began doing the rounds, environments began urging the refinery to withdraw its proposal to set up the plant at Deopahar.
“Urgent steps need to be taken to save the reserve forest or else it will be wiped out silently,” Goswami said.
What upsets environmentalists most is that industrialist are planning to cut down trees when the forest has the potential to be turned into a tourist hub.
Stone inscriptions belonging to the pre-Ahom era lie strewn across the forest — historians believe they are from the 7th to 9th century AD.
There is a Shiv temple, now in ruins.
Near Deopahar hillock is a famous fort called Rajgarh.
Another one, called Lakhowgarh, is just a furlong away. Environmentalists feel that it will take just a little imagination and work to turn this forest reserve into a tourism jackpot.
.jpg)
