Government departments are facing criticism for slow responses, especially for projects far from urban areas. A hotel under construction in the eco-sensitive zone of Phulwari ki Naal Sanctuary has received a third notice from the Regional Forest Officer of Panarwa Range, following two previous notices over the past 14 months, with little action taken. Additionally, authorities recently seized a resort built in the eco-sensitive zone near Sajjangarh Sanctuary, which is closer to the city.

On May 17, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change designated the Phulwari ki Naal area as an eco-sensitive zone covering 511 square kilometers. This includes 127 panchayats from Kotda and Jhadol tehsils, extending one kilometer from the sanctuary, covering 202.34 square kilometers. Commercial construction is prohibited within this one-kilometer radius. A dedicated committee, chaired by the District Collector and with the Wildlife DFO as the secretary, oversees the eco-sensitive zone.

The hotel in question is located on leased farmland at Phulwari ki Naal Sanctuary. The builder, Rishikesh, son of Hariprakash Bhil from Kushal Magri in Dungarpur, has been notified by the Forest Department for not having a no-objection certificate (NOC). Notices were sent on April 17 and August 28 last year, and again on May 13 this year. The department has requested all necessary construction approval documents and warned of possible legal action under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, if there is no compliance.

Regional Forest Officer Karan Singh Rajpurohit explained that the hotel construction issue began before his tenure, with initial notices issued by his predecessor. Since taking office, he has issued another notice and plans to seek guidance from higher authorities. District Forest Officer (DFO) D.K. Tiwari stated he was unaware of last year's notices but will gather information from the relevant personnel to decide on future actions.

Source: Dainik Bhaskar