Photo Courtesy: nenow
Guwahati: Large-scale hill cutting and the destruction of a critical waterbody have devastated an elephant corridor within the Amchang Wildlife Sanctuary. Despite the area being a recognized Eco-Sensitive Zone, excavators and dumper trucks operated for weeks near the boundary of the protected site in Amsing-Jorabat. Forest officials failed to intervene effectively even as wildlife faced immediate threats.
Evidence of elephants is everywhere. Investigators found footprints and dung at the excavation site. An injured elephant was seen on October 25 near the area. Local residents report that animals frequently visit a now-filled waterbody for water. A shed stands on that site today. Rakesh Hazarika, an environmental activist, sounded the alarm on October 25. He contacted the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Vinay Gupta, and DFO Alekh Saxena. The response was a bureaucratic nightmare. Hazarika said, "Instead of an immediate intervention to stop the destruction, the response that followed exposed an apparent jurisdictional blame game within the Forest Department."
Range officers passed the buck, claiming the site fell outside their jurisdiction. Meanwhile, the Wildlife Control Room at 0361-2333253 remained unreachable. Excavators continued their work until October 28. Residents claim dumper trucks hauled soil to a wetland inside the Narengi Army Cantonment. Five square metres of the waterbody are buried. Official records allegedly claim the soil came from Meghalaya, contradicting witness accounts. No Army officials have commented on the matter.
The department knew about the site. A notice was served there in August, yet the digging accelerated. Officials have not explained why they ignored their own warnings. They admit no permissions were granted for this activity. Authorities must now explain the failure to stop the project and the absence of a plan to restore the corridor. Vinay Gupta did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
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