Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma confirmed on August 12 that the 10-km eco-sensitive zone around Kaziranga National Park stays in force. The Supreme Court recently issued directions regarding the zone, but Sarma warned against assuming the current buffer has already shrunk. The existing 10-km rule holds firm until the state government issues a formal notification.
Sarma said: "The 10-km provision would continue to remain in force until the Assam government formally notifies the ESZ." Once that paperwork drops, the new boundary will replace the current one.
A 10-km zone sweeps up major residential hubs like Kaliabor, Dabhaka, Jakhalabandha, and Bokakhat. Keeping that span creates real trouble for the people living there. The Forest Department will draft a proposal for the Centre, which eventually lands before the National Board for Wildlife for final approval. While courts look at a one-kilometre radius as the standard, they can push it to three kilometres if needed. Sarma pointed to the recently notified one-kilometre zone at Deepor Beel as evidence that a 10-km limit is not a universal rule. He urged locals to read the court order closely before jumping to conclusions.
Updated at 12th August 2026 at 10:01pm
Sarma addressed the confusion during a press conference, telling critics to quit making assumptions based on partial information. He stressed that while the Supreme Court mentioned a one-kilometre limit, it does not act as an immediate, automatic override of the current standing order.
The Chief Minister specifically noted that while the standard practice for an ESZ is one kilometre, the state can push that boundary to three kilometres if the situation demands it. He pointed to the recent Deepor Beel notification as a hard example that the 10-kilometre buffer is not a universal mandate applied to every site.
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