Naga protest send central team packing from Vedanta’s oil exploration site at Dessoi Valley

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaNovember 16, 2024

A group of Nagas prevented a team from the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) and other officials from conducting a site inspection for proposed oil exploration by Vedanta Ltd at the Dessoi Valley Reserve Forest in Jorhat district on Friday.

The inspection was part of the process to assess the environmental impact of granting permission for exploration in the Hollongpar Gibbon Sanctuary’s Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ) of four vehicles carrying officials from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Assam forest department, and NBWL member Raman Sukumar was blocked by protesters.

The protesters raised slogans claiming the land belonged to Nagaland and declaring they would not allow oil exploration in the reserve forest.

After facing protests from the Naga community, the inspection team decided to halt their site visit and returned to Kaziranga.

The Dessoi Valley Reserve Forest lies in a disputed area along the Assam-Nagaland border. A legal case regarding the ownership of the land is currently under consideration in the Supreme Court.

Vedanta Ltd had received conditional approval from the Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) for oil exploration in seven rigs within this reserve forest.

On October 9, the NBWL deferred its decision on granting permission for Vedanta’s oil exploration. The board insisted on a site visit to evaluate the impact on the Hollongapar Gibbon Wildlife Sanctuary, a habitat known for the endangered Hoolock gibbon.

Environmental activists, including scientist Dr. Pinaki Sengupta and activist Pratharna Bordoloi, met the NBWL delegation in Jorhat. They expressed concerns about the potential adverse effects of oil exploration on the sanctuary’s fragile ecosystem and its unique biodiversity.

The NBWL team’s site visit may need rescheduling with additional security arrangements.