On Thursday, December 3, the state forest department decided to put up a Conservation Reserve proposal for 65-sq km forest area in the Amravati district.
As per reports, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray had earlier given the forest a sanctuary status. Moreover, the proposal is to come up on Friday, December 4, at the State Board of Wildlife (SBWL) meeting which is to be spearheaded by Thackeray himself.
Moreover, among the 11 proposed Conservation Reserves, eight are in western Maharashtra (five in Kolhapur, one in Sindhudurg and two at Satara) while two are in Nagpur and one is in Amravati. The total protected area is 1,076.19 sq. km, which is equivalent to 10 times the area of Sanjay Gandhi National Park (103 sq. km) in Mumbai. These reserves usually act as a middle ground amongst the national park, wild sanctuaries, reserved and protected forests. In addition, unlike sanctuaries and national parks, these reserves do not have their own buffer zones.
Meanwhile, CM Thackeray had earlier approved new members for the State Board for Wildlife. The importance of the SBWL is underlined by the powers it has with regards to wildlife conservation and enacting policies. Moreover, the board can use the powers provided under the Wildlife Act, 1972 for environmental protection. In addition, the SBWL is responsible for making crucial decisions on protected forests, five national parks, six tiger reserves, as well as 49 wildlife sanctuaries across Maharashtra.
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