HBI Staff | Hyderabad 
According to The Wire, The Indian chapter of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), a UNESCO advisory body, has raised concerns with the Assam government over the proposed construction of a high-end hotel and resort in Kaziranga National Park Tiger Reserve (KNPTR), a World Heritage Site.
Opponents of the project view the ICOMOS letter as an important intervention by UNESCO.
Over a month has passed since the letter was sent on June 27, and the state government, led by Himanta Biswa Sarma, has not yet responded.
ICOMOS’s questions pertain to the sustainability and preservation of KNPTR, particularly the impact of building a five-star hotel and resort.
Jeepal Krishak Shrank Sangha, a grassroots civil organization leading protests against the project, issued a statement on Sunday saying that the ICOMOS queries highlight the uncertainties faced by KNPTR’s future and its preservation.
“ICOMOS is a decision-making body of UNESCO. It has issued an inquiry to the government of Assam about the heritage risk of the proposed hotel development in Kaziranga. Based on the principles of the UNESCO/ICOMOS Charter for Cultural Tourism (1999) serious concerns were expressed. We welcome the UNESCO intervention. Noteworthy is that violation of certain UNESCO rules can lead to losing the status of the ‘world heritage site’ by KNPTR,” said Soneswar Narah, leader and advisor to Jeepal.
The ICOMOS letter to Kumar Padmapani Bora, director of tourism, raised four key concerns about KNPTR’s future.
The first question asked if the state government had conducted a comprehensive Carrying Capacity assessment to determine the impact of tourist traffic and infrastructure development on its wildlife and ecosystem.
ICOMOS also inquired if an Impact Assessment on Wildlife had been conducted to evaluate the effects of development on the park’s natural habitat and wildlife movement, and whether any mitigation measures were planned.
The remaining queries were about Community Involvement and Alignment with Sustainable Practices. ICOMOS asked if Indigenous communities were included in discussions about the project and if sustainable construction practices were incorporated to minimize negative impacts.
A source told The Wire that some state government officials want to address the concerns but are hesitant to oppose Sarma.
The Ahom royal burial mounds or Charaideo Maidam in Assam’s Charaideo district recently received the UNESCO World Heritage Site tag. However, there is concern that KNPTR could lose its heritage status due to the proposed construction, which experts fear could cause irreversible damage to the park’s ecosystem and endangered species.
Manas National Park in Assam lost its UNESCO World Heritage Site status in 1992 due to wildlife and vegetation destruction but regained it in 2011.
The Wire reached out to Dilip Changkakoty, the northeast zonal representative of ICOMOS India, and an expert member of the International Committee on Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICICH) ICOMOS, and an associate member of the International Cultural Tourism Committee (ICTC) ICOMOS.
He said, “As of now, there has been no reply from the state government to our letter seeking answers to four key issues. We are a neutral body involved in the safeguard, protection, and conservation of heritage sites. We are concerned about the volume of tourists’ traffic and KNPTR’s carrying capacity, behavioural impact of infrastructural development on animals, indigenous people etc. Our duty is to highlight our serious concerns and inquire about them and place questions to state authorities. Our queries are based on our organizational charter and fundamentals.”
Changkakoty hinted that the issue will be raised at the next Heritage Alert Committee meeting of ICOMOS.
Sanjib Kumar Borkakoti, another expert member of ICOMOS and commission member of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), added, “Our responsibility is to highlight whether a UNESCO Heritage Site is effectively maintained or not. Construction at a place like KNPTR poses serious concerns over air, noise and light pollution to endangered animal species. We have addressed our serious concerns to the state government. If proper measures to reduce construction impact, to protect wildlife and vegetation and sustainability for both park and indigenous people are not implemented then KNPTR will be in danger. The state government is yet to reply to our queries.”
Source: The Wire
