15 resorts in Tipeshwar eco-sensitive zone served notices over illegal construction

Yavatmal: The forest department has ordered 15 resort and tourism operators to immediately stop unauthorized construction in the eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) of the Tipeshwar Wildlife Sanctuary, located in Pandharkawda along the Vidarbha-Telangana border in Yavatmal district. In the notices issued on March 28, the deputy conservator of forests (DCF), Pandharkawda Forest Division, Yashwant Bahale, also directed the resort owners to discontinue all commercial activities at the sites until all permissions are secured.The Central Government had officially declared the area surrounding Tipeshwar Wildlife Sanctuary as an ESZ on September 18, 2018. As per regulations, any construction or commercial activity within this zone requires prior clearance from the competent committee. According to official sources, the resort owners carried out construction without obtaining mandatory prior approval from the District Level Monitoring Committee, headed by the district collector. According to official sources, the matter came to light after the resort owners barred movement of forest staff in the ESZ area. This raised alarms and DCF Bahale decided to verify records pertaining to the construction activities. Investigation revealed that in some cases, resort owners obtained permissions for only land beautification, but no approvals were secured for actual construction. Authorities also found that several operators had already started commercial activities in violation of environmental norms.DCF Bahale stressed that any violation of the directives regarding suspension of construction and commercial activities will invite strict action under the provisions of the Environment Protection Act.