Okhla sanctuary: UP govt asked to submit fresh proposal for

The environment ministry has asked Uttar Pradesh government to submit a revised proposal for declaring the periphery of Okhla Bird Sanctuary an Eco- Sensitive Zone (ESZ).
"The proposal of ESZ around Okhla Bird Sanctuary was discussed in a meeting chaired by the secretary, MoEF. The state government of Uttar Pradesh has been requested to submit a revised proposal," environment minister Prakash Javadekar said today in a written reply in Rajya Sabha.
He added that his ministry is yet to receive the revised proposal.
He said that a decision on the UP government proposal is going to be taken on the basis of the guideline laid down by the National Board for Wildlife on March 17, 2005 that, "delineation of ESZ would have to be site specific and relate to regulation rather than prohibition of specific activities".

The declaration of ESZ involves consultation with states and the views of the public, too, has to be sought after the issuance of the preliminary notification which allows 60 days for this purpose, Javadekar said.
Meanwhile, replying to another question, Javadekar said that of the 170 recognised zoos (excluding 22 circuses) in the country, 89 (large, medium, small zoos and rescue centres) have basic hospital facilities for treating animals.

He said that the remaining 81 mini zoos have the facility of a treatment room as per the Recognition of Zoo (Amendment) Rules, 2013. However, such zoos are using the services of state animal husbandry departments or veterinary colleges, he added.

Not all zoos and zoological parks in the country have well -equipped veterinary hospitals and clinics for specialised treatment of animals and zoo authorities have been availing of the facilities for specialised and super speciality treatment at the Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Bareilly, Javadekar said.
IVRI has been identified as a referral centre by the Central Zoo Authority, he added.