KENDRAPARA: The forest department has urged the Kendrapara administration to demolish around six hotels illegally constructed inside the Bhitarkanika National Park by violating coastal regulation zone (CRZ) norms.
Bhitarkanika divisional forest officer (DFO) Varadaraj Gaonkar said they have written a letter to the collector, who is the head of the district coastal zone monitoring committee (DCZMC), to take legal action against the hotel owners who violated the CRZ Act.
“All the hotels were not granted permission by the DCZMC or the forest department to operate. These hotels inside the park often damage the fragile ecosystem and cause pollution of the coastal waters. After getting permission from the district administration, we will launch massive eviction drive against the illegal hotels in Bhitarkanika,” he added.
He said CRZ is violated when permanent construction, industrial activity or dumping occurs within 500 metre of the high tide line or in sensitive coastal ecosystem without proper legal clearance. These violations often lead to demolitions, fines and legal action against the unauthorised developers, the forest officer said.
“The forest department will not spare the encroachers who are illegally occupying government and forest land. Legal action will be taken who refuse to vacate the lands. We are working out ways to gather details about government and forest land under unlawful occupation,” Gaonkar added.
Meanwhile, vice-president of Kendrapara Citizens forum Biswanath Behera alleged some influential people have undertaken illegal construction work from the Ramnagar village to Kharinasi stretch under Mahakalapada block but the authorities concerned are yet to evict them.