Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma defends the state’s decision to reduce the eco-sensitive zone around Kaziranga National Park from the default 10 km to 1 km. He says keeping a 10-km buffer could affect multiple populated areas.
Both outlets frame the move in relation to the Supreme Court’s direction, with the state asserting it is acting in line with that order. The Hindu focuses on Sarma’s justification that the wider zone risks impacting residents in surrounding areas. Scroll.in highlights concerns raised by environmentalists, who warn that a smaller buffer may increase human-animal conflict, particularly during flood periods when animals may move closer to settlements.
The two accounts therefore diverge mainly on emphasis: the state’s stated rationale for limiting the zone’s reach versus the environmental groups’ predicted consequences for wildlife-human interactions under a reduced buffer.
