The Assam government has reconstituted the State Board for Wildlife, naming Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma as chairman and Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Jayanta Malla Baruah as vice‑chairperson, in a notification issued by the Environment, Forest and Climate Change Department under Section 6 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. The notification, issued with immediate effect, lists a mix of officials, NGO representatives, academics and conservation professionals among the new members.
Notably, the notification appoints three political leaders — Padma Hazarika (BJP MLA, Sootea), Tuliram Ronghang (Chief Executive Member, Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council) and Debolal Gorlosa (Chief Executive Member, Dima Hasao Autonomous Council) — under the category described as “Eminent Conservationist, Ecologist and Environmentalist.” The document itself does not set out what conservation work, ecological research or environmental interventions underlie those classifications.
NGO representation on the board includes Aaranyak, WWF‑India and the Wildlife Trust of India. The notification also names academics and conservation professionals such as retired Gauhati University professor Parimal C. Bhattacharjee, Assam University’s Parthankar Choudhury, retired IAS officer A.U. Choudhury of the Rhino Foundation for Nature in NE India, Kaushik Barua of the Assam Elephant Foundation, Soumyadeep Datta of Nature’s Beckon and conservationist Purnima Devi Barman.
Ex‑officio and administrative members will include the senior-most secretary of the Environment, Forest and Climate Change Department, the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Head of Forest Force, the senior-most secretary of the Welfare of Plain Tribes and Backward Classes Department, and the Managing Director of the Assam Tourism Development Corporation. A state police officer not below the rank of Inspector General is named for police representation; the notification lists Munna Prasad Gupta, Special DGP, Assam Police, in that slot. A representative of the Armed Forces at the prescribed rank will also sit on the board.
The reconstituted board brings together government officials, legislators, NGOs, academics, conservationists and autonomous council leaders, combining a wide range of institutional interests. At the same time, the placement of three elected or autonomous council leaders in a category reserved for eminent environmental professionals — the “sudden arrival” of three newly “discovered” environmentalists, as the notification’s wording has been read — is likely to prompt questions within Assam’s wildlife, forest and environmental community about the criteria for such appointments and the transparency of the selection process.
Original Source: https://www.indiatodayne.in/assam/story/assam-government-discovers-3-eminent-environmentalists-nobody-knew-padma-hazarika-tuliram-ronghang-and-debolal-gorlosa-1437545-2026-08-13?utm_source=rssfeed
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Publish Date: 2026-08-13 19:46:00
