Centre instates comm. to make Manipur’s Loktak heritage site

IMPHAL, NOVEMBER 4: The Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has constituted a five-member team for conservation and management of Loktak Lake in Manipur. The members of the committee are adviser Dr R Dalwani, DIG (WL) SP Vashisht, Sikkim unit in-charge Dr HK Badhola of GB Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment & Sustainable Development; Deputy Director Chandan Singh of the National River Conservation Directorate, and adviser Brijesh Sikka. ‘The team will visit Loktak Lake soon and hold discussions with the state government, its concerned agencies and other stakeholders. The consultations will also include people living in the vicinity of the lake,’ the PIB stated in a press release on Friday. “The ministry has asked the team to submit a report at the earliest.” The team will visit Loktak Lake to review implementation of the works being carried out with financial assistance from the central and state governments so far for the conservation and management of the lake. The team will then suggest further interventions as might be required to conserve the lake ‘in a holistic manner,’ according to the release. The team will also “enumerate the steps required to be initiated for declaring Loktak Lake as a UNESCO World Heritage Site,” besides identifying the steps and actions to be taken to increase the tourism potential of the lake. The step has been taken following the recent visit of Union Minister of state (Independent Charge) for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Anil Madhav Dave in the state. (PTI adds) The Environment Ministry constituted the committee for conservation of the Loktak Lake besides ‘assessing steps required’ to make it a UNESCO World Heritage site. “The committee will enumerate the steps required to be initiated for declaring Loktak Lake as a UNESCO World Heritage site,” the statement said. The ministry has asked the team to submit a report by November 15 this year.