Assam's nature enthusiast appeals to UNESCO to halt elevated corridor threatening Kaziranga

Guwahati: A detailed letter addressed to UNESCO Director-General Khaled El-Enany has raised alarm over the proposed construction of a 35 km-long elevated corridor along the southern boundary of Kaziranga National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site in Assam and home to the world’s largest population of the one-horned rhinoceros.

The letter, written by nature enthusiast Prasanta Kumar Saikia, urges UNESCO to intervene urgently, citing fears that the project could cause irreversible ecological damage to one of the world’s most celebrated wildlife landscapes.

According to the letter, media reports suggest the elevated corridor—planned by government authorities to ease traffic movement and reduce roadkill incidents during monsoon floods—may take over four years to build. However, the prolonged construction process itself poses a “grave threat” to the region’s fragile ecosystem.

Kaziranga, known for its vast floodplains, rich biodiversity and status as a Conservation International-designated hotspot, shelters 35 major mammal species, including 15 listed under India’s Schedule I of endangered wildlife.

With over 70% of the world’s Indian rhinoceros population and more than 300 species of birds, the park is widely regarded as one of South Asia’s finest wildlife refuges.

The letter warns that continuous noise, vibrations, heavy machinery, and human activity during construction would severely disrupt wildlife mobility along natural corridors, disturb breeding patterns, and destabilize the park’s ecological balance.

It states that such activities would violate the World Heritage Convention, under which the site is protected for its “Outstanding Universal Value” (OUV).

Additionally, the letter expresses concern over another planned infrastructure project—the re-alignment of National Highway 715 along the southern periphery of the Burhapahar Range.

This zone acts as an ecological buffer and forms a critical wildlife movement corridor connecting Kaziranga’s floodplains with the hills of Karbi Anglong.

Any new linear infrastructure here, the letter argues, would further fragment habitats and escalate roadkill incidents, especially during floods when animals move to higher ground.

Calling UNESCO’s intervention “a global responsibility,” the writer appeals for three urgent actions:
(1) dispatching a fact-finding or monitoring mission to Kaziranga, (2) urging the Centre and the Assam government to halt construction until thorough ecological assessments are completed, and (3) ensuring strict adherence to World Heritage conservation guidelines.

The letter stresses that Kaziranga’s long-term ecological security is at stake and that immediate steps are necessary to prevent “potentially irreversible damage” to the iconic site.

UNESCO has yet to issue a response.