Jaya Bahadur Gurung, who is waiting for tourists in the middle of the red forest of Gurans, feels happy as he looks at the fish pond standing in front of him, but he is equally worried about the future of his business. He has been running a hotel in Humal (Low Camp) of Machhapuchhre Rural Municipality-9, Kaski, for 8 years and is worried that he will have to leave the business at any time.

His hotel Humal, which is serving guests on the current Mardi trekking route within the Annapurna Conservation Area, is ‘illegal’ in the eyes of the law. When most of his friends were looking abroad, he chose the tourism business in his own village. ‘I renewed my passport repeatedly, and I even thought of going abroad,’ he said. ‘Later, since all my relatives are in the tourism sector, I got involved here. I started my own hotel with the idea of ​​doing something in the country.’ The hotel he has been running since 2074 is on public land in the Annapurna Conservation Area.

Not only his, but more than 70 hotels, restaurants and tea shops have been built on public land on the Mardi Himal trekking route. ‘If tourists did not come here, we would not be here either,’ he says. ‘It is not about using a bulldozer to demolish hotels that are serving tourists, but regulating them by collecting taxes.’ We are ready to pay.'

If hotels and restaurants are allowed to operate with certain standards, tourists will get quality service and locals will also get a chance to earn income, he says. Tirtha Gurung, the owner of Hotel Heaven View, a high camp located at an altitude of 3,600 meters above sea level on the Mardi Himal trekking route, also left his profession as a trekking guide 14 years ago after seeing the potential of tourism on the Mardi trekking route. 'We have invested in Khukuri,' he says. 'If I had not been able to do tourism in this area, I would have fled abroad.'

^{Irak Gurung, who is operating Hotel Mardi at the high camp on the Mardi Himal trekking route in Machhapuchhre Rural Municipality-9 of Kaski under the Annapurna Conservation Area, saw a crowd of tourists. Photo: Deepak Pariyar/Kantipur}

Irak Gurung of Machhapuchhre Rural Municipality saw a crowd of tourists when he reached the Mardi High Camp. After seeing the scene of tourists sleeping on the floor when the hotel was full, he decided to invest in a hotel. Four years ago, he opened Hotel Mardi in High Camp with an investment of Rs 30 million. The hotel has 32 beds in 6 rooms. When there are many guests, they have to sleep on the floor. Up to 70 people can sleep that way. ‘The hotel has been opened, tourists have also received facilities,’ he says, ‘Since the government has not made a policy, investments worth crores are at risk.’

359 hotels in illegal state
The enchanting natural beauty of the Mardi Himal trekking route located in the lap of the high Himalayas attracts thousands of tourists every year. However, the tourism industry, which has flourished on the back of this beauty, is now facing challenges and uncertainty. Businessmen who have invested for years are skeptical about the future due to the lack of proper policies and management from the state.

Rule 22 of the Conservation Area Management Regulations gives local residents the right to operate services such as hotels and tea shops on public land. Accordingly, the Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP) had registered and signed contracts with about 250 hotels in the past. More than 150,000 tourists visit places like Annapurna Base Camp, Tilicho Base Camp, and Thorangla Pass annually. Most of the areas they visit are on public land outside the settlements. Keeping this need in mind, such a provision was made in the regulations. However, after the 2072 constitution and state reorganization, local levels were called upon to register businesses on public land with the municipality. At that time, a case was filed against 11 hotels built by clearing forests on the Mardi Himal trekking route. The bench of the ACAP-based liaison officer of the National Parks and Wildlife Department ordered the removal of the unauthorized structures on 8 Jestha 2076. The Kaski District Court also upheld the decision in Falgun 2079. The case is currently pending in the Pokhara High Court. Dr. Rabin Kadaria, head of ACAP, informed that the structures built on the Mardi trail since 2073 and during the Covid period have not been registered with any state body. According to him, there are 359 hotels built on public land within the Annapurna Conservation Area. ‘The Local Government Operation Act does not give the rural municipality the legal right to run hotels on public land,’ he said, ‘Since it has been a long time, we have not registered or renewed how to do it.’ Therefore, recently, there has been a situation where registration is neither in the rural municipality nor in ACAP.’

With the advent of the local level, old businesses built on public land within ACAP were not renewed, and new ones were not registered. ACAP has already lost crores of rupees in revenue for 10 years at the rate of 21 thousand rupees per year that it was taking from a hotel. As new tourist destinations are being added, hotels and restaurants are being built on public land without permission. Be it the Mardi trekking route that shone after the earthquake or the Khumai that gained popularity after the Corona, 105 hotels and restaurants have opened on public land in these areas. 143 hotels have been built on public land in the Annapurna Base Camp trekking route, Gharepani-Punhill, Khopra area, 29 in Sikles-Khafuche-Kori, 12 in Bhujung-Dudhpokhari, 56 in the circular Annapurna and 2 in Upper Mustang. The lack of regulation of these hotels and restaurants has led to a loss of revenue on the one hand, and on the other hand, has added challenges to conservation.

Efforts to manage through 'Digdarshan'
ACAP has currently banned the construction of new structures or the addition of rooms to hotels. A Digdarshan has been proposed to manage previously built hotels. Fifteen rural municipalities, ECAP and hoteliers have jointly prepared the ‘Working Guidelines 2080 on the Operation and Regulation of Businesses Including Hotels, Lodges, Restaurants, Campsites and Tea Shops on Government-Owned Land within the Annapurna Conservation Area’. ECAP Chief Rabin Kadariya said that the guidelines were prepared based on the Conservation Area Management Regulations and its guidelines.

According to him, new provisions have been proposed in the guidelines. ECAP has made a provision to enter into a hotel contract and register it commercially with the rural municipality. He said, ‘From this, the rural municipality will be able to collect revenue and ECAP will charge a fee for the use of the land.’ The guidelines include a provision to identify where and how many hotels to build at the local community, management committee and ward level, while controlling illegal activities. Since this guideline was prepared with the written opinions of all 15 rural municipalities, Kadariya expects that there will be no problem in its implementation. He says, ‘Once the guidelines are approved, we will register and contract all the hotels and manage the constructions in a manner that is pleasing to the eye and do not spoil the natural beauty.’

Tourists at a hotel in Kalimati, Machhapuchhre Rural Municipality, under the Mardi Himal Trekking Route in Kaski under the Annapurna Conservation Area. After the arrival of tourists, locals are earning income by operating hotels and restaurants in their own villages. Photo: Deepak Pariyar/Kantipur

The guidelines were submitted to the Nature Conservation Fund in Poush 2080 by the ECAP, but they have not been approved. For the guidelines to be passed, the Forest Conservation Area Management Regulations, 053 and the Guidelines, 056 should be amended based on the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act, 2029. Due to the delay in amending the act by the federal government, dissatisfaction with the ECAP is growing among local and provincial government bodies.

The Nature Conservation Fund is waiting for the amendment of the regulations. ‘Our responsibility is also to develop tourism and create jobs,’ says ACAP chief Kadaria, ‘All these 359 hotels belong to local communities, who have been using the area for grazing or cowsheds for generations.’ He believes that it is possible to demolish these structures as illegal and that it will not be good for the local economy and employment. The guidelines provide for the formation of a task force for hotel selection. The coordinator will be the ward chairperson and representatives from the Conservation Area Management Committee, Hotel Management Committee, Forest Management Committee and ACAP will be members. After the task force makes its selection, ACAP and the rural municipality will give the final approval.

The Nature Conservation Fund will specify the number of years for which the contract will be concluded. Kadaria says that even if the locals demand 20 years, annual renewal will be arranged. Raj Bahadur Tamang, chairman of the Mardi Hotel Entrepreneurs’ Committee, says that entrepreneurs are also ready to register their businesses and come under the tax net. ‘If this debate had taken place 10 years ago, the problem would not have arisen,’ he says, ‘management should be the priority now rather than getting entangled in legal issues.’

Confusion over jurisdiction after federalization, heated dispute
In 2043, the Annapurna Conservation Area was established as a pilot project in Ghandruk, Kaski, covering an area of ​​290 square kilometers. In 2046, it was expanded to 1,748 square kilometers by including Lwanghalel and Sikles. In 2049, it was brought under the National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC) and expanded to 7,629 square kilometers. The then 57 VDCs of Kaski, Lamjung, Manang, Mustang and Myagdi were included in the conservation area.

The current protected areas work based on the Conservation Area Management Regulations 053 and the Conservation Area Management Directive 056, which were made on the basis of the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 029. When the state was restructured after the constitution in 2072, those 57 VDCs were converted into 15 rural municipalities. The regulations of 2053 were made with VDCs in mind, so they do not match the current rural municipality structure. Even after the local level people's representatives were elected, the then VDC-level Conservation Area Management Committee under ECAP has neither been dissolved nor reorganized. The same committee from 10 years ago is still active. The same committee has been mobilizing resources such as timber, stones, gravel, sand, etc. There is a provision that these resources can be sold only within the ECAP area. The committee does everything from cutting wood and firewood to preparing and implementing ECAP development plans. This is where the anger of the local level people's representatives lies.

On the one hand, there has been a conflict between the union and the provinces as the constitution does not clearly state whose jurisdiction over conservation areas is in place, while on the other hand, the local level feels that it does not exist as it is run through old acts and regulations. The issue of revenue sharing between the three levels of government has been raised with urgency. People's representatives have repeatedly expressed that the ACAP should be abolished and that it should be brought under the province and handed over to the locals.

Workers collecting garbage on the Mardi Himal trekking route in the Annapurna Conservation Area. Photo: Deepak Pariyar/Kantipur

Min Bahadur Gurung, Chairman of Machhapuchhre Rural Municipality of Kaski, says that despite many disputes with ACAP, how to manage the conservation area has not been addressed. He recalled that he had visited the Union Ministry of Law and Forests for the tenth time to press for the amendment of the Conservation Area Management Regulations. ‘Should we give the right to protect, use or not?’ He asks, ‘The regulations should be amended to protect and utilize.’ He complains that the Conservation Area Management Committee is not listening to the municipality. He says, ‘The situation of forming it in 5-5 years but having the same person as the chairman for 3 decades should end.’

Schedule 5 of the constitution explains the list of powers of the union. Where national and international environmental management, national parks, wildlife reserves and wetlands, national forest policy, carbon service are included. Tourism fees are also mentioned in the list of powers of the union. In Schedule 6, only national forests, water use and environmental management within the province are included under the list of powers of the province. In Schedule 7, environmental protection and biodiversity are included under the list of common powers of the union and the province. Under Schedule 8, the list of local level powers includes the protection of the environment, biodiversity, watersheds, wildlife, mines and minerals. In this case, it is understood that the local level is only responsible for conservation. Point 4 also mentions that it can charge a tourism fee.

The confusion has arisen because the constitution does not clearly address protected areas and buffer zones. However, Article 58 of the constitution explains residual rights. It states, ‘The union shall have rights in matters not mentioned in the list of powers of the union, provinces and local levels or the common list or not specified in the constitution for use by any level.’ Based on this, there is an argument that the responsibility of protected areas lies with the union.

Since Schedule 5 places the national park in the list of powers of the union, it has been argued that protected areas also come under the union. If this is accepted as the basis, the list of powers of the constitution and the Local Government Operation Act 074 are mutually contradictory. Chapter 3 of the act mentions the functions, duties and rights of rural municipalities and municipalities. Point number 1 of the said chapter on local taxes, service charges and fees has been given the authority to formulate policies, laws, standards, implementation and regulation related to tourism fees subject to federal and provincial laws. Point number 3 has been given the authority to collect fees for new tourism services and adventure sports including trekking, and point number 4 has been given the responsibility for herbs, horses and animals.

Article 51 of the Constitution, under the policies of the state, point six (1) has been provided for the policy on the conservation, promotion and use of natural resources. The said policy mentions giving priority and pre-emption to the local community and equitable distribution of the benefits received. The National Nature Conservation Fund collects Rs 3,000 from foreigners and Rs 1,000 from tourists from SAARC countries as a tourism fee for entering the Annapurna Conservation Area. This fee is the main source of income for ACAP. In the fiscal year 081/82, ACAP earned Rs 464.87433 from entry fees. Pradeep Gauchan, chairman of Thasang Rural Municipality in Mustang, says that despite collecting crores of rupees from tourism fees, only a small amount has been spent on conservation. ‘A municipality is given Rs 20-25 lakh as fodder,’ he said.

Waiting for amendment to the Conservation Act
After completing 33 years of establishment, ACAP has been given the responsibility of management by repeatedly extending the term of management. The last time was by a decision of the Council of Ministers on 5 Poush 2080, the term was extended until Asad 2085. The term of the Manaslu Conservation Area in Gandaki Province was also extended. Immediately after the extension, a coordination meeting was held on 16 Magh 2080 under the coordination of Machhapuchhre Rural Municipality Chairman Min Bahadur Gurung to form a common understanding among the 15 rural municipalities within the conservation area. The meeting formed a committee with all the chairmen of the rural municipalities as members.

The meeting, which was also attended by Gandaki Province Chief Minister Surendra Raj Pandey, made its views and opinions public on 4 points. The meeting decided that the responsibility of the Annapurna and Manaslu conservation areas should not be given to the Nature Conservation Fund, and that the local levels within the Annapurna Conservation Area would not accept the decision of the Council of Ministers. Since the conservation area falls under the jurisdiction of the provincial government, the provincial government should make arrangements for management in accordance with the community management system in coordination and cooperation with the local level, and the meeting had given its opinion and suggestion that the local government should make arrangements for exercising the rights acquired in accordance with the law by amending the laws, regulations and directives related to parks/conservation areas that are inconsistent with the Local Government Operation Act, 2074 BS.

Jaya Bahadur Gurung, who is operating a hotel in Humal on the Mardi Himal trekking route in Machhapuchhre Rural Municipality-9 of Kaski under the Annapurna Conservation Area, said. Photo: Deepak Pariyar/Kantipur

The revised regulations propose the formation of a committee at the rural municipality level and the formation of a forest user group in the village and a conservation management committee with its representatives. The guardian of which will be the rural municipality chairman. The amendment proposal has been stuck in the Ministry of Law. Dhan Bahadur Gurung, Chairman of Naso Rural Municipality in Manang, says that the Conservation Area Management Committee is practicing like a parallel government of the municipality. He emphasizes that the regulations should be amended immediately and that the process of forming a new committee should also be realistic.

Ringjin Namgel Gurung, Chairman of Baragung Muktikshetra Rural Municipality in Mustang, draws attention to the inability to distribute land to the landless due to the lack of amendment to the regulations. Mohan Singh Lalchan, Chairman of Gharpajhong Rural Municipality in Mustang, said that the granting of too many powers to the Conservation Area Management Committee has led to duplication in the work of the municipality and the committee.

Like other municipal chairmen, he is also dissatisfied with the work of the Conservation Area Management Committee. ‘Should the money generated from natural resources be spent on development or distributed to individuals? The money raised is being used only by people within the committee, which is wrong,’ he says, ‘The committee’s scheming must end now.’ Lokendra Bahadur Ghale, Chairman of Chame Rural Municipality in Manang, thanked ACAP for the work done when there were no people’s representatives earlier, and said that now the environment should be created for people’s representatives to work.

Devijung Gurung, Chairman of Madi Rural Municipality in Kaski, said that his municipality is working in partnership with ACAP. ‘The problem cannot be solved by just criticizing without the coordination of all three governments,’ he says, ‘The regulations to be amended now must address the voices of the rural municipalities.’ As he said, since the current fiscal year, ACAP had prepared plans from 57 conservation area management committees in the presence of ward chairmen. The plans prepared in this way were finally prepared after discussions in 15 rural municipalities and submitted to the board of directors. The budget for the current fiscal year 082/83 has reached Rs 385.491,983 crore. Of this, 60 percent has been allocated for programs and 40 percent for administrative/staff. Each conservation area management committee has plans worth Rs 30 to 40 lakh to be operated in partnership with the rural municipality.

Dr. Naresh Subedi, Member Secretary of the National Nature Conservation Fund, says that there is no problem in working together with the local, provincial and central governments after the timely amendment of the act. 'There is no difficulty in working within the overall framework given by the government,' he says, 'We are not against the republic either. If the rules and regulations are changed, it will be even easier to work.' He says that the fact that the EIA was given at the local level, that stones, gravel, sand were not allowed to be used, and that forest produce was not given, also conflicts with the regulations.

He said that if the Cabinet decides to amend the regulations, the fund will not be an obstacle in facilitating entrepreneurs in the trekking sector. ‘There are policy issues that I see as there is a problem with our rules now, and another is how the local government, state and central government or the fund will use the tourism fee in the distribution of revenue,’ he said. ‘The organization was not established with the intention of causing trouble to the general public. The parliament did it because of the need.’ Krishna Acharya, President of Trekking Agencies Association of Nepal (TAAN) Gandaki, believes that the clash between ACAP and the local level should not affect tourism. He said that foreign tourists who come here have started going elsewhere after the construction of many motorable roads in the Annapurna region. ‘During the tourist season, when there is a lot of tourist pressure, there is no room for hotels,’ he says, ‘while infrastructure is being added in the Sagarmatha region, it has not been possible to add more here.’

A knot stuck in the federal government

While the management of the Kanchenjunga Conservation Area is being done by locals, the management of the Annapurna, Manaslu and Gaurishankar Conservation Areas is being done by the National Nature Conservation Trust. In 2077, before the expiration of the ECAP, the then Chief Minister Prithvisubba Gurung had tried to bring the Annapurna Conservation Area under the province. Arguing that the constitution has placed the management of the conservation area in the list of powers of the province, he had raised the voice that the management of the Annapurna Conservation Area should be given to the provincial government. On 13 Magh 2076, the provincial government decided to request that the management of the Annapurna/Manaslu Conservation Area and the Panchase Forest Conservation Area be given to the provincial government and sent it to the National Development Problems Committee. On 29 Paush 2078, Nepal sent a letter requesting to improve the existing legal system for royalties received from various sources (park reserves and conservation areas) and remove the ambiguity of the distribution system. Purneshwor Subedi, spokesperson for the Ministry of Forest and Environment of Gandaki Province, says that there has been no response from the federal government on the decisions sent by the provincial government and local levels to the National Development Problem Solving Committee. ‘There have been repeated correspondences requesting to bring the conservation area under the province,’ he says, ‘The federal government is also silent on the distribution of royalties and the distribution of tourism income.’

There are various conditions for handing over the management responsibility of the conservation area to the fund on 5 Paush 2080. Most of those conditions have not been fulfilled. कोषले ५ महिनाभित्र एक्याप/एमक्यापको व्यवस्थापन योजना तयार गरी निकुञ्ज विभागमा पेस गरी स्वीकृत गराएर संरक्षण र व्यवस्थापन गर्ने, अन्तर सरकारी बित्त व्यवस्थापन ऐन, २०७४ को व्यवस्था बमोजिम हस्तान्तरण भएको मितिदेखि प्राकृतिक स्रोतको उपयोगबाट प्राप्त हुने रोयल्टी संघीय विभाज्य कोषमा जम्मा गर्ने, नेपाल सरकार, वन तथा वातावरण मन्त्री अध्यक्ष रहने गरी संरक्षण क्षेत्र समन्वय परिषद् रहने सर्त थियो ।

संरक्षण क्षेत्र सम्बन्धी संरक्षण क्षेत्र व्यवस्थापन नियमावली २०५३ र निर्देशिका २०५६ लाई ४ महिनाभित्र संशोधन गरी कोषले ४ महिनाभित्र स्थानीयस्तरमा संरक्षण क्षेत्र व्यवस्थापन समिति, समुदायस्तरमा उपभोक्ता समिति गठन गर्ने भनिएको थियो । तर यी कुनै काम अघि बढ्न सकेका छैनन् । ४ माघ २०८० मा प्रकाशित राजपत्रमा उल्लेखित शर्त अनुसार प्राकृतिक स्रोतको सहितको पर्यटन प्रवेश शुल्क राष्ट्रिय प्राकृतिक स्रोत तथा वित्त आयोगको सिफारिस बमोजिम बाँडफाँड हुनुपर्नेमा प्रदेश र स्थानीय तहमा हालसम्म प्राप्त नभएको प्रवक्ता सुवेदीले बताए ।

प्रदेश सरकारले २९ असोज २०८० मा राजपत्रमा प्रकाशित गरेको गण्डकी प्रदेश वन ऐन, २०८० को दफा ११० मा संरक्षण क्षेत्र सम्बन्धी व्यवस्था गरको छ । उक्त दफामा प्रदेश भित्रका संरक्षण क्षेत्रको व्यवस्थापनको जिम्मेवारी प्रदेश सरकारको हुने उल्लेख गरिएको छ ।

प्रदेशभित्रका संरक्षण क्षेत्रको प्राकृतिक स्रोतबाट प्राप्त रोयल्टी र पर्यटन शुल्क संकलन, नियमन र हस्तान्तरण लगायतका संरक्षण क्षेत्र सम्बन्धी अन्य व्यवस्था तोकिए बमोजिम हुने व्यवस्था पनि ऐनमा थियो । तर ऐन आएको एक वर्षपछि तनहुँ र नवलपुरका दुई सामुदायिक वन उपभोक्ता समूहले ऐन खारेजीको माग गर्दै सर्वोच्च अदालतमा रिट दायर गरे । सर्वोच्चले मुद्दाको अन्तिम टुंगो नलाग्दासम्म ऐन कार्यान्वयन नगर्न अन्तरिम आदेश जारी गर्‍यो । प्रदेश सांसद बेदबहादुर गुरुङ ऐन र नियमावली संशोधन नहुँदा संरक्षण क्षेत्रका बासिन्दाले मुलुकमा भएको परिवर्तनको महसुस गर्न नपाएको गुनासो गर्छन् । ‘एक्यापको अहिलेको अभ्यास संविधानको मर्म विपरीत छ,’ कास्कीको मादी गाउँपालिकाका पूर्व अध्यक्ष समेत रहेका उनी भन्छन्, ‘सबै कुराको गाँठो संघ सरकारमा जोडिएको छ, नयाँ सरकारले यो गाँठो फुकाउन ध्यान दिनुपर्छ ?’

तीन तहबीच समन्वयको पहल
संरक्षण क्षेत्रमा देखिएका समस्या सम्बोधन गर्न गण्डकी प्रदेश सरकारकै पहलमा प्रदेशका वन तथा वातावरणमन्त्री भेषराज पौडेलको संयोजकत्वमा एक कार्यदल गठन भएको छ । अन्नपूर्ण संरक्षण क्षेत्र र मनास्लु संरक्षण क्षेत्रको सञ्चालन र व्यवस्थापनसँग सम्बन्धित स्थानीय तह र गण्डकी प्रदेश सरकारसँग समन्वय र सहकार्य गरी दिगो प्रभावकारी ढंगले प्राकृतिक स्रोतको संरक्षण र व्यवस्थापन गर्ने सम्बन्धमा अध्ययन गरी दुई महिनाभित्र प्रदेश सरकार मार्फत नेपाल सरकारलाई सुझाव पेश गर्न कार्यदल बनको हो ।

कार्यदलले परिवर्तित संघीय संरचनामा अन्नपूर्ण र मनास्लु संरक्षण क्षेत्रको व्यवस्थापन सम्बन्धी संवैधानिक एवं कानुनी व्यवस्थाको पुनरावलोकन गरी सुझाव दिने, हालको सञ्चालन र व्यवस्थापनको प्रभावकारिता र दिगोपनको विश्लेषण गर्ने, संरक्षण क्षेत्र व्यवस्थापन समितिको प्रभावकारिता विश्लेषण गर्ने, संरक्षण क्षेत्र व्यवस्थापन नियमावली, २०५३ संशोधनलाई प्रदेशको तर्फबाट सुझाव दिने, संरक्षण क्षेत्रबाट प्राप्त पर्यटन शुल्कलगायत अन्य आम्दानीका बाँडफाँट सम्बन्धी राय सुझाव दिने जस्ता काम गर्नेछ ।

मुख्यमन्त्री पाण्डे अहिले अहिले देखिएको विवाद सहमतिबाट टुंगोमा नपुगे संवैधानिक उपाय खोजिने बताउँछन् । ‘नेपालको संविधानअनुसार राष्ट्रिय वन क्षेत्रको संरक्षण गर्ने अधिकार प्रदेशको एकल अधिकारभित्र राखेको छ,’ उनी भन्छन्, ‘कार्यविस्तृतीकरणको प्रतिवेदनमा पनि स्पष्ट भनेको छ, संरक्षित क्षेत्रको व्यवस्थापनको जिम्मा पनि प्रदेश सरकारको हो । कानुनी लडाइँ हाम्रो हो ।’

साझा कुराहरु एकलौटी चलाउँछौं भनेर जाँदा पनि कार्यान्वयनमा समस्या हुन सक्नेतर्फ उनले खबरदारी गरे । संवैधानिक र कानुनी अधिकारको सन्दर्भमा संघ सरकार र प्रदेश बीचमा, प्रदेश र स्थानीय तह बीचमा कही अधिकारलाई मिचिएको छ भने आआफ्नो अधिकारको लागि लड्ने बाटो खुला रहेको उनको भनाइ छ । अहिलेका कानुनका कारण भइरहेका अप्ठ्यारालाई सहज बनाएर राजस्वको बाँडफाँटको सम्बन्धमा एउटा नीति बनाउनुपर्ने उनी सुझाउँछन् । अन्नपूर्ण र मनास्लु संरक्षण क्षेत्रको व्यवस्थापन प्रदेशले पाउनुपर्ने माग गर्दै गत वर्ष सर्वोच्च अदालतको संवैधानिक इजलासमा मुद्दा दायर गर्ने गण्डकीको तयारी थियो । प्रदेश महान्यायाधीवक्ताले रिटको मस्यौदा समेत यार गरिसकेका थिए । तर सकेसम्म समन्वय गरेर जाने सल्लाहपछि रिट दायर गर्न रोकिएको थियो ।

अन्तरिम सरकार बनेपछि ऐन संशोधन प्रक्रिया जटिलतातर्फ
राष्ट्रिय निकुञ्ज तथा वन्यजन्तु संरक्षण ऐन, २०२९ संशोधनका लागि राष्ट्रिय निकुञ्ज तथा वन्यजन्तु संरक्षण विभागले आफ्नो वेबसाइटमा सुझाव मागेको छ । वन तथा वातावरण मन्त्रालय स्रोतका अनुसार संरक्षण क्षेत्र व्यवस्थापन नियमावली, ०५३ को संशोधन प्रस्ताव कानुन मन्त्रालयमा पठाइएको छ । ऐन, नियमावली संशोधनको विषय वन मन्त्रालय र कानुन मन्त्रालयबीच छलफलमा रहेको विभागका महानिर्देशक डा.बुद्धिसागर पौडेलले बताए । ‘मुख्य विषयहरु संशोधन हुँदैनन्, संरक्षण क्षेत्रमा स्थानीय तहलाई काम गर्न भएका अप्ठ्यारा फुकाउन संशोधन अघि सारिएको हो,’ उनले भने, ‘स्रोतको बाँडफाँट पनि प्रचलित नियम कानुन अनुसार र संघीयताको मर्मअनुसार कसरी गर्न सकिन्छ उपाय निकालौं ।’

यसअघि ऐन संशोधन अन्तिम चरणमा पुगेका बेला सर्वोच्च अदालतको संवैधानिक इजलासको परमादेशले रोकिएको थियो । संवैधानिक इजलासले गत २ माघमा निकुञ्ज तथा संरक्षित क्षेत्रमा पूर्वाधार निर्माण गर्न पाउने कानुनलाई खारेज गरेको थियो । वैशाख २०८१ मा आयोजित लगानी सम्मेलनको पूर्वसन्ध्यामा अध्यादेश तथा संसद् सुरु भएपछि विधेयकमार्फत राष्ट्रिय प्राथमिकता प्राप्त आयोजना अघि बढाउन पाउने प्रावधानसहित निकुञ्ज ऐन संशोधन गरेको थियो । ‘त्यो परमादेशले संरक्षण क्षेत्र, राष्ट्रिय निकुञ्ज तथा वन्यजन्तु संरक्षण क्षेत्र र मध्यवर्ती क्षेत्रमा कुनै पनि विकासका काम गर्न पाइँदैन भनेर रोक लगाइदिएको अवस्था छ । सयौं जलविद्युत आयोजना अलपत्र परेका छन्, अरु बाटोघाटो र ठूला संरचना बनाउने आयोजना अलपत्र परेका छन्,’ वन मन्त्रालयका एक कर्मचारीले भने, ‘त्यसको विकल्प के हुन सक्छ ? सर्वोच्चको पूर्णपाठ आयो भने त्यसका केही सुधार भएर आउने पर्खाइमा छौं ।’