The Forest and Environment Department has included 74 villages inside the eco-sensitive zone in order to protect the wildlife and green cover of the area.

As per the State Government’s regulation, the outer boundary of the sanctuary has to be at a distance of 10 kilometres from the core area.

The Forest and Environment Ministry has asked various stakeholders to submit their objections to the proposed plan.

Earlier, Bhuasuni Mouza was selected for the proposed Regional Solid Waste Management Treatment Plant (RSWTP). BMC has already been granted 61.48 acres of land for the project.

With Bhubaneswar generating more than 500 tonnes of solid waste everyday, RSWTP is considered vital. Presently, the solid waste of the city is dumped at Bhuasuni.

“The inclusion of the village will jeopardise progress of one of the major projects of BMC,” said a senior BMC official.

Meanwhile, BMC Commissioner Sanjib Mishra has written to the Wildlife Conservator of Forests asking him not to include Bhuasuni in the proposed boundary.

Principle Chief Conservator of Forest JD Sharma said every objection regarding eco-sensitive zone will be evaluated by a technical team comprising ecologists and environment specialists.

The local administration will look into the issue and a proposal will be drafted accordingly.

The proposal will be submitted to the State Government, which will send it to the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Sharma said.