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What did the Centre’s decision cover?
At its 81st meeting on 21 December 2024, the Standing Committee of the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) decided to recommend exploratory drilling at well pad SP-1-East-2 in block AA-ONHP-2017/4, Jorhat district. The site is in the sanctuary’s ESZ, and the committee minutes place it about 13 km from the sanctuary. These details and measurements are from the committee record, not independent measurements. (Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change answer to Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 106, 3 February 2025; NBWL committee record, as cited in the parliamentary answer)
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The proposed footprint is 4.4998 hectares in total: 1.44 hectares for the well-pad plinth and 3.0598 hectares for the approach road. The committee minutes describe Hollongapar as important habitat for hoolock gibbons. They record a site inspection on 15 November 2024 involving ministry, Wildlife Institute of India, state forest department and expert representatives. The committee’s assessment that exploratory drilling might not cause much damage, and its distinction between exploration and potentially impermissible commercial drilling, are assessments in those minutes—not findings about impacts after a project has operated.
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No. The ministry’s 3 February 2025 Lok Sabha answer states: “No oil/ gas extraction shall be allowed from inside the ESZ area in case any reserves are discovered at the site.” The committee minutes also record the operator’s undertaking not to carry out commercial drilling at this site. The recommendation is therefore limited to exploratory drilling and does not authorize production from inside the ESZ.
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What safeguards and conditions are attached?
The ministry’s answer lists conditions for the NBWL recommendation. They set out advance disclosure, oversight, monitoring, environmental safeguards and reporting requirements:
- Before drilling, the project’s user agency must provide the complete exploration-drilling plan, including material safety data sheets, to the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH), State Pollution Control Board and Forest Department.
- The State Pollution Control Board and Forest Department must exercise direct control and continuous vigilance. DGH is to oversee controls and operations.
- A CCTV-based Digital Video Surveillance System must be installed so the controllers can monitor the operation in real time.
- Violations of Pollution Control Board norms trigger immediate suspension and project termination, with necessary legal action against the proponent.
- If reserves are discovered, oil or gas extraction from inside the ESZ is not allowed.
- Tree felling must be minimized, and the project must not adversely affect wild animals or their habitat.
- The operator must take adequate measures to prevent pollution, including risks such as oil or gas leaks and a well explosion.
- The operator must deposit an amount equal to the cost of ESZ impact-mitigation measures, for use by the Chief Wildlife Warden under the ministry’s cited guidelines.
- The operator must submit an annual compliance certificate to the State Chief Wildlife Warden, who must submit an annual certificate to the Government.
These are conditions recorded for the recommendation; the parliamentary answer does not establish that they have all been completed.
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How do environmental and wildlife approvals fit together?
They are separate steps, not interchangeable permissions. A separate Lok Sabha answer says block AA-ONHP-2017/4 was awarded to Vedanta Limited, with 100% participating interest, and that its Revenue Sharing Contract was signed on 1 October 2018. It also says Assam’s State Environment Impact Assessment Authority granted environmental clearance for exploratory wells in the wider block after appraisal by the State Level Expert Appraisal Committee, including a field visit. The ministry describes wildlife clearance as a distinct requirement for operations in protected-area ESZs. (Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Lok Sabha answer)
The site-specific NBWL recommendation does not, on its own, show that all project-specific permissions, local permissions or conditions required before work begins have been satisfied. The official records cited here do not establish the current status of every approval or whether drilling has commenced.
Was there an environmental impact report or public consultation?
The ministry told the Lok Sabha that onshore and offshore oil and gas exploration projects were classified as B2 under the Environment Impact Assessment Notification, 2006, and on that basis were exempt from an EIA report and public consultation. This is the ministry’s explanation of the applicable process, not evidence that a project-specific connectivity study or public consultation took place.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What does the record say about the sanctuary’s connectivity?
The ministry says the ESZ notified in September 2019 includes Dissoi Valley Reserved Forest and is intended to mitigate impacts on the sanctuary through prohibited, regulated and promoted activities. The committee minutes give the sanctuary’s area as 20.98 km² and its notified ESZ as 264.92 km², and describe the ESZ’s purpose as helping connect the sanctuary with Dissoi Valley Reserved Forest and forest habitat toward Nagaland. These areas and the stated purpose are from the committee record.
The ministry’s answer does not report a separate project-specific connectivity study or a dedicated connectivity mitigation plan for this drilling site. The minutes also record that the proposed location is in an area disputed between Assam and Nagaland, and that local people told the inspection team drilling would require permission from the Village Council and Nagaland government. Those are statements recorded in the minutes, not a verified ruling on jurisdiction or confirmation of current consent.
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