India notifies 243 sq km eco-sensitive zone around Kumbhalgarh sanctuary

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change notified an Eco-Sensitive Zone extending up to one kilometre around Rajasthan's Kumbhalgarh Wildlife Sanctuary on January 15, 2026, covering 243 square kilometres and 94 villages. The notification prohibits mining, quarrying, brick kilns and new polluting industries, raising compliance expectations for extractive industries and tourism infrastructure in ecologically sensitive regions.

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) notified an Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ) around the Kumbhalgarh Wildlife Sanctuary in Rajasthan's Aravalli range on January 15, 2026. The zone extends from zero to one kilometre beyond the sanctuary boundary, covering approximately 243 square kilometres and 94 villages across Udaipur, Pali and Rajsamand districts. The sanctuary supports leopards, striped hyenas, Indian pangolins, blue bulls and chinkaras. The designation reinforces objectives under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, establishing a buffer zone limiting high-impact activities near critical habitats.

Extractive industries, tourism developers and polluting manufacturers within the ESZ are directly affected. Prohibited operations include commercial mining, stone quarrying and crushing units, brick kilns, and the establishment of new polluting industries or expansion of existing ones. New windmills and large-scale commercial hotels and resorts within one kilometre of the sanctuary are restricted. Traditional livelihoods such as agriculture and horticulture remain permissible under regulatory oversight, while guidelines regulate night-time vehicular traffic and protect hill slopes and river banks from habitat degradation.

Businesses and investors should review land-use plans against the new restrictions, since the MoEFCC has formed a monitoring committee to ensure compliance and implement sustainable development measures across the buffer zone. Communities are encouraged toward sustainable practices such as organic farming and agroforestry. The declaration followed a draft notification published in mid-2025 inviting public objections, after the Rajasthan state government initially proposed the ESZ in 2020. Affected entities should track the monitoring committee's enforcement of land-use, tourism and extractive industry compliance expectations.

Key figure — ESZ coverage: 243 square kilometres and 94 villages, notified January 15, 2026