PANJIM: A whopping number of around 50,000 trees would be cut from the wildlife sanctuary areas to make way for State's three major projects -rail, road and power supply.

The newly constituted State Wildlife Board under chairmanship of Chief Minister Pramod Sawant met on Monday and deliberated on the project. 

Sources revealed that around 19,185 trees would be cut for the doubling of railway track from  Castlerock to Kullem while 2,300 trees will be cut for Kullem to Margao stretch. Total 135 hectares of forest land will be utilised for the project.  

Another 12,097 trees from protected areas will be felled for four-laning  of NH-4A over a distance of 13 kms in the Anmod-Mollem section passing through Bhagwan Mahaveer Wildlife Sanctuary and National Park, Mollem.

Sources informed that the project requires total another 31.05 ha of forest land from protected area and 1.887 ha of forest land from Non-protected area will be diverted. 

The third project is the laying of new transmission line through Bhagwan Mahaveer Wildlife Sanctuary, Mollem, which will necessitate the felling of another 16,000 trees in 48 ha forest land. 

MLAs Pratasing Rane and Alina Saldanha, environmentalist Rajendra Kerkar and majority members were present for the meeting.

The members expressed concern over growing concretisation and urbanisation of Goa, which are destroying the State’s natural beauty. The board members objected to the government projects planned around wildlife habitats.