SATURDAY, MAY 04, 2024
Team Herald
MARGAO: Responding to the Goa government’s plea, which seeks the removal of 40 villages and the addition of 10 contiguous ones from the Ecologically Sensitive Areas (ESA) list, the Union Environment Ministry has instructed the State governments to provide details on villages to be added or removed from the ESA of the Western Ghats. This directive comes as the committee overseeing the matter aims to finalise its report before June.
The ministry had emphasised the need for the State to submit a comprehensive proposal within 15 days, as the validity of the draft notification expires in June.
Essentially the ministry is seeking justification regarding the exclusion of the 40 villages, taking into account various factors such as forest cover, landslide susceptibility, soil loss mapping, biodiversity, hydrological value, and the role of the Western Ghats in influencing the southwest Indian monsoon, especially in the context of climate change projections.
Regarding the proposal to include 10 villages in the ESA, MoEF&CC has also asked the Goa government to provide explanations and maps illustrating how these additions would compensate for the exclusion of the 40 villages, ensuring the effectiveness of the final proposed area as an ecologically sensitive unit.
Additionally, MoEF&CC has requested specific measures from the State government for the protection and development of ecology in the villages proposed for exclusion from the ESA. This includes details on laws, regulations, prohibitions, and authorities established for granting permissions related to land use changes, construction, estate development, and area-specific programmes.
The Goa government had urged removing 40 villages from the proposed ESAs of the Western Ghats, on the basis that they do not meet the criteria set by the Environment Ministry.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, had argued that these villages lacked contiguity with the Western Ghats, adequate elevation, and diverse flora and fauna. He had also said the government was open to adding 10 other villages that meet the requirements. The CM had emphasised balancing environmental protection with permitting activities like farming and housing in ESAs.
Sawant had said this when an expert team visited Goa, to understand the villagers' concerns regarding the ESA notification, despite it being based on recommendations to conserve the biodiversity hotspot.
Claude Alvares of Goa Foundation had argued that the controversy surrounding the ESA notification is unnecessary. He stated that the draft notification explicitly permits residents to live, stay, and renovate homes within ESAs while encouraging agriculture and small industries.
Alvares believes if the villagers understood the notification's contents, they would want inclusion in ESAs since it bans polluting industries, cement and thermal power plants, mining, and real estate projects - activities that villages have long opposed.
