Team Herald
MARGAO: The National Board of Wildlife (NBWL) has approved the Goa government’s proposal to use 27.092 hectares of forest land from Bhagwan Mahaveer Wildlife Sanctuary, Mollem, for the Tamnar Power Transmission project.
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The NBWL Standing Committee, chaired by Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav, recommended the diversion of forest land subject to certain conditions.
The proposal received clearance from the State Wildlife Board in November last year.
The proposal involves the LILO of one circuit of the Narendra (existing) – Narendra (New) 400 kV D/C quad transmission line. The NBWL has mandated that the project proponent study the impact of the transmission lines on biodiversity and wildlife, and implement several precautionary measures for environmental protection.
However, the project cannot commence until the proposal on the Karnataka side is recommended by the Standing Committee of the NBWL. The power transmission project, according to the State government, aims to lay a 400 KV transmission line from Sangod in Goa to the Karnataka border to help meet Goa’s peak electricity demand of 1,192 mw.
However, it may be noted that there could still be further developments on the Karnataka side, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote to the Karnataka Chief Minister, emphasising the national importance of the project being part of the national grid development. This intervention, according to media reports in Karnataka appears to have influenced Karnataka’s stance on the project.
Karnataka Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre, who had initially rejected the proposal in March, has now indicated a willingness to reconsider. “Prime Minister Modi wrote to the Chief Minister a few weeks ago and made a request. Later, our Chief Secretary also attended the Centre’s meeting and reviewed the project,” Khandre told the Karnataka-based media recently. He added that the revised proposal claims only 13,000 trees may need to be felled, down from the initial estimate of one lakh trees.
The project has faced stiff opposition from conservationists in Goa, who argue that the forests will suffer severe and irreversible destruction. They have questioned the effectiveness of proposed mitigation measures and challenged the government’s justification for the power requirements, suggesting that alternative renewable energy sources could meet the purported needs.
Following protests against the project which led to the matter reaching the apex court, the Supreme Court accepted recommendations from the Centrally Empowered Committee (CEC) to utilise the existing 220 kv power line alignment in Goa instead of cutting down fresh forest cover for the new 400 kv line.
