PANJIM: The contentious and anti-environmental and wildlife clearance of the Standing Committee of the National Wildlife Board to double-track the railway line from Tinaighat-Castlerock in Karnataka to Kulem in Goa has been revoked as the Supreme Court bench presided over by Justice L Nageswara Rao accepted the principal recommendation of its Central Empowered Committee.
This constitutes about 29 kms of the total stretch of the 342 kms double-tracking project of the South Western Railway to be executed by the Rail Vikas Nigam Limited out of which a 90-km stretch is located in Goa.
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The Standing Committee of the National Board of Wild Life had in its 56th meeting granted permission for the railway double tracking through the eco-sensitive Western Ghats.
This involves about 120 ha of land in Goa (of which 113 ha in the protected area and 7 ha in the non-protected area reserve forest) from the Bhagwan Mahaveer Wild Life sanctuary and 10.45 ha in Karnataka in Dandeli Wild Life Sanctuary and Haliyal Forest division.
The SC added that this will not, however, preclude Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd (RVNL) to carry out a detailed analysis on the impact of the proposed project on the biodiversity and ecology of the protected areas under the wildlife sanctuary and then submit a fresh proposal to the Standing Committee of NBWL which it said shall be considered in accordance with the law.
The CEC committee, headed by member secretary Amarnatha Shetty, in its report, submitted to the Apex Court on April 23, 2021, had said, “that it does not find any justification for undertaking a project of this nature as it will destroy the fragile ecosystem of the Western Ghats which is an internationally recognised biodiversity hotspot and also one of the most important wildlife corridors of the country” and that it “will only be marginally enhancing the capacity of the most inefficient section of the railway network passing through the ecologically sensitive and biodiversity-rich tiger reserve, two wildlife sanctuaries and a national park”.
“In these circumstances, it is recommended for the consideration of the Court to revoke the permission granted by the Standing Committee of National Board for Wildlife for doubling of the railway track passing through the ecologically sensitive Western Ghats from Tinaighat-Castlerock in Karnataka to Kulem in Goa
The petitioner Goa Foundation, which had pleaded with the Supreme Court to constitute the CEC, said, “It has allowed the railways to reapply. This is the biggest defeat for the railways in a long time”.
Reacting to the order, a senior RVNL officer said that the decision is supreme, however, it is with regards to the 25 kms of Ghat section near Dudhsagar and hence works in this section would be temporarily affected. “However, the work in other ground-level areas would continue,” the officer said.
