On the Bhaniyawala–Jollygrant–Rishikesh four/six lane project, NHAI said that environment, forest and wildlife conservation has been given top priority. Special underpasses are also being built for elephants.
The National Highway Authority (NHAI) has clarified its stand on the claims related to environment and forest conservation regarding the Bhaniyawala-Jollygrant-Rishikesh four/six lane project. The authority says that this project is not limited to just modern road construction, but its entire plan has been prepared keeping in mind environmental protection, protection of forest area and safe movement of wildlife.
Reducing environmental impact is the main priority of the project
Mr. Saurabh Singh, Project Director, Dehradun PIU of NHAI, said that while preparing the engineering design of the road, the most important goal was to increase the traffic capacity as well as minimize the impact on the environment. He said that the right of way (ROW) required for the project in the forest area has been kept as limited as possible. Also, based on the advice of experts from Uttarakhand Forest Department, WWF-India and Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Dehradun, special structures have been included in the design for safe movement of elephants and other wildlife.
Special underpass being built for elephants and wildlife
Under the project, one major bridge-cum-elephant underpass and four dedicated elephant underpasses are being constructed keeping in mind the safety of wildlife. Their total elevated length will be approximately 3.5 kilometers. Apart from this, six box culverts of 5×3 meter size are being prepared for the movement of large wild animals like tiger, leopard, jackal, jungle cat, porcupine, wild boar, sambar and chital. Besides, 13 pipe culverts of 1200 mm diameter will also be built for small wildlife, reptiles and amphibians. NHAI says that these measures will protect the natural routes of wildlife and are expected to reduce wildlife deaths in road accidents.
Project design changed to reduce forest land use
NHAI said that in order to avoid using additional forest land during project construction, most of the work is being done within the existing right of way. In order to reduce the environmental impact, the right of way of the road in the forest area has been reduced from 60 meters to only 23 meters, so that unnecessary forest area can be avoided.
Crores of rupees spent on compensatory afforestation and increasing green area
NHAI informed that an amount of more than Rs 1.97 crore has been deposited for compensatory afforestation and its maintenance for the next ten years. Additionally, to increase the green cover in the state, 40 hectares of non-forest land has been transferred to the Forest Department by the State Government, where new forests will be developed in future. To strengthen forest and environmental protection, an amount of more than Rs 6.04 crore has also been made available for the implementation of Wildlife Relief Scheme and Soil and Water Conservation Scheme.
There will also be arrangements like green hedge, sound barrier and no horn zone.
Many additional arrangements have also been included in the project for the protection of wildlife. These include green guide hedge, sound barrier, anti-glare screen, wildlife warning signs, speed calming measures and no horn zone. NHAI says that the aim of all these measures is to reduce conflict between humans and wildlife and to protect the natural habitat.
754 trees will be transplanted
Of the total 4,369 trees affected by the project, 754 trees will be transplanted to other locations based on scientific assessment by the Forest Research Institute (FRI). The remaining trees will be managed as per rules. NHAI said that wherever possible, efforts will be made to preserve the green cover by shifting mature trees to safer places.
Claims of violation of High Court orders declared misleading
Project Director Shri Saurabh Singh said that in some news reports and social media posts it is being claimed that NHAI and Forest Department are cutting trees ignoring the orders of the High Court. He termed these claims as completely false and misleading. He said that the contempt petition filed in this regard had also been rejected by the High Court, which clearly shows that the project is going ahead following all the statutory procedures and directions of the court.
Construction work started after all environmental approvals
NHAI clarified that the construction of the project has been started only after obtaining all necessary forest and environmental clearances and permission from the competent authorities. The authority says that all the rules related to court instructions, environmental conditions and forest conservation are being completely followed at every stage of the project.
NHAI reiterated that development and environmental protection are not contradictory to each other but complementary. The Bhaniyawala–Jollygrant–Rishikesh four/six lane project is an example of this thinking, where equal priority is being given to forest conservation, biodiversity and green cover along with modern road infrastructure.