MARGAO: Reacting to Supreme Court of India refusing to grant a grant a stay to the Bombay High Court’s order directing the Goa government to notify the Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary and its surrounding areas as Tiger Reserve, Goencho Ekvott (GE) on Tuesday said it is hoping this decision will boost their campaign to stop the double tracking project in Goa.
GE pointed out that the Tiger Reserve will not only be crucial in protecting both the Mhadei River and the tigers of the Western Ghats, but it will also ensure the scrapping of the much-opposed railway double-tracking project for the purpose of coal transportation through Mollem, etc.
“The HC order would have not only benefited those dependent on the Mhadei river, but also would aid in automatically scrapping the most disastrous project on the western coast and eastern Goa - the double tracking of the South Western Railway - which is the demand of the local inhabitants of Mormugao, Salcete and Quepem talukas. We welcome the decision of the learned Supreme Court judges,” GE founder, Orville Dourado Rodrigues said.
He recalled that when the Leader of Opposition had questioned the ministers holding charge of Forest, Environment and WRD about the HC order in the Assembly, all the cabinet ministers had preferred to remain silent. He also criticised the State government for filing a petition in the SC at the expense of the public exchequer, challenging the “favourable HC order”.
Incidentally the State Tiger Report 2022 had also raised concerns about the threat the Mollem National Park is facing from the upcoming linear infrastructure project of railway double tracking line from Castlerock in Karnataka to Kulem in Goa and expansion of National Highway 4A -- Anmod to Mollem.
“Mollem National Park is an important biodiversity area and holds potential for harbouring sizable tiger populations in the future. Systematic camera trapping was carried out by the forest department for the first time as a part of the AITE exercise, resulting in photo-captures of two adult tiger individuals,” the report had stated.
“The National Park is facing threats from expansion of linear infrastructures (roads, railway, and power transmission lines) and encroachment. The developmental activities need to be assessed and mitigated with suitable strategies backed by sound and long-term ecological understanding,” it mentioned.
Dourado explained that the Mhadei and Mollem are contiguous and that tigers are nomadic and they move from forests adjoining each other, including those in Karnataka.
He added that once Mhadei is declared as a Tiger Reserve, the area becomes a protected area and thus the Mollem National Park can’t be touched. Also, the linear infrastructure projects would not be able to pass through it, in order to conserve the tigers.
It is to be noted that this is something that the Save Tiger, Save Mhadei front convenor Rajan Ghate has also been saying.
Green crusaders also recalled that in January 2023, the National Board of Wildlife (NBWL) had suggested that the double-tracking of Vasco-Castlerock-Tinaghat section be dropped to avoid deforestation and that instead the double track be laid for the Hubballi-Ankola route.