HC allows Adani firm to lay power line through nat’l parks, cut 209 mangroves

The 80-km transmission line will pass through ecologically sensitive areas like the Tungareshwar Wildlife Sanctuary (TWLS) and the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), and require the felling of 209 mangrove trees, as per the environment impact assessment report

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court has allowed Adani Electricity Mumbai Infra Ltd (AEMIL) to lay down a 1,000-megawatt HVDC (high-voltage direct current) transmission line between Kudus in Palghar district, where Maharasthra State Electricity Transmission Company’s substation is located, and Aarey Colony.

HC allows Adani firm to lay power line through nat’l parks, cut 209 mangroves

The 80-km transmission line will pass through ecologically sensitive areas like the Tungareshwar Wildlife Sanctuary (TWLS) and the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), and require the felling of 209 mangrove trees, as per the environment impact assessment report. AEMIL must undertake compensatory mangrove plantation and ensure strict compliance with environmental regulations, the bench comprising chief justice Alok Aradhe and justice Bharati Dangre said on February 6 while granting clearance to the project.

The court was hearing a writ petition filed by AEMIL, seeking permission to execute the project aimed at enhancing the capacity of electricity transmission in the city. The petition was filed on August 26, 2024, and eight parties including the Bombay Environmental Action Group, a nonprofit, and various government bodies were listed as respondents.

According to the petition, AEMIL conceptualised the high-voltage transmission line after the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC) observed in January 2019 that the only option to deal with scarcity of power in Mumbai was to increase the available transfer capability.

Around 30 km of transmission line will be overhead while 50 km will be underground, the petition said. It will pass through Vasai Creek and other eco-sensitive areas, which fall within the coastal regulatory zone (CRZ). It will also require the felling of 209 mangrove trees, of which 144 are under the Mumbai Mangrove Conservation Unit (MMCU) and 65 are under the SGNP forest division.

The petition further said that according to the environment impact assessment report submitted in March 2023, the project would cause minimal damage to biodiversity, and compensatory mangrove plantation could overcome the loss. To further minimise the impact, AEMIL would lay cables beneath the Vasai creek at a depth of 20 metres, using horizontal directional drilling.

The project was necessary in public interest, AEMIL counsels submitted in court. All statutory permissions for laying down the line in CRZ areas had been granted and the company would, as part of compensatory afforestation, plant five times the mangroves cut down, they said.

The counsel for one of the respondents raised serious objections about the number of mangroves that would be affected by the project. Further, the underground cables may give rise to environmental issues for many vulnerable species in the national parks, the counsel said.

Considering the public importance of the proposed project and permission granted by the court to a similar project recently, the court granted permission to AEMIL to execute the transmission line. Laying down transmission lines is a permissible activity in CRZ-I areas, as per the Coastal Regulation Zone notification dated January 6, 2011, the court observed.

“The need for sustainable development and the requirement to maintain the environment must strike a balance. The project of construction of electricity transmission line is critical for the city as the existing capacity of transmission corridor is not sufficient to carry further power into the city,” the court said, directing the concerned AEMIL officer to file an undertaking, assuring strict compliance with environmental regulations and safety during the execution of the project.