MM Joshi raises Bhagirathi issue with ministers

The leaders flagged that infrastructure projects are being proposed and implemented without considering the altered terrain and associated risks.

Veteran BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi and Congress leader Karan Singh have urged transport minister Nitin Gadkari and environment minister Bhupender Yadav to cancel forest clearances granted by the Uttarakhand government for the Netala bypass and Jhala–Jangla stretch in the Bhagirathi eco-sensitive zone, warning that the projects threaten disaster-prone terrain amid the state’s heightened vulnerability.

The Bhagirathi river at Gangotri in Uttarkashi district. (HT File)

They also demanded that all ongoing and proposed works in the Bhagirathi eco-sensitive zone be subjected to a fresh, cumulative environmental and disaster risk assessment.

In a letter dated February 27, the two leaders, along with other leaders from Uttarakhand, flagged that infrastructure projects are being proposed and implemented without considering the altered terrain and associated risks, despite the state’s aggravated risk profile.

“Chardham road-widening project in the state of Uttarakhand is being carried out on the same road-width standard that has already proven itself to be disaster-prone and unsafe...on one of the most critical stretches of this project – Bhagirathi eco-sensitive zone, 2 packages have been cleared as part of this project on the same destructive roadwidth standard. The two critical packages being: the Netala bypass, and the Jhala–Jangla stretch, involving large-scale felling of Deodar trees,” the letter states. Both the clearances are illegal, untenable, and violative of binding constitutional, statutory, and judicial mandates, the letter adds.

According to a letter from the Uttarakhand Head of Forest Forces (HoFF), the stretch will lead to the loss of 41.92 hectares of forest area, which includes several Deodar trees.

HT reported on August 28 that the Uttarakhand forest department has approved forest diversion for an 8.70-km stretch in the ecologically sensitive Bhagirathi zone, despite warnings from environmental experts about increased disaster vulnerability in the region. Official communication dated July 21, seen by HT, shows the state has granted approval to the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) for constructing the 17.50-hectare stretch from Hina to Tekhla in Uttarkashi as part of the Char Dham route.

“The forest clearance for the Netala bypass is illegal as it runs contrary to the directions of the Hon’ble Supreme Court, which granted only a conditional approval to Char Dham works, strictly subject to adherence to the recommendations of the High-Powered Committee (HPC). The HPC recommended the cancellation of the Netala bypass, considering its non-feasibility,” the letter states.

In the case of Jhala–Jangla tree-felling clearance, it added, “The clearance permitting the felling of approximately 7,000 trees in a Deodar forest, which is particularly alarming and unlawful. This forest stands on loose debris and unstable geological material, in the very area of the recent Dharali disaster,” it says.

“Any form of disturbance — whether felling, uprooting, or even so-called “transplantation” of trees — will inevitably destabilise the slope, alter hydrology, and significantly increase the risk to human life and downstream settlements,” it adds while stressing that proceeding with such deforestation in an already destabilised landscape is a gross violation of the precautionary principle, the Disaster Management Act, 2005, and the Public Trust Doctrine, under which the State is duty-bound to protect, not imperil, irreplaceable natural resources.

HT has reached out to both Gadkari and Yadav for their response.