Mangaluru: The government’s plans to build a tunnel through Shiradi Ghat and reduce the travel time between Mangaluru and Bengaluru has come under fire from environmentalists, who fear it could damage the water table of the Western Ghats and harms its flora and fauna as well.
“The government plans to build a tunnel through Shiradi Ghat. But the region has many tributaries of the river Netravathi flowing through it,” points out Sahyadri Sanchaya convener, Dinesh Holla.
“The tunnel could disrupt the ground water flow in the hills and the water table in the upper regions could be affected as well, hitting the natural underground water pockets and creating an imbalance,” warns Mr Shashidhar Shetty of the National Environment Conservation Federation (NECF), adding, “We have seen this happen in the tunnels of the Konkan Railways. The tunnel near Shiroor in Udupi district damaged the groundwater in the villages of Henberu, Padvar and Shirur Melpankti.
The water table which was about 12 to 15 feet deep in Padvar, has fallen to 60 feet! Henberu is now dependent on tap water and the natural flow of water has been damaged. Water, which would otherwise be underground is now seen flowing on both sides of the tunnel. This could happen at Shiradi too.”
The activist fears that the imbalance will not only affect the people living in the upper regions of the ghats, but also the flora and fauna of the area.
“Hills and mountains have natural in-built underground water pockets which help in maintaining greenery and also provide water for their wild animals.
These tanks could be damaged by the construction of the tunnel. If the government has any damage control measures, it must make them public,” he demands.
