Big Win for Telangana as Centre's Environment Panel Rejects Banakacharla Project Clearance
The expert appraisal committee (EAC) of the MOEF&CC, in its meeting on June 17, the minutes of which were released on Monday, recommended that the project proponent, in this case the AP government, “should comprehensively assess the availability of floodwaters in consultation with the Central Water Commission (CWC).”
Hyderabad: In a huge win for Telangana, the Union ministry of environment, forests and climate change (MOEF&CC) has rejected AP’s request for setting up terms of reference for environmental clearance for the Godavari-Banakacharla link project. The Centre declared that AP’s request could not be entertained as there were several unresolved issues on the sharing of Godavari river water between AP and Telangana, and that the proposed project may be in violation of the 1980 Godavari Water Disputes Tribunal (GWDT) award.
The expert appraisal committee (EAC) of the MOEF&CC, in its meeting on June 17, the minutes of which were released on Monday, recommended that the project proponent, in this case the AP government, “should comprehensively assess the availability of floodwaters in consultation with the Central Water Commission (CWC).”
The EAC also said it received ahd several representations via email, alleging that the scheme may violate the GWDT award, 1980. “In view of this, it is imperative that the PP (project proponent) should approach CWC for examining the inter-state issues and granting necessary clearance/permission before submitting the proposal for framing the TOR (terms of reference) for conducting EIA (environmental impact assessment) study.”
And hence, the EAC, said it has decided to “return the proposal.”
Without terms of reference, there can be no EIA study, which in turn means that the AP government cannot proceed with its project plans immediately as it had hoped for. The AP government had sought these initial environmental clearance permissions for the Godavari-Banakacharla link project based on a pre-feasibility report it submitted to the Centre.
The Telangana government had been opposing the project and had repeatedly complained to the Union jal shakti ministry that AP was going ahead with the Godavari-Banakacharla project which will hurt Telangana’s interests, even as the issue of water sharing from the river between the two states was yet to be settled. In the latest such effort on June 19, Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy and irrigation minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy had met with jal shakti minister C.R. Patil in New Delhi and raised Telangana’s concerns on the project.
The EAC noted in its meeting minutes that it took cognizance that the “proposed scheme aims to divert floodwaters from the Godavari basin (Polavaram Dam) to the water-deficit basins within the state (AP). The EAC further observed that Environmental Clearance (EC) for the Indirasagar Polavaram Multipurpose Project on Godavari, located at Polavaram was granted by the ministry in 2005, but due to submergence-related issues in Odisha and Chhattisgarh, the matter remains sub-judice,” and this needs a comprehensive assessment on floodwater availability in the river by the Central Water Commission.
Infograph
Some environmental aspects of Godavari-Banakacharla Link Project
* Needs 7,179 hectare of forest land, of total 14,064 hectare needed.
* Land expected to be submerged: 24,062 hectare of which forest land is 7,169 hectare
* Goes through environmentally sensitive area of Nagarjunasagar-Srisailam tiger reserve.
* 19.5 km-long tunnel under tiger reserve, to be dug using a tunnel boring machine
* Muck from tunnel excavation: 47,89,571 cubic metres.
* Muck from canal excavation: 37,57,08,051 cubic metres
* Solid waste from labour camps: 2,567 tonnes per annum