Mumbai, Oct 26 Environmental activists led by actor Sayaji Shinde have come together to oppose large-scale felling of trees for a proposed project by Gujarat-based Torrent Power in Karjat taluka of Maharashtra’s Raigad district, calling for a united resistance against the move on Monday.
Shinde appealed to people not to allow a single tree to be felled for the 3,000 MW hydro-energy project and urged them to drive away those arriving to cut trees by banging plates and bowls, as done during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, in a show of solidarity for the cause.
Talking to reporters at the Mumbai Marathi Patrakar Sangh, he said, “If someone comes to cut trees, consider it a disease more dangerous than COVID-19 and drive them away by banging plates and bowls.” The veteran actor insisted cutting trees is akin to “dropping bombs” as it destroys the homes of animals and birds.
“The Sahyadris (mountain range spanning multiple states, including Maharashtra) are one of the greatest wonders of the world. What are we achieving by destroying the homes of animals and birds by dropping bombs on them in this manner?” Shinde asked.
He said Shekru, which is Maharashtra’s state animal, inhabits Bhimashankar reserve forest.
The project is coming up near the forest. Animals don’t know boundaries. For them, it is a forest, Shinde added.
“It’s not just a question of the numbers fifteen or twenty or one hundred; it’s a question of the 50 types of fish there. Who will give justice to these fish? Who will give justice to snakes there? Who will give justice to eagles? So, we need to raise our voice on behalf of all of them, and Maharashtra should stand up for that,” Shinde said.
During the press conference, environmental activists announced statewide protests involving the banging of plates and bowls to coincide with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s groundbreaking ceremony for the Rs 13,505 crore project.
Farmer activist Raghunathdada Patil said public hearings for the projects are happening through the government, citing the example of a public hearing for Vadhavan Port in Palghar district.
He called for collective resistance, accusing the government of not giving them time to put forward their views.
Advocate Kailash More from Karjat claimed the open-loop power project is happening in the Pej River. It is a pump storage project that is actually implemented at Saydonger 1 and Saydonger 2 near Karjat. For Saydonger 1, a total of 932 acres of land is required, out of which 600 acres are forest land.
Through Karjat Taluka Paryavaran Bachao Samiti, they are opposing the project, More said.
He claimed they came to know about the public hearing in Gaurkamt village outside the project-affected area at the last moment.
He claimed that without any explanation, disclosure or imparting information, the company started cutting trees in the forest from Dussehra.
“Daily 2,000-250 trees are being cut down. Using modern machinery, trees are being cut in two to five minutes,” More alleged, adding that on paper it is claimed that 48,000 trees will be cut for the project, but the company is actually chopping around 2.5 lakh trees.
More claimed that the villages around the project are already facing water scarcity and once the project is completed, the villages will face water shortage along with Karjat, Badlapur and Ulhasnagar, once the project is completed.
Advocate Shriram Pingle said that the government is giving false information about the vegetation at the project.
“When the government plants trees, I should say that three lakh trees are planted in 32 acres of forest in the Yayasan system. The paradox is there are only 50,000 trees in 300 acres of forest that are hundreds of years old,” he said, adding that more than 10 lakh trees will be axed for different projects including the Vadhavan Port.
Prasad Dekhmukh said the village council (Gram Sabha) passed all the resolutions against the project, but Torrent Power has not given any clarity about the status of the project.
Citing the “executive summary of the project”, he claimed only 100 jobs will be created during the operation phase of the project.
“How justified is it in the name of employment generation to deforest such a large amount of land and destroy the livelihood of local communities for just a hundred jobs?” he questioned, adding that within the 15-20 km radius of the project, some more projects are going to come, but no community impact assessment was conducted.
Many villagers and activists from various project-affected areas were also present at the presser and vowed to fight for the environment.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday accused the Opposition of creating a fake narrative about the hydro-power project in Raigad district, asserting the unit will produce clean energy and help meet peak electricity demand.
He insisted the Karjat project will provide electricity without any pollution.
Torrent Power has defended the proposed 3,000-megawatt pumped storage project, saying the unit is located about 16 km away from the Bhimashankar Wildlife Sanctuary and all its components fall outside the sanctuary and its eco-sensitive zone.
(PTI News)
