Yettinahole: VJNL admits fault, govt seeks nod for forest diversion

Bengaluru: The state government has recommended the diversion of 275 acres of forest for the Rs 23,251 crore Yettinahole project, stating that the Visvesvaraya Jala Nigam Limited (VJNL) has admitted to “unintended” forest violations during the execution of works for the much-delayed works and suggesting that penalty may be imposed for the same.

VJNL has sought diversion of 274.35 acres in Tumakuru and Hassan districts for the construction of a main canal for the drinking water project, which will require the felling of 5,261 trees. The agency came under the scanner last week after the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change highlighted that officials had taken up work in the forest area without the necessary permissions and damaged the ecology among other violations.

Following a direction by the Union ministry nodal officer, the deputy conservator of forests (DCF), Hassan, had sought an explanation.

In response, the user-agency has stated that construction activities were carried out in Shivapura Kavalu, Nayakanakarekavalu, Mududi and Aidahallakavalu based on the consent of the existing landowners.

“The work was stopped when these were identified as forest. Hence, the construction activity done in the above said areas now being treated as forest land which is now considered a violation of the Forest Act, were not intentional or wilful,” VJNL stated.

The agency admitted to dumping muck in the forest area while taking up canal work. Of the 16.17 km length of canal inside the forest, 10.13 km has been completed which has generated 42.3 lakh cubic metres of rock and soil.

“The remaining untackled 6.03-km canal work is pending for which an area of 45 acres and 24 guntas of land is required to store 10.77 lakh cubic metre of excavated muck to a height of 6 metres. If non-forest land is proposed for the muck dumping, an estimated amount of Rs 300 crore will have to be spent for the land acquisition, loading, unloading, transportation and dumping,” it said, adding that the villagers would also object to such works, leading to further delays in the project.

The Forest Department considered the response and wrote to the state government to move VJNL’s proposal to the MoEF&CC for in-principle (Stage-I) approval.

“Appropriate suitable penalty may be imposed for
utilisation of forest land by the user agency for violation of the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, Rules, 2023,” Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Head of Forest Force) Meenakshi Negi said in her letter to the Additional Chief Secretary of the department.

Sources in the department said the government has sent the proposal to the MoEF&CC. “If the Union ministry clears the recommendation, it will impose certain conditions based on which the Hassan DCF will calculate the penalty and raise a demand notice,” the source added.