Drop rail, highway projects in Anshi National Park: Yellappa Reddy

Retired forest officer A N Yellappa Reddy, who headed the department of Ecology, Environment and Forests, has warned that the linear projects in the Anshi National Park will lead to irreparable damage to the unique ecosystem of the Western Ghats.

Opposing the proposed track doubling of the Tinaighat-Colem section of Hosapete-Vasco Da Gama line and widening of a NH-4A between Panaji and Belagavi, he said the government nod to the projects show complete disregard to the environment, which has already suffered a huge blow due to the existing projects.

"The Karnataka government has built a series of dams for hydroelectric power under the nomenclature of Kali first and second stage to cater to power and water demand of the Kaiga nuclear plant. A large extent of the forest was destroyed and submerged during the formation of the dams, and vast areas of primordial forests are also destroyed for the rehabilitation and relocation of the submerged villages," Reddy stated in a letter to the government.

He said the projects have not been subjected to scrutiny. "The two projects will virtually destroy the (wildlife) corridors irreversibly and permanently curtail the genetic flow and stability of fauna and flora. The Wildlife Institute of India and all the other departments of Government of India are also aligned to blindly promote this (doubling) project without understanding the damages," the renowned environmentalist lamented.

The retired officer, who served in the Anshi National Park, urged the government to drop the proposed highway project and the doubling of the railway tracks.