Panel to study impact of allweather road in Bhagirathi zone

The Centre has decided to study the possible environmental impact of an allweather road in Uttarakhand after the country’s top green court raised concerns over the ₹12,000-crore project that cuts through an ecologically sensitive zone, an environment ministry official has said.

Under the pet project of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the government plans to build a an 889-km road network crisscrossing eight districts of the state, where landslides and snowfall block key arteries throughout the year. The Centre has set a deadline of 2019 for completion of the project.

Siddhanta Das, the director general in the ministry of environment and forest, said that a master plan is being created to understand the implications and possibilities of impact on the road through the Bhagirathi Eco Sensitive Zone.

“MoEFCC along with the ministries of road transport and railways and others are working to create a plan wherein we will study the implications, if any, of the project. We are trying for a solution,” he said.

The Bhagirathi valley is part of the eco-sensitive zone notified on December 18, 2012, and covers 4,179 sq km area along a 100-km stretch of the river from Gaumukh to Uttarkashi.

One of the areas of concern is a 94-km stretch of the road through the eco-sensitive zone.

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