3,817 trees across tiger corridor to be destroyed?
MUMBAI: For construction of the Chandrapur greenfield airport, the Maharashtra forest department has issued preliminary clearances for tree felling and diversion of forest land at a recognised tiger corridor in Vidarbha.
The project would lead to destruction of 3,817 trees and diversion of 75 hectares (ha) forest land (47ha reserved forest and 28ha protected forest) at Vihirgaon and Murti villages in Rajura taluka, an identified tiger corridor by Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Dehradun. The details were revealed after the forest department responded to a right to information query filed recently by an activist. The activist, requesting anonymity, shared documents with HT. WII, which studied the wildlife impact of the project, said the airport would hamper the connectivity of the corridor and result in increased human-wildlife conflict. It said the project should be avoided.
HT has reviewed WII’S report.
Spread across 340ha, the Maharashtra Airport Development Corporation (MADC), appointed as the nodal agency for the project by the state in 2018, intends to develop the first greenfield airport in Vidarbha which would cater to Q-400, A-320 and smaller planes. MADC said they received stage I clearance (from state forest department) under the Forest Conservation
Act, 1980, and await stage II clearance (from Union environment ministry) before commencing construction.
However, the state chief wildlife warden denied this. “So far, only the territorial wing has submitted its recommendation. The proposal is with the forest department’s nodal officer. It is yet to be examined by other departments, and will then be sent to the state government. Once the state clears it, stage I clearance will be obtained. At the moment, this has not happened,” said Nitin Kakodkar, principal chief conservator of forest (wildlife).