50 Konkan projects in limbo, courtesy environment ministry

The Democratic Front government is not happy with the Centre’s decision to extend the moratorium on important projects in coastal Konkan, arguing that it would stall the pace of development in the region.

The ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) has informed the state government about its decision to extend the freeze on 50 projects in Ratnagiri and Sindhurdurg districts until December 31 this year.

The ambitious nuclear power project at Jaitapur, which falls in the ecologically sensitive region of the Western Ghats in the Konkan region, is likely to be subjected to the new pre-conditions if the ministry is to strictly adhere to the findings of the Madhav Gadgil report.

The report is being studied by the MoEF to ascertain the impact of projects on ecology in the coastal region.

“The MoEF, under the pretext of the environment, has brought development to a standstill in Konkan. If this continues, all the private players who have committed to bring huge investments will move away from the state,” said a senior minister representing the Konkan region.

“We are willing to reconsider the Centre’s objections to a few mining projects considered hazardous for the ecology of the region, but under environmental concerns, the MoEF is stalling all projects,” the minister added.
The state’s biggest worry is related to the massive investments in the power sector. The thermal and nuclear power plants work has been badly affected since the MoEF decided to review all the projects in the region a year ago.

The state government has been warned against going ahead with the projects until the committee set up to study the environmental impact gives its final clearance to individual projects.

“The Jaitapur project, which promises 9,900MW power generation and has investments worth Rs1 lakh crore, also needs to adhere to a dozen environmental-related conditions during the process of construction. The public protest supported by Shiv Sena is not the only hurdle in its way,” said a source in Mantralaya. 

Environmentalists are happy with the Centre’s decision. They argue that ecological concerns are genuine and mindless investments on projects that are detrimental for the coastal stretch cannot be overlooked.