TIMES IMPACT
49 mining leases in eco-rich Sindhudurg put on hold….Viju B
49 mining leases in eco-rich Sindhudurg put on hold….Viju B
Mumbai: The thickly-wooded Western Ghats escaped a major ecological calamity as the Maharashtra government this week put on hold 49 mining projects in the verdant Sindhudurg district.
The state mining departments decision to denotify the 49 mining areas in the lush region came in the wake of a series of reports in The Times of India that highlighted the impending environmental disaster.Days after the first report appeared on October 15,Union environment minister Jairam Ramesh had written to then chief minister Ashok Chavan,demanding a relook at the leases.He followed it up in November with a similar missive to Prithviraj Chavan,the new CM.
Sindhudurg has the highest green cover in Maharashtra and was declared the countrys first eco-tourism district in 1997.Over the last three years,the government granted 53 mining leasesmany on the basis of fabricated environment impact assessment reportsin the district,of which four are already operational.We have called for all files related to the 49 mining leases,including environment impact assessment reports, said state environment secretary Valsa Nair Singh.