Felling of 160.94 hectares of forest from the critical tiger habitat on the cards n rise in train traffic poses threats to wildlife, worry conservationists
Union Environment and Forest Ministry’s National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) has cleared the conversion of the Akola-Khandwa railway line, passing through the heart of Melghat Tiger Reserve, from metre gauge to broad gauge.
This the second big gauge conversion to be granted wildlife clearance. According to government documents, the project would require felling of 160.94 hectares of forest from the critical tiger habitat of Wan Sanctuary, a part of the Melghat reserve and 155 hectares from the buffer zones of the river Wan and reserved forests.
Wildlife conservationists see the move as a big setback for the tiger reserve that is home to about 50 tigers. Presently, passenger trains run on the 176km metre gauge line between Akot and Amlakhurd railway stations. On the stretch, the railway line passes through 40km of the forest, and of that, 18kms lies inside Melghat reserve.
Spread over an area of 1,673 sq km, the Melghat Tiger Reserve is connected northwards to Satpuda forests. Following clearance for gauge conversion on the 227km Gondia-Jabalpur track, the tracks will cut through the Kanha-Pench tiger corridor.
The NBWL has cleared the project with certain mitigating measures, which are yet to be made public. Maharashtra Forest Department and State Wildlife Board Member Kishor Rithe had recommended a host of mitigation measures, including developing existing underpasses along the railway line for smooth passage of wild animals, fencing of the railway line inside forests, and regulating speed of trains.
Some of Rithe’s specific suggestions include: not building any new railway stations inside the tiger reserve and that railways, should not draw water from Wan River.
“The train traffic and speed on this line will naturally rise, which will pose threats to wildlife. The Railways should have chosen the alternate route, which bypassed the critical tiger habitat,” Rithe said.
The alternate route Rithe mentions would avoid the core wildlife areas of Melghat but it was rejected due to cost escalation, documents reveal.
In the NBWL standing committee meeting, that was chaired by Environment Minister Anil Dave, it was discussed that the mitigation measures and other pertaining conditions should be suggested by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) and a Memorandum of Understanding should be signed with railways to implement them.
Officials from Maharashtra Forest Department and NTCA could not be reached for comments.
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