New Delhi A month after rapid sliding of land was reported in large parts of Joshimath town leading to the development of cracks in hundreds of homes and other structures, the Union environment ministry has issued a standard operating procedure (SOP) for all highway projects near border areas that emphasises environmental safeguards such as landslide and disaster management, precautions to be taken during tunnelling or drilling, and the protection of river catchments and hydrology.
“If the proposed route is passing through any hilly area, comprehensive study on vulnerability for landslides, slope stability, vulnerability of the project area from the point of view of seismic activity taking into account the seismic zone in which it is located, eco-fragility study of the area shall be carried out through reputed technical institute on the basis of which environment friendly and safe construction methodology shall be adopted,” the ministry said in an office memorandum issued on February 6.
“The SOP is self-explanatory. We have nothing to comment,” said a senior environment ministry official , responding to a query on why the office memorandum was issued now .
Environmental activists and researchers said most of the damage in Uttarakhand’s Garhwal region has already been done and that such an intervention should have been made before work on the controversial Char Dham road project started in the state. The SOP is too little and too late, they added. For years, experts have warned that large-scale landslides can be triggered in the ecologically fragile region by tectonic activity, rainfall or anthropogenic activities such as large construction projects. Indeed, experts studying the subsidence (sinking) at Joshimath have pointed to uncontrolled development and a nearby hydro power project as factors that may have amplified the town’s vulnerabilities.
HT reported on July 19 last year that the Union environment ministry on July 14, 2022 notified amendments that exempt highways in border areas from obtaining prior environment clearances, changing the environmental impact assessment policy in place since 2006. With the new policy coming into effect, some high-altitude stretches of the Char Dham road project in Uttarakhand and other highway projects in the western and eastern Himalayas and several parts of northeast India will no longer need environmental appraisal because they fall within 100km of a border or line of control.
The office memorandum issued on February 6, 2023, seen by HT, states that exemption of prior EC for highway projects up to 100km from LOC or border areas does not exempt them from other approvals, consent, permissions etc required to be obtained under any other act/rule/ regulation/by-law/notification etc. Further, the ministry has directed that these projects institute and follow environmental safeguards.
“If the proposed route involves tunnelling and/or horizontal directional drilling, a detailed study on tunnelling and locations of tunnelling with geological structural fraction and its possible impact on existing structures in its vicinity, flora, fauna, terrain etc shall be carried out so as to ensure that there is no damage to life, property and environment in the vicinity,” the office memorandum said.
“Construction waste including bituminous material and hazardous materials must not be allowed to contaminate water courses and dump sites for these materials should be secured so that they do not leach into groundwater,” it added, also mandating measures to prevent noise and air pollution, traffic, and creation of green belts along the highways.
The office memorandum also said that some clearances will continue to be mandatory for such highway projects including forest clearance under Forest Conservation Act; Coastal Regulation Zone clearance; and wildlife clearance by the National Board for Wildlife .
“The damage is done. I don’t think it can be reversed. When again and again, the high-powered committee on Char Dham road and other experts highlighted these concerns of hill cutting, unstable slopes, tree cutting and muck dumping, the environment ministry turned a blind eye. They seem to have woken up suddenly,” said Mallika Bhanot, a member of Uttarakhand-based environmental organisation Ganga Ahvaan.
“The only way they can possibly salvage some area is by implementing the orders of Justice Nariman in the Char Dham matter from September 2020 which asked the road width to be reduced to 5.5 metres and plant trees along sides of the road to improve the binding capacity of the soil,” added Bhanot.
After the Union government sought a review of the order citing national security concerns, the top court, in December 2021, allowed the widening of three of the roads.
“The Centre said three out of the five important routes are strategic from defence perspective which includes Gangotri, Badrinath and Tanakpur but the remediation can be carried out on at least the Kedarnath and Yamunotri routes,” said Bhanot.
Bhanot also said that the 900km Char Dham project was divided into 53 small projects so as to ensure that environmental assessments were not needed. The union environment ministry in an affidavit in National Green Tribunal in 2018 said only new national highways and expansion of highways longer than 100km need prior environmental clearance.
