In letter to PM, prez, CM, greens cite Joshimath situation, landslides in city
Parsik Hill, where quarrying is taking place, saw a landslide during last monsoon. File pic
Raising concerns over the alarming situation at Joshimath in Uttarakhand, environmentalists have called for setting up a Central hill regulation authority. Navi Mumbai-based NGO NatConnect Foundation—in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Droupadi Murmu, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and the ministry of environment, forest and climate change (MOEF&CC)—drew attention to incidents of landslides in Mumbai and elsewhere, which it termed nature’s warnings against playing with hills and slopes.
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The letter stated that the Joshimath episode was the tip of the iceberg as the rampant destruction of hills in the name of development in various parts of the country, including the Northeast and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, could lead to many more Himalayan-scale disasters. NatConnect Foundation pointed out that nobody seems to have ownership over the hills.
“The forest department allows diversion–meaning destruction–for infrastructure or housing projects, the revenue department is concerned with the collection of royalties from hill digging or quarrying and the environment department merely passes the buck. There is a tendency to run down environmental concerns as anti-development,” the letter, written by NatConnect Foundation director B N Kumar, read.
Also Read: After Joshimath, cracks appear in houses in Uttarakhand's Karnprayag; people seek govt help
The NGO requested the authorities to look at the impact of infrastructure projects on nature and lives. “City planners such as CIDCO have allotted 200 plots at Parsik Hill for development and planned a township in the Kharghar Hills in Navi Mumbai. Despite opposition from the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) and the people in general, CIDCO is keen on reviving quarrying at Parsik Hills,” the letter read.
Activist Jyoti Nadkarni told mid-day, “The idea of a nature park at Parsik that was developed in association with Bombay Natural History Society seems to have been given a go-by.” Nareshchandra Singh, another activist, said, “CIDCO said the township would have access to the nature park. How on earth can anyone have a massive residential colony touching a nature park and play with biodiversity?”
Citing a recent experience, Kumar alleged the chief minister had sent a series of complaints regarding the cutting of slopes of Parsik and Kharghar Hills to the forest and environment departments. But none of these authorities showed any inclination to take action. “Parsik Hill saw a landslide during the last monsoon and the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation’s water supply monitoring station escaped a major disaster,” he added.
“This might look like a small incident for the planning agencies and authorities, but they are playing with the lives of people,” said Vishnu Joshi, convenor, Parsik Hill Greens forum. “We wonder how it does not strike government officials that the cutting of the Parsik Hill slope, which has hundreds of buildings on top of it, would endanger the homes and the people,” he added.
“Thanks to the intervention of the Human Rights Commission, we can now expect justice,” Parsik Hill Residents Association President Jayant Thakur said. The HRC is slated to have its final hearing on the matter on Thursday. Nandakumar Pawar, the head of Ekvira Aai Pratishthan, said despite the recurring landslides at hills in Mumbai, the authorities have not checked mushrooming slum colonies. “Our ministers and officials seem to be interested only in lip service at the time of disasters and forget about the tragedies later,” Pawar said.
Kumar and Pawar also pointed out that upcoming highway projects through hills in the state could also prove to be dangerous. The activists also claimed that no meaningful public hearings were held or any environmental impact assessment carried out beforehand. They stated that this was why it was essential that a hill regulation authority be set up with powers and duties to check the destruction of hills.
200
No of plots allotted at Parsik Hill
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