New Delhi: The detailed project reports (DPRs) for five stretches/packages of the 100 km Gangotri-Uttarkashi Bhagirathi eco-sensitive zone of the Char Dham road project were put under review last year, following the floods in the Dharali region, a key location in the project, the Supreme Court was told Tuesday.
One of the crucial decisions taken was to put on hold the construction of a bypass in Netala and undertake a detailed investigation before proceeding with the work.
The oversight committee headed by former Supreme Court judge, Justice A.K. Sikri, submitted to the court its 18th report, along with the details of deliberations held with officials of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highway in May this year.
Justice Sikri’s committee is monitoring the implementation of the Char Dham project, ensuring it adheres to the top court’s November 2021 judgment. In this verdict, SC allowed the Centre to construct a double lane paved shoulder (DLPS) road of 12 m blacktop under the project, while stressing on the need to adopt a sustainable and eco-friendly approach.
The judgment came under criticism from green activists who said the 12 m wide road would be an ecological disaster as it would entail cutting mountains and dumping mass debris in the valley area, risking landslides and floods.
The Sikri panel’s report revealed that a decision to review the DPRs of the five stretches or packages was taken at a meeting convened by the ministry secretary last October. This meeting took cognisance of the calamities of monsoon in the region last year and reviewed the provisions of the sanctioned packages.
It was decided that the roads would be 11 metres wide in general and 10.75 m in critical sections in the five stretches. This meant the roads would be narrower by 1 to 1.25 metre. The DPRs of three packages were suitably modified with a guiding approach that slope stabilisation must precede commencement of road works in any hilly project.
Most importantly, as a follow-up action, the ministry also deferred implementation of a bypass section in Netala and Garampani for now and decided to strengthen the existing road with possible widening.
According to the report, the new alignment work shall be undertaken in the second phase, after due investigation by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) and Tehri Hydro Development Corporation Limited (THDCIL).
In another significant decision, the existing road on this stretch, a single lane—which falls in package four of the Char Dham project—would be widened to 5.5 metres. This proposal is under consideration of the ministry, disclosed the oversight committee’s report.
Package 4 covers Heena to Thekla, while package 1 covers Gangotri to Jhalla stretch and package 5 Thekla to Gyansu.
For package 5, the report said, revised work was sanctioned in January this year and the BRO was in the process of issuing a tender. The formation width for this too has been revised to 11 metres, with a suggestion that the valley side land must be utilised.
Proposal for package 1 was being prepared in such a way that tree cutting is minimised, the report added. For this, width of the road would be restricted to 11 metres and the land on the valley side was to be used. For all potential landslide locations, treatment would be incorporated in the proposal. A new bridge has been proposed at Lanka.
For the remaining packages—2 (covering Jhalla to Garampani) and 3 (Garmpani to Heena)—the DPR will be reviewed and finalised on same lines as the other three.
A DPR consultant would be on-boarded for revising the project report in such a way that felling of trees shall be strictly limited to the extent necessitated by the formation width of the road. Landslide mitigation measures for the vulnerable spots shall be incorporated in the revised DPR.
The oversight committee also pointed out the landslide mitigation measures implemented so far, based on DPR prepared by M/s THDCIL. These locations are on strategic routes on three national highways. So far, out of 210 sanctioned works under this head, 106 have been completed.
According to Mallika Bhanot (member of the NGO Ganga Ahvaan) a petitioner before the Supreme Court, reduction from 12 m to 11 m for road width is meaningless and irrelevant on the ground. “There is no rationale behind this. It would not make any difference as the consequent impact on the ground would remain the same. All of this is hogwash to essentially say that we (government) is taking steps after the environment disasters in the area year after year,” she said.
She further added that the Netala bypass on the Char Dham road was rejected by the top court-constituted High-Powered Committee (HPC), which also said that cutting of Deodhar trees must be avoided. “The Netala bypass is in complete violation of the court order,” she claimed.
She also questioned the logic of deferring the work and said if the government is serious about it then it should be cancelled. “If 5.5 metre wide road can be maintained for the crucial stretch in package 4, then why not for other equally sensitive locations?” she asked.
The Oversight Committee also informed the court that it has sought a detailed status report on each route/package from the Ministry of Road Transport.
The information to be provided would include present status of road widening and associated construction activities; details of hill-cutting undertaken, quantity of muck generation, its utilisation and management; location-wise details of muck-dumping sites and re-vegetation measures undertaken; details regarding diversion of forest land along with details of compensatory afforestation work undertaken; identification and status of landslide prone locations, details of slope stabilisation, protection and restoration measures undertaken.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)
Also read Uttarakhand: Portion of newly constructed bridge collapses amid heavy rain