Industry Odisha Bureau, April 4: The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF& CC) has accorded Stage-1 forest clearance for the proposed Shree Jagannath International Airport at Puri.
The MOEF&CC has conveyed its decision to the Odisha government in a letter to the State Forest Secretary. As per the letter, the State Government had submitted a proposal to the Ministry seeking prior approval for diversion of 27.887 hectares (ha) forest land for the proposed airport at Puri under the provisions of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980.
The proposal has been examined by the Advisory Committee (AC) constituted by the Central Ministry. “After careful consideration of the proposal of the Government of Odisha and on the basis of the recommendations of the Advisory Committee and approval of the same by the competent authority of MoEFCC, New Delhi, the Central Government hereby accorded “in-principle” approval under Section 2 (I) (II) of the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980 for diversion of 27.887 hectares (ha) of DLC forest land for construction of the Shree Jagannath International Airport under Puri forest division,” read the letter from the Ministry.
The approval is subject to compliance with an extensive set of safeguards before stage-II or final clearance is granted. The Ministry has mandated compensatory afforestation over 29.939 ha of non-forest land in Kakatpur tehsil, along with additional afforestation over 59.52 ha of degraded forest land, both to be undertaken at the project cost.
“The non-forest land shall be transferred and mutated in favour of the state Forest department, or shall be notified by the state government as protected forest under Section 29 of the Indian Forest Act, 1927, or under the relevant section(s) of the local Forest Act, before handing over the forest land to the user agency,” read the letter sent to the State’s Principal Secretary of the Forest Department.
As per the conditions set by the Ministry, the user agency will also have to deposit the net present value (NPV) of the diverted forest land as per Supreme Court guidelines and ensure that the legal status of the forest land remains unchanged.
The Ministry has directed to impose strict restrictions on tree felling, with directions to explore translocation of trees wherever feasible and to undertake felling only under the supervision of the Forest Department.
The MoEFCC has stipulated that no labour camps can be set up within the forest land and that alternative fuel arrangements must be provided to prevent pressure on adjoining forest areas.
Biodiversity protection measures, including the creation of artificial nesting habitats for avifauna, have also been emphasised in the approval letter.
Besides, the State Government has been instructed to ensure proper implementation of mitigation measures based on site-specific wildlife management plans prepared in consultation with institutions such as the Wildlife Institute of India and the Zoological Survey of India.
Further, the Ministry has made it clear that the forest land cannot be handed over or used until final approval is granted and that any violation of conditions will invite action under the law.
“The layout plan of the proposal shall not be changed without the prior approval of the Central Government and the forest land shall not be used for any purpose other than that specified in the proposal. The forest land proposed to be diverted shall under no circumstances be transferred to any other agency, department or person without prior approval of the Central government,” it added.
