National Highways Authority of India eyes elephant reserve land for road

HYDERABAD: The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has proposed to divert 60 hectares of reserve forest land in Rayala Elephant Reserve (RER) in the Eastern Ghats for construction of phase 2 of Bengaluru-Chennai expressway. It sent a proposal to the ministry of environment and forest (MoEF) in this regard.
The proposed highway project involves a greenfield four-lane expressway at an estimated cost of Rs 4,121 crore to facilitate high-speed travel. The highway passes through Palamaner in AP’s Chittoor district. Wildlife activists say this will not only displace elephants but also lead to man-animal conflict.

According to NHAI Tirupati project director Sujeet Kumar, only 6.8 km passes through Palamaner reserve forest, which is part of RER. Sujeet told TOI that this is a greenfield alignment expressway project. “We have proposed elephant underpasses as part of the project and are waiting for the MoEF’s observations. The project was planned back in 2009. We have applied for forest, environment and wildlife clearances,” he said. The project section of Bengaluru-Chennai expressway phase 2 passes from 86 km mark to 135 km point within the eco-sensitive zone of Kaundinya Wildlife Sanctuary.
Sujeet said: “If the project passes outside of the forest, it is not viable. Currently, the expressway passes through the edge of the forest. So, we have minimum impact on the forest and minimum hindrance to the wildlife.”
However, wildlife consultant and former member of AP State Biodiversity Board Rajeev Mathew differed with the NHAI. He said the project would cause a massive man-animal conflict in the region. “Elephants will be restricted to one side of the reserve. The elephant underpasses may or may not work. In Uttarakhand, they had tried something similar but the tuskers are coming on to the expressway,” he said.
While the NHAI said the project is aimed at reducing travel time between Chennai and Bengaluru and also spur industrial growth, Mathew said farmers will be impacted badly because of the project. “There may be other animals in the forest which will also be affected,” he added.