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At a time when careful evaluation and utilisation of resources needs to be our primary focus, plans for a new Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project are severely weighing the scales down for the environment, with around 54,000 mangroves being cut to make way for the high-speed rail corridor. While addressing the Legislative Council, Maharashtra Transport Minister Diwakar Raote stated, “As the pillars of the project will be high, the cutting of mangroves will be less, it will not affect the environment much”, as reported by The Hindu. Raote also affirmed that flooding will not be a threat in parts of Navi Mumbai, since there will be no chopping of trees in those areas.
From the 1,379 hectares of proposed land that is being acquired for the project, only a fraction of it, approximately 270 hectares falls in Maharashtra. Around 84.81 hectares of land belonging to 6,589 farmers in Thane district has already been purchased by the government, and in Palghar, about 3,498 people are estimated to be affected by the bullet train project. The venture is reported to cost roughly around Rs.1.1 lakh crore, of which Rs.88,000 crore is to be funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency, at an interest rate of 0.1%.
As much as the rail line will benefit troubled commuters, it has faced a lot of opposition from landowners and farmers from Gujarat and Maharashtra, owing to their loss of estate and livelihood. Even though some farmers were keen to hand over their land in exchange for proper remuneration, a large section of them are unhappy with the proposition.
The bullet train may be a blessing to some, but its construction is a huge set back for the environment. The manifesto to plant 5 times the trees felled is right-minded, and if the adverse effects of the project are to be neutralised, then its execution must be punctually looked after.
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