BS Reporter / Kolkata/ Bhubaneswar May 18, 2010, 00:54 IST
The Dhamara port project in Orissa has got a fresh jolt with over 20 politicians including members of the Parliamentary Standing Committee for Environment and Forests urging the Union minister for environment and forests to take action against the port construction work, which they felt is going on in violation of the Forest Conservation Act.
The port project is being developed at Dhamara in Bhadrak district by Dhamara Port Company Limited (DPCL), a 50:50 joint venture between Tata Steel and L&T.
According to a release issued by Greenpeace, these politicians cutting across party lines, have written letters to Jairam Ramesh, the Union minister for environment and forests on the matter.
In their letters, they have called for immediate action by the Union ministry of environment forest (MoEF) to ensure that the Forest Conservation Act is upheld and violations cease immediately.
“The entire Dhamra port area is protected forest land and permission for construction of the port was never sought from the Centre, as is required by the Forest Conservation Act, 1980. This amounts to a massive legal violation which has gone unpunished for several years”, the release alleged.
“It has been over eight months since the Supreme Court sought a response from the government on this violation, yet the environment ministry has remained silent”, Sanjiv Gopal, campaign manager (oceans), Greenpeace India said in a release.
The Olive Ridley Turtles are not affected by the Dhamra Port construction. They appeared at the Gahirmatha nesting beach for mass nesting, twice this year. Around 3.5 lakh Olive Ridley turtles successfully laid eggs during the annual nesting season 09-10. The nesting season spanned from February 24 to March 20. For more details: http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/turtle-nesting-at-gahirmatha-set-aside-green-concerndhamra/389846/
Unlike last year, when only 167,000 turtles had come to nest at Gahirmatha, this year nearly 200,000 Olive Ridleys have laid eggs on the Gahirmatha beaches. In addition, more than 150,000 lakh Olive Ridleys have again arrived to lay eggs at the world's largest rookery for sea turtles. This year's figure of more than 350,000 congregations at Gahirmatha is highest in the decade. This video tells about the second mass nesting of the Olive Ridleys: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFQxPW5uY3g.
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