New Delhi, May 22: The diversion of 35 hectares of deemed forest land in Meghalaya for the widening of National Highway 127B will entail the felling of 4,500 trees, endangering rare wildlife and adversely impacting the locals, according to a report.
The highway will connect Srirampur in Assam with Nongstoin in Meghalaya.
The wildlife includes barking deer, leopard, wild boar, fox, mongoose, monitor lizard, Malayan giant squirrel, jungle fowls and other animals. The advisory committee of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has granted an ‘in-principle’ approval for the diversion of the reserved and deemed forest.
This clearance enables the widening and improvement of National Highway 127B (Darugiri–Songsak–Williamnagar Junction) as part of the Bharatmala Pariyojana. The project will involve upgrading a 36.635 km stretch of the highway to two lanes with paved shoulders, the report said.
The report pointed out that timber-logging has destroyed swathes of forests, threatening biodiversity and water resources.
According to a recent study, the dense forest areas in East Khasi Hills declined sharply from 1,480 sq km to 828 sq km between 2002 and 2013, driven by extensive deforestation, logging, and land conversion.
Meanwhile, in a saving grace, the Supreme Court ruled against retrospective or ex-post facto environmental clearances for projects, including those involving forest clearing. This means the government cannot grant environmental clearances for projects that have already commenced without prior approval.
The court invalidated previous office memorandums and notifications that permitted such clearances, effectively striking down a legal loophole that allowed projects to continue without proper environmental assessment and approval. The court banned retrospective environmental clearances, meaning projects cannot be retroactively approved after work has already begun.
The apex court termed ex-post facto environmental clearances as “gross illegality.” It emphasised that development should not compromise environmental protection and that, no project should be allowed without prior environmental clearance.
It is, however, not clear if the highway project in the Garo Hills districts falls under this judgment. But the ruling has significant implications for forest clearing, as projects involving forest land now require proper environmental assessments and clearances before the work begins.
The Supreme Court also struck down previous notifications and office memorandums that permitted retrospective clearances, including a 2017 notification and a 2021 office memorandum. The court restrained the government from issuing similar notifications or orders that would regularise acts violating the Environment Impact Assessment notification of 2006.
