The question marks over the environmental clearances and issues with the third ‘under-construction’ bridge over the river Mandovi have finally been answered and the confusion laid to rest. What has emerged from the petitions heard by the National Green Tribunal will certainly set a benchmark for which upcoming projects must be measured and created a template for future projects. The Zuari bridge being foremost in the mind.
The biggest tussle in this case was between the Goa Foundation and the Goa State Infrastructure Development Corporation (GSIDC), as they had their own points of contention as to the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the bridge. Now that point has been cleared up. Goa Foundation’s application was not barred by limitation, for one, since the ‘cause of
action’ happened much later. Since the bridge was part of the
national highway, and given the smaller scale of the project, it
doesn’t meet the requirements for the category of projects that
require an EIA.
The government may have scored
a small victory there but the role of
the Goa State Coastal Management
Authority (GCZMA) in granted permissions
without due diligence
is certainly questionable. A few
months before the construction of
the bridge began, the GCZMA conducted
a site inspection based on
a general arrangement drawing
sourced from the GSIDC. The GCZMA did ask for a few clarifications
on some points but granted an NOC and work began
on the bridge in June 2014.
This is where the authorities erred. The GCZMA ignored due
procedure and failed to conduct a proper evaluation of the situation.
The area where the bridge is to be built has mangroves.
Construction there will also impact tidal currents and sedimentation.
While the pillars in the river will be located in the
same line as the current pillars for the two bridges, and they
will stand on piles in the river, hence not disrupting currents
and tidal flow, there are other factors that need to be looked
at. The NGT did rap the GCZMA on the knuckles for this ‘oversight’
and fined them Rs five lakh. Now the GCZMA will have
to go back to the drawing board and assess the situation, this
time taking river bank morphology, bathymetry and sedimentation
impacts in consideration. They will also need to conduct
an overall environmental impact assessment, based on
coastal regulation zone provisions.
In any project this size, there is bound to be environmental
damage. Authorities like the GCZMA are present to ensure that
development is done with minimal impact on the environment;
they need to introduce and enforce safeguards to this
effect. When these arms of the government turn a blind eye
to these projects, it leaves the people with a bad taste in the
mouth.
But, what this has now done, to good effect, is to set down a
basic set of rules that construction bodies and authorities need
to follow when taking on large projects. The new Zuari bridge
is a project of this scale and will certainly need a template,
when it comes to the environmental impact assessment. There
is also a need for construction companies to do their own due
diligence internally. Hopefully, all this will change with the
GCZMA now having to follow procedure. When benchmarks
are laid down and everyone follows them, there will not even
need to be petitions like these placed before the NGT. Perhaps
some good will come out of this in the end.
