The Alternative 1 of the Betul Port on the Sagarmala Master plan.
MARGAO
Environmental activist Abhijit Prabhudesai has said it is indeed a matter of grave concern that the Betul Port project is being revived by the Mormugao Port Authority when Union Minister Nitin Gadkari had shelved the project a decade ago.
Prabhudesai said he is not shocked or surprised over the MPA decision given that the Betul Port project finds a mention at many places in the Sagarmala Master plan. “What is, however, shocking is that the project is being revived when Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has scrapped the project in 2016-17”, he said.
He added: “This has only thrown up a question as to who is behind the decision to revive the controversial project. Is there any super power above Union Minister Nitin Gadkari or Prime Minister Narendra Modi which is involved in the decision making process. Otherwise, how does one explain that a project shelved by the political leadership at the Centre is being revived again by the MPA. This cannot be in the national interest and hence is an anti-national act”.
Prabhudesai has cautioned the people of Goa and Betul to remain alert and foil all attempts by the MPA to establish the port at Betul. “Betul plays host to a rich marine habitat. It is an eco-sensitive zone. We cannot allow the habitat to be destroyed by a coal hub”, he asserted.
