PANAJI
The Regional Empowered Committee (REC) of the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) raising a red flag to the Karnataka government over the proposed Kalsa-Bhandura drinking water project has come as a ray of hope for Goa, which has been locked in a prolonged battle against the inter-basin diversion of Mhadei river waters.
Welcoming the REC’s observations citing potential adverse impacts on riverine ecology, the State government and the Mhadei Bachao Abhiyan (MBA) said the development indicates growing recognition at the central level of the environmental consequences of the project.
WRD Minister Subhash Shirodkar said that Goa has brought to the notice of the Centre how this project will have ecological and environmental impact on the State and Mhadei river. “We have full faith in the Central government and the judiciary,” he said.
He reiterated that diversion of Mhadei waters would alter river flows, affect downstream ecosystems and threaten the livelihood and water security of Goa’s people.
On the other hand, MBA convenor Rajendra Kerkar described the REC’s stand as a “positive sign” and said it strengthens Goa’s long-standing opposition to the diversion.
Kerkar said the panel’s acknowledgement of ecological concerns shows that the Centre is beginning to realise the damage the project could inflict on the Mhadei river system and the fragile ecosystems dependent on it.
“Goa will now have to further pitch its case and convince the Centre that this project will have serious consequences for the environment, ecology and wildlife—not just in Goa but also in Karnataka,” he said.
He pointed out that the entire Bhimgad Wildlife Sanctuary and its surrounding area, parts of which fall within the project’s influence zone, is an ecologically rich area known for tiger sightings. The sanctuary also houses the Barapede caves, the world’s only known breeding site of the critically endangered Wroughton’s Free-tailed Bat, a Schedule I species under the Wildlife Protection Act.
Meanwhile, the Goa Foundation has issued a legal notice to the Chief Wildlife Warden of Bhimgad Wildlife Sanctuary in connection with Karnataka government’s plan to divert 7 TMC of water from Mhadei river to its proposed Bhandura Nullah.
GF director Claude Alvares said that CWW is requested to enforce compliance with the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972 that prohibits the diversion of the water from within a sanctuary without CWW consent -- an order that Goa CWW had issued in 2023.
