NHAI told to plant saplings using jute matting on muck

Strap: Highway authority fined by Forest Department earlier too for illegal dumping of debris

BOX— What is jute matting?

*The area where muck has been dumped has been found very sensitive from the point of view of landslides.

* Rolls of jute mats would be laid by anchors on steep slopes. These mats have holes at designated distance for plantation.

*This would stabilise the muck and prevent landslides. Earlier too, the NHAI has been pulled up foe damaging forest land.

Abhinav Vashisht

KULLU, NOVember 15

The Forest Department has tightened the noose around the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) for illegal dumping of muck along the Beas during construction of the 40-km two-lane highway between Ramshila (Kullu) and Manali and 10-km four-lane highway between Jia (Bhuntar) and Ramshila. The department had earlier imposed a fine of Rs 1.15 crore, as per the calculation of the area of the dumped debris, in August. However, the NHAI authorities approached the Forest Department to suggest measures to revamp and conserve the areas.

Angel Chauhan, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO), Kullu, said to protect the dumping sites from landslides and subsidence, the department had sent a notice to the NHAI to plant saplings by using jute matting technology. The highway authority would have to plant saplings to save an area of about 5 hectares. During inspection by the Forest Department, it had been found that the area was very sensitive, from the point of view of landslides, Chauhan said.

The DFO said rolls of jute mats would be laid by anchors on steep slopes. These mats have holes at designated distance for plantation. This would stabilise the muck and prevent landslides.

The construction of the Ramshila-Manali road was completed one and a half years ago, while 95 per cent of the work on Jia-Ramshila road had been accomplished. Chauhan said the dumping sites provided to the NHAI were found largely vacant during inspection, which meant that the debris had been illegally dumped elsewhere. The contractors had dumped the debris at many places along the Beas, ruining the ecology of the region, he stated.

Earlier too, many notices were served and fines worth lakhs of rupees was realised from the NHAI for damaging the forest land. Due to repeated offences, an undertaking was sought from the highway authority regarding precaution and corrective steps to revamp the already damaged area, Chauhan added.

Abhishek Rai, an environmentalist, alleged that the contractors of the NHAI gave the norms a go by and illegally dumped muck at various places, causing irreparable damage to the environment. The haphazard dumping by the companies undertaking construction had caused severe damage to the forest land and also polluted the Beas. Strict action should be taken against the offenders for violating norms. A vigil should be maintained in areas where construction work was underway to take timely action on anomalies.

Photo: Muck from highway construction dumped in the Beas on the Bhuntar-Kullu by-pass road. File Photo