T.N. Forest dept. denies permission for further exploratory tests at Upper Bhavani hydroelectric project site

The Tamil Nadu Forest department has denied permission to NTPC Tamilnadu Energy Company Limited (NTECL) to conduct tests at the proposed Upper Bhavani Pumped Storage Hydroelectric project site, located between the ecologically sensitive habitats of Mukurthi National Park (MNP) and Avalanche Reserve Forest, dealing a significant blow to the controversial project’s future.

According to senior officials in the Forest department, NTECL had initially applied for permissions for surveys and drilling to be conducted at the project site, which were granted to it. It had then applied for “drifting tests”, which are essentially geotechnical investigations to test soil stability.

Officials said that the Divisional Forest Officer in the Nilgiris forest division had recommended to the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests that drifting tests not be allowed at the proposed project site citing their ecological impact. The tests themselves would require Forest Conservation Act (FCA) clearance to be first approved.

The survey, drilling, and drifting tests are all part of NTECL’s preparation for a Detailed Project Report (DPR) to be drawn up for the project, officials stated.

Despite the Forest department’s reluctance to green-light further exploratory works, NTECL has applied for the diversion of 56 hectares of forest land through the E-PARIVESH portal to the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests. The application would now come before the State’s Project Scrutiny Committee for further deliberation, officials said.

Conservationists who spoke to The Hindu said that the project would heap a tremendous amount of pressure onto the ecologically fragile area, home to a number of key species of flora and fauna, including the endangered Nilgiri tahr. They also said that besides the ecological impact, the hydroelectric project will also potentially affect land sacred to indigenous communities, such as the Devar Betta Hill.

Speaking about the issue, Tarun Chhabra, an expert on the indigenous Toda community, had previously said the seasonal Toda hamlet Kolimund (Kwehh(r)shy) that was reoccupied this year after a hiatus of almost two decades was located close to the upper storage area. Reservoirs had already destroyed the immense biodiversity, and underground blasting would destroy the hillsides during extreme rainfall, he had cautioned.