Encroachments condoned in forest area mandated for protection near Damagundam VLF station

A remaining patch of forest land after diversion for VLF marine station in Damagundam reserve forest may soon be wiped out due to encroachments that authorities have failed to address. Protecting the 360 ​​acres of forest land, which is a prerequisite for the project’s forest clearing, could jeopardize the entire project.

A total of 1,174 hectares or over 2,900 acres of land from the Damagundam reserve forest in Vikarabad district has been allocated for the naval station being established by the Eastern Naval Command. The station, which is the second facility in the country that can increase the Indian Navy’s communications with ships and submarines, is planned to be operational by 2027.

Many activists and environmentalists have risen against the shifting of such large areas of forest to other places. A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) is currently pending in the Supreme Court against the project. On April 2, it was reported that the project was given a green signal by the HC but the PIL was kept alive to ensure that compensatory afforestation progressed.

New allegations have emerged that there were violations that may have been deliberately concealed even from the HC-appointed Amicus Curiae who came for inspection. Sources say that by not intervening in violations, Forest Department officials wash their hands of the balance area and leave it open to further violations.

Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Climate Change II for the project. He had given the Phase Forest Outline based on four prerequisites; One of them was to maintain the balance of the forest block on one side and protect it by fencing.

“The state government will ensure that the user agency leaves the reserve forest area of ​​145.76 hectares as a block on one side and fences it at its own expense,” the order said.

Locals say around 10 acres of the 361-acre block has already been encroached on two separate occasions over the years. A case regarding the ‘encroachment’ of a well-known resort is ongoing in the Supreme Court and has been adjourned for several years. Another encroachment was by a farmer who started with two acres and expanded it to almost eight acres.

While the Eastern Naval Command, the user agency, gave the responsibility of removing the encroachments to the Forest Department before the fencing work began, the Ministry of Forestry allegedly ignored this task.

“In several cases where fencing work was attempted, they (the attackers) provoked a few workers, creating chaos and stopping the machines. The police refuse to provide protection, citing lack of personnel, and the Forest Department tries to present a picture where everything is rosy,” said a local, who did not want to be quoted.

When asked, Vikarabad District Forest Officer G. Gyaneshwar said that the work is on and 4 to 5 acres of old encroachment will be cleared.

“Uncontested areas are usually fenced first. When they reach this occupied area, they contact us and demand that the area be evacuated.” [sic]. “I think the study did not reach that area,” he said.