The construction of regional stadium in Tikauli and dumping site of Bharatpur Municipality in Bhateri of Jugedi have been delayed citing the sensitivity of the bio-diversity route although no trees were to be cut down for those projects. But the District Forest Office, Chitwan has given go ahead to cut trees for the sub-station.[break]
The sub-station will occupy 420 m x 240 m forest area and around 18,000 cubic feet of timber is expected from around 15 bighas of the forest land with 95 percent of vegetation being sal (Soria robusta). Range Post In-charge Shanti Sharma said 324 mature sal trees constitute the 1,000 trees that are to be cut for the construction.
More trees have to be cut for construction of the transmission line once the sub-station is complete.
DFO Thakur said there has been no final decision on the route of the transmission line but he said the line would be taken through forests only at densely populated location. The line will go through jungle in the densely populated area of Bharatpur and Ratna Nagar and hence there is more chance of destruction in the Barandabhar bio-diversity route.
“Construction of a sub-station is a good thing but this looks set to disrupt the bio-diversity route,” opined environment teacher at the Rampur Agriculture Campus Krishna Hari Devkota.
“We have to construct sub-station and transmission line outside the forest area for environment-friendly development,” he suggested and warned of a protest campaign if the government went ahead with the decision to cut the trees.
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