Shillong: Over 4,000 trees in a reserved and deemed forest area will have to be felled to make way for a crucial road widening project in Meghalaya‘s Garo Hills, raising concerns for the area’s significant wildlife population.
The road widening is deemed crucial for improving connectivity in the region.
The Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change’s advisory committee has given its approval for the diversion of 34.88 hectares of reserved and deemed forest area in the East and North Garo Hills districts. This land will be used for the improvement and expansion of National Highway 127B, a road project under the Bharatmala Pariyojana.
The Darugiri—Songsak—Williamnagar junction connects Meghalaya’s state capital Shillong via West Khasi Hills to East and North Garo Hills, bypassing Assam’s main city of Guwahati.
The District Forest Officers of East and North Garo Hills have acknowledged before the committee that the wildlife in this forested area includes “barking deer, leopard cat, wild boar, common fox, common mongoose, monitor lizard, Malayan giant squirrel, jungle fowl and other animals.
However, the Meghalaya Forest Department officials informed the committee that there are no protected areas which lie within a 10 km radius of the project, and no archaeological, heritage, or defence sites have been reported in the project area.
Moreover, the forest officials said that “there is no suitable alternative to avoid the Darugiri, Songsak, Rongrengiri reserved forests to construct the project road.”
The road improvement project in the East and North Garo Hills districts is expected to require the felling of a total of 4,444 trees. Of these, 1,478 trees have a smaller girth, measuring less than 60 cm, while a significant 2,966 trees have a larger girth, exceeding 60 cm. According to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MOEF&CC) classification, the affected area is categorized as Eco Class-I, indicating a “Very Dense Forest.”
The government has proposed that compensatory afforestation work would be undertaken over 34.8877 hectare non-forest land in Dagal Bolmedangh village under Dambo Rongjeng Block.
The National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd. would improve and widen a section of National Highway No. 127B into two-lanes with paved shoulders from Darugiri to Willimanagar junction, a distance of 36.635 km.
The road improvement and widening project will be executed in an Engineering, Procurement, Construction (EPC) mode.
The decision to proceed with this project followed discussions and deliberations involving forest officials from both the state and central governments.
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The Meghalaya government has stated that the planned road project will offer significant advantages to all residents. It will enable people traveling from Shillong to reach Williamnagar, the district headquarters of East Garo Hills, without taking a circuitous route through Guwahati.
According to the state government, this will result in reduced travel time, stimulate tourism, foster the growth of local industries, facilitate the swift transport of agricultural goods, and create various other development opportunities.
