Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Nov 27: With Central Empowered Committee (CEC) reportedly making favorable recommendations, the Patnitop aerial ropeway project is likely to get the much- awaited clearance from the Apex Court of the country shortly. This would be the second ropeway project in the Jammu region as the Supreme Court has already cleared the Mubarak Mandi-Bahu Fort Gondola.
Reliable sources told EXCELSIOR that Central Empowered Committee has submitted its recommendations to the Supreme Court after analyzing the supplementary affidavit filed by the Patnitop Development Authority (PDA). In the affidavit, the PDA has mentioned that all the objections raised by a team of highest body of the country on environmental issues during inspection of project site have been addressed by affecting necessary changes in the Detailed Project Report.
The team comprising P V Jayakrishanan (Chairman of Empowered Committee) and Mahendra Vyas and M K Muthoo during the inspection of project site on June 4 this year had objected over the number of trees to be cut and also the number of towers of the proposed ropeway. It had suggested that project proponent should increase the height of the ropeway in order to bring down the number of trees to be axed during the construction of project.
By strictly adhering to the objections and suggestions of the Central Empowered Committee, the Patnitop Development Authority has made necessary changes in the DPR, they said while disclosing that now only 15 trees are to be axed as against 115, which were earlier proposed to be cut. Similarly, the number of tower has come down to 15 as against 27 proposed earlier.
“The case will be listed before appropriate bench of the Supreme Court within next one or two month and keeping in view the favourable recommendations made by the CEC the Patnitop aerial ropeway is also likely to get Apex Court’s clearance”, sources said.
In reply to a question, they said that following Apex Court clearance the project will be placed before the State Forest Advisory Committee for its clearance and then work on the project will take off. The project has already been cleared by the State Wildlife Board, National Wildlife Board and Expert Appraisal Committee of the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests, sources informed.
The fate of the Patnitop Gandola is hanging in balance for the past nearly a decade as the project was approved at the Patnitop Development Authority Board meeting in January 2004 when Mufti Mohammad Sayeed was the Chief Minister. The foundation of the project was laid in May 2007 when Ghulam Nabi Azad was the Chief Minister.
According to the Detailed Project Report (DPR), the project involves construction and operation of a passenger aerial ropeway project and associated facilities at Kud, Sangote and Karla. The ropeway will pass through compartment 95/C of Dude Forest Range and is almost one kilometer away from compartment 99 of Sudhmahadev Conservation Reserve.
One base terminal station of the ropeway would be at a point close to the 99 kilometer milestone on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway 1A while as the intermediate terminal will be near Sangote village. The upper terminal will be at Patnitop close to Hotel Vardan at a distance of 2618 meter from the intermediate terminal. The total length of the ropeway will be 2.6 kilometer.
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