#SaveMolem: Why are Goans protesting?

On November 1, nearly 3,000 Goans descended on the historic village of Chandor to raise slogans against the government-approved projects

Goa, known for its fantastic beaches and churches, has been struggling to protect its natural diversity from industrialists. Recently the government of Goa and the Ministry of Environment cleared three projects that would threaten diverse wild species in the state.

During the 57th meeting of the standing committee of the National Board of wildlife, three projects were approved by the state government, they are:

1) Double tracking of the railway line from Castlerock to Kulem (cleared in the 56th meeting of the SC-NBWL dated 17th December 2019) - 138.37 ha of forestland required; 22,882 trees to be felled.

2) Four-laning of NH 4A (cleared in the 57th meeting of the SC-NBWL dated 7th April 2020) - 63.615 ha of forestland required; 20,340 trees to be felled.

3) Laying a 400kV transmission line (Cleared in the 57th meeting of the SC-NBWL dated 7th April 2020) - This project could put the lives of over 59,000 trees in danger and cause a loss of 170 hectares of protected forest land in Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife Sanctuary and Mollem National Park.

'Save Mollem' protests:

The protests in the state gained momentum on social media a few weeks ago with environmentalists, scientists and other professionals writing petitions to the government.

On November 1, nearly 3,000 Goans descended on the historic village of Chandor to raise slogans against the government for allowing expansion of railway line through protected areas to increase the coal-carrying capacity of Foa's Mormugao Port, reported The Hindustan Times.

The government approved these projects virtually during the lockdown and after backlash from the citizens of the state, it has been trying to defend its move in the name of 'public interest'.

“The forest tree enumeration stands at 43,201. However, the actual felling or trimming of trees in the forest area would be 14,700, which is just 35% of the enumerated quantity. Moreover, as per the prevailing regulations, payments against the enumerated 43,201 forest trees, are being paid to the forest department. Out of the 14,700 trees expected to be felled/trimmed, only 1,000 trees would be felled/trimmed in the wildlife sanctuary," Goa Tamnar Transmission Project Ltd (GTTPL) told The Times of India.

However, on November 5 refuted all the claims made by activists and environmentalists. The group, that is one of the shareholders in the projects, tweeted, "The Adani Group refutes and condemns #FakeNews circulated by politically motivated groups about fictitious business interests comprising road and railway projects in the state of Goa."

Nine-year-old activist, Licypriya Kangujam also took to Twitter to urge CM Pramod Sawant to withdraw the projects.

In response to the protests, an FIR was filed by the police against the protesters calling it "unlawful assembly, rioting and wrongful restraint."