Pune:
The Rs 3000-crore hill city of Lavasa, being built near Pune, is illegal - but it will not be demolished. The contrary stand of the union government was laid bare in a report submitted today by the Environment Ministry to the Bombay High Court.
The report says the construction for the gigantic housing project - it will cover 25,000 acres - was unauthorized and has damaged the environment. No clearances were sought, it states. The project is found guilty of "large-scale hill-cutting" which has changed the topography of the area. Locals fear a landslide, the document states, and that the main road leading to the township was not part of the sanctioned blueprint.
And then the report provides the exit route - "Taking into account... the investments already incurred... the employment generated... and the claimed upliftment of the area under consideration... the MoEF (ministry) is prepared to consider the project on certain conditions."
The caveats include a huge penalty to be paid by the project for violating environmental laws. The promoters have to create an Environmental Restoration Fund for the area, help correct existing degradation "within a time-bound schedule" and ensure no further damage to the environment.
Lavasa has been asked to provide the Environment Ministry with details of its funding and investments so that the government can decide the amount that the project will be fined.
The stern tone barely disguises a significant slump in an aggressive stand that began in November, when the Environment Ministry ordered that all construction be suspended at the site. The grounds: that 47 hectares of the project had been built above the sanctioned 1000 metres, and that construction plans had been altered without the Centre's clearance.
Lavasa took the government to the Bombay High Court which ordered the Environment Ministry to send a team of technical experts to survey the project. Ten days ago, Naresh Dayal, who headed that team, said, "Prima facie there is no destruction of forests." It was a clear sign that the blows would soften.
"No one can say 100 per cent of whatever we have done is perfect," said Ajit Gulabchand, Chairman, Hindustan Construction Company which owns 65 per cent of the project, on the same day. The company also claims that it received the clearances required before it began construction in 2004 from the state government, and that it has halted all degradation.
The report says the construction for the gigantic housing project - it will cover 25,000 acres - was unauthorized and has damaged the environment. No clearances were sought, it states. The project is found guilty of "large-scale hill-cutting" which has changed the topography of the area. Locals fear a landslide, the document states, and that the main road leading to the township was not part of the sanctioned blueprint.
And then the report provides the exit route - "Taking into account... the investments already incurred... the employment generated... and the claimed upliftment of the area under consideration... the MoEF (ministry) is prepared to consider the project on certain conditions."
The caveats include a huge penalty to be paid by the project for violating environmental laws. The promoters have to create an Environmental Restoration Fund for the area, help correct existing degradation "within a time-bound schedule" and ensure no further damage to the environment.
Lavasa has been asked to provide the Environment Ministry with details of its funding and investments so that the government can decide the amount that the project will be fined.
The stern tone barely disguises a significant slump in an aggressive stand that began in November, when the Environment Ministry ordered that all construction be suspended at the site. The grounds: that 47 hectares of the project had been built above the sanctioned 1000 metres, and that construction plans had been altered without the Centre's clearance.
Lavasa took the government to the Bombay High Court which ordered the Environment Ministry to send a team of technical experts to survey the project. Ten days ago, Naresh Dayal, who headed that team, said, "Prima facie there is no destruction of forests." It was a clear sign that the blows would soften.
"No one can say 100 per cent of whatever we have done is perfect," said Ajit Gulabchand, Chairman, Hindustan Construction Company which owns 65 per cent of the project, on the same day. The company also claims that it received the clearances required before it began construction in 2004 from the state government, and that it has halted all degradation.
Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world
