Chardham Project

12 Nov 2021 Chardham Project

Posted at 15:48h in Daily current-affairs by khyati khare 0 Comments

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Recently, the Supreme Court spoke of the need to balance national security concerns with environmental issues in the context of the Army’s request for expansion of roads under the ‘Chardham Project’ (CDP) leading to the India-China border.
This request has come in the context of the construction being carried out by China across the border. However, an NGO has opposed the expansion of the roads, citing environmental concerns.

Objective: The Chardham project aims to improve connectivity to the Chardham pilgrimage centers (Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, Yamunotri) in the Himalayas, making travel to these centers safer, faster and more convenient.
The project will widen about 900 km of highways connecting pilgrimage sites and the Tanakpur-Pithoragarh section of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra route (National Highway-125).
Role in National Security: The project can act as strategic roads connecting the India-China border with Army camps in Dehradun and Meerut, where missile bases and heavy machinery are located.
Implementing Agencies: Uttarakhand State Public Works Department (PWD), Border Roads Organization (BRO) and National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL).
‘National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited’ is a wholly owned company of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.

The project could destroy about 690 hectares of forest with 55,000 trees and affect an estimated 20 million cubic meters of soil.
The ruthless cutting of trees or uprooting of vegetation in the extension of roads can prove to be dangerous for biodiversity and regional ecology as well.
Species like Kalij Pheasant (Lophuraleucomelanos, Schedule-I), Tragopan (Tragopanmelanocephalus and Tragopansatira, Schedule-I) and various species of vultures (Schedule-I) are found here.
Although there is no link between the Chardham project and the recent Chamoli Glacier tragedy, indiscriminate explosions during road construction lead to cracks in the soil and rocks, which can increase the chances of flash floods in the future.