Patel statue under green tribunal radar

Activists claim that environmental clearance has not been obtained Activists allege violation of environmental rules

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s grand plan to erect a giant statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the “Statue of Unity” expected to be the tallest in the world at 182 metres, on the Sadhu Bet island on the Narmada near Vadodara, has come under National Green Tribunal scrutiny.

The tribunal has asked Gujarat to file a reply before May 8 to allegations of irregularities in the project made by activists.

A group of environmental activists from Gujarat has filed a petition with National Green Tribunal seeking a stay on the construction of the proposed 182 metre Sardar Patel Statue on Sadhu Bet island on the Narmada.

“The State has taken time to file a reply, and we are expecting it by May 8 when the petition will be heard again,” Lara Jesani, lawyer representing the petitioners, told The Hindu.

The activist said the project had not obtained the mandatory permissions required under the Environment Impact Assessment Notification.

Moreover, the site was on an active tectonic plate in a fault line area.

They said the statue was just one part of a big tourism project for which environmental and wetland laws and safety and disaster-management norms had been given the go-by.

The project would require extensive construction work on the active riverbed of the perennial Narmada and was likely to fall within a critical wetlands area to be notified under the Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2010.

No social and environment impact assessment had been done on the impact of the project and how the expected influx of migrant labourers and tourists would affect the livelihoods of the people living downstream for generations.

Action against officials sought

The activists sought action against officials and agencies for allegedly ignoring the law to go ahead with the project.

While the statue will be built over 20,000 sq.m of land surrounded by a man-made lake called Garudeshwar Weir, the total project area would cover around 1.2 lakh sq.m.

Phase I of the project will include the convention centre Shrestha Bharat Bhavan, hotels, food stalls, retail kiosks and other amenities.

Phase 2 will include the development of the banks of the Narmada up to Bharuch district; road, rail and tourist infrastructure; schools, colleges and universities for tribal development; an education research centre and knowledge city; a tourism corridor from Garudeshwar to Bhadbhut; and a clean technology research park and agriculture training centre.