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Damagundam forest at risk: Activists raise alarm over Navy’s radar project

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Damagundam forest at risk

Hyderabad: Damagundam Adavi Parirakshana Vedika (Save Damagundam Forests Forum) has expressed serious concerns about the proposed Indian Navy’s radar station in Damagundam Forest Reserve. Titled “Project AMBER” is a Very Low Frequency (VLF) radar station being set up by the Eastern Naval Command in the forest spread over 2,900 acres. The group is urging the Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and the Union Environment Ministry to take prompt action to protect this ecosystem.

The project is set to be inaugurated on October 15, 2024, however, environmental and forest clearances were granted by the Union Environment Ministry way back in 2016 and 2017. The group claims that the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report has not been released citing national security reasons.

Earlier this year, the Revanth Reddy-led Congress government transferred a total of 1,174 hectares of forest land in Vikarabad district to the Indian Navy where it will set up its second VLF communication transmission station. This VLS station will be used to communicate with ships and submarines.

Some of the key issues raised by the environmental group include:

1. The independent environmental campaign group has said public disclosure of the EIA is critical for assessing the potential environmental and social impacts, particularly in terms of forest degradation, biodiversity loss, and groundwater capacity.

2. Captain GM Rao, officer-in-charge of project implementation and management team stated that only 899 trees would be cut. Later, the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) provided a drastically higher figure of 1,93,562 trees.

3. ELF radar poses considerably more severe risks to the environment and public health due to its hazardous electromagnetic radiation. This calls for an urgent public hearing to clarify the nature of technology involved (whether ELF or VLF and what that would further entail) and address the environmental issues.

4. The Consent to Establish (CTE) issued by the Telangana State Pollution Control Board with a 5-year validity on 20 January 2017 was expired on 20 January 2022. This means there can be no ground to inaugurate or commence the Project in the absence of CTE or its extension beyond 20 January 2022. Project inauguration and project work in the absence of valid approvals would also amount to contempt of the orders of the Telangana High Court.

Considering the potential negative impact on the forest’s role in flood control and groundwater recharge, the group emphasized that Damagundam Reserve Forest is crucial for flood control in the Hyderabad region.