Ecologists upset with Centre bending rules for neutrino project in Theni dist

Chennai

“The MoEF has recently issued an official notification that will benefit the Centre to set up the neutrino observatory near the Madikattan Shola National Park. The boundaries of the national park have been declared as an eco-sensitive area on the sides leading to Kerala, but the same yardstick is not followed on the eastern side facing Tamil Nadu. This is a technical way of denotifying the buffer areas of a national park to ensure that the non-forestry activities are carried out,” explained R Sundararaju of Poovulagin Nanbargal stating that the Centre has to bend the existing rules to help the opposed neutrino project.

Earlier, the Centre’s environment impact assessment report and its consent was for the neutrino project in the middle of forests. Now they are trying to denotify the protected area for commercial and scientific activities, said wildlife activist K Mohanraj of Coimbatore. What is the need for such a project in pristine forest area, wondered Mohanraj stating that the neutrino observatory will be a disaster for the local public and wildlife restricting their movement? This project should be shifted out from Theni which is an abode for critically endangered flora and fauna.

According to TN Forest Department insiders, the recent notification by the Centre will exempt the proposed site for neutrino as a non-forest ecological area located outside the national park. When there is a national park or wildlife sanctuary jurisdiction there are buffer zone rules that prevent setting up of concrete structures, the denotification process decreasing the buffer limit will help the Centre to handle the eco legal issues that are pending before the appellate authorities and courts.