Supreme Court gives its nod to widening of Char Dham Road

The project includes the widening of 899-km of highway which largely falls in the eco-sensitive areas of Himalayas and a lot of trees will have to be cut down and a lot of hills will get affected once the project will start.

The Supreme Court of India has permitted the central government to widen the road under its Char Dham project. The government has pleaded in the court that the completion of the project is crucial as it has several strategic importance.

The apex court agreed with the government and allowed the project to go on. The matter had landed in the Supreme Court after a local NGO had red-flagged the environmental concern.

Of late, the hills in India have experienced natural calamities and environmental degradation and that’s what prompted the NGO to raise its concern in the apex court.

The project includes the widening of 899-km of highway which largely falls in the eco-sensitive areas of the Himalayas. A lot of trees will have cut down and a lot of hills will get affected once the project will start.

The road will create a corridor to connect the four shrines of Gangotri, Yamunotri, Kedarnath and Badrinath, all of whom, are religiously extremely important for Hindu pilgrims.

However, the government told the court that besides fulfilling the religious objectives, the main objective is the movement of the troops in the bordering areas which is linked to national security.

The top court though agreed with the government yet decided to constitute an oversight committee headed by a former SC judge - Justice AK Sikri. The committee will have representatives from environmental bodies to raise their ecological concerns. The oversight committee will deal with these issues also report to the Supreme Court after every four months.