Chennai has no water, the climate has gone for a toss and instead of being more mindful of nature and our resources, deforestation is a rampant crisis even now. High profile roadways and bullet rains coming to India which will make travel faster for our people are also cutting down our trees at an alarming rate. Entire forests are being razed off, killing its animal dependents with it. The Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train project is no different. About 54k trees are to be cut for it to run its course.
Also Read: About 1 Lakh Trees To Be Cut For Mumbai-Nagpur Highway
The Train
A multi-billion dollar project, the train is cut down the time of travel between Mumbai and Ahmedabad. The cost of the project stands approximately at Rs 1 Lakh crores. This bullet train project is also being funded by Japan.
Environmental Concerns
According to the reports of the Maharashtra State Government, a good 54,000 mangrove trees are to be cut to lay down the groundwork for the bullet train. Furthermore, there are also flood risks associated with the cutting of this many trees all at once. And it doesn’t stop there. Many locals will also have to give up their land in order to make this project possible.
However, the people responsible for these horrific disruptions are maintaining that no harm is to be done. Such as this statement made by Transport Minister, Diwakar Raote in a recent interview saying, ” There will be no chopping of trees and there will be no threat of flooding to some parts of Navi Mumbai. The pillars (of the project) will be high and hence will not damage the environment much.”
In fact, a promise of 5 trees being planted for each mangrove tree has been made and it has also been declared that residents have willingly given land in return for compensation. Sounds a little fishy if you ask us. Either way, it’s dark days ahead if we do not respect nature and use our resources mindfully. What do you think?
Also Read: Floating Maglev Bullet Train That Can Hit 600 Km/Hr Unveiled By China