Girnar Mountain Ropeway Rahul Gandhi Junagadh City News Gujarat India

Rahul Gandhi Summons Junagadh Congress Men for Girnar Rope Way Issue.

In a youth vision program 2010 held to import training to congress elected office bearers in the presence of all India congress general secretary Shri Rahul Gandhi at Koba of Gandhinagar from 19-1-10 to 22-1-10 the team of representation to Shri Rahul Gandhi regarding the issues of Girnar Mountain Ropeway dark zone, railway forest department and fishermen.

In present to this Rahul Gandhi invited the youth congress worker.

The youth team of Junagadh City Gujarat also explained to Shri Rahul Gandhi as to in what way the central government would be helpful in connection with the above issues. In this context Shri Rahul Gandhi Summoned five members of youth congress and three

Remember of Junagadh Municipal Corporation to Gandhi in Issue of Girnar Parvat Ropeway and asked congress secretary Shri Jintendra Sinh to take up the matter, with the union forest suitable action for getting the sanction for the same.

Girnar Hill Mountain Wildlife Forest Junagadh News Gujarat India

MP says Kuno Palpu sanctuary can house 60 Asiatic lions.

Waiting anxiously to bring the 'king of the jungle – Asiatic Lions' to Kuno Palpur sanctuary, Madhya Pradesh Government has claimed that the park spread over 900 sq kms can house as many as 60 Asiatic lions.

With Gujarat Government refusing to part with its "pride" from Girnar forests which is the only habitat of lions in the country, the Center has proposed "soft release" of the zoo-bred lions in Kuno Palpur sanctuary as an alternate home to the animal.

The Centre has already identified pure-gene Asiatic lions in the Delhi and Hyderabad zoos for relocating them in Kuno Palpur with an aim to strengthen the population of the endangered species in the country.

"Almost 60 lions can be accommodated in the sanctuary having 900 sq km of buffer area.

Girnar Mountain Parvat Temples Ropeway Project Junagadh News Gujarat India

Girnar Ropeway Project to temple put on hold to "save" vultures.

The Center has put on hold the proposed parvat ropeway project to Gujarat's religious shrine atop Mount Girnar citing threat to the nesting of endangered vultures in the region.

The Standing Committee of National Board for Wildlife chaired by union environment minister Jairam Ramesh at a recent meeting has asked a team of conservationists to visit the site and study the impact of the proposed project before deciding its fate.

"Girnar wildlife sanctuary is the only known colony of long-billed vultures in Gujarat. If the ropeway passes through the trees housing vulture nests, it will be a disaster," Asad Rehmani, a prominent conservationist from Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) and committee member, said.

He said 121 vultures (long-billed and white-beaked species vultures) were counted in the region in 2005 which have declined to 79, according to the 2007 census.

He said the environment impact assessment report submitted by a private firm Usha Breco Ltd seeking to construct the ropeway was not factually correct with particular reference to faunal diversity of the area.

The committee also observed the project seeking diversion of around seven hectares of Girnar forest land was yet to get environmental clearance.

However, the Gujarat Wildlife Department, strongly arguing in favor of the project, said it would only ease the pressure on the wildlife created by visiting devotees who currently pass through the jungle to reach the holy shrine atop Girnar Parvat, Junagadh City.

Wellingdon Dam Junagadh City Development News Gujarat India

Tractors plying on cement road in Gir.

In what seems like a gross violation of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, a cement concrete road is coming up in a part of Girnar Wildlife Sanctuary near Junagadh city.

The 2.5-km, 10-feet-wide road on Datar Hill is already constructed, but work is still on. Heavy vehicles like tractors are also plying on the road. Unfortunately, no one seems to care about this.

The road starts from Wellingdon Dam and goes to Hathipaga on Datar Hills. It's parallel to the steps going to Datar Hill and while constructing it many trees would have been cut.

However, forest department officials seem unaware of this. On being asked, deputy conservator of forests (DCF) Anita Karne said, "We are not aware of this but will inquire into the matter and do the needful."

"This road has come up in gross violation of wildlife protection laws. This can't be allowed," said a local who has been fighting for the conservation of Gir forest.

Junagadh Fort Saurastra Samachar

Wildlife board clears sanctuary land for Power Grid, Adani Transmission line.

The state Wildlife Board will soon send a proposal to the Centre requesting it to allow some industrial houses as well as government agencies to use forestland for non-forest purposes in the four protected sanctuaries in the state.

These four include the Girnar Wildlife Sanctuary, the Wild Ass Sanctuary in the Little Rann of Kutch, Velavadar Blackbuck Sanctuary and the Narayan Sarovar Bird Sanctuary.

A decision to send the proposal was taken at the state Wildlife Board meeting here on Saturday under the chairmanship of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi.

Among the main items cleared at the Board meeting were a proposal for diversion of 89.74 hectares of land in the Wild Ass Sanctuary for the power transmission line of Adani Power Limited, and another 241.59 hectares for the state-owned Power Grid Corporation’s transmission lines in the same sanctuary.

The Board also cleared a proposal for the diversion of 7.29 hectares in the for Usha Breco Limited (UBL) for power Girnar Sanctuaryropeway construction, and another 0.450 hectares each for Vodafone Gujarat Ltd and Reliance Communication Gujarat Ltd for laying fiber-optic lines in the famous Narayan Sarovar Bird Sanctuary.

It also cleared the proposal of the State Road Development Corporation, seeking the diversion of 4.40 hectares of land in the Velavadar Blackbuck Sanctuary for laying a six-lane Sarkhej-Vataman-Bhavnagar Road, and BSNL’s proposal for 0.315 hectares diversion In Balaram Ambaji Sanctuary for laying fiber-optic lines.

Pradeep Khanna, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife), told News line after the meeting: “All these proposals seeking clearance under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 will now be sent to the National Wildlife Board which, in turn, will forward it to the Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee for consideration.

The apex court will take a final decision on the proposals.” Khanna said the Board meeting also approved other proposals, including a 265 km-long “garland road” to be laid around the Gir Sanctuary, the setting up of Leo-genetic lab for Gir lions and other wild animals at Junagadh,

Besides creating a communication network for surveillance, management and protection of animals in the Gir Sanctuary.

Junagadh News – Girnar Mountain Temples Wildlife Sanctuary

Gujarat to denotify forest land for industrial projects

he Gujarat government will denotify 345 hectares of forest land in wildlife sanctuaries in the state and make it available for various industrial projects, utilities and fibre optic lines for private telecom operators.

The proposal was finalized at a high-level meeting presided over by Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi here Sunday.

The proposal will be sent to the National Wildlife Board and the Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC) to be forwarded to the apex court for final approval, a top official in the chief minister’s office said.

The CEC was set up to monitor and ensure the compliance of the orders of the Supreme Court on subjects relating to forests and wildlife.

The 345 hectares proposed to be denotified are in Girnar Wildlife Sanctuary, Wild Ass Sanctuary, Narayan Sarovar Bird Sanctuary (Kutch), Velavadar Black Buck Sanctuary and Balaram-Ambaji Sanctuary.