31 Agenda No. 5 File No. 8-56/2012-FC 1. The State Government of Manipur vide their letter dated 25.06.2012 submitted a proposal to obtain prior approval of the Central Government, in terms of the Section-2 of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 for diversion of 491.67 ha. forest land for construction of new Broad Gauge Railway line from Jiribam to Imphal as part of a National Project for railway connectivity to the State of Manipur. 2. Details indicated in the proposal submitted by the Government of Manipur are as below: FACT SHEET 1. Name of the Proposal Diversion of 491.67 ha. forest land for construction of new Broad Gauge Railway line from Jiribam to Imphal as part of a National Project for railway connectivity to the State of Manipur. 2 Location: State Manipur. District Tamenglong, Senapati, Imphal East. 3. Particular of Forests i Name of Forest Division Western, Jiribam & Northern Division. ii Area of Forest land for 491.67 ha. Diversion iii Legal Status of Forest Class Western Jiribam North Total land Reserved 0.00 14.75 0.00 14.750 Protected 237.328 0.00 5.216 242.544 Unclassed 219.366 15.01 0.00 234.376 Total 471.705 14.75 5.216 491.67 iv Density of Vegetation Ranges from 20% to 45%. v Species-wise and The forest land proposed for diversion contains diameter class wise 8,562 trees, 18,000 Melocanna baccifera bamboos and enumeration of trees 2,000 bamboos of other species. Important tree species available therein are Gmelina arborea, Artocarpus chaplasa, Schima wallichii, Quercus castonopsis, Michelai champaca, Phoebe hainesiana, Machilus bombycina, Toona Cilaiate, Mesua ferrea etc. The girth-class wise distribution of trees available in the forest land proposed for diversion is as below: Less than 100 cm: 4,022, 101 cm – 130 cm- 2,741, 131cm – 160 cm: 1288 cm, more than 160 cm: 511. 32 4. Vulnerability of area to Steep slope, Fresh cut and Jhum areas are vegetation vulnerable to erosion. 5 Approximate distance of The proposed site passes through Keiphundai proposed site for Reserved forests over 1.475 Km. diversion from boundary of forest 6. Whether forms part of No. National Park, Wildlife Sanctuary, Biosphere Reserve, Tiger Reserve, Elephant Corridor etc. (if so, the details of the area the comments of the Chief Wildlife Warden to be annexed) 7. Whether any rare/ No. endangered/ unique species of flora and fauna found in the area if so, details thereof. 8. Whether any protected No. archaeological/ heritage site/ defence establishment or any other important monument is located in the area. If so, the details thereof with NOC from competent authority, if required. 9. Whether the requirement It is unavoidable and it is to the barest minmum. of forest land as proposed by the User Agency in col.2 of Part-I is unavoidable and bare minimum for the project. If no, recommended area item-wise with details of alternatives examined. 10. Whether any work in Yes. Earth work for tunneling since Oct 2010 as a violation of the Act has National Project. been carried out (Yes/ 33 No). If yes, details of the same including period of work done, action taken on erring officials. Whether work in violation is still under progress. 11. Details of Compensatory The compensatory afforestation (CA) is proposed to Afforestation Scheme: be raised in 984 hectares of degraded forest land proposed to be diverted. Scheme for creation and four year maintenance of CA at an estimated outlay of Rs. 383.50 lakhs has been prepared. Certificate from the concerned Divisional Forest Officer regarding suitability of the land identified for creation of the CA has been enclosed with the proposal. 12. Recommendation DFO Recommended. CF Recommended. Nodal Officer, FC Act, The project will usher in all round development in 1980 the State of Manipur. Hence recommended for acceptance. State Govt. Recommended 3. The State Government of Manipur submitted following additional information in their said letter: (i) The proposal submitted by the Northeast Frontier Railway seeks diversion of forest land measuring 491.67 ha. for construction of New Broad Gauge Railway Line from Jiribam to Imphal in Manipur (National Project). The forest area to be diverted falls within the forest areas of Jiribam, Western/Tamenglong and Northern/Kangpokpi Forest Divisions in Manipur. The total length of the line is 125 km of which 115.30 km will be on forest land. The length of the line under ‘tunnels’ is assessed at 54.62 km. The proposed project is a site specific project and there is no other site where the works can be taken up in order to achieve the objective. The User Agency has informed that the proposed alignment of the railway line is the shortest and technically feasible route connecting important places in between Jiribam and Imphal. The total cost of the Project is estimated to be Rs. 3056.85 Crores (approx). (ii) The project is being implemented by the Northeast Frontier Railway as the User Agency. The main objective is to provide rail connectivity to the capital town Imphal of Manipur State. The proposed rail line (125 Km in length) starts from the existing Jiribam station of N.F. Railway in Manipur. In phase I, railway line between Jiribam (at Km 0/000) to Tupup (at Km 98/080) is to be constructed. For Phase-II, beyond Tupul and up to Imphal, survey is in an advanced stage of 34 completion. In phase-III extension of line from Imphal to Moreh has also been agreed to by the Railway Board. (iii) The forest area to be diverted falls within the forest divisions of Jiribam, Western/Tamenglong and Northern/Kangpokpi Forest Divisions in Manipur. The proposed project shall affect 8562 trees and 0.20 lakh bamboo culms. The details of species-wise and girth class-wise enumeration of trees is enclosed. The main forest type is Tropical Mixed Moist Deciduous Forests. The ruling crown density of the proposed diversion area is 0.45 for moderately dense forests & 0.20 for open forests, and assessed Eco-Class of the forest land is Eco-class-I. (iv) The proposed forest land for diversion does not form part of any wildlife Sanctuary/National Park/Protected area/Biosphere Reserve, Reserve sample or preservation plot. The forest type is Moist Mixed Deciduous Forests, partly Wet Hill Forests. Gmelina arborea (wang), Toona ciliate (Tairen), Quercus spp., Michelia champaca, phoebe hainesiana & Schima wallichii (Usoi) are the main species. The area does not have/possess importance from archaeological view point. (v) The forest land to be diverted for the above project is 491.67 ha. Since non forest land is not available, CA has been proposed over an area equivalent to double the diversion area (984 ha) in degraded forest land. DFOs concerned have drawn up a CA scheme with a fiancial outlay of Rs. 383.50 lakhs. The CA scheme envisages block plantation over 984 ha. and the scheme is given the required technical and administrative approval by the senior officers. The details are as follows: District Division Range Block Area W Circle (ha.) Tamenglong Jiribam Jiribam Kaiphundai 200 Pltn W Circle Tamenglong Western Nungba Kambiron 784 Pltn W Circle Total 984 (vi) There is no displacement of human population owing to the project. (vii) The Environmental Clearance is not required as per EIA Notification dated 14.09.2006. (viii) The cost benefit analysis as provided in the diversion proposal is said to be 1: 1.026. (ix) There has been violation of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 by the User Agency. As reported by the Conservator of Forests/Western Circle, breaking/clearance of forest land has already been made for 15 tunnels (6 at Awangkhul, 4 at Lukhambi, 1 at Nungtek, 4 at Marangching) at an estimated area of 0.40 ha each, thereby totaling to 5.00 ha. This amounts to violation of FC Act, 1980. Therefore, penal CA has been proposed. However, considering the importance of the project and its positive impact on the economy of the state, and limitation of the User Agency due to short working period, law & order problem, etc., minimum penal afforestation is proposed over an area slightly more than double the extent of forest land broken or cleared for the tunneling works i.e. 12 ha. 35 (x) The concerned Officers including the Nodal Officer/FCA have recommended the proposal. None of the assessment officers has provided any adverse comments on the proposal and it has been suitably commented upon by senior officers. The proposed diversion is not likely to affect the habitat of any endemic, threatened species of fauna or flora. There will be insignificant effect on the water body of the area. The general effect on forest ecosystem and biodiversity will also be insignificant. The project is not likely to adversely affect timber, fuelwood, MFP supply to rural masses. (xi) The project benefits cannot be ascertained in terms of monetary benefits. The proposed railway line will bring about the overall socio-economic development of the state. The Project is a national Project and is considered to be of paramount importance to the State. 4. The forest land proposed for diversion was inspected by Shri B.S. Kharmawphlang, Chief Conservator of Forests (Central), Regional Office (North East Zone), Shillong on 10th Oct,2012 along with representatives of the State Forest Department and the user agency. Additional information available in the site inspection report received from Regional Office (North Eastern Zone), Shillong vide their letter dated 30.10.2012 are as below: (i) Due to security reasons, the site inspection was carried out in 2 days i.e.