Supreme Court panel against rail double-tracking project in Goa

The panel, in its report on April 23, said a project of this nature will destroy the fragile eco-system of the Western Ghats.

The Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee has said it does not find any justification for undertaking the rail double-tracking project in Goa, which is being opposed by environmental experts. The panel, in its report on April 23, said a project of this nature will destroy the fragile eco-system of the Western Ghats, which is an internationally recognised biodiversity hotspot and also one of the most important wildlife corridors of the country. “Moreover, this doubling project will only be marginally enhancing the capacity of the most inefficient section of the railway network passing through the ecologically sensitive and bio-diversity rich tiger reserve, two wildlife sanctuaries and a national park,” the committee said in its 110-page report.