http://www.navhindtimes.com/stories.php?part=news&Story_ID=021511
Rane allays fears over proposed rail terminal at Shelvona NT Staff Reporter Panaji Feb 14: The Curchorem MLA, Mr Ramrao Dessai today predicted that the constituencies of Curtorim, Shiroda, Sanguem and Cuncolim, besides his own constituency would be seriously affected after the completion of the proposed Shelvona river siding rail terminal, by way of pollution of iron ore transported from Karnataka. Mr Dessai expressed his views just as the Chief Minister, Mr Pratapsingh Rane, replying to a related calling attention notice, assured the House that the government would completely address all the aspects linked to the project, including pollution and ruining of agricultural lands, before starting this project. The calling attention notice expressed fear and anxiety in the minds of the villagers from Shelvona as the government had on January 24, 2006 issued notification under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, invoking urgency clause under Section 17(4) dispensing with the inquiry under Section 5(a) of the Land Acquisition Act for the proposed Shelvona river sliding rail terminal. "The agricultural land and trees will be drastically affected besides the lives of the people due to the dumping of iron ore/ manganese ore," it stated. Mr Dessai also pointed out that the people of the Shelvona village had run out of their patience and the government should take urgent remedial step to withdraw the Section and avoid Saleli-like situation. Earlier, Mr Rane in his reply said, "At present, from the information available, approximately 100 lakh metric tons of iron ore is annually transported from Karnataka to Goa. Out of this, 35 lakh metric tons of iron ore is transported through railways and unloaded at Curchorem yard. This unloading at Curchorem town causes severe dust pollution in and around the railway yard. The railways have provided the said yard with water sprinklers. However, the said arrangement is not sufficient to solve the problem." "The balance 65 lakh metric tons of iron ore is transported by road via national highway 4A from Tinai Ghat to various locations in Goa, through Molem-Dharbandora-Usgaon route. Iron Ore of non-Goan origin being very dry and very fine, is the main cause of dust pollution at Curchorem railway yard. The traffic of non-Goan iron ore will steeply increase in the near future. This situation at the railway stockyard at Curchorem will hence become unmanageable, both environmentally and logistically," he added. The Chief Minister also said, "It is therefore essential to have a separate state-of-the-art mechanised railway yard and ore stockyard for transport and handling of non-Goan mineral ore, with facilities such as enclosed conveyer belts, bottom unloading railway wagons, enclosed ore stocking yard and an adjoining barge loading jetty complex." The other two short-listed places namely Dukhorkond and Neura were found to be non-feasible from logistical and economical angles, Mr Rane said, pointing out that considering all the options available and environment concern being faced at present, at the Curchorem railway yard, the government has agreed to the site at Shelvona. "With the commissioning of the Shelvona project which is going to be the most modern project, the level of pollution will be so less that no one would have complaints against the pollution," Mr Rane said, adding that once this project is commissioned, the iron ore handling which at present is done at the Curchorem railway yard will be completely stopped, thereby entirely eliminating the massive pollution it causes in Curchorem. "The urgency clause under Section 17(4) has been invoked in the land acquisition proceedings only to speed up the acquisition process because of the alarming situation of pollution at Curchorem," he stated. The Chief Minister also stressed on completing the present project on war footing, in time bound manner. The Leader of the Opposition, Mr Manohar Parrikar, reacting to the statement of Mr Rane predicted that the project would never come up at Shelvona and both, Curchorem as well as Shelvona would be used as dumping grounds for the iron ore arriving from Karnataka, thus spreading the pollution in the area and beyond, manifold. "As per the Railway Act, the Indian Railway would not be responsible for the pollution created," he pointed out. -- Peace be with you! Gabe Menezes. London, England
