BENGALURU: The Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) on Tuesday wrote to the Additional Chief Secretary, Forest, Ecology and Environment Department (ACS) to take a relook at a project proposal to widen NH-169A.
This is in view of a complaint by conservationists, environmentalists and members of Green Lives Shivamogga Trust, an NGO, to reject the proposal as the national highway passes through Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary, which is an eco-sensitive zone.
In the complaint, they sought action against the Deputy Conservator of Forests (DCF), Kudremukh and Shivamogga divisions, for allegedly favouring the project proponents.
Citing the Supreme Court order in the Godhavarman case, they stated that for any project to be implemented in forest land, permission should be obtained from the departments concerned. But in this case, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) started the project without obtaining any clearance from the forest and environment departments, they said.
Through the Parivesh portal, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) sought permission to use 11.6662 hectares of land in Shivamogga. Of this land, 3.4793 hectares are forest land, 1.484 hectares are deemed forest and 1.9983 hectares are reserve forest land.
This is not the first time that MoEFCC has written to the state government on the project. In December last, it wrote to the ACS to restrain from granting clearance for tree felling to widen NH-169A in non-forest areas. In April 2025, MoEFCC wrote to the ACS to look into the forest clearance for widening NH-169A between Megaravalli and Agumbe.
However, on August 12, the ACS wrote to the Deputy Director General of Forests to give in-principal approval under Section-2 of the Van (Samrakshan evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam Rules to divert 3.4967 hectares of forest land at Kolige, Hosur and Megaravalli villages of Thirthahalli taluk in Shivamogga district to upgrade it to a two-lane road with paved shoulder from existing intermediate road of NH-169(A) in favour of MoRTH.